2001EHR: MANAGEMENT- EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
Research Essay
(Individual)
DEGREE OF CHOICE OF EMPLOYERS IN CONDUCTING THE RELATIONSHIP WITH EMPLOYEES AND TRADE UNIONS
CONTENTS
Introduction: 3
Employer’s Choice in Employer and Employee Relations: 3
1. Level of Employee power present: 4
2. The potential benefit of a mutually acceptable relationship: 5
3. Issues of Employment Rights: 6
4. Potential Harms of Employer’s practice of Dictating Relationship: 8
Conclusion: 8
Introduction:
The relationship between employers and employees and unions has always been a vital aspect for the profitability and growth for a company. If there is seen a harmony among the two entities, then the company prospers and is able to accomplish its goals and objectives in a much efficient and effective manner. Our essay will attempt to resolve the issue that whether employers possess a degree of choice in determining the way they seek to conduct their relations with their employees and trade unions.
With the issue at hand our essay will develop the argument that employers do not possess a degree of choice in the way they seek to conduct their relations with their employees and trade unions. Our essay will focus primarily on the education sector in Australia, with an emphasis on the university level. The university level institutions in Australia are marked by employers, employees which primarily include lecturers and other non-teaching staff, and the unions that work for the protection of the employee rights. We will focus on the activities of NTEU as the role of unions in Australian universities. Our essay will be based upon the argument with regards to the level of employee power that is present in the organization in tod...
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...urce Management. 5th ed. Australia: John Wiley and Sons. 412.
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Van Barneveld, K; Nassif, R. (2003). Motivations for the introduction of Australian Workplace Agreements. Available: http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-115346132/motivations-introduction-australian-workplace.html. Last accessed 20 May 2010.
Weller, S; Van Gramberg, B. (2007). Management of Workplace Change in the Australian Higher Education Sector: A study of employee involvement provisions in workplace agreements. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management. 29 (2), 173-184.
Wood, J; Wallace, J; Zeffane, R; CHampan, J; Fromholtz, M; Morrison V (2004). Organisational Behaviour: A global perspective. 3rd ed. Australia: John Wiley and Sons. 355-356.
To conclude this analysis on the basis of the labor’s extensive history, Sloane & Witney (2010) propose, “it is entirely possible that labor’s remarkable staying power has been because of the simple fact that to many workers, from the nineteenth century to the present, there really has been no acceptable substitute for collective bargaining as a means of maintaining and improving employment conditions” (p.80). In the end, it is important to anticipate unions and employers presently work together to find solutions that will enhance collective bargaining strategies and practices to serve the interest of both parties.
David Brody argues that the rise of contractual or collective bargaining relationships during the post WWII era formalized the relationship between employers and unions, but simultaneously began to put a break on shop floor activism. Explain Brody’s argument and, where relevant, incorporate Weber’s theory of bureaucracy.
Harbridge, R. and Walsh, P. (2002), Globalisation and labour market deregulation in Australia and New Zealand: Different approaches, similar outcomes, Employee Relations, 24(4): 423-436.
Clutz, R. (1995). Labour and management: Working together for corporate transformation. Canadian Manager, 20(3), 16.
Moran, J. J. (2008). Employment law: New challenges in the business environment. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Before you can form an opinion on unions, you must first understand how they operate. Labor unions are organizations of wageworkers in a specific field that lobby their specific inte...
...e Bargaining, Managerial Prerogative and the Protection of Workers Rights: An Argument on the Role of the Law and Regulatory Strategy in Australia under the Workplace Act 1996 (Cth). Retrieved on April 9, 2013, from http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.law.unimelb.edu.au%2FE8812500-7599-11E2-84E10050568D0140&ei=t0RkUdT0K62V7Ab48IC4Bw&usg=AFQjCNEfV17R8n5eNatsPXKQRxB9bqvUig&bvm=bv.44990110,d.ZGU.
Throughout American history, labor unions have served to facilitate mediation between workers and employers. Workers seek to negotiate with employers for more control over their labor and its fruits. “A labor union can best be defined as an organization that exists for the purpose of representing its members to their employers regarding wages and terms and conditions of employment” (Hunter). Labor unions’ principal objectives are to increase wages, shorten work days, achieve greater benefits, and improve working conditions. Despite these goals, the early years of union formation were characterized by difficulties (Hunter).
The labor union movement over the years has shaped the way individuals work and live for both the nicest and unpleasant. Some would think the unions influence has created a power struggle between management and union leaders. In today’s time, some citizens insist the existence of unions are a must to aid in employee freedom, while others view the labor unions as just another problem in the line of progress. The purpose of labor unions was for employed workers to come together and collectively agree on fundamental workplace objectives. The rise of the union came about after the Civil War- responding to the industrial economy. Surprisingly at the least unions became popular within the 1930-50’s and began to slowly decrease, starting in the 1960’s on to today. Although, the popularity of labor unions has decreased, its importance remains to be evident with politics, journalism, auto, and the public education industries. The objective of this paper is to shine light upon labor unions, taking a closer look at the disputed issues of union ethics, concerns of union diversity, and the opposing viewpoints of labor unions.
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The laws and regulations surrounding Industrial Relations since the 1900’s have, at each reform, placed tighter constraints on the amount of power unions are able to exert. The reforms have also radically increased managerial prerogative, through an increased use of individual bargaining, contracts and restrictions imposed on unions (Bray and Waring, 2006). Bray and W...
Traditional literature in the field of labor relations has focused immensely on its benefit towards the employer and in the process equating it to working rules. This has been so despite the field being expected to cover the process of, labor management, union formation, and collective bargain; all which are anticipated to create a positive employer-employee relationship. This relationship is said to be positive if there exist a balance between employment functions and the rights of the laborer. Also important to note, is that this relation is equally important to the public sector as it is to the private one. Therefore, to ensure a mutually conducive labor environment exists, effective labor management process and inclusive negotiation program should be adopted (Mulve 2006; Walton, 2008).
Suffield, L., & Templer A. (2012). Labour Relations, PH Series in Human Resources Management, 3rd Edition
There are many different approaches and theories regarding industrial relations nowadays. In order to mount an opinion on which is the ‘best’ or most appropriate theory of industrial relations, each theory will have to be analyzed. The three most prevalent theories of industrial relations which exist are The Unitarist theory, The Pluralist theory and The Marxist theory. Each offers a particular perception of workplace relations and will therefore interpret such events as workplace conflict, the role of trade unions and job regulation very differently. I will examine each of these theories in turn and then formulate my own opinion regarding which is the ‘best’ or most appropriate theory.