Union-Management Relationships in Perspective - Essay Example

Union-Management Relationships in Perspective Part 1: Recognizing rights and responsibilities of unions and management Union-Management relationships are very important, both to the workers and the management. These relationships determine how effective and efficient the relationship between the labor unions and management will be. There are normally three stages in the labor relations process, the recognition of the rights and responsibilities of union and management representatives, the negotiation of the labor agreement, and the administration of the negotiated labor agreement. The negotiation of the labor agreement includes the interpretation and application of labor contract terms on a daily basis. The main people involved in the labor relationships are management and the union. There are other groups of people who are affected but not to a great extent. Labor relationships in the United States involve the following three assumptions. First, there is a conflict of interest between employees and employers. Employees aim at increasing their personal wealth through higher wages and safer working environments whereas the main of goal of the management is to increase the returns. This results to a conflict of interest between the two parties. The second assumption that is made is that employees have a right to pursue their employment interests within the parameters of the law in a free society. This is usually not the case since employees usually face some constraints which deter them from fully pursuing their rights. Finally employees are not required to join a labor union but if the majority of the employee group wants to join a union they should be permitted but in most cases, employees belong to a union. The performance of the economy affects the bargaining item. The focus when the economy is doing well will be different from when the economy is downsizing. International forces also influence bargaining in one way or another since no single economy operates in isolation. In the past few years union membership has decreased. This has been attributed to legal factors and structural changes in the job market. Chapter #2 - Evolution of Labor-Management Relationships There have been various labor organizations, the earliest ones dating to early 1900. Prior to World War I there were three major national labor organizations. They were the Knights of Labor (KOL), the American Federation of Labor and the Industrial Workers of the World. The KOL opposed spreading of technology in a bid to protect its members from being replaced by machines. The American Federation of Labor major goal was to improve the material conditions of its members through the existing capitalistic system. The Industrial Workers of the World initial goal was to overthrow the existing capitalistic system by any means necessary since they believed that employers and employees had nothing in common. In between World War I and World War II, these three unions experienced many changes and the ones which had better strategies were to draw a large number of members. Later on the American Federation of Labor and the Industrial Workers of the World merged which has led to an increased membership. Chapter #3 Legal influences The law determines whether employees have right to join labor unions and participate in the union's activities like collective bargaining without any discrimination. The law also stipulates the relationship between the various parties involved. Several acts have been passed over time to explain the rights and duties of each of these involved parties. In 1932 the Norris-La Guardia Act was passed. This law gave the unions a larger voice in raising their grievances while it reduced the power of the federal courts in making decision pertaining labor. The national Labor relationship Act of 1935 was passed following its push by the then president Franklin Roosevelt. This law was passed upon the realization of the fact that market forces alone were incapable of maintaining a stable environment and one favorable to employees. In the 1950's The Labor-management reporting and disclosure Act was formed. This led to the realization that most of the labor unions heads were actually abusing their offices as they were making decisions that only benefited them. Since then, various laws have been passed to explain more about the duties and rights of the parties involved. Chapter #4 Unions and Management: Key Participants in the Labor Relations Process. Trade unions and management of various organizations form the two main participants in the labor relations process. The government is also a key participant in this process. The trade unions are always in push for better terms for their members while the management is always concerned with reducing the cost of operation. This often leads to conflict of interest and normally one group if not careful finds itself to have infringed the rights of the other. The government comes in at this point where it stipulates the laws that govern the relations between these two parties. The government exercises its power through the courts. Through legislation the government sets the laws that govern the operation of the courts. The courts solve disputes between the two groups. Chapter #5 Why and How Unions Are Organized. Labor unions are formed mainly to represent their members in collective bargaining for better pay terms and working conditions. They are also formed with the aim of representing the members in disputes especially when the members fill that their rights have been infringed. They are organized in such a manner that enables them to operate effectively. Most labor unions in the United States are members of one of two larger umbrella organizations: the American Federation of Labor or the Change to win Federation, which split from the American Federation of Labor in 2005-2006. Both organizations advocate policies and legislation favorable to workers in the United States, and take an active role in politics favoring the Democratic Party but not exclusively so. The American Federation of labor is mainly concerned with global and economic issues. There are also private and traditional labor unions. The terms of operation of each of these are different from the other ones. Part 2: The Bargaining Process and Outcomes Chapter #6 Negotiation the Labor Agreement Employers and trade unions usually write an agreement on the terms of employment in a contract basis. This contract depicts the rights and responsibilities of each party. When the rights of the employees are infringed, the union seeks a support by the majority group and then files a negotiation. The union then negotiates on behalf of the employee. The extent of the union's negotiation is determined by the law since it is required to operate within the law. The law may differ from one country to another. In the United States, Unions are currently advocating new federal legislation, that will allow workers to elect union representation by simply signing a support card The current process established by federal law requires at least thirty percent of employees to sign cards for the union, then wait for around ninety days for a federal official to conduct a secret ballot election in which a simple majority of the employees must vote for the union in order to obligate the employer to bargain. Chapter #7 Economic Issues Economic factors affect the operations of labor unions to a greater extent. The performance of the economy will influence the decisions the unions make. During peak seasons, the unions will push for higher wages and better terms of employment whereas when the economy is downsizing the unions may contend with the lower charges. The rate of growth of the economy will also influence the unions in making their collective bargaining decisions. When the rate of growth is higher the unions will expect greater rewards and vice versa. The rates of interest also determine the decisions of the unions. Generally, the economy influences the decisions of the unions in all dimensions. Indeed the economy cannot be overlooked in labor negotiations. Chapter #8 Administrative Issues The government in one way or the other influences the activities of the labor unions. This is through the decisions the government makes. The decisions will affect the performance of the economy, affect social set-up and determine whether peace and tranquility will prevail or not. The government therefore to a greater extent determines the decisions of the unions. For example if the administration leads to ineffective judicial system, the people will lose confidence in the courts and consequently the unions will opt to use other means such as industrial strikes to resolve their conflicts. If the administration makes decisions that result to insecurity in the country, the labor unions will end up being rendered powerless and ineffective since there will be no good organization. Chapter #9 Resolving Negotiation (Interest) Disputes and Use of Economic Pressure The trade unions in resolving negotiations disputes normally use Economic pressure to their benefit. Economic pressure often favors the unions as the use it as the basis of their argument and they normally get support from human activist groups and other groups. This makes them to raise their voice as a large voice. A dispute can be in a stalemate but when the labor unions bring in the aspect of the performance of the economy a decision is likely to be reached at to their benefit. Part 3: Administering the Labor Agreement Chapter #10 Contract Administration Once a contract has been made, the parties involved are expected to obey the guidelines of the contract. Unless one of the parties does contrary to the agreements of the contract, the contract is just administered by the parties involved. In case of default by any of the parties, the court and the laws come in to enforce administration of the contract. This can be through various ways like through fines and other orders. These ways are not normally very favorable as they come with negative implications most of which are financial (William, 27). Chapter #11 Labor and Employment Arbitration Employees and employers occasionally face disputes. The disputes are normally common when employees feel that they rights have been overstepped by the management and the working conditions are not favorable. The dispute can also be the other way round. That is when the management feels that their rights have been overstepped. Arbitration is often usually the best way to solve these disputes. The parties come together through an arbitrator and agree upon on the manner to settle their differences. Chapter #12 Employee Discipline Employee discipline is vital for effective operation of labor unions. The employee ought to follow the rules stipulated in the agreement with the employer. He also ought to perform the duties and responsibilities allocated to him as per the term of employment. This discipline is important since failure to perform the duties may lead to legal consequences which may render the unions ineffective. It is therefore very important for an employee to be disciplined in his line of duty so that whenever he has a grievance, the trade union can be in a position to represent him. Part 4: Applying the labor Relations’ Process to Different Labor Relations Systems Chapter #13 Labor Relations in the Public Sector Labor relations are usually part of human resource management. It is the study and practice of managing unionized employment situations. Public sector labor relations are not normally restricted to unions whose members are employed by the government. These labor relations can be regulated by traditional law or through legislation. In United States, Labor relations in the public sector are controlled by the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and other pieces of legislation. Chapter #14 Labor Relations in Multinational Corporations and in Other Countries In the same way workers in the other organizations need, Employees working in Multinational corporations and foreign countries need a group which can raise their grievances. The international Labor organization guidelines are often used when dealing with the international workers. Multinational corporations for a long time have been perceived as being least influenced by national control but this is not the case since the national legislation determines their activities Works Cited Holley, William. Labor Relations Process. Cengage Learning, 1980. Print. Read More