Trade Union - an organisation whose members unite to protect their rights and welfare; members of a union tend to be united by either their place of work or occupation. The intent of unions is to strengthen employees in negotiations through collective bargaining, whereby the union is able to pressure employers with its overwhelming support.
Negotiating for increased pay and benefits.
Improving conditions of work, eg. health and safety risks, paid sick leave.
Supporting members with necessary legal advice, usually when they have been unfairly dismissed or made redundant by an organisation.
Employer Representatives - Organisations that represent the management team in the negotiation process. Employers adopt the help of specialist management consultancy firms and public relations firms to communicate with other stakeholders.
Employers’ Associations - Organisations that represent the general views and interests of all businesses within a certain industry in negotiations with unions and governments. Associations give employers the same strength in numbers as unions, and increases an industry’s influence on government legislation and actions.
Slowdowns - Employees agree to work at the minimum pace allowable and complete the minimum required of them under their contract. The intention is to reduce productivity as much as possible so that the business will face rising unit costs of production; this forces the hand of organisations unless they are willing to bear the financial costs of a slowdown. It is particularly effective during times of high seasonal demands or imminent deadlines.
Work-to-Rule - Similar to slowdowns, employees agree to withdraw any goodwill and do the absolute minimum they are legally required to do to avoid dismissal. Workers adhere strictly to all rules and regulations but reduce productivity and output as much as possible. Employers will not be able to legally discipline staff who are following contractual agreements, and could be forced into negotiations if they are unable to bear the financial costs of the drop in productivity.
Overtime bans - Employees agree to disengage in any overtime activity. Businesses often require employees to work overtime during periods of rising seasonal demands and imminent deadlines, so the refusal to work overtime could force the business into negotiations.
Strike action - Collective refusal from employees to work at all. Strike actions are usually reserved for major industrial unrest, and can only proceed when there is a guarantee of majority participation. Unions must legally submit a notice of intent to management before conducting the strike, but it is still nevertheless a very powerful tool, especially in fast-paced industries where a day of zero output could have a domino effect on the entire operations of the business (i.e. aviation, medical services).
Employer objectives include: lower unit production costs, remain competitive, improve productivity and efficiency, and increase the scale of operations.
Threats of Redundancies - Intimidate employees into giving up on fighting together with the union for fear of losing their jobs. Employers need not convince all employees, but convince enough such that the momentum of the union’s protests will be hampered.
Changes of Contract - Organisations can legally change people’s contracts of employment, if administered fairly. This could be seen as coercion as those who do not accept the new terms and conditions of the contract may simply be denied the opportunity to extend their employment.
Closure - Organisations may temporarily close the business as an extreme method of forcing the hand of unions. Employees will not receive wages if the business is closed, so it hands employees an ultimatum of whether the improved conditions they are fighting for is worth the risk of losing their job.
Lock-outs - Similar to a closure, but the business continues to operate, just without the employees involved in the dispute. The lock-out will eventually pressure employees to turn their backs on the dispute in order to return to their jobs and receive pay.
Conflict - a situation of friction or mutually exclusive goals between two or more parties. It is caused by disagreements and a lack of cooperation due to opposing perspectives on a decision.
Conciliation - The parties involved agree to use the services of an independent mediator to settle the dispute. The mediator meets with the parties separately and negotiates with each party as a representative of the other party in an attempt to reach a mutual compromise. Conciliators usually get the parties to commit to the compromise in writing, making the resolution legally binding.
Arbitration - The parties involved agree to use the services of an independent arbitrator. The arbitrator judges and examines the arguments put forward by the two parties before deciding on an appropriate compromise that will be legally binding.
Industrial Democracy - Employees are given responsibilities and authority to complete tasks and become involved in the decision-making processes of an organisation. Employers benefit from a more cooperative workforce who will feel more engaged with the businesses and hence have an incentive to increase productivity.
No-Strike Agreements - Trade unions and employer associations could agree upon an agreement whereby neither party will take abrasive action during negotiation processes.
Single-Union Agreements - Occurs when an organisation agrees to participate in negotiation but only with a single labour union that represents all its workers. The benefit for the employer is that there will be fewer parties to negotiate with, and the decision reached with the union must be followed by all employees involved in the dispute regardless of their agreement with the union.
Self-interest takes priority over organisational objectives (Geoff's Individualism vs Collectivism dimension of organisational culture). Risk-averse employees will only care about the possible implications of change for themselves rather than the benefits it may bring to others and to the organisation.
Preference for familiarity will cause employees to resist new practices as they feel safe and secure with their current situation. The fear of being made redundant or failing to adapt to changes is justifiable in the uncertainty that change implicates. Businesses can only combat this fear by assuring employees of their value, and offering employees training and other opportunities to adapt to changes.
Education and communication - Comprehensive education of the details and possible ramifications of the change in question can quash the doubts and fears of employees who were resistant to the change. The earlier the organisation communicates and clarifies its plans with its stakeholders, the sooner they will understand the rationale, and the sooner they will get behind the idea and support the change rather than oppose it.
Participation and Involvement - Involving employees in decision-making will make them feel responsible for the direction and growth of the organisation, and enables them the opportunity to see management’s perspectives when it comes to change. Employees will also be less resistant to a decision that they had a direct hand in making.
Facilitation and support - Assuring employees that the business will facilitate their adaptation to the changes being implemented will reduce the fear factor that causes resistance. Facilitation can be done through training, or providing support systems for those who will be made redundant, or providing counselling services to those feeling anxious about how the change will affect their standard of living.
Manipulation and co-option - This approach involves appointing a representative to those resistant to change who the business will negotiate with. This allows the business to focus on converting the single representative’s perspective on the change, which will be much easier than convincing numbers of employees.
Explicit and implicit coercion - Managers who do not want to deal with employees resistant to change could resort to coercion to force staff into either accepting the change or leaving the organisation. Managers could resort to threatening employees with disciplinary action, dismissal, lock-out, or refusal of promotion.