Ir in Usa and Uk Most Importat

7/28/2019 Ir in Usa and Uk Most Importat

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Comparative IR Systemsin UK and USA

Presented by:Amit Thakur

Dheeraj DeshmukhPrerna Malhotra

Richa BiggheSwati KhannaShreyas Shah

MHROD, 3 rd sem


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INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS IN UNITEDKINGDOM

MEANING OF INDUSTRIAL RELATION :

Industrial relations are concerned with the systems

and procedures used by unions and employer todetermine the reward and other conditions of employment to protect the interest of employed andtheir employers and to regulate the ways in whichthe employers treat their employees.


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The industrial relations parties

T hree parties involved in IR:

EMPLOYEE

EMPLOYER

GOVERNMEN T


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Trade unions

Current trend trade unions in UK are focused towardsunion mergers.

Unlike other Western European countries, Britain has

only one main union confederation known as theT rade Union Congress ( T UC).

OBJECTIVES :Has no direct role in the collective bargaining

Considered as left-wing and as an important socialpartner with the British Labour Party

T UC is considered as coordinating and not controllingbody


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Collective Bargaining

T he collective bargaining trend in BRI TA IN nowfocused at the enterprise level, EmploymentRelations A CT (2002)

collective rights for T U and individual andrepresented workers A dvisory Conciliation A rbitration Service ( A C A S) T ripartite Council.

Both individual rights and collective rights disputeconciliation

A C A S appoints(experts) mediators and A rbitrators


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Role of government

Government passed acts to improve the status andfunctioning of T R AD E UNIONS in three ways:

By recognizing their legal entity

By providing voluntary registration with thecertification officer

By defining their functions, rights andresponsibilities .

Government also provided statutory recognition of the

employers association.


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Role of Government

Many of these legal rights emanated from thelevel of European Union, and the post-1997period saw a marked increase in the influence of legal regulation in the employment relationship.

Nonetheless, trade union membership continuedto decline, and in 2008 trade union density stoodat 28%. A s of 2009, the UK system of industrialrelations would appear to exhibit a mixture of characteristics.


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Role of government

A s of 2010, the effect of the crisis on the developmentof the UK system of industrial relations is unclear. T radeunions have responded to the crisis by calling for greater government intervention to support employmentlevels.

A t the same time, collective agreements have beenconcluded by the UK social partners amt company levelwith the aim of reducing working time in order topreserve employment levels

T hus, the IR system prevalent in UK relies ontwin mechanism of voluntary negotiation and

joint consultation for resolving differences andmaintaining peace and harmony in the industry.


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INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS IN USA

Growth of IR on USA

Collective Bargaining .

Strike( Boston T elephone Strike-1912):telephone rates increased but telephoneoperators salary half of that of govt. clerk .

Right to Organize granted by A mericanConstitution: Growth of T rade Union and freebargaining.Industrial relation governed by National Labor

Relation A ct 1935 .


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Unions in USA

Local Union: Works as collectors of fees and dues, solve important grievances local union power to call strike and negotiate

agreements without formal approval from NationalUnion

Officers of Local union- President, Vice President etcelected

National Union: Size varies according to number and size of affiliates Complete autonomy in fixing dues, formulate policies,

negotiating agreements, calling strikes and organizenew local unions

Private sector union members are tightly regulated bythe National Labor Relations A ct (1935)


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Two important Central organizations:1. AFL ( American Federation of Labour)-1886

1st and largest federation of Unions in US A . T he Federation of Organized T rades and Labor Unions

merged to form A FL Craft union Conservative as didn't

t challenge capitalism .

T

he A

FL was always hostile to Communists. Prohibition of child labor, a national eight hour day, andexclusion of foreign contract workers.

Most A FL leaders were not prepared to take advantageof the labor law reforms enacted during theadministration of Franklin Roosevelt.

Failed: couldn

t organize into industrial unions whenimportant sectors like auto, steel etc grew.

Most strikes were assertions of jurisdiction, so that theplumbers, for example, used strikes to ensure that allmajor construction projects in the city used union

plumbers.T

o win they needed the support of other unions, hence the need for A FL solidarity.


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2 . Congress of Industrial Organisation (CIO-

1935) Organise workers into industrial unions rather than focus

on certain crafts D issenters of A FL Later both merged to form A FL-CIO in 1955 which has

regional councils and local units all over US A

Now: 60 unions in US A and Canada affiliated to A FL-CIO( A merican Federation of Labour- Congress of Industrial Organizations)

Major activities of A merican Unions:Represent members at collective agreementsNegotiations over employment relationshipJoint decision with management


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Collective BargainingNorthern states typically model their laws and boards after the NLR Aand the NLRB. In other states, public workers have no right to establisha union as a legal entity. ( A bout 40% of public employees in the US A donot have the right to organize a legally established union.)In US, The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), covers mostcollective agreements in the private sector. T his act makes it illegal for employers to discriminate, spy on, harass, or terminate the employment

of workers because of their union membership or to retaliate againstthem for engaging in organizing campaigns or other "concertedactivities" to form "company unions", or to refuse to engage in collectivebargaining with the union that represents their employees.A t a workplace where workers have voted for union representation, acommittee of employees and union representatives negotiate a contractwith the management regarding wages, hours, benefits, and other termsand conditions of employment, such as protection from termination of employment without just cause.Sometimes there are disputes over the union contract; this particularlyoccurs in cases of workers fired without just cause in a union workplace.


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Decreasing Union DensityA broad range of forces have been identified as potentialcontributors to the drop in union density (the unionizedproportion of the working population) across countries.

T he first relevant set of factors relate to the receptiveness of unions institutional environments. For example, thepresence of a Ghent System (where unions are responsiblefor the distribution of unemployment insurance) and of

centralized collective bargaining (organized at a national or industry level as opposed to local or firm level) have bothbeen shown to give unions more bargaining power and tocorrelate positively to higher rates of union density.

Unions have enjoyed higher rates of success in locationswhere they have greater access to the workplace as an

organizing space (as determined both by law and byemployer acceptance), and where they benefit from acorporatist relationship to the state and are thus allowed toparticipate more directly in the official governance structure.Moreover, the fluctuations of business cycles, particularly therise and fall of unemployment rates and inflation, are alsoclosely linked to changes in union density


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Governments Role

A fter 1920s non-interventionist policy inindustrial relationsPromoted trade unionism Statutory andvoluntary procedures for settling labour disputesFree collective bargaining with self- correctivemechanism

LABOUR LEGISLATIONS IN US:Norris La Guardia A ct, 1932Wagner A ct, 1935 T aft- Harley A ct, 1947Landrum Griffin A ct, 1959


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Legislations in USA1) Norris-La Guardia Act-193 2

It established that that employees should befree to form unions without employer interference

Unions could enter into collective bargaining

No unfair employment contracts

T he act outlawed Yellow dog contracts, whichwere documents some employers forced their employees to sign to ensure they would not

join a union; employees who refused to signwere terminated from their jobs.


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2) W agner Act-1935

Earlier named: National Labour Relation A ct Protection of employees rights to organize Right to strike Secret ballot elections for representative

unions Engage in union activities, to bargain

collectively without coercion of employer Employer can bargain with union regarding

wage, bonus, terms and conditions of employment

National Labour Relations Board: for representations election and investigateunfair labour practice and remedy them.


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3) Taft-Hartley Act-1947

Named as Labour-Management Relations A ct

A mended Wagner A ct Balance powers of Labour and management

in collective bargaining relationship Right to self-organize, to form, to join and

assist labour organizations Injunction on strikes affecting national health

or safety Established Federal Mediation and

Conciliation Service( FMCS): assist insetting contracts without work stoppagesand maintains arbitrators to decide contractinterpretation disputes


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4) Landrum-Griffin Act-1959

Regulates labour unions' internal affairs andtheir officials' relationships with employers

Bill of rights for union members- equal rights invoting,

freedom of speech in union matters, Right to sue their unions No financial dealing between management and

union Protect the union members from possible

wrong-doing


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Reasons for decline in tradeunionism in USA :Employment from manufacturing jobs and other

jobs represented by unions( railroads and mining) toservices and high technological jobs

More white collar jobs and part-time jobs

Centralized collective bargaining (national and notlocal level)


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Comparison between IR systems inUK and USA

Industrial relations systems and developments play animportant part in determining economic, employmentand social outcomes and are thus a key area of comparison

Comparison of employment practices Studies about employment practices of British

subsidiaries show that they allow local autonomy andblend in more to the local style

US MNCs has shown that they are relativelycentralized and ethnocentric in their HRM and IRpractices.

In the UK, for example, US MNCs have implementedinnovative human resource practices and there is

evidence of parental influence from the US.


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Comparison

Comparison of Trade Unions : Many employers in the US and to some extent UK

MNCs come from a culture have a unitaristperspective.

T hus T rade unions and collective bargaining are

perceived as something to be deliberately avoided. In the US, for example, the non-union sector hasgrown rapidly over recent decades .

Trade union Organization :

D espite diversity and sometimes division atnational level, trade unionism in the current andenlarged UK is characterised by a high degree of unity and coherence than US A .


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Comparison

A common trend across the UK the US A is towardsconsolidation and merger of trade unionorganisations.

T he number of UK has been reduced by mergers inrecent years , while the number of member unions of most national union confederations has declined .

In the US A , the number of unions affiliated to A FL-CIO has fallen from 96 in 1985 to 64 today.However, many of these unions are still small, andthe 15 largest represent over 75% of total A FL-CIOmembership between them


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ComparisonTrade Union membership and density :

Overall, union membership has generally beenfalling across the industrialised market economies

in recent decades . T his decline seems to haveoccurred relatively uniformly in both UK and theUS A

Still, the average trade union density in the UK is

more than twice that in the US A .

In gender terms, unionisation levels are higher among men than women in the US A . T his reflectsthe pattern with low to medium in UK


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Comparison

Comparison of Employer Unions:

In the UK, there is essentially a single umbrellaorganisation (at least for the private sector)representing companies' employer and business/tradeinterests, though accompanied by separate SMEorganisations in some cases

T he US A has no identifiable national intersectoralemployer body with an industrial relations role.

A special organisation has been created to allow USemployers to be represented by a single intersectoralbody in international organisations and fora -the United States Council for International

Business ( USCIB )


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Comparison

Comparison of Collective Bargaining : T he level at which collective bargaining is conducted is

one of the most basic differences in industrial relationsbetween UK on one side, and the US A on the other.

Collective bargaining plays a key role in industrialrelations in UK . In US A , bargaining is a relativelymarginal activity

Issues in collective bargaining : In the US A , collective bargaining plays a far lessimportant role in setting overall national pay increasesthan in UK

the US A , the issue of working time currently seems tohave a relatively low profile in collective bargaining.


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Great Northern Stores,

UKBackgroundGreat Northern Stores : major departmental retail organizationwith 120 stores in UK

Sell range of foods, textiles, fancy goods and toiletriesFounded in 1890s by the Muller Family

Muller family prided in the welfare of the employees

Established itself as a leading national retailing organizationduring post war period.1980: 120 stores in various parts of the UK.


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UKExpansion Reasons:Changing and increasingly competitive environment.Growth of supermarkets and multiple retailers.

Pressure to reduce profit margins and trim quality standards tocompete.Foray into new customer areas.D ecrease in sales volume was the consequence.

Good housekeeping:Reduce in man power and costs while retaining employees atwarehouse.


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UKCentralized Management Structure:Merchandising by specialist staff at head office and stores.

Store managers losing their discretion to a department at headoffice and reporting to area superintendent and functionalexecutives at head office.


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UKLiverpool Store D ispute:Management policy: No recognition to trade unions andcollective bargaining for a long established family business.

Failed attempts by a union to recruit employees at Liverpoolstore.July 1982: Normal Monthly MeetingSales staff representative submitted a letter


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rea or ern ores,UK

Staff Managers threat to sack agitating employees prior to walkout.Subsequent strike by the staff outside the store and signing them for unionmembership.Communication between Personnel D irector and Regional Secretary of the

Union.Conduct of the secret ballot at Great Northern StoresResult: Employees preference to a staff association over trade union.

A ssociation of sales staff to one union and the warehouse staff to another union.Strikes by sales and warehouse staff at different stores.Emergency Board Meeting convened.


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UKIndustrial Relation ProblemsManagements unitary view of the organization stating that nolegitimate conflict of interest is permitted. No faulty

communication. Employee- management to have identicalinterests.No steps to ensure proper store management. No steps to dealwith employee problems at the store management level.Lack of communication channel and professional advice andexpertise to store management in field of staff relations.


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UKAlternatives open to the BoardFirst Option: Maintain Current Strategy

A lternative Strategy: Management will be forced to recognizemore than one union. Conciliation is the best possible solution.


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Q UESTIONS????

THANK YOU !!!

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Ir in Usa and Uk Most Importat