Tag

Unions

Nov 19
0

Power to the People: How stronger unions can deliver economic justice

By | UK

Summary

This is a discussion paper covering the benefits of social dialogue, trade unions and collective bargaining. Using the UK as the basis for the analysis, six key benefits are comprehensively discussed: Trade unions and collective bargaining are good for workers and good for the economy; Workers who could most benefit from union membership are least likely to join and membership is set to decline further still; Public policy has contributed to the decline of trade unions, so public policy must be part of the solution; Government should promote a renaissance of collective bargaining to improve wages and working conditions; Trade unions should be supported to recruit members and to innovate; Trade unions should be seen as social partners in industrial strategy and for the managed acceleration of automation.

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Nov 19
0

Good practices in collective bargaining: A compilation of case studies from Pakistan

By | Case-study, Pakistan

Summary

This is a collection of case studies of collective bargaining agreements from Pakistan. It was arranged through interviews with key stakeholders in the state and factory visits to gauge the level of implementation. The study compares the case studies to highlight seven key points of good practice that can be used as a model for other collective bargaining institutions to promote effectiveness and cordial relations.

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Apr 24
0

The effects of unions on productivity: Evidence from large coffee producers in Guatemala

By | Social dialogue

Abstract

The general perception of unions in the Guatemalan business community has been that they have a negative effect on firms. Although this is a strong statement, there are very few studies of unionization in Guatemala, and most of them are only descriptive. This paper provides an econometric analysis of the impact of unions on productivity in Guatemala, specifically on the production of coffee. Although union density is low, we conclude from the empirical analysis that there is evidence that unions when present have a negative effect on the productivity of
large coffee plantations.

We use different estimations of a production function and the effect of unions on productivity. The first uses a union dummy and other independent variables, such as a capital proxy, the proportion of administrative and permanent workers, land per worker, total workers, farm elevation above sea level and a union dummy. The second uses these same equations, but with interaction terms between the original variables and the union dummy.

The results show that these other variables, when significant, had a positive effect on productivity. The only is total workers, which could be
indicating that diseconomies of scale are present. As for the interaction terms, when a union is present, the productivity of variables such as land per worker and height is reduced significantly. Also, it seems that capital has a larger effect on unionized farms productivity than on non-unionized farms. The presence of permanent workers on farms, both in unionized and non-unionized settings, has a negative effect on productivity.

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Apr 24
0

Collective bargaining: a tool for industrial harmony in Ghanaian industrial settings

By | Ghana, Social dialogue

Abstract

Collective bargaining has been recognised in almost all industrial settings as the most civilised way of resolving industrial conflicts and disagreements. The main objective of this paper is to determine the extent to which collective bargaining can effectively minimise industrial conflicts in Ghana, with particular reference to the brewery industry in Ghana. It is a means of helping to foster cordial management-labour relationships towards industrial harmony. The study was carried out with a focus on Ghana Breweries Ltd. The results of the study show that collective bargaining is a powerful and effective tool that can be used to minimise industrial conflicts and disagreements in industrial establishments. It is therefore recommended that employers should encourage the formation of trade unions to promote collective bargaining. It is further recommended that both management and labour should recognise collective bargaining as an effective tool for resolving conflicts and disagreements at the workplace.

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Apr 24
0

Violence @ work: A guide for SMEs to prevent violence in the workplace

By | Guide, Social dialogue

CNV International and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency present a new publication Violence @ work, a guide to prevent violence in the workplace.

The factsheet aims to support preventing and eliminating violence. It informs about characteristics of violence in the workplace, as well as its causes and effects. The guide provides tips to tackle and discourage violence at work in effective ways.

By sharing workplace initiatives of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), brands, unions and other key players, this guide explains how companies can contribute to the elimination of violence at work in their international supply chain. It helps SME’s to take steps to create a positive working environment where violence will not be tolerated.

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Apr 20
0

The Impact of Union-Management Cooperation on Productivity and Employment

By | Social dialogue

Abstract

This study examines the effects of union-management cooperative programs on productivity and employment. The author collected productivity and employment data for each of nine manufacturing plants at monthly time intervals over a period of four to five years—from two years before to at least two years after the introduction of the cooperative program. Regression analysis of these time-series data is supplemented by qualitative data from personal interviews and relevant records. The results show that after introduction of the cooperative programs, productivity increased in six of the eight firms in which it could be measured and employment remained stable in eight of the nine firms.

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Apr 20
0

Trade unions and social dialogue: Current situation and outlook

By | Case-study, Hungary, Nepal, Social dialogue, South Korea, United States

What is it that accounts for the relatively recent infatuation with the term “social dialogue”? This is the question posed by the contributors Ozaki and Rueda-Catry, and also tackled by all the others from their respective standpoints as trade union leaders in confederations active at the national, regional and world levels and as specialists with an interest in labour relations issues.

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Apr 20
0

Unions and Productivity, Financial Performance and Investment: International Evidence

By | Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Social dialogue, UK, United States

Abstract

If the presence of a union in a workplace or firm raises the pay level, unless productivity rises correspondingly, financial performance is likely to be worse. If the product market is uncompetitive this might imply a simple transfer from capital to labour with no efficiency effects, but is probably more likely to lead to lower investment rates and economic senescence. Therefore the impact of unions on productivity, financial performance and investment is extremely important. This paper distils evidence on such effects from six countries: USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Japan and Australia. It is not possible to use theory to predict unambiguously any union effect on productivity because unions can both enhance and detract from the productivity performance of the workplace or firm. The evidence indicates that, in the USA, workplaces with both high performance work systems and union recognition have higher labour productivity than other workplaces. In the UK previous negative links between unions and labour productivity have been eroded by greater competition and more emphasis on ”partnership” in industrial relations but there is a lingering negative effect of multi-unionism, just as there is in Australia. In Germany the weight of the evidence suggests that the information, consultation and voice role of works councils enhances labour productivity particularly in larger firms. In Japan unions also tend to raise labour productivity via the longer job tenures in union workplaces which makes it more attractive to invest in human capital and through the unpaid personnel manager role played by full-time enterprise union officials in the workplace. Unions will reduce profits if they raise pay and/or lower productivity. The evidence is pretty clear cut: the bulk of studies show that profits or financial performance is inferior in unionised workplaces, firms and sectors than in their non-union counterparts. But the world may be changing. A recent study of small USA entrepreneurial firms found a positive association between unions and profits and in the UK the outlawing of the closed shop, coupled with a lower incidence of multi-unionism has contributed to greater union-management cooperation such that recent studies find no association between unions and profits. North American and German evidence suggests that unionisation reduces investment by around one fifth compared with the investment rate in a non-union workplace. In both Canada and the USA this effect is even felt at low levels of unionisation. The UK evidence is mixed: the most thorough study also finds that union recognition depresses investment, but this adverse effect is offset as density rises. The exception is Japan where union recognition goes hand-in-hand with greater capital intensity.

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Apr 20
0

Tripartite Bargaining and its Impact on Stabilisation Policy in Central and Eastern Europe

By | Case-study, Social dialogue

Abstract

In this paper we examine the impact of self-imposed governmental constraints (by tripartite arrangements) and the timing of reforms (window of opportunity) on the successful implementation of large-scale reforms (fiscal stabilisation policy) in seven Central and Eastern European Countries. By analysing different sources and conducting interviews with experts and members of the tripartite councils, we consider the impact of tripartite structures on the government decision-making process in Bulgaria, Estonia, the Czech and Slovak Republics, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. Our findings indicate that the early and continuously stabilising countries secured their policy-making by factors other than tripartite bargaining. In those countries that took a second, later approach to fiscal stabilisation, with a more confrontational style and stronger trade unions, tripartite bargaining proved to be a successful instrument.

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