WORK1003 - 2014 - Sem 1 - Lecture 2 - BB - 3 Per Page

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Foundations of Work & Employment WORK 1003

Lecture 2 | Employment Relations Theories | 10 March 2014
Stephen Clibborn Work & Organisational Studies
Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Todays Lecture 1.! Admin & questions 2.! Short Essay Preparation 3.! In the news
4.! Employment Relations Theories

-! -! -! What is theory? Why do we need it? The key theoretical perspectives on ER
5.! Conflict 6.! Conclusion
1. ADMIN & QUESTIONS
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1. Admin. & Questions
2. SHORT ESSAY PREPARATION

2. Short Essay Preparation
Some Logistics ! Read the UoS Outline ! NB:
! Essay due before 12 midday on 2 April ! Submit essay online via Blackboard (Assessments tab) ! Word limit: 1,000 words (including in-text references; excluding reference list) ! See standard Business School policies for penalties for late submission and for exceeding word count here: http://sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/policy ! Dire penalties for plagiarism
! Essays returned and feedback given online
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2. Short Essay Preparation
A Rough Plan ! Read question ! Read question again ! Work out what the question is asking you to do ! Read article at least twice ! Read another two articles from articles reference list ! Write essay plan ! Draft answer ! Re-write answer ! Check referencing; structure; argument; sense (read it aloud)
(NB - see reading for next week by Pauk)
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2. Short Essay Preparation How to find journal articles ! http://www.library.usyd.edu.au ! Catalogue ! Databases (WOS resources) ! WORK1003 section

2. Short Essay Preparation Methodology ! How knowledge is found and formed ! How did the authors find out the information, answer the questions they set? ! Is it appropriate, rigorous, reliable? ! Types of methodology: o!Quantitative o!Qualitative -! Interviews -! Case studies o!Review
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2. Short Essay Preparation Good WOS sources ! Peer-reviewed academic work is the key to all research in WOS: ! Some examples of good journals relevant to WOS
! Industrial / employment relations journals / labour law / labour history: Journal of Industrial Relations , Labour and Industry, Industrial Relations Journal , Economic and Industrial Democracy , Industrial and Labor Relations Review, British Journal of Industrial Relations, Work Employment and Society, Labour History (Australia), Labor History (US), Australian Review of Public Affairs , Australian Bulletin of Labour, Labor Studies Journal (US) , Australian Journal of Labour Law ! Organisational behaviour / HRM / Management journals: Academy of Management Journal , Academy of Management Review , Administrative Science Quarterly , Asia Pacific Journal of Management , Australian Journal of Management , Business and Society , Human Relations , Journal of Business Ethics , Journal of Management , Journal of Management Studies , Organization, Organizational Dynamics , Organization Studies, Public Administration , Group and Organization Management , Human Relations , Journal of Applied Behavioural Science , Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Managerial Psychology , Journal of Organizational Behaviour , Journal of Occupational Psychology , Organization Studies, Work and Occupations
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3. IN THE NEWS
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3. In the news
! Coalition MPs plot to strip workers' weekend and holiday penalty rates Swan, J., et al, SMH 8 March
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4. EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS THEORIES
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The Stat e
Recruitment & Selection
Context
E/ers & E/er Associations
Pay & Reward
Theory
E/ees & Unions
Performance Management
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4. Employment Relations Theories
! We have defined ER: The study of the formal and informal rules which regulate the employment relationship and the social processes which create and enforce these rules (Bray, Waring and Cooper, p.9) ! Now we need to look at ways to examine ER . . . but first, the what and why of theory and ER? ! The employment relationship is a central concern in all employment relations theorisation - so what is it? ! What is theory and why do we need it?
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4. Employment Relations Theories The employment relationship is: ! An economic exchange in the labour market But:
! Labour is not (necessarily) a commodity in the same way as other commodities ! Employees bring their labour power or capacity to work in return for wages ! Employers hire this capacity to work, not actual work effort ! The management process is crucial to turning labour power into labour effort and productivity or commitment, effort and compliance ! Employment is a power relationship employee submits to authority
! Thus the employment relationship is an open ended relationship and an inter-dependent one
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4. Employment Relations Theories The employment relationship is also: ! A legal relationship or contract between an employee and his or her employer; ! A psychological contract between an employee and his or her employer;
! "The perceptions of both parties to the employment relationship, organisation and individual, of the reciprocal promises and obligations implied in that relationship" (Guest, 2007)
! A social contract that sits within a range of

-! contextual factors (society, economy, ideas) -! and institutions (organisations themselves, employer associations, governments, courts, unions etc) that regulate the employment relationship and some of the many issues that arise in that relationship (e.g. recruitment, pay, performance etc).
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4. Employment Relations Theories Theory What is theory? Why do we need theory? ! ! Theories are essentially frames of reference They:
1.! Bring order to our thinking 2.! Allow us to abstract - or think at a higher level about events and processes 3.! Allow us to explaining the causal logic of events and processes and to explain why empirical patterns were observed (rather than simply describing what happened) 4.! Allow some predictive capacity NB: theories are not guides to action they are not how to
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4. Employment Relations Theories Theories can have a significant
impact on scholarship and thinking in a given field including: ! Helping shape the scope of a field (eg they can help construct disciplines) Allowing the construction of definitions of fields and their terrain Allow us to build on, and to challenge and overturn, our understanding in a field

4. Employment Relations Theories Informed Description
! Surge in disputes under Fair Work (AFR, 9 March)
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Informed Description
http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3720658.html
Source data: www.abs.gov.au
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The S ta

te
Taxonomy ! A taxonomy to assist us re actors and Institutions ! The parties to (or institutions of) the employment relationship
E/ees & Unions
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Taxonomy ! A taxonomy to assist us re processes
Pay & Reward
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A little like Dunlops IR Systems model
The Stat e
Context
Pay & Reward
Theory
E/ees & Unions
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4. Employment Relations Theories Theoretical approaches to (ways of looking at) ER ! There are three distinct perspectives of the origins and nature of ER, each leading to a distinct approach (or analytical tool) to explain ER: 1.! a unitarist perspective (which informs human resource management (HRM)) 2.! a pluralist perspective (leading to neo-institutional approaches) 3.! a radical perspective (which enables a labour process approach). ! Largely differ Re: 1) conflict; 2) power; 3) trade unions; and 4) the state
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UNITARISM
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Assumption of a common purpose and shared goals, with no fundamental conflict of interest between labour and capital.
-! Conflict is an aberration resulting from poor communication or poor management (bad fit) ! Power even - all part of one team, but management has authority ! Trade unions are viewed as an unwelcome intrusion, competing for loyalty of employees ! The state has no role
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UNITARISM
Criticisms:
! What are the criticisms of unitarism?
! A narrow approach that neglects causes of conflict. ! Fails to explain the prevalence of conflict within organisations. ! Does not account for uneven distribution of power among employees and employers in the decision-making process
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UNITARISM
! Approaches within unitarism:

-! scientific management (Taylorism):
-! work study and the one best way -! establishment of work rules.
-! human relations (Mayo and the Hawthorne experiments):
-! emphasis on work groups and social relations at work -! less importance given to economic incentives
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UNITARISM
Approaches within unitarism:

! Human Resource Management (HRM) is often viewed as a modern form of a unitarist approach, that is:
! the management of the employment relationship primarily from the perspective of the employer.
! This can be seen in the main focuses of HRM:

! plan human-resource requirements ! recruit and select employees ! train and manage employee performance ! reward employees ! dismiss or retire employees.
! Hard and soft HRM

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PLURALISM ! Key post-war writers Dunlop (US), Clegg, Flanders and Fox (UK). Very influential in Australian writing (eg Dabscheck)
-! Conflict is inevitable: competing interests between the parties. ! Power is diffused among the main bargaining groups within the employment relationship: no-one dominates. ! Trade unions are viewed as providing a mechanism that legitimates employees rights to bargain within the workplace. ! The state is regarded as an impartial entity, whose primary function is to protect the public interest.
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PLURALISM
Criticisms:
! What are the criticisms of pluralism?
! Theory of pluralism is unclear ! Power is not evenly diffused in reality: -! it is is typically weighted towards management in the workplace -! Emphasis upon rational approach to conflict management: -! a form of managerialist thinking that obscures true conflict -! The emphasis on rules and regulations neglects process
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PLURALISM Neo-institutionalism
! ! Neo-institutionalism is an extension of pluralist thinking about the role of rule-making in the employment relationship. It sees that the employment relationship as governed by two types of rules:
1.! formal/informal rules 2.! substantive/procedural rules.
These rules are made in a broader context: as a result of the forces and imperatives of capitalist social relations, in society and in the workplace.
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RADICALISM
! What are the common features of the radical perspectives?
-! Conflict - fundamental and inherent conflicting interests between management and workers -! Power - uneven distribution of power between bargaining groups, within the workplace and society -! Trade unions their role is to challenge managerial control -! The state - protects the interests of capital ! Marx argued that capital social relations are based on a fundamental divide between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat ! Labour possesses labour power - essentially the potential effort that each employee offers. Potential labour does not always equal actual labour. Managements task is to convert this labour power into actual work and effort, in order to make a profit.
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RADICALISM Labour Process

! The labour process debate (arises from the radical tradition). ! Central theme: How does management maximise the conversion of potential labour into actual labour? -! Labour is not always compliant in this process, resulting in conflict between management and labour. -! As this relationship is open-ended, management seeks to establish methods for ensuring control, to maximise actual labour effort. They seek to explain how this occurs.
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RADICALISM Criticisms
! Preoccupied with conflict:
-! obscures any cooperation or shared goals between management and workers
! Class struggle not part of modern capitalism

-! Capital is not homogenous: competition and capital -! Under-estimates the independence of the state
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GENDER ANALYSIS IN THE 3 PERSPECTIVES

! Many critics of the three traditional approaches to employment relations argue that they are gender blind ! ER is inherently gendered in both historical and contemporary senses.
-! male breadwinner ideology -! Gendered labour market
-! vertically -! horizontally ! Without understanding and incorporating these issues into our analysis we have at best a partial explanation of the world of work
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4. Employment Relations Theories Theoretical perspectives of the 2011 Qantas dispute Unitarist / Pluralist / Radical ! Qantas has collective enterprise agreements with 3 key sectors of its workforce ! 3 unions bargaining on behalf of the 3 groups of e/ees:
! Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association ! Transport Workers Union (e.g. baggage handlers) ! Australian and International Pilots Association
! Industrial action by e/ees (some strikes) ! Industrial action by Qantas (lockout) ! Fair Work Australia ordered end to industrial action ! 2014 - mass redundancies
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5. CONFLICT
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5. Conflict Conflict can be overt; or covert ! Overt conflict
o! Strikes / lockouts o! boycotts o! sabotage o! pickets o! sit-ins o! work to rule o! bans o! not wearing required uniform
! These are collective and can be either pro-active or defensive

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5. Conflict ! Covert conflict
o! work to rule o! absenteeism o! sabotage - Qantas acted to avoid sabotage (AFR, 30 Oct 2011) o! turnover o! theft o! indifference o! slow performance o! failure to share knowledge o! whistle blowing
! Can be collective or individual, pro-active or defensive

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5. Conflict Explanations for workplace conflict ! Interests of employers and workers may collide
o! contradictory and antagonistic (Edwards 2003, p.16) o! employers exert control and demand productivity improvement o! employees are likely to expect: ! increased compensation for their effort ! interesting work ! opportunities to develop themselves
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5. Conflict Explanations for workplace conflict ! Hymans summary of the causes of industrial conflict
o! income distribution o! job security o! managerial control
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5. Conflict Three types of industrial conflict Strikes ! The Australian Bureau of Statistics defines an industrial dispute as: a withdrawal from work by a group of employees, a refusal by an employer or a number of employers to permit some or all of their employees to work, each withdrawal or refusal being made in order to enforce a demand, to resist a demand or to express a grievance (ABS Cat No 6321.00).
Note: this definition includes both employer and employee initiated action
! !
A strike is an employee-initiated work stoppage A lockout is an employer-initiated work stoppage

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5. Conflict Three types of industrial conflict Absenteeism ! Defined as: the proportion of employees on an average day, who were away from work on sick leave without being approved in advance (Morehead et al. 1997,
p. 72)
! Absenteeism can be seen as an early stage in the progressive withdrawal leading to voluntary turnover:
individuals engage in a hierarchically ordered sequence of withdrawal ranging from its most minor form to a complete break from the organisation [that is, quitting] (Rosse and Miller 1984, p. 201)
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5. Conflict
Absenteeism ! Research has been particularly interested in:

o! absence culturea normative belief in the legitimacy of absence taking o! job designthe larger the work group, the higher the absenteeism
!! autocratic workplace = higher absenteeism
Absenteeism reflects sick organisation (AFR, 7 Feb 2012)
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5. Conflict
Absenteeism ! Managing absenteeism

o! Drago and Wooden (1995, p. 131) have identified several management activities that can act to reduce voluntary absenteeism:
!! allow for flexibility and discretion in managing absenteeism !! job enlargement and multi-skilling !! participation in decision-making, fair treatment, good pay and job security !! improved communication to clarify expectations of employees !! ensure employees have career paths !! create cooperative workplace relationships
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5. Conflict Three types of industrial conflict Turnover ! Defined as permanent withdrawal from the organisation ! Voluntary labour turnover is associated with absenteeism:
o! work withdrawal => absenteeism o! job withdrawal => turnover
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5. Conflict Turnover ! Factors affecting turnover
o! perceived desirability of leaving the organisation:
!! key variable = individual job satisfaction
o! perceived ease of movement from the organisation:

!! state of labour market (availability of alternative jobs)
o! psychological variables predictive of quitting

!! employee dissatisfaction !! low level of commitment to the organisation !! contextual issues, such as training, supervision and job content, more important than pay levels
o! workplaces with trade unions have a lower quit level

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6. CONCLUSION
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6. Conclusion
! The employment relationship is more than just an economic exchange ! Theories recognise that different people look at things in different ways ! Three different theoretical perspectives, or ways of looking at, ER
a)! Pluralism b)! Unitarism c)! Radicalism
! Related to each of these respectively is a key analytical approach:

a)! Neo-institutionalism b)! HRM c)! Labour process
! Each of these approaches are competitors in seeking to explain the nature of the employment relationship:
! Each approach is based on different value judgments ! Each approach emphasises different aspects of the employment relationship ! Each sees a different role for parties and of their relative power
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6. Conclusions
! The employment relationship typically involves both conflict and cooperation. This is reflected in
o! wageeffort bargaining o! the conversion of labour power into actual labour
! Industrial conflict takes many forms

o! there are many more days lost to absenteeism than striking/lockout
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Next weeks lecture Critical Analysis in Essay Writing
! Beyond descriptive writing ! Making an argument ! Setting out your answer ! . . . and more
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References
! Bray, M. Waring, P. and Cooper, R. (2011) Employment Relations: Theory and Practice, 2nd Edition, McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia ! Dabscheck, B, (1983) Of Mountains and Routes Over Them: A Survey of Theories of Industrial Relations, Journal of Industrial Relations, December 1983 vol. 25 no. 4 485-506 ! Dunlop J, (1958) Industrial Relations Systems, Henry Holt, New York ! Flanders, A (1970) Management and unions, Faber and Faber, London ! Guest, D (2007) HRM: Towards a new psychological contract, in (eds) P Boxall, J Purcell and P Wright, Oxford Handbook of Human Resource Management, Oxford University Press, Oxford
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Foundations of Work & Employment WORK 1003

Stephen Clibborn Work & Organisational Studies

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

4.! Employment Relations Theories

5.! Conflict 6.! Conclusion

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

1. ADMIN & QUESTIONS

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

2. SHORT ESSAY PREPARATION

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

! Essays returned and feedback given online

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

4. EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS THEORIES

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Recruitment & Selection

E/ers & E/er Associations

Pay & Reward

E/ees & Unions

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

! A social contract that sits within a range of

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Source data: www.abs.gov.au

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

4. Employment Relations Theories

E/ers & E/er Associations

E/ees & Unions

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Recruitment & Selection

4. Employment Relations Theories

Pay & Reward

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Recruitment & Selection

E/ers & E/er Associations

Pay & Reward

E/ees & Unions

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

! Approaches within unitarism:

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Approaches within unitarism:

! This can be seen in the main focuses of HRM:

! Hard and soft HRM

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2

RADICALISM Labour Process

Foundations of Work & Employment | WORK1003 Lecture 2