2.6.2 Employee/Industrial Action
Influence of innovation, ethics and culture on
Approaches to conflict resolution employer-employee relations
• involves action taken to reduce tensions and manage • Innovation
conflict in the work environment
• businesses need to innovate to be competitive
• Conciliation and Arbitration - employers and employees
will agree to have a third party to resolve the conflict
• leads to the business being more profitable and
between them. In conciliation, the third party acts as a
creative
go-between and attempts to listen to both side demands, • can also cause stress and other problems in work
relays the demands to the other party, and through conditions
negotiation reach a compromise that satisfies both sides. • Ethics
In arbitration, the third parties’ decision is legally binding • employees seek greater transparency and challenges
and both parties must do what has been decreed by the in their work
arbitrator • being aware of their employees possible reactions to
• Employee participation and industrial democracy change can help a manager to force possible
• employees must be part of the decision making problems and avert them
process
• through building trust and honest relationships,
• reduce work stoppages so the employees feel trusted employee and employer relationships can run more
• links back to satisfying motivational theories
smoothly and be free of ethical dilemmas that may
• No-strike agreement
• is the promise by employees not to strike as a way of
arise
settling disagreements • an employee who may feel his or her cultural values
• Single union agreement - the employer only negotiates are being disregarded may see this as unethical
with a single labour union. Minimises disruption and treatment and pose problems for managers working
conflict as different unions may have different objectives in different countries with different populations
• Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Instrument • Cultural Differences
• sets out 5 primary styles for managing conflict • The Hofstede Multi-focus Model on Organisational
• forcing - one’s authority is exercised without concern Culture focuses on ways that businesses can
for the other party undertake change by acknowledging cultural forces
• accommodating - neglect your own concerns or
interests and allow the other party to have their needs
• define the action you wish to undertake and plan a
met
course of action
• avoiding - refuse to acknowledge the conflict • through surveys and questionnaires, collect data and
• compromise - both parties get some of the things define the possible restriction that would limit
they want attaining the defined goal
• collaborating - requires both parties to sit down and • once you have defined the actual working cultural
understand each other’s viewpoints to try and reach a organisation, you can define external restrictions to
mutually satisfying decision attaining your goals
• Next, an organisation can enact meaningful change
and hopefully avoid unnecessary conflict
Human resource strategies for dealing with change
• the methodology needs to include ways to get agreement
from employees about accepting change, planning and
timing these changes and communicating clearly the
changes that are to be made Reasons for resistance to change
• important to include the employee in the discussions,
both formal and informal • Self-interest - when an employee identifies their
• have sessions where employees can ask questions own interest above that of the organisation’s goal
• managers can create a team from a cross-section of the • Low tolerance - fearfulness of change and thus are
company so that all levels of employee input can be
resistant to it. Instead of being seen as an
considered
opportunity for growth, it may be seen as a situation
• time must be allows for employees to understand the
changes being implemented and feel ownership for filled with unpredictability and possible problems
themselves because they have to be included in the • Misinformation - if reasons for the change are not
change process communicated clearly, employees may feel
• implement the change in stages to get feedback at each discomforted and uneasy about it
stage • Interpretations of circumstances - people can
• progress needs to be communicated regularly have different perceptions of a situation. This can
• when problems are identified, managers need to lead to workers feeling that management doesn’t
communicate that they are aware and resolving them
know what it is doing
• communicate positive aspects of changes
• inclusion, trust, open communication and supportive
employee orientated environment
Influence of innovation, ethics and culture on
Approaches to conflict resolution employer-employee relations
• involves action taken to reduce tensions and manage • Innovation
conflict in the work environment
• businesses need to innovate to be competitive
• Conciliation and Arbitration - employers and employees
will agree to have a third party to resolve the conflict
• leads to the business being more profitable and
between them. In conciliation, the third party acts as a
creative
go-between and attempts to listen to both side demands, • can also cause stress and other problems in work
relays the demands to the other party, and through conditions
negotiation reach a compromise that satisfies both sides. • Ethics
In arbitration, the third parties’ decision is legally binding • employees seek greater transparency and challenges
and both parties must do what has been decreed by the in their work
arbitrator • being aware of their employees possible reactions to
• Employee participation and industrial democracy change can help a manager to force possible
• employees must be part of the decision making problems and avert them
process
• through building trust and honest relationships,
• reduce work stoppages so the employees feel trusted employee and employer relationships can run more
• links back to satisfying motivational theories
smoothly and be free of ethical dilemmas that may
• No-strike agreement
• is the promise by employees not to strike as a way of
arise
settling disagreements • an employee who may feel his or her cultural values
• Single union agreement - the employer only negotiates are being disregarded may see this as unethical
with a single labour union. Minimises disruption and treatment and pose problems for managers working
conflict as different unions may have different objectives in different countries with different populations
• Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Instrument • Cultural Differences
• sets out 5 primary styles for managing conflict • The Hofstede Multi-focus Model on Organisational
• forcing - one’s authority is exercised without concern Culture focuses on ways that businesses can
for the other party undertake change by acknowledging cultural forces
• accommodating - neglect your own concerns or
interests and allow the other party to have their needs
• define the action you wish to undertake and plan a
met
course of action
• avoiding - refuse to acknowledge the conflict • through surveys and questionnaires, collect data and
• compromise - both parties get some of the things define the possible restriction that would limit
they want attaining the defined goal
• collaborating - requires both parties to sit down and • once you have defined the actual working cultural
understand each other’s viewpoints to try and reach a organisation, you can define external restrictions to
mutually satisfying decision attaining your goals
• Next, an organisation can enact meaningful change
and hopefully avoid unnecessary conflict
Human resource strategies for dealing with change
• the methodology needs to include ways to get agreement
from employees about accepting change, planning and
timing these changes and communicating clearly the
changes that are to be made Reasons for resistance to change
• important to include the employee in the discussions,
both formal and informal • Self-interest - when an employee identifies their
• have sessions where employees can ask questions own interest above that of the organisation’s goal
• managers can create a team from a cross-section of the • Low tolerance - fearfulness of change and thus are
company so that all levels of employee input can be
resistant to it. Instead of being seen as an
considered
opportunity for growth, it may be seen as a situation
• time must be allows for employees to understand the
changes being implemented and feel ownership for filled with unpredictability and possible problems
themselves because they have to be included in the • Misinformation - if reasons for the change are not
change process communicated clearly, employees may feel
• implement the change in stages to get feedback at each discomforted and uneasy about it
stage • Interpretations of circumstances - people can
• progress needs to be communicated regularly have different perceptions of a situation. This can
• when problems are identified, managers need to lead to workers feeling that management doesn’t
communicate that they are aware and resolving them
know what it is doing
• communicate positive aspects of changes
• inclusion, trust, open communication and supportive
employee orientated environment
