Trade Union Organisation and Collective Bargaining - Essay Example

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT: IS TRADE UNION ORGANISATION AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING IN TERMINAL DECLINE IN BRITISH INDUSTRY The onset of industrialization and the stages through which it passed marked distinct paradigm shifts involving trade unions in Britain. At each stage different economic and political situations changed perceptions about workers benefits vs. industrial productivity. The need to rally around or organize into groups to have more say for workers was, however a common feature. There were unions for a specific class of workers e.g. craft unions or unions representing a cross section of society - these negotiated more for ensuring better working conditions. The terms union and bargaining came to be used for indicating that workers' interests were protected and so were their skills for livelihood. In time these unions were acknowledged by owners of production facilities. During over a hundred years or more , the function of unions has been transformed and their activities now include negotiating for better health benefits, provisions for the unemployed ,the right to mediate who did or did not do a particular job, wages, with the management. In time, unions acquired separate legal status and could exercise the right of 'collective bargaining' - the right to directly negotiate with managements over wages and working conditions. If these broke down m unions could resort to industrial strikes in protest. The administration of these unions was broken up into local, state and international bodies. (Lamb, 2004) Unions aligned with international federations, acquiring more organized say. They could also choose to support political parties like the Labour Party of Britain. Unions stood alongside political parties which represented their cause and campaigned for candidates. Unions assumed so much power that they even contemplated a position for union members in the management of companies so that equitable benefits were shared with workers. But, are trade organizations and collective bargaining losing ground in British Industry - the case seems to be so unless trade unions can reorganise to the new equations. Recent history After the period of the late 1970's onward trade unions in Britain have steadily losing support as issues of productivity outweigh all others. The perception of Britain as potent destination for business has accounted the demands for better productivity and the agenda of unions is considered a negative influence in an age where industries prefer productivity and growth over worker benefits. What is interesting is that unions are today seen in Britain as actually disadvantageous to certain groups of unemployed workers, due to their propensity to recruit their own members. Certain other groups of workers, for instance m women have m in all fairness, been able to see better wages coming their way. There is informed opinion in Britain today which opines that labour is a commodity m with all its connotations of mass organization and benefits which is commanding an unfair monopoly - therefore it should be discouraged from gaining influence - similar to product monopoly. It can be assumed that trade unions are themselves to blame for this situation - considering that they have overlooked a natural human desire to live and earn well. Much of the misplaced zeal of unions is directed toward what they feel workers should get - not what workers may actually want to earn. Trade unions are actually being seen as an obstacle to worker productivity because they allegedly coerce workers to accept working conditions favouring diminished production which is seen to harm workers' interests,. Membership in unions has declined consequently. The powers that be in governing unions in the UK today seem to demand more and more for less and seem to shrug off honest work as a policy. As a result trade unions are seen to be national disgrace devoted to diminishing output and limiting growth - Minimum wages for minimum work - One might think. Socialist thinkers have tended to react viciously at such attitudes. As commented by a pro trade union newspaper writing after the demise of the chairman of GEC: 'He was an outstanding example of the British corporatist approach and its total bankruptcy and dependence on the state'. (King, 2006) British Industry - Performance As it turns out British industry does seem to have performed poorly in the past few years as more than 50000 jobs have vanished in the financial district of London alone, the corporate financial debt stood at almost 23 billion pounds. Comparatively, the Thatcher administration's pro market reforms and clampdown on labour unions reaped financial benefits to industry during thee 80's. The decline in British Industry may partly be attributed to spiralling labour wages which makes British industry uncompetitive and reluctant to produce its own goods anymore. Manufacturing industries in Britain make up less than 20%of the economy. (IMF, 2007) Though, happily, industry seems to be reviving well through leaner and fitter operations, and a robust Pound, Trade unions are in urgent need of a rethink to align them with changing ground realities. The might of the union has given way to the imperatives of the management. Outsourcing of jobs has been a trend unions could not foresee and much is being made of the disadvantage of local workers. The point is unions too have to reinvent themselves due to changing times. The next Industrial Revolution upon us and happily thriving - the age of Information Technology. In another paradigm shift, the focus has moved from typical bricks and mortar production to worker productivity services - intangibles which call for retraining and further education. The fact is direct negotiations with labour has been a recent feature in industry with organized unions being bypassed to get at the basic unit of modern production - worker skills rather than working conditions,- for it these which will help industry to stay fit and not worker benefits like 40 hour work weeks which trade unions seem so fond of demanding. Work will not be allowed to be taken back from capable workers and it is the British unions' priority to think sensibly to enable it to keep pace with this fight for survival. (Fletcher, 2005) The question one would ask is that, given that technology driven economies overcome typical barriers of space and time to find labour at the cheapest cost, how will organized unions in Britain find a role for themselves. Will they able to create a new category of worker to bring to their fold - will the new information worker really be eager for better wage negotiations As it is, surveys in the UK have shown that Britain lacks in skilled workers and even semi skilled workers need to be retrained to be prepared for the huge upheavals in economy requiring the skills of the Information worker. One possible part unions can play is as providers of 're-skilled workers' which means they might have to go back to their fold asking that they meet the challenges to survival . This will call for union leaders themselves to reinterpret the old doctrines and be partners to industry - otherwise they are likely to become completely redundant. Worker empowerment in industry is a relatively recent phenomenon - where managements give shop floor workers a say in how production should be organized and operations be leaner and competitive to ensure better profits for all. Unions could be very effective mediators here showing a way for workers to make more money will always make them heard - something British industry and workers have not been doing for quite some time. (John Storey; 2000) Unions will have to assume better negotiation roles vis a vis their members and be able to rally them around a more robust work culture which ultimately spawns more benefits. British trade unions will have to be lot more responsible. There is a school of thought which believes in the power of trade unions to cause widespread social change. In this scheme of change, a society governed by self managed worker groups will emerge and will even replace Capitalism. Well, in these dynamic times, trade unions in Britain if not even a wee bit close to casting such an influence, can at least ensure that workers are self managed. This calls for a sea change in the mission of unions - they have to find a way to ensure that workers achieve goals determined by production priorities without needing a mediator between them and management. The political role of unions is now irrelevant as even the Labour party advocated for privatization of state owned industry, ignoring them. Political clout is missing because unions in Britain simply do not have a substantial majority of people who they represent. As British industry witnesses the entry and takeover of some of its businesses by foreigners - critics feel livelihoods are threatened - but Britain is not complaining - the trend indicates the country to be a prospect or investment. Historically, social partnership and collective bargaining have never been popular concepts with various British governments. Britain overall has seen mostly periods of industrial domination interspersed with stages when unions were prevalent. Even when trade unions in other European countries m for instance , Germany were successful with industry - union agreements backed by governments which actually led to single market benefits , Britain's theme was 'break the backs of unions'. A report indicated that costs to the British taxpayer actually increased with the dismantling of the coal unions and the subsequent decline of the coal industry. The impact was more than pounds 30 billion, and worse was the social rupture in the mining regions. Other European nations have upheld the concept of Fundamental Rights including workers' rights, while government in Britain has always been reluctant to pursue this constitutional obligation. Going by the above there seems to be a clearly defined social goal for unions who can m for instance pursue the issue if education and training in different industries. Post the Thatcherites, unions, have stuck to the age old 'adversarial model' and have consequently lost opportunities for exploiting new 'labour market 'opportunities. Partnership with industry will in fact, encourage stale markets and investment - something which is slowly happening. This can lead to work process innovation and unions should uphold the new mantra - entrepreneurship. Why should the British Trade Union Congress (TUC) oppose enterprise when the prevailing social climate is so positive If the Toyota Company in the UK can roll out a plan to include older workers in production and create and sustain equilibrium of technology and human skills then such models should be facilitated elsewhere. (Redman, 2005) Some decades down the Post War period Europe has become an immigrants' paradise. The reasons - governments and industry there have worked out a social model which on the one hand brings the advantages of skills and technology innovation to bear on market competitiveness and ensures social stability through charters on unemployment benefits , more consideration for working parents , m retraining for workers in the event of company restructuring , food safety and enabling workers to chart out their future better, Britain need to integrate these models with or without the unions and economically, can reap fantastic benefits because the money market regulation of the EC has not touched the Pound - now at one of its best levels against the Euro. Britain, also a much sought destination for immigrants especially of Asian origin, owes it to its expatriate communities to give them better conditions at work and to enable them to plan for future generations. Industry can thrive even without t the unions, recent European social and economic trends have proved. (Torrington, 2005) Recent changes in British law require industry to recognise trade unions. Collective bargaining has been stimulated with unions able to work out more flexibility in work hours (note the change in stance from demanding 40 hour weeks). However, the reality is that the no. of employees (mostly in British public sector industry) fell by 14% from the 1990 level of 54 %. This is indicative of the political inclination to expose industry to market forces. Employee bargaining has been reduced in major industries like shipping, ports, newspapers and television.. In fact even major TUC leaders have emphasized free market based models of negotiation and partnership with industry. The rights of the individual have come into prominence and more so in British industry. Recent changes suggest that the worker has rights based on performance being enabled. The intervention of unions is limited to ensuring that benefits accrue. This is the point at which the challenge to collective bargaining really is strong. As one can understand from all the above, Unions have to be pro - market and creative in approach. (Edelman, 2005) One example of the news environment which unions have to function in is that of the former monopoly, British Gas Plc. Into the first few years of the 21st century, British Gas turned in a profit of about pounds 500 billion, which resulted in its turnaround from 1996 when it bled due to huge losses. The reason - British Gas now uses mobile technology aimed at obtaining customer satisfaction and ensuring the productivity of workers even at home. The 'at home' point is not to be missed. When consumer satisfaction is supreme, nothing but nothing else is more important than employee productivity. Does a productive employee really need a union to intervene on his behalf What would better working conditions mean in this context What better than the unions getting acquainted with the market and helping to upgrade technical skills. There is little sustenance for unskilled workers now in the UK but she / he should be able to get an opportunity to be re skilled. The unions can function as providers of skilled employees. This would extend unions to work at market research and project future needs. There have been examples in Asia where unions backed by 'Leftist' governments have contributed to hinder progress and destroy industry. Industrialisation is often spoken of in these regimes - without the strong will of political parties to enforce business legislation leading to growth. The Industry - union partnerships in the New Age of Industrial revival in Britain will be a role model for development and true equitable growth - After all, profits will do everyone good. The old economy is disappearing and even the term 'industrial worker' needs to be redefined to fit this century. (Beardwell, 2004) Trade union organization in Britain has opportunities for social engineering provided they keep their peace with industry and not dismay their members with anything to the contrary. Historically, they face their biggest opportunity hidden behind a challenge. They are quite alone now but can get back into the social revolution, unfortunately not engineered by them. No social transformation can be obtained by rigid ideology more so in an age where economic dependence is so vital. As the famous phrase goes -'It's the economy, stupid!' British industry seems the winner in this interface. (Kar, 2006) References: John Storey; (14 Dec 2000); Human Resource Management: A Critical Text; Thomson Learning; 2Rev Ed edition Torrington, D. Hall, L & Taylor, S; (2005); Human Resource Management; 6th edition; Prentice Hall Beardwell, I. Holden, L & Claydon, T; (8 Jan 2004); Human Resource Management; Prentice Hall Redman, T & Wilkinson, A; (December 31, 2005); Contemporary Human Resource Management: Text and Cases; Prentice Hall; 2 edition Edelman, S; (2005); Evaluation Techniques in International HR Management; Bloemfontein: ABP Ltd Fletcher, R; (2005); Principals: Beliefs and Knowledge; Believing and Knowing; Dunedin: Howard & Price IMF; 2007; Reports: 2006-2007; Paris: ADM Press Kar, P; (2006); History of Industrial Economics and Related Applications; Kolkata: Dasgupta & Chatterjee King, H; (2006); Management Principals Today; Auckland: HBT & Brooks Ltd Lamb, D; (2004); Cult to Culture: The Development of Civilization on the Strategic Strata; Wellington: National Book Trust Read More