Human Resource
Management
Employer and Employee
Relations
The role and responsibility of employee
and employer representatives
Managers strive to ensure that there are
good working relationships at work
Poor working relationships often lead to
low morale and conflict (disagreements)
Extreme actions taken by the disgruntled
workforce include strike action or rioting
Employee and employer representatives
deal with sources of disputes on behalf of
their members and conflict resolution
Collective bargaining vs
negotiation
Collective bargaining The process of
negotiating the terms of employment between an
employer and a group of workers. The terms of
employment are likely to include items such as
conditions of employment, working conditions and other
workplace rules, base pay, overtime pay, work hours,
shift length, work holidays, sick leave, vacation time,
retirement benefits and health care benefits.
Negotiations is a bargaining process whereby 2 or
more parties attempt to achieve a mutually acceptable
result.
Employee Associations
Trade Unions
These are organizations that are
established to protect and
represent workers. Their roles
may include:
Giving legal advice
Ensuring a safe working
environment
Negotiating pay and other
conditions
Participating in the decision-
making process
Employee Associations
Staff associations –
generally internal
organizations that
represent the employees
in negotiations.
Professional
associations – similar to
trade unions, they
represent a particular
profession.
Employer Associations
Similar groups exist for
employers. They may
exist to:
Support employers in
lobbying the government
Offer technical support
Provide legal advice
Employee-Employer Relations
Employee-Employer Relations refers to the
relationship between employers and their
workers. This relationship is influenced by:
Pay negotiations
Negotiations about terms and conditions
Involvement of workers in decision-making
The degree of trust
How each party is represented
The culture of the organization
Bargaining
Bargaining is the process of negotiation
between employees and their employers
to determine the conditions of their
employment. Bargaining can be:
Individual (done by an individual
employee), or
Collective (involving an employee
association)
The Decline of Collective
Bargaining
Collective bargaining is now less popular
than it once was:
Membership of trade unions has fallen
Legislation has reduced the power of trade
unions
More employees are protected by other
legislation e.g. Health and Safety laws
More flexible working practices are now
used and people often work in teams
Conflict
Refers to a situation of friction or
disagreement between two or more parties
such as employees and employers
Conflict can cause:
1. Lower productivity –(less focus on tasks)
2. Lower motivation
3. Inappropriate behavior at work
4. Fuel the internal politics (incompatible
differences) within the organization
5. Hamper opportunities for collaborative
teams
Conflict
Should trade unions be
unable to reach an
agreement with
employers they may
enter into an industrial
dispute. This may
include:
Collective Bargaining
Go-slows (slowdowns)
Work-to-rule
Overtime bans
Strike action
Methods used by employer
Collectivebargaining (negotiations)
Threats of redundancies
Changes of contract
Closure
Lock-outs
Conflict Resolution (Resolving Conflict)
Conciliation is an alternative dispute
resolution (ADR) process whereby the
parties to a dispute use a conciliator, who
meets with the parties both separately and
together in an attempt to resolve their
differences.
Conflict Resolution (Resolving Conflict)
Arbitration
Both parties agree to an independent person
(an arbitrator – often sponsored by the
government) being appointed to help
resolve the dispute and accept that their
decision will be legally binding.
Conflict Resolution (Resolving Conflict)
Industrial democracy – employees are
given responsibilities and authority to
complete tasks (ie. they have opportunities
to be involved in the decision-making
process
- Employee participation and industrial
democracy help to increase productivity
because workers are more involved so are
happier.
Conflict Resolution (Resolving Conflict)
No-strike agreements – members of the
labor union agreeing not to strike as a
form of industrial action.
Single-union agreements – organization
agreeing to participate in collective
bargaining with a sole trade union that
represents the workers.
Resolving Conflict
Industrial Tribunals
These are informal courtrooms
where disputes are overseen by a
Chairperson who will then judge
on the case.
These usually deal with employee
complaints such as unfair
dismissal or sexual harassment.
Outcomes of Conflict
Compete – high concern for personal
outcome; win-only outcome
Surrender – high concern for others; win
for the other party
Avoidance – low or no concern for either
party’s outcomes
Collaboration – high concern for the
outcome of both parties
Compromise – moderate concern for the
outcome of both parties
Resistance to Change
Reasons why people are resistant to
change in the workplace:
Self interest takes priority over organizational
objectives
Lack of security when people are out of their
norms or comfort zone
Misinformation causes misunderstandings
Different interpretations of circumstances
Six change approaches
Education and communication
Participation and involvement
Facilitation and support
Negotiation and agreement
Manipulation and co-option
Explicit and implicit coercion
Exercise
Questions 2.6.1 –
2.6.4
