Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining - Essay Example

?Discuss, making the comparison between collective bargaining, conducted with trade unions, and employee involvement practices designed to secure themotivation and commitment of employees. Introduction The trade unions have earned an integral part in the modern industrial system. The constitution of the trade unions counters a more important dimension in resolving the industrial disputes emerging out of conflicting relationships between the managers and the industrial workers or floor staff. These people pertaining to lower hierarchy levels participate collaboratively in trade unions to achieve success while bargaining with the management for better pay and working conditions. The trade unions to make their bargaining process more effective take the assistance of ruling parties in the region. This helps in intensifying the process of collective bargaining taken by its members. The process of collective bargaining taken by the members participating in a trade union earns success by rendering collective stress on the management. Specifically, collective bargaining is conducted by the employees to better effectively regulate their payment and working terms in the organization (Flanders, 1968.39, 41). In comparison to the process of collective bargaining practiced by employees under the umbrella of trade unions the employees can also be encouraged by the managers to participate in organizational decision-making. This process helps in augmenting the factor of employee loyalty towards the concern and makes them more responsible in fulfilling their commitments to pursue end goals. The employees can be involved by the management to take decision in key areas and in key matters, which they feel to be affecting their personal interests. This process highlights a democratic face of the concern where workers are treated equally as managers. Differences solved in the floor levels through mutual understanding pave the way for better managerial action in achievement of organizational objectives. (Employee Consultation and Involvement, n.d. 3-5). Trade Unions help the employees to raise their voices. Without the formation of unions the employees feel the dearth of putting collective effort on the management. Again trade unions tend to wither away without the active participation of the employees acting as members. The twentieth century tries to involve employee voice in the workplace in order to establish a harmony. This was a newly popularizing notion transforming from concerns about industrial associations with collective rights to representation towards a very recent human resource management strategy emphasizing upon involvement of employees and their participation. The idea of voice was derived form two components. First, the practice of employee representation was inferred from the realization that the laborers have the legal influence on the terms under which they work and in order to bring about fairness they might render their suggestions in this context. The second component is employee involvement and participation, which acknowledges that the potential of employees can render, benefits to the organization (Taras, 2003. 293). The paper attempts to illustrate the different approaches (such as trade unions and employee involvement) of maintaining employee relations within an organization. Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining Trade Unions The nature of trade unions can be depicted as bodies built for conducting bargaining activities in order to achieve organizational objectives. Trade unions tend to bargain by standing in the existing social system without making any endeavor to change the social structure. The employees of an organization to achieve any revolutionary or reformist objectives do not construct the trade unions. Rather workers jointly participate to form a trade union with a view to better up their economic and working conditions. These workers are not driven by a political philosophy to form such organizations. Trade Unions only help the workers enhance the parameters of their own betterment. However trade unions do take resort of political assistance particularly of ruling parties to help them in easily achieving their end goals. The trade unions can be best observed as bodies created to control the activities of the industrial workers and in endeavoring to resolve disputes with management through the process of mutual discussions. This helps in the continuity of organizational operations from getting disrupted. The primary commitment of a trade union revolves in bettering the lives of its members and does not share this commitment to any concern or state. To achieve the primary commitment trade union bodies resort to the system of collective bargaining wherein workers collectively bargain with the management in augmenting their self-interests like better pay and working conditions. Through the process of collective bargaining the activities of the several workers can also be controlled to achieve stated objectives. It also helps the workers to regulate the working conditions in order to make them favorable in meeting self-goals (Flanders, 1968.39-44). Furthermore the trade unions can also be observed as a blend between the parameters of ‘movement’ and ‘organization’. This depiction earns ground for members participating in a trade union rely on specific sentiments, which they interrelate with each other to achieve end objectives. Thus workers participating in a trade union endeavor to design a common movement to intensify their bargaining process. However the parameter of organization signifies some internal statutes or rulings within which the people are required to function. In that the trade unions can allow or reject any action taken or framed by the workers in a collective atmosphere. Thus trade unions, which turned more active in events of strikes in the earlier days encouraging movements, desired to organize its workforce to become dynamic in nature. The organizational framework of the trade unions is responsible for granting vitality and potency to help them satiate their member’s needs (Hyman, 1975. 87). The employees can cause impact on the management to listen to their demands on the issue of better payments and better working conditions through the trade unions (Millward, Bryson & Forth, 2000. 84). Both the unions and some of the business houses, which were previously in conflicts, have been working together to allow the voice of the employees to be heard by the management or the employers. However with or without unions, the sentiments of the laborers can be directed through their representatives who negotiate with the management for the solutions. This entails an indirect form of participation. When there is a unionized set up, issues might be resolved through collective bargaining or an official process of dispute resolution. In the absence of union, the process takes place through discussions and consultation and hence is indirect in nature. Apart from the activity of collective bargaining and collective representation of the problems of its workers the trade unions also perform some other activities in different fronts. Trade unions can render impacts in changing the patterns of work performed in an organization. This affects the training methods in use by significantly altering them to meet end goals. The trade unions can also enhance their association with the political regime of the country by forming confederations. This strengthens their organizational position to satisfy collective interests of its members. (What do trade unions do?, n.d..8-11). Collective Bargaining The process of collective bargaining encompasses the group representation of the employees of an organization in resolving their disputes with the management. Through the help of collective bargaining the balance of power within an organization is well settled between the different organizational hierarchies. In fact, the system of collective bargaining can be observed to confer some distinct advantages. Firstly, the system of collective bargaining helps the workers and managers to mutually gain a large amount of economic benefit from the available resources. Secondly, in addition to safeguarding the interests of the workers it also confers a sense of dignity upon the working population working together as a group. Collective bargaining also bears some distinct features, which also can be given as follows. The workers under the canopy of the trade unions carry on the process of collective bargaining. Hence this process takes into consideration the trade union organization as a whole and cannot be referred to as an isolated process. Moreover in the system of collective bargaining the management team of the organization holds the dominating position. The results of collective bargaining are measured along two grounds viz. procedural and substantive. The procedural results of collective bargaining systems contain of rules that are permanent in nature. The realms of permanent rules contain the provision of framework that helps counter the activity of negotiation pertaining to different issues. These issues range from matters concerning production, conflict on the enactment of disciplinary rules and other such effects. The system of collective bargaining also helps in settlement of disputes emanating from the introduction of newer forms of technology and business processes in the organization. Apart from the derivation of procedural results, collective bargaining also hints in arriving at agreements of substantive nature. These substantive agreements mainly depend on two facets viz. providing settlement pertaining to disputes pertaining to the employees’ compensatory and working environments. Payment issues can range from disputes pertaining to rate of wages received, the policy and rates of overtime payment, and on other monetary benefits like bonuses. Collective bargaining also helps to arrive at substantive agreements regarding disputes on other non-monetary benefits like availability of leaves and ease of working conditions to grant flexibility. The system of collective bargaining reflects different types of actions for different sectors like private and public. The level of collective bargaining in the private sector countered a shift from bargaining with multiple numbers of employers as prevalent in previous days. The bargaining activities of employees at the workplace strongly impacted the level of agreements brought about in the industries by rendering limits. The private organizations largely worked to link the payment benefits to the nature of work performed by the individuals. This affected the level of bargaining practices for newer forms of work and payment structure emerged in the scene. The system of bargaining along multiple employers is still prevalent in the modern period. Similarly the collective bargaining practices along the public sector level also were affected by the existence of multiple numbers of employers, which caused the happening of centralized bargaining practices. In respect to public sector units the government acts as a principal employer who amalgamates the position of both public and private ownership to form composite business structures. Further with the advent of privatization several government undertakings like railways and other utility services were privatized, which affected the system of centralized, bargaining practices (What is collective bargaining? 3-10; Hyman, 1989, 81). Bargaining is often considered as a symbol of political might which is used in countries like America to draw a resolution to an ongoing conflict. However consultation aims at drawing the views of the aggrieved party to incorporate their decisions to form a mutual resolution (O’Riordian, 1981.236-238). Consultation and employee involvement Employees’ involvement in the process of operations and the system encompasses consultations on a regular basis. This process of consultation involves a face-to-face conversation between the managers and the workers. When the managers conduct this as a part of their duty in the organization it is referred as direct managerial consultation. The main idea regarding employee consultation and participation centers on the flow of information as well as opinions amongst the employees and the management. Tools such as “inhouse newspapers, information bulletins, employee reports, operating manuals, occupational health and safety committees, meetings of representative, and employee-directed, inhouse audio-visual communication, and mass meetings” (Campling & Gollan, 19) help in the process of consultation. In case of non-union organizations direct communication or consultation and employee-involvement methods are preferred. This is typical of the American organizations. Such approaches are often supported by a principle against trade unions and anti-collective framework. Different forms of employee participation include “works councils, joint consultative committees, quality circles and forms of financial involvement’ (Campling, and Gollan, 1999. 20) Improved employee relations has been deduced as the key to successful businesses. In fact efficiency of employees improve owing to the flexible work practices and more intense participation of the employees along with consultation. Bargaining with and without Trade Unions Employees working in an organization sometimes feel that the concern that the organization they are working for are not helping them to satisfy their personal goals. The organizational staff employed at lower levels feels a rift of understanding between them and those working in higher hierarchies like managers. These people feel that people acting as managers are thwarting their personal interests. This effect compels the employees to consolidate themselves in specific groups or rather unionize themselves. The number of workers having registered in the trade unions around the world tends to constitute around one-fifth of the total number of workers working on a global scale. The trade unions operating on a global scale tend to have such large number of workers for these people posses a feeling that these unions would help them solve the problems of getting a better pay and better standards of workplace conditions. However with the change in the industrial circle the growth and dependency over the labour unions have become a little stagnated. The employers of many organizations around the world are not showing high amount of interests to the labour unions and are avoiding recognizing them. Thus the membership patterns in these trade union organizations are gradually declining with the passage of time. The level of decline in the membership rates in the trade unions can be most observed in case of open market economies of developed countries like United States and United Kingdom. Estimates show that the rate of change in the density parameters of the trade unions based in the open market economies came down by around 21 percent during the period ranging from 1980 to 2000. (Bacon, 2009. 209-212) Further estimates show that the number of people who took resort to the system of collective bargaining to resolve their organizational disputes came down by around 18 percent in the open market economies along the same period from 1980 to 2000. This decline in the membership rates in the trade unions in such developed economies was analyzed as the failure of the trade unions to effectively hold back their membership force. The lack of organizing capacity of these trade unions prompted to the rapid decline of the membership rates. Moreover the decline in the rates of manufacturing organizations in developed economies like United Kingdom also caused the decline in industrial workers bargaining for payment and work issues. This fact also led to the decline in the membership levels of the trade unions. (Bacon, 2009. 212-214) The availability of the trade unions was of a great help to the workers who could raise collective voices to lay impact on the management. Decline of such impacted the working population, as the managerial workforce did simply not entertain personal voices. Similarly the salary and wage structure of the employees working in a unionized pattern were found to be far greater than those operating under non-unionized form. This shows the decline in the voice levels of the workers with the decline in the degree of trade unions. Employers on the other hand have been largely benefitted with the decline in the number of trade unions. Decrease in the number of trade unions signified a reduction in the cost of business operations, as employers felt free to decide on the income levels. (Fox, 1966, 7) The gradual vanishing of the trade unions can also be observed from the alteration in the working patterns of such. Trade Unions in developed economies endeavored to reconcile a balance with the employers without resorting to bargaining practices. This in turn affected the existence of the same. Rendering high amount of amicability threatened their very existence by dissolving them in many countries (Cole, 1939.539). The bargaining activity of the trade unions becomes greatly effective when it results in a very strong relation between the parties on either side. A strong understanding between the management and the unions helps them to share highly confidential information and involves concealed discussions among themselves. Such a condition provokes the parties to set priorities in protecting the interests of each other. Furthermore this strong bargaining relationship between the parties becomes effective when such parties share an equivalent strong position in regards to each other. A weaker party fails to render considerable impact on the other side to arrive at a common understanding. Trade unions, which earned success in developing a strong bargaining relationship with the employer circle, earned the advantage of changing organizational procedures. Thus organizational issues of paramount importance became directed to them to come at common resolutions in the light of employee welfare. Thus the trade unions were set at high advantage points on account of such strong relationship with the owners and employers (Batstone, Boraston & Frenkel, 1977, 169,171,175). This strong position of the trade unions, which helped the employees raise their voice to the higher managerial levels, became largely affected with the gradual extinction of the same. Estimates show that by the close of the 1990 period the number of trade unions operating in developed economies like United Kingdom was reduced by around one-fifth resulting in loss of voice of the working class. Further estimates show that on a global scale the number of workers in organizations representing the trade union membership declined from 73 percent during 1984 to only around 64 percent during the period of 1990. This decline further continued till the 1998 period when the number of union presence drastically reduced to about one third in the global industrial landscape. The high degree of decline in the trade union was observed more with regards to the private sector of the different economies. The number of trade unions declined in the private manufacturing firms greatly from 77 percent during the period of 1980 to only around 42 percent during 1998. This huge decline in the trade unions in developed economies was mainly attributed to the access of larger women force to the work cultures in comparison to men. This led to the reduced importance in the trade union movement. Further the reduction in the number of manufacturing industries and change of work cultures also prompted the decline of the same in such a drastic manner (Millward, Bryson & Forth, 2000, 83-96). Employee Involvement The process of employee involvement and participation are interrelated. Involvement of employees can be assessed in three stages – “parallel suggestion involvement, job involvement and high involvement” (Kirkman, Lowe & Young, 1999. 4). This relies on the extent of employee involvement. Participation of employees lies midway of job involvement and high involvement. Participation takes place when employees are asked to be a part of the job associated decisions and processes (Kirkman, Lowe & Young, 1999. 4). Representative participation is a part of trade union settings while direct involvement entails consultation in non trade union settings.Thus, like the method of collective bargaining another method through which the workers can extend their voices regarding several issues to the managers is through the system of employee involvement. The process of employees’ involvement, like collective bargaining focuses on the benefits and well being of the working population. However, in that the trade unions have no roles to play. Rather it is management’s discretion to let the working population increasingly participate in key management decisions to mutually work together to satisfy organizational goals. This process encourages the employees to optimal participation of the employees in promising to deliver individual commitments to help the organization as a whole to meet its objective. This pattern of workforce involvement in taking key management decisions signifies a democratic pattern in the organizational culture. Democratization encourages the managers to pay heed to the issues, which are troubling the people working in the floor levels to achieve their said objectives. Managers on the other hand must strongly work to totally erode out the problem troubling the working class rather than to arrive at changing the working patterns. The employees being given a platform to speak about their problems and issues, which are bothering them, feel more intrinsically involved with the organizational dynamics. This helps to increase a sense of loyalty among the people who start working strongly to render success to organizational goals. The ‘Employee Involvement’ process thus also helps the business organization to better manages their staff through reduction in rates of absenteeism and lower attrition rates. Employees through the use of this method feel more effective and do not get threatened to face future challenges emanating from the external world. Thus employees through the system of ‘Employee Involvement’ like the system of ‘Collective Bargaining’ can largely regulate their working conditions. In fact, unlike ‘Collective Bargaining’ where the employees had to depend on trade union leaders, in ‘Employee Involvement’ the employees can directly converse with the managers to find solutions to the problems. Hence it counters increased effectiveness. Unlike ‘Collective Bargaining’ in ‘Employee Involvement’ there is no need of taking to membership. Rather the employees can participate freely in taking decisions for their own organization. Employee participation helps in joint consultation activities with the management helps in arriving at effective decisions in key organizational issues. The managers through the consultation activities tend to regulate more control on the employees for fulfilling their commitments (Employee Consultation and Involvement, n.d.3-8). Conclusion With the advent of industrial development several manufacturing industries developed in various parts of the world. A major chunk of such industries were found in developed economies of the world like United Kingdom. Development of industrial civilization encompassed the growth of people working in these units. Majority of the population of the world took resort to these manufacturing sectors for earning their livelihood. The workers working in these manufacturing units with the passing of time felt to be pestered by the owners and employers. They felt of being robbed of their economic and occupational well being. This feeling made them accumulate in groups to constitute labor unions. These labor unions gradually developed into full-fledged organizations working for the betterment of its members. This created an increased pressure on the management and employer population by culminating a rise in the operation and wage costs. The trade unions, which worked on to settle, the disputes between the employer and employees fail to sustain its position with the change of industrial cultures. Thus modern industrial culture has developed the system of ‘Employee Involvement’ to encourage their employees to arrive at a common platform and resolve their problems and issues. This helps in increasing loyalty and in enhancing organizational productivity. References 1. Flanders, A. (1968), “What are Trade Unions For?”, Management and Unions, pp.38-47. 2. “Employee Consultation and Involvement”, (n.d.), Keele University. 3. Hyman, R. (1975), industrial Relations: A Marxist Introduction, Barsingstoke : Macmillan 4. “What do trade unions do?”, (n.d.), Keele University. 5. “What is collective bargaining?”, (n.d.), Keele University. 6. Hyman, R. 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