New! Hire Essay Assignment Writer Online and Get Flat 20% Discount!!Order Now

1011EHR Employment Relations

Published : 03-Sep,2021  |  Views : 10

Question:

Write an essay that argues whether employee voice mechanisms have removed the need for unions in the Australian workplace or whether unions are still a valuable way for employees to have their say.

Answer:

The working relationship is seen as a negotiating problem between the stakeholders and their interests leading to different employment outcomes. Australian workplaces have for some time faced challenges regarding increasing productivity and innovation; therefore, employee voice has often signaled a core characteristic in performing highly, innovating the workplaces and hence a predecessor to employee engagement (R., Brown, & G, 2007). The direct forms of employee voice have developed as a result of new human resource practices which indirectly and collectively voices out through the trade unions, mutual consultations, and collective bargaining. The view of an employee is best summarized by the effect of employee participation and involvement at workplaces. It follows, therefore, a routine aspect which includes the channel by which voice is expressed and a primary measure that the voice shapes out and impacts the outcome in a workplace.

The employee views are expressed directly or indirectly through the appropriate channels (R, A, & M, 2015). The indirect channel involves the expression of voice through an intermediary or collective representation through union or non-union.  Australian union memberships have gradually dropped over the years, therefore, employee voice channels have moved away from mass channels or associations to direct channels. Surveys for participation and representation in Australia have shown that employees fared well with a series of direct voice channels (David, 2001).

The channel has positively affected organizational outcomes through job contentment and improved employment relationship in the industry. It has also boosted individual work results such as confidence in the management and perceived impact of job rewards to the employees.  The positive picture portrayed by the direct voice channels in Australia, also suggests that unionized representation of employees in workplaces coincide in parallel thereby increasing expression of the employees. There is a problem that majority of employees in workplaces never join unions, therefore, the rise of non-union employee representation.

Australian union’s memberships have strategized so as that they remain active in driving for the voices of workers by creating voice gap professional services so that employee voices are heard. For example, childcare labor has some risk arrangements, feminization and small pay in the workplace. Unions have focused on real productivity and job performance by training and providing union voice for the safety of workplaces. They have identified more instrument voices to represent the unions by issuing the identity of the workers although they face legality of public service and democracy challenges. Nevertheless, most employees want the chance to have a say in matters that affect them at work regardless of the channels used to express the voices of the employees.

Proofs in Australia show that voice channels must be capable altogether. Interactions between employers and staff consequently provide opportunities for information distribution, idea generation, and discussions. Therefore, relations between the companies, workforces, and unions in the day to day running of employee voice remain fundamental. In generating effective employee voice, it is mandatory that an organization provides a timely reminder of unethical practices and effectively speaks up the union voice to the employers and staff. This creates expressively and opens negotiation for the sharing of power, facilities, and competition in workplaces.

The formation of unions can be drawn back to the 18th century when there was a fast growth of an industrial society that involved women, children, and migrants to the workforce in bulky. These impulsively organized pools of untrained and semi-skilled laborers after that developed trade unions which eventually were endorsed by the Catholic Church towards the culmination of the 19th Century. Today, employers have started to understand the significance of workers while employees too began to form Trade Unions to guard their welfares.  This has led to organizations recognizing that issues between them and staff have to be discussed and resolved amicably. They also protect themselves from exploitation by uniting through trade unions.

Therefore, trade unions are organized a group of workers joined to have their interests and goals well represented. The bottom line is that trade unions often have the belief of the employees in various workplaces (Randy, 2001). They believe that it protects them from the management under doings. Through having low self-confidence, a panic of job loss and individual management actions, they foster unionization. For example, a survey revealed that nurses form trade unions to protect them from disrespecting, poorly paid, dangerous and underrated employers. Memberships of trade unions tend to have higher earnings than non-unionized workers. They represent workers legal matters then provide better rights for the employees for example; they cannot be unfairly sacked.

The employers also tend to be highly inspired since their workers are better protected thus leading to improved productivity in the firms (Godard, & John T, 2001). There is a collective bargain which is the procedure by which agents of organization and the unions meet and discuss over salaries, hours and other terms and state of affairs in good assurance. It involves the process of giving and takes that wishes to arrive at a conclusion favorable to both ends. This process never ends since it continues for life and beyond and at no level does it compel another party to agree on specific details of the concessions as recognized through International Human Rights Resolutions.

The importance of collective bargaining power to employees ensures adequate wages, good working conditions, high morale and quicker reimbursement of complaints leading to high productivity. The employers find it easier to resolve management disputes at bargaining level thus reducing the cost of labor turnover and greater employee participation in making decisions for the organization. It also promotes peace in the society as a whole thus leading to the development of the economy for the country.

There are challenges in collective bargains when there is no dialogue between employees and employers due to unwillingness on one part of the parties represented. There is also the connection of trade unions and political parties which lead to the lack of limited participation for the members. Mutual rather than individual bargaining power has become necessary today. In a non-unionized setup, the organization mostly is worried about the needs of the median worker and may ignore those who are of age and less in demand. They are represented in both monopoly, and collective voice or Institutional Response face. When management uses collective bargain in the workplace positively, production, unionism, and enterprise significantly rise. In a negative manner, the unionism will harm the performance of the management. An example of collective bargaining as noted in sports, in case there was no settlement on the terms and conditions provided, a strike would occur hence no games for the rest of the season. In the past ten years, the national football league held strikes due to the lockdown of collective bargaining power struck between the NFL and the players' union in 1993 and renewed till then.

Modifications in philosophy and the range of different understandings of issues and events allow for a rich, broad knowledge of employment relations. Therefore, various interpretations are assessed on more trending core issues. Social phenomena are associated with labor relations thus its analysis creates conflicts. These causes power imbalance between the employers and the employees leading to the creation of unions which try to counter worker exploitation, but they cannot eradicate manipulation of employees (George, 2000). Essential pluralism has had a substantial impact on employment relation. It has reserved power variances, the role of the state & unions.

They argue that labor relations are much more than a single system held together by one ideology and individuals and groups who pursue their goals but are dependent on each other for existence. They tend to focus on collective approach over an individual. They emphasize on solutions other than looking for conflicts. The pluralism approach puts weight on the active and often devolved processes and results of employment (Noah, John, & Meltz, 2004). There is also the possibility of power balance and stability through custom practice and legislative bargain. Concession, negotiation, and allowances feature blatantly in the eye and mind of a pluralist.

In the Unitarianism approach of the employment relation, it involves protective approach where little room is left for conflict hence unions or employee influence take a big part in the management (Hyman, 2001). It harmonizes the power of Neo-Unitarianism thus employee rights are fundamental. It builds an image of family to justify the employee interests in an organization leading to a better relationship between an employer and the employee. It is believed that managers who undertake this form of approach totally create and facilitate good working environments for the employees (Budd, & Bhave, 2006).

In conclusion, collective bargaining can be advocated to be one of the most powerful methodologies to improve employee working conditions and her labor rights. Trade unions all over the world deploy this approach to discuss and negotiate better working environment for the workforces in various workplaces (Rollinson, 2004). Therefore, they are the voices of workers where they channel their employment issues and rights. Nonetheless, the current findings in Australia show that trade unions have decreased in number and impact for the employees. Currently, the employees are secured by some greater number of local and global institutions both consultative group and non-union affiliates which all pay intense devotion in improving labor settings.

Moreover, various administrations have become extremely open to the increasing effectiveness of energy capacity in the market and therefore pay greater consideration to employ and holding the best talent they have (Ewing, Moore, & Wood, 2003). Organizations are also progressively mounting to public financial accountability, by further considering better and easier labor employment relations (Kaufman, 2005). The four theories help in understanding the major viewpoints in labor relations hence they advocate for common ideologies in the industry.

References

Budd, J., & Bhave, D. (2006). VALUES, IDEOLOGIES, AND FRAMES OF REFERENCE IN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS (1st Ed.). Sage Handbook of Industrial and Employment Relations Nick Bacon, Paul Blyton, Jack Fiorito, and Edmund Heery, editors.

David, L. (2001). “IR and HR Perspectives on Workplace Conflict: What Can Each Learn from the Other?” Human Resource Management Review, Vol. 11, no. 4 (Winter 2001), (11th ed., pp. pp. 453-85).

Ewing, K., Moore, S., & Wood, S. (2003). The impact of trade union recognition under the Employment Relations Act 2000–2002 (1st Ed.). UK.

George, S. (2000). Open Society: Reforming Global Capitalism. New York: Public Affairs. (1st Ed.).

Godard, J., & John T, D. (2001). An Industrial Relations Perspective on the High- Performance Paradigm.” Human Resource Management Review, Vol. 11, no. 4 (winter), (1st ed., pp. pp. 395-429.).

Hyman, R. (2001). Understanding European Trade Unionism: Between Market, Class, and Society, Sage, London. A very thoughtful and articulate review of different union functions and purposes (5th Ed.). UK.

Kaufman, B. (2005). The Social Welfare Objectives and Ethical Principles of Industrial Relations,” in John W. Budd and James G. Scoville (eds.), The Ethics of Human Resources and Industrial Relations. Champaign, IL: Labor and Employment Relations Association. pp. 23-59. (1st Ed.).

Noah, M., John, W., & Meltz. (2004). Why a Balance is Best: The Pluralist Industrial Relations Paradigm of Balancing Competing Interests,” in Bruce E. Kaufman (ed.), Theoretical Perspectives on Work and the Employment Relationship, Champaign, IL: Industrial Relations Research Association. pp. 195-227. (1st Ed.).

R, M., A, S., & M, J. (2015). Employment relations: An integrated approach. South Melbourne: Cengage. (1st Ed.).

 R., S., Brown, N., & G, J. (2007). Employment relations in Australia. Milton, Brisbane: Wiley (1st Ed.).

Randy, H. (2001). Dignity at Work: (1st Ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Rollinson, d. (2004). The role of the state in employment relations (1st Ed.). Retrieved from http://nova.rambler.ru/cl?Dundon_Rollinson_sample_chapter.pdf

Get An Awesome Price Quote For Your Paper – Absolutely FREE!
    Add File
    Files Missing!

    Please upload all relevant files for quick & complete assistance.

    Our Amazing Features

    delivery

    No missing deadline risk

    No matter how close the deadline is, you will find quick solutions for your urgent assignments.

    work

    100% Plagiarism-free content

    All assessments are written by experts based on research and credible sources. It also quality-approved by editors and proofreaders.

    time

    500+ subject matter experts

    Our team consists of writers and PhD scholars with profound knowledge in their subject of study and deliver A+ quality solution.

    subject

    Covers all subjects

    We offer academic help services for a wide array of subjects.

    price

    Pocket-friendly rate

    We care about our students and guarantee the best price in the market to help them avail top academic services that fit any budget.

    Getting started with MyEssayAssignmentHelp is FREE

    15,000+ happy customers and counting!

    Rated 4.7/5 based on
    1491 reviews
    ;