EMPLOYER REFUSAL TO BARGAIN IN GOOD FAITH; NEGOTIATIONS; INDICIA OF SURFACE OR BAD FAITH BARGAINING; TOTALITY OF CIRCUMSTANCES – Failure to Provide Counter-Proposals

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The duty to bargain does not compel either party to make concessions. Insistence on a firm position is not necessarily evidence of bad faith because the law merely requires the parties to maintain a sincere interest in reaching an agreement, and even if the reasons for insisting on a particular position or contract term are questionable, if the belief is sincerely held, it may be maintained even if it produces a stalemate. The obligation to bargain in good faith merely requires the parties to explain the reasons for a particular bargaining position with sufficient detail to permit the negotiating process to proceed on the basis of mutual understanding.