IRE240 Study notes

Summary of the course

1. Different governance arrangements affect the relative power and outcomes for different
stakeholders to the ER
2. Conflict inevitably arises between those who have substantive authority in the
workplace and those who do not and over the rules for who gets to decide what/how
3. Developing effective governance arrangements for dealing with conflict requires an
understanding of history, culture, context and Frame of Reference
4. There is no best governance arrangement. The most effective arrangements are viewed
as legitimate by the key stakeholders, achieve balance in stakeholder and societal
expectations/objectives, and are able to adapt to changing.

Introduction (Lec1)
- Begin with the practical intention to solve the labor problem in a particular context,
place and time
- Core principle: Labor is human (+) but labor is not a commodity (-)
o Labor is a factor of production
o Labor markets behave differently from standard commodity markets and has to
be treated with higher moral significance because it is embodied in humans
- ER adopts an interdisciplinary approach, as it is one of the few fields that draws from
multiple social science disciplines
- Employment Relations: the study of the relations between labor and management
o The study of all aspects of people at work, their ERs and how these relationships
are governed. The 3 aspects of ER are:
o Labor: All working people who are in an ER and do not exercise substantive
authority, but are instead in a position of subordination to those who do.
Includes both union and non-union workers
Labor unions org of workers intended to rep and advance the interests
and values of its members. Are not legally recognized unless they have a
collective bargain agreement. A formal negotiation between management
representatives.
Union Density percent of paid member of the union. Density is higher in
larger workplaces
Labor federations associations of unions at provincial/national level
(CLC)
o Management: All working people who exercise substantive authority over others
in the workplace, but also authority with regards to organization decisions.
Authority comes from legal rights attached to property rights. Mangers are also
employees exercising power on behalf of capitalist/owners
o Capital: Part of a persons wealth/stock that results in revenue generation
Capitalists: those who invest stock into trade
 - Relations: the relationship between capital/management/labor. The relationship is both
economic and social
o Economic: Workers sell their ability to work to management and are subject to
agreed upon terms and conditions of employment
o Social: In selling their ability to work, agree to submit to managerial authority
comply with day-to-day rules. Involves an interplay between
Cooperation: both parties function jointly to produce particular goods
and services, acting in accordance to a system of rules which each party
expects the other to adhere to
Conflict: when interests, goals, expectations of one party differs from
another
Power: ability to affect outcomes of others
Authority: ability to make decisions on behalf of those who legally
own/control the organization
- Governance: who gets to decide what and how, different parties depend on each other
to achieve different outcomes. One party affects others - could-be formal or informal.
Arrangement will result in different sources of power and authority; different outcome

Frames of Reference
- Competing perspectives/ideologies on the employment relationship that arise from
individuals theories about how the world works and ppl behave
o Neoliberal/Egoist:
o Managerial/unitarist:
o Orthodox (Pluralist)
o Liberal (Pluralist)
o Radical/Critical
- All perspectives recognize that L-M can have different goals/interests but they differ over
the extent to which this is the case and the ease with which these differences are
resolved in a market economy. They also differ over the impact and effectiveness of
unions and the need for changes to the current system. Also differ over the role of
power and conflict, who is at a disadvantage.

Why We Work (lec 2)

What is work?
1. Curse: everything was provided for Adam & Eve before they sinned, now they have to
work as punishment -> labor
2. Freedom: through ownership and markets
3. Commodity: people are a factor of production. Became deskilled and taken over by
technology
4. Occupational Citizenship: pursued by humans entitled to certain rights
5. Disutility: Detracts from your happiness, makes leisure expensive
6. Personal fulfillment: deindustrialization
7. Social Relations: Interaction is about social norms, institutions, power structures
8. Caring for others: like womens rights
9. Identity: who you are and where you stand in the social structure
10. Service: efforts to others

Why should we care?

1. Our societal norms downplay work as caring or service but emphasize disability and
identity. As a result, we devalue certain occupations and careers that generate low
wages and rarify others that generate high wages.
2. Work can affect actual policies in the public and private sectors
a. Theory X: people are lazy and need management to keep motivated
b. Theory Y: people are intrinsically motivated, they just need autonomy and will do
the best they can
3. Guaranteed basic income programs wont work, as they will lead to huge declines in
supply of labor.
4. Marx: imagination is what makes labor human, we have the ability to imagine before we
create. Give us purpose and focus. Labor is discretionary. Output observed doesnt equal
human potential. The easier a job is to perform, the harder it is for workers to perform
overtime. Leads to alienation from product, production process, and the self, especially
when capitalism and science/technology are primarily concerned with increasing profit.
5. We need an interdisciplinary perspective. Workers have a complex economic, social,
psychological, political motivations that results in different assumptions about ER and
appropriate governance.

Which FOR best fits the ER perspective?

- Orthodox Pluralist/Liberal Reformist
o Balancing objectives even though there is always going to be conflicting interests.
Conflict is endemic
o Efficiency matters but is not primary focus
o Capitalism and industrialization contribute to the alienation of the worker
o Conflict of interest are there but can be somewhat reduced
Ex. Westjet believed they could create a culture where employees can
feel like owners. This is to help them enjoy working there to be
motivated. So their interests are aligned with management. But Labour
threatened to unionize because conflict is inevitable. FOR are different for
Labor and management
o Know that most love their jobs. Workers cooperatives: owners of business too,
share production and profits, democratic decision-making
o But there are government interventions like funding of social services
- Managerialist
o Recognize moral aspect to labor
- Radical
o Don't believe in overthrowing the system
 History of ER (lec3)
Late 1800-1920s
- Most manufacturing work was done in workshops prior to 1870s
- Rise of modern industrialization in late 19th century
o Factories increased in size, growing divisions of labor, mechanization, hiring of
managers
o Workers began to be treated as commodities
o Beginning of modern labor movement and first large industrial union
- Scientific management rationalization of work
o Believed that systematic management could fix inefficiencies at work, more
important than getting the right person
o Determine best practices for every job
o Used by Ford in division of labor on assembly line, disliked by workers but pay
was increase to compensate
- Coercive drive system
o Paid on the basis of output and has to extract as much labor as possible at as low
a cost as possible

1900s-1920s
WWI (1914-1918)
- Countries tried to organize and harness their economies to maximize productivity for the
war effort
- War production led to an economic boom, low unemployment, higher employee
turnover, escalating wage pressures and problems with discipline and work effort
- Income inequality historically very high
Russian Revolution (1917)/Violent Labour unrest
- Winnipeg general strike (1919) strikes, unions organizing
- Bolshevik revolution (1917) caused concern that the labour problem would lead to
revolution in other countries
- Large corporations responded with more progressive employment practices
o Good will or high commitment approaches
o Industrial citizenship models of democratic workplace governance
o Invested in the development of human skills and education viewed I more
positive light
- By the 1920s the pre-war market model of HRM was abandoned
o Labour is human
o Central purpose of HR/IR/ER was to foster cooperation and a unity of interest
b/w L-M
o Still no formal HR functions until early 1900s
Paternalistic Approach:
 - Industrial welfare/welfare capitalism
- Started providing workers with benefits
- Production increase in response to labour unrest after WWI
- Staff positions created to oversee and administer these activities, later a separate
employment office is created
- German companies were pioneers but most countries participated
- Assumed managers had a responsibility to look after workers

1930s-1965
Great Depression (1929-1939)
- Loss of profits led to reduced investment in employees
- Mass unemployment
- Labor increasingly looked to legislation rather than good personnel management for
solutions; institutionalization of conflict
o National labour relations act (1935) rights and protections for workers
o The Wagner Act right to organize a union and to bargain with management
o PC 1003 in Canada (1944) NDP precursor, govt intervention
HR School (1930-1940s)
- Hawthorne experiments what management does to improve productivity matters less
than whether employees see it as being done for their benefit or not
- Individuals are motivated by social needs and good on-the-job relationships and respond
better to work-group pressure than to management control activities
- Later extension into behavioral science
o Hierarchy of needs
o Theory X & Y of human behavior
WWII (1939-45)
- Collective bargaining and govt regulation of employment expanded
- Post-war production and hiring oom
- Employment benefit programs
Post-war Boom (1945-1965)
- Mass production for mass consumption
- 1950s and 60s were calm periods for HR
- union density receeds in 1950s
- HR focused on union prevention and maintaining a stable motivated workforce
- HR viewed as low status, little strategic value
- Highly developed and structured labor markets

Contemporary History
Mid 1960s-late 1970s
- End of post-war consensus between employers and labour
- Labour unrest/union military/strikes
o Heightened worker expectations, slowing economic growth
o Growing discontent with authoritarian nature of work organizations
 o Rising consciousness of income inequalities, esp b/w male and female dominated
occupations
o Growing social and political consciousness
- Union density increased due to govt legalization of public sector collective bargaining
1980s
- Economic environment became increasingly hostile; globalization, free trade, shift
towards neo-liberal and regressive policies
1990s
- Focus on improving productivity and performance
- Downsizings were common
- Emerging view that people are an asset not a cost; HR should play a strategic role
- Gap b/w HR ideas and practices
- But if employees are an asset, why downsize?
o New technologies and management techniques
o Decline in union power & density

Where are we today?

- High performance model more flexible team based
- External envt, organizations and nature of work have all changed move from
manufacturing to services
- Increased professionalization of HR practitioners; increased focus on adding value
- Unions prevalent in Canada not in USA
- Govt playing a bigger role
- Somewhat setting into globalization as new norm; still dealing with implications and
backlash
- Unemployment rate declined
- Unions could win wage gains
- Healthier economic growth rate

Contemporary Management (Lec4/5)

Management
o All working people who exercise substantive authority over others in the
workplace but also authority over organization decisions in general
o Authority comes from legal rights attached to the ownership of work
organizations or legislation/articles of incorporation that provide legal
responsibility to a ministry or boards that delegates responsibility to
management to oversee operations
o Managers are also employees of capitalists, but they exercise authority over
Laborers on behalf of the employer
- Workplace structures
o Most fall on a continuum, not necessarily into one category
1. Autocratic: Managers allocate and direct work, monitor, evaluate, reward,
discipline (restaurant/retail)
 2. Bureaucratic: Managers have less direct authority but technical design of
work and formal rules and procedure form the basis for monitoring, rewards
and discipline
3. Autonomic: Laborer has high degree of autonomy, performance forms the
basis on which they are monitored, rewarded and disciplined (professors)
- Managerial Orientations
1. Exploitative: Managers have no interest in Labourer goals/expectations, get most
work for lowest wages (neoliberal/egoist)
2. Accommodative: Managers recognize that labourers have their own legit
goals/expectations, attempt to accommodate these to a reasonable (orthodox
pluralist)
3. Consociative: Manager seek to align laborer goals/expectations with their own and
adopt extensive programs to ensure their identification w/ and loyalty to the
organization (unitarialist/managerial)
Summary
- Autocratic/exploitative coercive drive approach, end 19th century
- Bureaucratic/accommodative post-war status quo from 1950s-60s
- Autonomic/consociative welfare capitalist (1920s), HR school of 1930s, growth to the
new HRM and high performance model
- Common in developing industrialized nations; gang bosses; fear as a motivator
- Mature IR system developed international labor markets with career ladders formal
bureaucratic settings, recognition of conflicting interests, legit M
- Ties M-L interests to achieve the highest output

Rational Theories of management

- Neoclassical economic theory (neoliberal)
o Managers seek to maximize profits and wealth of owners and maximize efficiency
o Acquire the mix of factor inputs (labor, equipment, materials) to minimize per
unit production costs given the relative costs of the inputs
o Management provides minimum terms and conditions of employment necessary
to attract qualified workers and employs these workers to maximize their
efficiency and productivity
o Over the long run market pressures force rationalized operations or risk failure
o Efficiency and productivity are the key elements that underpin managerial
decision-making
- Limitations of neoclassical economic theory
o No model of the internal workings of the firm
o Equates efficiency with profitability, ignoring the politics on L-M relations
o Oversimplifies Managers as agents of owner interests, agents of capital but not
always the case in reality
o Does not always recognize the limits to managerial rationality
o Does not appropriately account for the role of M values and choice processes
- Other theories of management
 o Contingency theory (unitarist)
Bureaucratic forms of organization are most effective when manager is
subject to low uncertainty and little variability in its environment. Flexible
forms of organization are more effective when these conditions do not
hold
o Labour process theory (radical)
Managers try to reduce labourer control through deskilling the jobs,
gaining greater control over the methods/pace of work
o Stakeholder theory (orthodox-pluralist)
Managers ensure various stakeholder groups provide a stable supply of
resources by satisfying/balancing the sometimes competing demands of
these groups
- Managerial decision making
o Ongoing process/series of decisions and actions to problems, opportunities and
crisis
o Managers lack time, resources, perfect info, thus cannot engage in fully rational
decision making processes
o Complex decisions often made under conditions of uncertainty
o Internal management conflicts
o Managers have different values
o Managers susceptible to fads and fashions

Labour Unions (Lec 5)

- An organization with the legal authority to represent workers, negotiate the terms and
conditions of employment with the employer and administer the collective agreement
- Collective agreement: a contract negotiated between a union and an employer, outlining
terms and conditions of employment for workers covered by the agreement
- Unions at all levels, either directly or through representatives, elect officers (president,
secretary-treasurer) to oversee union affairs
Limits to union democracy
- As political parties become established and begin to accomplish their initial objectives,
members gradually become apathetic, believing that their concerns are being attended
to or they feel powerless and lacking competence to question the decision of the party
- Democracy can seriously impair effectiveness to keep members fully informed or to
constantly seek membership input might undermine effectiveness of union negotiatiors
- Contradictory positions in capitalist economies create conflict which is quickly shut down
as to not weaken the union
- Union leaders not only come to enjoy their status, salary and power, they also lose touch
with the realities of the workplace and come to identify with the status quo, thinking
more like managers
Sources of democracy
- Union officials are elected by members so they can find themselves under pressure to be
responsive to their concerns
 - If not democratic may find themselves subject to a decline in membership and power
and resources available to them
- Attendance = source of democracy
- Though members may be kept in the dark during negotiations officials usually go to
considerable lengths to ensure their bargaining positions are responsive to the concerns
of the local members and that the settlement will meet their concerns
- Many have social, democratic values and justify this through their actions
- Business agents: paid staff that assist in the handling of day to day union functions
- Union representatives: non-paid union officials who represent the interests of union
members in their relationship with management
Union Structures
- Parent union: many local unions are part of a larger provincial, national or international
union
o Provides local technical advice/support; represents member interests; takes
wages out of competition
o Canadian Labour Congress
Central federation of unions
Most influential labor federation in Canada
Political lobbying & representation
Coordination of union relations, sets standards
Economies of scale in education/services
- Local Unions: provides the members, revenue & power of union movement
o Independent or affiliated with parent
Types of Unions
- Industrial unions: all skilled/semi-skilled workers in particular industries (CUPE)
- Employee association: White collar & professional employees
o May or may not be certified bargaining agents (UFTA)
- Craft Unions: Workers who possess same skills or trade (SAGAFTRA)
Why join unions?
- Individual factors:
o Discontent with employer wages/working conditions
o Eliefs about union effectiveness
o General beliefs about unions (education, age, sex)
- Context
o Organizing tactics
o Solidarity of workers
o Management opposition/tactics (substitution/avoidance)
o Macro external conditions that enable and constrain individual choices
Labor laws
Industrial/organizational structure
Economic conditions
Govt policies
Management ideologies
 Socio-cultural values
Sources of employer/union power
- External environment
o Economic, technical, demographic
o Unemployment rate, GDP growth, production market competition, availability of
substitutes
- Firm/union characteristics relative economic resources; size; negotiator capabilities
- Legal environment: gov legislation enabling/constraining collective bargain and union
security; international law
- Social environment: gov ideology/FOR; public support for unions; international pressure;
worker solidarity
- Public/private sector differences
What do unions do/effects
- Negative
o Increase wage and benefit costs; lower profitability
o Restrict management practices (reduce management ability to get ride of
unproductive employees
o Create inefficiencies/reduce overall wealth/contribute to inflation
o Engage in strike activity
o Distort labour market outcomes; lower employment
- Positive
o Create a more equitable distribution of income in organizations
o Greater pay equity
o Positive effect on productivity/profitability
o Pulls up other workers, democratizes workplace
o Protects worker rights, compliance
o Creates economies of scale in contract negotiations
o Shock management into reducing other inefficiencies
Are unions good or bad?
- Research is conflicting; differences among sectors and industries
- Depends on the L-M relationship
o Both parties have a requirement to bargain in good faith but
Unions are largely reactive; declining in strength
Management makes strategic choices that alter workplace practices
Both sides want organization to succeed but often have fundamental
differences of opinion about fair distribution of resources
Ideological stances and emotions often get in the way; difficult to
overcome/avoid
o Managements approach has different effects in union/non-union situations.
Unions amplify any positive or negative impact
Research on Union Impact
- Most workplaces, new management style values collaboration with and input from
employees leads to decline in conflict, absenteeism, turnover and an increase in
 satisfaction, cultural engagement, productivity and profitability. However, in unionized
settings the effects of management actions/inactions towards employees are more
pronounced than non-unionized settings
- There is usually a broken relationship when new unions are formed but sometimes it is
effective in the long run of the relationship. People trust that the union is on their side
- Unions are complicated
o Adversarial models of collective bargaining enshrined in legislation
o Management adverse to share power
o Unions can be militant and distrustful
o Past hostility can be hard to overcome
o Trust is built overtime
- Improved communication channels
- Greater consistency

Strategic Choice Theory

- Range of feasible options available at any given time is partially constrained by the
outcomes of previous organization decisions and the current distribution of power witin
firm between it and unions, govt or others
- Main values and beliefs are important and are difficult to change
- Changes especially major ones, only happen under special conditions

The State (lec6)

- Legally recognized government & its agencies
- Enacts and enforces labor and employment laws (rules)
- Shapes public opinion
- Also an employer
- Must balance competing objectives of parties to the ER with broader public int
State Roles
1. Regulative Role
a. Labour law: in Canada, workers have no automatic right to collective right to
collective bargaining, they must apply to a labour board. The board decides
which workers are eligible to be represented by the union. If recognized, they are
entitled to strikes and lockouts, collective agreement, grievance process and
labour arbitration, unfair labour practices, management rights doctrine
b. Environment law: minimum standards legislation for employers
Human rights legislation prevents discrimination on the basis of personal
characterisitics, beliefs, affiliations, or disability, duty to accommodate
Pay equity legislation: eliminate inequalities
Health and safetfy legislation
Unjust dismissal law and reasonable notice
2. Employer role
a. Gov employs thousands of public servants, many of whom are unionized
b. Govt make decisions to outsource can cause controversy
 c. Can order people back to work based on essential services like the post office
strike
3. Facilitative role
a. Shapes beliefs and values through intended policy approach towards unions and
work practices, adopted legislation and through examples as a model employer
b. Provides support services (conciliation services)
4. Structural role
a. Shaping the economic and financial constraints to which employers are subject:
monetary and fiscal policies, financial markets, tariffs, subsidies
b. Shaping labor market conditions: monetary policy, trade agreements, social
insurance and labor market programs
c. Ex. Education and skills training, basic income
5. Constitutive role
a. Shaping how the economy is constituted through institutions that facilitate
and/or constrain a market orientation
i. Liberal market economies vs. coordinated market economies
ii. Liberal democracies vs. autocratic rule
b. Rule of law fundamental rights, contract rights
c. Shapes how employees and managers conceive of their rights and obligations
with respect to the exercise of authority and how they each react
Understanding the State
- Goals of govt in liberal market economies
o Maintain order and stability
o Maintain favorable investment climate
o Sometimes the status quo must be altered to maintain order & stability
- There has been change
o History matters as do personal values, agendas and goals of key decision makers
o Five phases of state policy development
Repression (pre 1870s)
Containment (1879s-1900s)
Paternalism (1900s-1940s)
Accommodation (1940s-1970s)
Retrenchment (1970s-2000s)
Perspectives on the State Role
- Neoliberal: minimal role for state beyond maintaining law and order, providing for
national defense, & facilitating operation of free markets
- Managerialist: advocates generally desire govt policies that facilitate greater L-M
cooperation and enhance employee productivity and organizational competitiveness
- Orthodox-Pluralist: states role is critical in balancing the competing interests of L-M
without harming the public interest or economy; neutral
- Liberalist-pluralist: Elite theory of govt and public policy
- Radical: state is an instrument of the capitalist class through the interests of capital
sometimes conflict, leaving greater room for the state to manoeuver effective labour
mobilication can put pressure on govt to enact labor friendly policies
 4 Foundational Concepts
1. Labour is embodied in a human being
a. Not a commodity
b. Assumed moral aspect to labor that is not placed on other factors of production.
Implications of work as fully human endeavor
c. Marx: humans can imagine before we work/create
d. Labor is discretionary output observed doesnt equal human potential which
has implications for broader society in terms of the most efficient use of labor in
economy
e. Workers can become alienated from the product, the process and from the self.
Degradation and alienation of labor aided by science and techonology. When
coupled with capitalisms drive for profits; work becomes more difficult for
workers
2. Work, Workers and the governance of work relationships are multidimensional
constructs
a. Require knowledge of multiple disciplines and approaches to understand
b. Flashlight perspective multiple angles
c. Workers have complex economic, social, psychological and political motivations
about work and why we work
d. Frames of reference results in diff assumptions about ER and the most
appropriate mechanisms to govern work and ERs
e. Which best fits ER perspective? liberal reformist =max efficiency , radical =
restructure system as a whole
f. We work for different reasons
g. ER is about balancing legit interests key problems & solutions as they arise
3. Conflict is endemic to all types of work and all ERs
a. Structural: legal alienation, COI, nature of the ER and employment contract,
broader societal inequalities, labor market experience, nature of work itself
b. Cognitive: FOR, biases, miscommunication
c. Psychogenic: personality difference, affect and emotions, moods, attitudes
d. Conflict doesnt disappear, it just manifests in different ways
e. Underlying sources of conflict
i. Legal alienation Laborers do not work for themselves and have no legal
control alienated from the means, process & output by which they do
their work; dont identify with work & have little to gain
ii. Objective interest conflicts workers exploited to max profits M
minimizes Ls pay to max output Ls interest: max pay & min work
iii. Nature of employment relation worker power =reactive, legally
authoritarian but can be progressive and involve consultation of L;
workers expected to resent subordinate position
iv. Nature of employment contract non-specific, room for disagreement;
levels of pay, promotion & types of work
 f. Contextual sources of conflict: those which appear to be variable, depending on
organization, industry, region or country
i. Broader societal inequalities: deprivation relative to others =resentment
ii. Labor market experience: lots of fluctuations in history with
improvements prior to the mid 1990s and then gov cut backs led to
unemployment, wage gaps, homelessness, injury, low income (all
depends on ones experience with the market)
iii. Nature of work itself: radical: minimizing skill requirement so as to
minimize labor costs & max control, industrialism: alienating work due to
mass production technologies, but should dissipate over time as more
complex tech and jobs requiring higher skill levels, problem solving &
teamwork; most are satisfied, some find it challenging & powerless
g. Implications of conflict
i. Progressive HRM practices: reduce contextual sources of conflict &
enhance sources of cooperation, try to maintain good human relations
ii. Labor unions & collective bargain: unions drive artificial wedge b/w L-M,
unnecessary cause of conflict but it is endemic
h. Sources of cooperation
i. Coercion must earn a living but allows workplace to flourish, enhancing
job security and wages and benefits
ii. Consent: legitimacy system
1. Socialized to accept status quo, reduce class consciousness
2. Realistc, worse jobs
3. Job satisfaction, must live up to eachs side of the bargain
4. Reinforce cooperation
iii. Identity willing to turn a blind eye to sources of conflict
i. Manifestations of conflict
i. Strikes
ii. Recalcitrant behavior: slacking
iii. Exit behavior/ quitting
iv. Psychological contract
v. Coping behaviors: horseplay, chatter, alcohol
vi. Cultural considerations
vii. Management policies and practices
viii. Gov policies
j. Why is cooperation the norm?
i. Cultural reasons: Canadians are less aggressive
ii. Costly, economically & emotionally
iii. Generally taught to obey rules and listen to authority
4. Types of governance arrangements will result in different sources of power & authority;
results in different outcomes ER scholars care about balancing efficiency, equity, voice
o All 3 needs are legitimate and sought to a different extent by different IR actions
i. They matter in terms of outcomes we care about
ii. If outcomes arent balanced, worse outcomes for all
a. Efficiency:
Effective use of scare resources
Pareto optimality: no one can be made better off w/out someone else
becoming worse off
Labor is compounded for efficiency, where efficiency is the primary
objective of the employer
Neo-classical assumption about human behavior coupled with real-life
presence of transaction costs and market failures mean that the most
efficient outcome may not be easily achieved without some intervention.
These interventions have an impact on equity
b. Equity: a set of fair employment standards covering both material outcomes and
personal treatment that respect human dignity and liberty
Standard of treatment: minimum standards and justice to protect the
dignity of workers as human beings
Due process, fair treatment, compensation, secure employment
Primary objective of employee
Equitable or fair is hard to define
While considerations of equity increase efficiency, minimum standards
suggest some basis for including equity as a consideration, even if it
doesnt enhance efficiency
c. Voice
Ability for employees to have meaningful input into decisions that affect
their working lives
Standard of employee participation
Has potential to actually change the way decisions are being made. But
there is no way to require an employee to actually care
Blocking inequities is not the same as removing conflict
Tied to notions of meaningful work
d. How to achieve balance
Goal: shape labor market to promote balance
Combo of individual action (bargaining, exit, informal restriction of
output), unions and collective bargaining, progressive HRM and gov
intervention
At least property right =labor rights
Technology can help environmental sustainability when equity, efficiency
and voice are concerned
Use of equitable incentives such as merit based bonuses doesnt always
havepositive effect on efficiency voice/employee input can reduce
these effects
FINAL TEST REVIEW
Week 9: Labor & Employment Laws
- Canadian Legal Jurisdictions
o 14 jurisdictions: 10 provinces, 3 territories and federal jurisdiction
o Labour and Employment law fall under provincial and territorial jurisdiction
o Federal government has jurisdiction over Federal employees and few federally-
regulated industries (banking, interprovincial transportation, most
telecommunications)
o Territories have opted to fall under federal jurisdiction
o One act covers most private sector workers in each jurisdiction
Multiple acts to cover public sector employees
- Employment Law
o Sets minimum standards and the predominant governance mechanism for non-
union employment relationships (could apply to certain individual rights in
unionized workplaces)
Laws dealing with individual employment rights
o 5 components
minimum standards legislation
human rights legislation
employment/pay equity legislation
health and safety legislation
unjust dismissal law
- Labor Law
o Governs the right of workers to join a union and engage in collective bargaining
o Governs approximately 1/3 of Canadian workers
o Labour relations act, Trade Union Act
o Modeled after Wagner Act in USA, system was introduced post depression
o Administration of Labour Law for private sector administered by neutral labor
relations board that reports to Minister of Labor
o 3 general purposes
Foster Democracy in the workplace
Establish a balance of power between workers and management
Institutionalize conflict and provide for its orderly resolution; maintain
stability and efficiency
*** which frame of reference does this sound like?
o 3 Principles
majoritarianism majority rules
 exclusivity one union should represent workers in a given context and
serve as their exclusive agent
voluntarism parties should be encouraged to resolve disagreements
through a process of free collective bargaining with minimal government
intervention
o Union Certification
Most employees are eligible to be unionized except: managers and
employees who deal with confidential workplace information
Some jurisdictions exclude certain groups but may change given supreme
court rulings (RCMP)
Labor boards determine who is eligible to be considered part of the
bargaining unit based on the wishes of the parties traditional organizing
in the industry and/or whether there is deemed to be a community of
interest
o Certification process
Certification voting rules vary a lot between jurisdictions
Employer can voluntarily choose to recognize the union
Card check procedure and secret ballot
Quick votes to avoid employer interference
Minority is overruled, both if they want a union and if they do not
All workers in the unit must join the union or pay the equivalent of union
dues to avoid free riders
o Unfair Labor practices
Management Cannot
Dismiss workers for union activities
Alter the terms and conditions of employment during an
organizing drive
Issue threats or promises to workers during a drive
Spy of interrogate workers or infiltrate the union
Alter the employee composition of the election unit
Compromise the integrity or autonomy of the union
Close down or relocate operations
Unions cannot
Coerce workers to sign
Engage in union-related activities on company time
Invite outside union organizers onto company premises without
management permission
Labor board can find either party guilty and impose penalties, fines or
remedies such as automatic recognition of the union, reinstatement of
dismissed employees with compensation
More extreme sanctions are rare and it is not clear how effect they have
been
The certification process is very important to avoid these problems
 Unions can also be decertified under a number of conditions
o Duty to Bargain in Good Faith
Good faith bargaining is indicated by a number of things
Parties must meet and begin to bargain
Must discuss issues and rationales for their positions
Must not suppress or distort information or intentionally mislead
Parties must avoid surface bargaining
Management cannot make direct offers to union workers
First agreement arbitration is often imposed when bargaining fails
- Arbitration is the private, judicial determination of a dispute, by an independent
third party.

o Strikes and Lockouts
When bargaining breaks down, the union can go on strike and/or the
employer can lock out workers
Lockouts are rare but not unheard of especially in the public sector and
professional sports
Most jurisdictions require some type of conciliation effort and/or cooling
off period
o Strike activities
Right to strike
Restrictions or requirements to go to arbitration may be imposed
for workers deemed essential
Back to work legislation may be imposed in similar situations
Right to strike now constitutionally protected, so government
needs to be more careful
The extent of employers rights during strike to continue operations, hire
replacement workers, encourage workers to cross picket lines, etc.
depends on the jurisdiction
Usually also some restrictions on secondary picketing (usually legal) and
sympathy strikes (usually illegal)
o Duty of Fair representation
Unions must represent all workers in a bargaining unit fairly
Most DFR complaints against the union are not successful
Most grievances must be filed through the union, except in special
circumstances; union decides whether to take it forward
o Management Authority and Rights
Doctrine of residual rights: the only restrictions on managerial authority
are what is covered by the collective bargaining agreement
Forms the basis of most labor arbitration decisions
Limits the requirements of management to check with the union before
implementing major changes even if these changes will fundamentally
affect the workplace
Week 10: Collective Bargaining
- Collective Bargaining: process through which workers come together to negotiate with
their employers over:
o Terms and conditions of employment
o Rules that will govern the processes that decide these same terms and condiions
including the scope of bargaining
o Authority over the rest usually remains with management (doctrine of residual
rights)
- Different from employee consultation or joint problem-solving
- Collective bargaining is generally more structured and formal than other types of
negotiations and joint decision making; results in binding contracts
o Formal vs. informal (pattern or coordinated collective bargaining
- Conceptual Framework
o T-1: institutions lead to governance of employment relations
Institutions
Regulatory institutions: Labor and property rights
Cognitive institutions: culture, norms and values
Governance of Employment Relationship
Labor policies/ legislation, bargaining forms/ structures
o T: power is interconnected with governance of employment relationship &
bargaining process;
Stakeholder alternatives and political/economic resources
Collective active strikes/ Lockouts, Pickets/ Boycotts, Lobbying
o T+1: Collective Bargaining Outcomes
Efficiency (Performance)
Equity (Distribution)
Voice (Workplace Democracy)
- Institutions
o Collective bargaining takes place within a set of established rules and institutions
Cognitive: culture, norms, values and identities (i.e., collective bargaining
recognized by the ILO to be a fundamental human right, in practice,
differs greatly across countries)
Regulatory: Constitutions and common law often shapes its form and
function (e.g. property rights and doctrine of residual rights)
- Governance: Laws
o Legislation often shapes its form and function (e.g., Wagner Act)
o Labor board determines the bargaining unit (through the certification process) in
Canada
o Elected officials sometimes intervene when public safety becomes a concern,
often controversial (Essential Services legislation, Back to work Legislation)
- Common Core of Canadian Labor Legislation
o Conciliation
 o Right to join a union
o Good-faith bargaining
o Prohibition of unfair labor practices
o No strikes or lockouts during agreement
- Governance: Forms and Structures
o Specific framework that determines which actors have authority to participate in
decision making over what types of employment decisions and at what level
o Often a representative process
o Forms:
CB coverage
Union coverage
Single-employer vs multi-employer bargaining
Degree of bargaining centralization
Extent of coordination across stakeholder groups
Extent and type of third party and/or government involvement
o Social partnerships or corporatism (Austria, Ireland, Italy)
o Sectoral bargaining (Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal)
o Centralized awards (Australia and New Zealand prior to the 1990s)
o Enterprise Unionism (japan)
o Codetermination (Germany and Spain works councils; Frances enterprise
committees; Swedens joint councils; board representation in France, Germany
and Sweden)
o Voluntarism (UK)
o Exclusive representation with majority rule (Canada and US)
o Canada has one of the most decentralized bargaining systems in the world
because agreements are usually negotiated at workplace or employer level
o Is decentralization a good thing?
Cost
Labour-management relationship
Economy-wide effects
Flexibility
- Sources of Power
o Formal sources
Set of institutions and laws at different levels that determine the limits of
authority of different stakeholders
o Informal sources
Leverage arising from economic and political resources available to
stakeholders
Parties available outside alternatives
Ability to solve the collective action problem (strikes)
Bargaining process itself
- Collective bargaining processes
o Phase 1: preparing for negotiations
 o Phase 2: negotiating
o Phase 3: approving the proposed agreement
o Phase 4: administering the agreement
- Phase 1: preparation
o Establishing the negotiating team
o Collect information
From workers & union reps, managers
Patterns and trends in the industry/sector
o Understand the difference between positions and interests
Whats your sides best alternatives to a negotiated agreement (BATNA)?
o If both sides work on reconciling issues during the life of the collective
agreement, there shouldn't be any surprises
o Substantive issues: wages, benefits, workloads, job security, restrictions on
management rights
o Procedural issues: processes that govern how the parties interact (grievance
process)
o Relational issues: extent of union involvement and role in workplace decision
making, union security
- Phase 2: negotiations
o Negotiations are complex
Both sides may face a great deal of uncertainty
Structural pressures and individual differences in personalities, values,
frames of reference can create conflict
Emotions often run high; not easy to remain rational
Individual negotiators subject to a variety of decision-making biases
(anchoring effect, escalation of commitment, framing)
o Stages: settling in, consolidation, finalization
o Major purpose is not only to reach an agreement but also to share information,
resolve conflicts and voice concerns
o Bargaining is often an iterative process
o Communication is critical
o Long term relationship
o Cooperative bargaining
Mutual gain, integrative, or interest based bargaining
Moves away from traditional adversarial approach
Win-win approach
Joint problem solving activities
Usually preceded by conflict resolution training
Requires both parties to have commitment, trust, respect and a long term
focus
Organizational performance is enhanced when labour and management
cooperate
Cooperative methods include:
 Prior consultation
Sincere concern
Training programs
Joint study committees
Use of third parties to assist in mediation and conciliation
- Phase 3: approving the proposed agreement
o Mopping up
o Memorandum of agreement taken to members for a ratification vote
o Clean up wording
o Impasses occur if the parties are unable to reach an agreement
o Strikes and Lockouts
After certain conditions are met, employer may decide to lock out
workers or union may decide to call a strike vote
Most jurisdictions require some type of conciliation effort or cooling off
period
Primary function is to resolve conflict
Costly, stressful, time consuming and value destroying
o Causes of strikes
Mistakes: avoidable and focuses on factors that influence miscalculations
of the parties
Rational approach to understanding the motivations of workers
(maximizing their economic well-being)
Discounts behavioral contexts of negotiation and role of affective
and moral considerations (competing values and fairness
perceptions)
Collective voice:
Alsways some chance of strike occurring, depends on number of
economic and non-economic considerations
o Restrictions on strike activity
Right to strike
Restrictions or requirements to go to arbitration may be imposed
for workers deemed essential
Back to work legistlaiton may be imposed in similar situations
Right to strike now constitutionally protected, so government
need to be more careful
Extent of employers rights during a strike to continue operations, hire
replacement workers, encourage workers to cross picket lines depends on
jurisdiction
Usually also some restrictions on secondary picketing (usually legal),
sympathy strikes (usually illegal)
Interest arbitration: imposition of a final settlement upon the parties by a
single arbitrator or arbirtration board
- Phase 4: Administering the Agreement
 o Grievance arbitration
For collective agreement violations, the burden of proof is on the party
filing the grievance (usually the union)
For discipline or discharge cases, burden of proof is on the employer to
establish the cause for the discipline and that the penalty imposed was
fair
Arbitrator weighs the arguments and evidence and renders a decision
- Collective bargaining outcomes?
o Fairness/equity
o Voice
o Efficiency

Week 11: Contemporary problems, Challenges, Alternatives

- The New Labor Problems
o Poverty and inequality
o Unemployment/underemployment
o Contingent/vulnerable work
o Technological automation; structural changes to countries and regional
economies
o Rural/ urban divide; demographic changes; changing individual expectations
o http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/job-automation-federal-government-
1.4031206
o http://business.financialpost.com/news/energy/a-jobless-recovery-why-the-
layoffs-are-not-over-in-the-oilpatch-despite-us50-oil
o https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/jan/11/inequality-world-economy-
wef-brexit-donald-trump-world-economic-forum-risk-report
- Workplace governance
o Governance of employment relationship is increasingly complicated
What should be the rules for establishing the rules?
Who should get to decide what and how? Who should govern the
workplace?
o How does the changing nature of work and employment affect our answers to
these questions?
How do different mechanisms or governance arrangements affect
efficiency, equity, and voice?
What governance mechanisms best promote a balance between
efficiency, equity and voice
- Alternatives for workplace governance
o Free markets
o Gov regulation or programs
o Management control
o Worker control
o Union representation
o Some combination
Which are the best for balancing efficiency, equity, and voice?
Depends on your belief about:
Is labor a commodity?
Are employer and employees equal in self-regulating, competitive
labor markets?
Is there an inherent conflict of interest between employers and
employees?
Is employee voice important?
Budd ***
- Reforming our system
o While EEV can be balance in an almost unlimited number of ways, in our system
there appears to be real value in having independent employee representation or
at least an option for employees to choose this approach
o However, many scholars have sited problems in our current system
Barriers to unionization are high
System promotes adversarial relations and reduces trust
 System promotes business economic unionism and a passive union
servicing model
o Does the system need tweaks or fundamental changes?
- Proposed policy solutions
o Direct government intervention
Minimum employment standards and regulations
Labor law and collective bargaining reform
Revised social policies/income replacement programs (EI, welfare,
disability, CPP)
Basic income guarantee
Guaranteed jobs
o Employer-led solutions (shared capitalism at work; good practices)
o Worker/citizen/community collective action
Unions
Non-profit and civil society organizations
Cooperative business models (consumer and worker models)
- Rising inequality threatens world economy
o Income gap was behind Brexit vote and Donald trump victory
-