Collective Bargaining Agreements Research Articles

Works Councils as Gatekeepers: Codetermination, Management Practices, and Job Satisfaction

This paper analyzes the role of works councils as gatekeepers safeguarding employee's interests in the adoption of management practices to monitor employee performance and provide feedback. We first introduce a formal model predicting that (i) the introduction of such management practices leads to a stronger increase (or weaker decrease) in job satisfaction when a works council is in place, (ii) that this effect should be larger the lower the prior level of employee participation and (iii) that works councils increase the likelihood of the implementation of these practices at the level of individual employees. We provide evidence in line with these hypotheses, using linked-employer-employee panel data from Germany. We indeed find that the adoption of formal performance appraisals and feedback interviews is associated with a significantly larger increase in job satisfaction when there is a works council. This pattern is driven by establishments without collective bargaining agreements. The evidence also suggests that works councils indeed facilitate the implementation of such management practices, as codetermined firms have a higher likelihood that a practice implemented on the firm level is actually applied by middle management.

The Legal Effects of Collective Bargaining In Employment Contract In India

This paper explores the legal implications of collective bargaining on employment contracts in India. Collective bargaining, as a cornerstone of labor relations, serves as a mechanism for negotiating terms and conditions of employment between employers and employees. In the Indian context, where labor laws are robust and protective, understanding the legal effects of collective bargaining is crucial for stakeholders in employment relationships. Through a comprehensive examination of relevant statutes, case law, and practical implications, this paper elucidates how collective bargaining agreements influence the rights, obligations, and enforceability of employment contracts. It delves into the role of collective bargaining in shaping wages, working conditions, benefits, and dispute-resolution mechanisms within organizations and industries. By analyzing the intricate interplay between collective bargaining and the legal framework governing employment contracts, this paper highlights the significance of collective bargaining as a means to achieve fairness and equity in labor relations. It provides insights for employers, employees, policymakers, and legal practitioners to navigate the complexities of employment contracts and foster harmonious labor-management relations in India.

A Precarious Path to Partnership? The Moderating Effects of Labour Market Regulations on the Relationship Between Unstable Employment and Union Formation in Europe

Rising employment uncertainty featured by higher risks of being temporarily employed or unemployed is often seen as the driving force behind delayed and declined partnering in Western countries. However, such an employment–partnering relationship is contextualized by labour market institutions and thus could diverge across countries over time. This paper aims to investigate how country-level variations in labour market regulations moderate individual-level effects of unstable employment on union formation, including the transitions into marriage or cohabitation unions. Using comparative panel data for 26 countries from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (the years 2010–2019), our multilevel fixed effects models showed that temporary employment and unemployment negatively affected the probability of union formation for single women and men in Europe. Moreover, the negative relationship between unstable employment and union formation was reinforced when labour market reforms were stimulating insider–outsider segregations or decreasing welfare provisions. Specifically, stricter employment protection legislations and higher coverage rates of collective bargaining agreements could reinforce the negative effects of temporary employment and unemployment on union formation, while more generous provisions of unemployment benefits could buffer such negative effects.

Improving the quality of working life of employees (on the example of social partnership acts and judicial practice)

Quality of working life is a concept used in regulations adopted at the regional level. At the same time, employee satisfaction with the quality of working life is characterized by various indicators, including compliance of working conditions with safety and labor protection requirements, as well as additional guarantees and compensations provided by the employer to the employee. Providing additional guarantees that affect the employee’s subjective satisfaction with the quality of work life can be achieved by including appropriate conditions in collective bargaining agreements, agreements, and employment contracts. The author of the article analyzes social partnership acts and judicial practice in disputes regarding the implementation of the terms of employment contracts that improve the quality of life of workers.

Revisiting Picketing within the Framework of Turkish Labour Law

In the context of collective labour disputes, which often arise during negotiations for a collective labour agreement, various methods are employed by both employees and employers to resolve conflicts. Strike, one such method, involves employees abstaining from work or disrupting workplace activities to seek better working conditions or secure new rights. Strikes can be lawful or unlawful, depending on whether they adhere to the conditions specified in the Law No. 6356 on Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining Agreement. Picketing, another combative method, is utilized in labour law to address collective labour disputes and is closely linked to the freedom of expression. While colloquially defined as personal or collective protests using banners, picketing in labour law refers to employees gathering at the entrance of their workplace during a strike to voice complaints about the employer and persuade others to join the strike. This study aims to explore the concept of picketing within Turkish labour law and compare it with practices in Anglo-Saxon jurisdictions.

Wages and Labor Relations during Francoist Developmentalism: The Role of the New Unionism

AbstractThe relation between wage growth and the reconstruction of the labor movement in Spain, during the developmentalist Francoist regime (1957-1975), has been controversial. Applying the power resources theory in order to explain wage growth, this paper argues that the rise of the labor share was the result of the increased bargaining power of workers in spite of repressive policies of the Francoist government. The action of new trade unionism mobilized the following power resources. First, the structural power increased as a consequence of techno-economics transformations of Fordism and a generational change of the labor force. Second, the associational power increased due to new organizational forms, with more democratic modes of collective action and combining clandestine and legal actions, and the reappearance of collective bargaining with the Law of Collective Bargaining Agreements of 1958. These political opportunities opened up the possibility to the new trade unionist of developing the strategy of entryism that served as the driving force for worker mobilization.Consequently, the new trade unionists could mobilize their power resources in the three spheres, exchange, production, and politics, as a strategy by accelerating collaborative action, establishing a discursive and cultural framework, and allowing the articulation of the different trade union actions. In this way, internal solidarity was favored when a collective agreement was negotiated at the company or sector level (and not an individual contract, as it has been to date), due to the links with the social activities characteristic of the paternalistic management of labor relations and the presence of anti-Francoist organizations, the “network embeddedness” was strengthened. In turn, the successes in the consequence of wage increases and solidarity with other workers who were suffering repression increased the narrative resources that frame union actions. All this made it possible to counterbalance in part for the restrictions imposed by the dictatorship, which weakened the structural power of workers in the political sphere.The main contribution to the existing knowledge on the issue consists in explaining the apparent paradox between the wage policy of the Francoist government (oriented towards wage restriction) and the increase in labor share. This also serves to understand how labor markets and the wage-setting mechanism worked from a historical point of view. As a corollary, the previous analysis implies that the most important factor was the ability to mobilize workers successfully. The union strategy that combined democratic instruments of representation (assemblies) with clandestine and legal actions served as a catalyst for other productive and social changes. This reflects the primacy of the action of social actors for the worker mobilization theory.

The Principle Of Good Faith In Collective Labor Agreements Between Employers And Labor Unions In Review Of Contract Law

The principle of good faith is an important principle in contract law and is accepted in variouslegal systems, but until now the doctrine of good faith is still controversial Good faith is knownby 2 (two) phases, namely the pre-contract phase and the contract execution phase. The precontract phase is called subjective good faith, which means that good faith is more directedtowards honesty, while good faith in the contract implementation phase is called objective goodfaith, which means that good faith is interpreted as appropriateness and decency or justice. Awork agreement is an agreement between workers/laborers and employers or employers thatcontains working conditions, rights and obligations for the parties. The definition of workingconditions is the rights and obligations of employers and workers that have not been regulatedin laws and regulations. Work agreements made must not conflict with existing laboragreements or Collective Labor Agreements (KKB)/Collective Labor Agreements (PKB). Thisresearch uses normative legal research sourced from secondary data related to the researchtopic, secondary data that has been regularly arranged and then analyzed qualitatively. Fromthe research conducted, it was found that the position of the principle of good faith is veryimportant not only at the stage of making (signing) and post-making (implementation) of thecontract, but also at the pre-making (drafting) ) stage of the contract because in the practice ofcontract law the judge does use his authority to interfere with the contents of the contract. Thelegal consequences of a collective bargaining agreement that does not contain the principle ofgood faith are that if the subjective requirements concerning the subject of the CBA areincomplete, or in other words the requirements that must be met are not appropriate for thosewho wish to make a CBA, then the CBA that has been made can be requested for cancellation bythe trade union/labor union. If the cancellation is not requested by both parties concerned, thenthe PKB remains valid for the parties. The first legal effort made by PT United Rope with thelabor union is by way of deliberation to reach consensus first, although in dispute resolution ifthere is no good faith in the collective labor agreement is through 2 (two) systems, namely first,non -litigation / outside the industrial relations court, namely bipartite settlement, mediation,conciliation and arbitration, while the second settlement is litigation.

Against the tide: A case of industrial relations transformation in the Indian coal sector

AbstractAlthough the scholarly debate on industrial relations (IR) transformation is inclined toward the conclusion that the IR transformation is bound to take place with changes in the surrounding business environment, we observe a few exceptions in each economy. The current study investigates one of such curious IR contexts, that is, the Indian coal sector. We rely on the ‘logic of the action’ framework and the IR transformation measures to assess the sector at an aggregate and micro level. The coal sector in India consists of a mix of both permanent and informal workforce. With respect to the permanent workforce, we analysed the collective bargaining agreements spanned over five decades (1975–2021). For the informal workforce, we analysed the recommendations of the HPC on wages and working conditions, the provisions of relevant legislation, internal circulars of coal companies and important judicial pronouncements. Our analyses revealed vast differences in wages and working conditions between the permanent and informal workforce. Despite a significant decline in the permanent workforce, they could negotiate better terms as the growing size of the informal workforce was yet to form a collective bargaining mechanism for better wages and working conditions. These results are indicative of a paradox which needs to be explored further. Our study advances the thesis of adaptive state capitalism in the coal sector through functional and numerical flexibility despite a politicised multi‐union model in India.

The impact of the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement on wage discrimination in the NBA

ABSTRACT This research re-evaluates wage discrimination in the National Basketball Association (NBA) following the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) being implemented. Using free agent data, weighted least square regression, and the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition, our results indicate that race does not significantly predict NBA players’ salaries, on average, after the 2017 CBA went into effect. Nevertheless, quantile regressions show discrimination remains present for star players. The results emphasize the potential positive effects that labour union agreements bring to professional sports labour markets.

Analysis of Gender Differences in Sports — Taking American Professional Women’s Soccer as an Example

This article delves into the multifaceted realm of gender disparities in sports, focusing on the enduring challenges faced by female soccer players, notably within the United States. Highlighting the intertwined complexities of gender biases, treatment discrepancies, and resource inequalities, it underlines the pervasive gender gap prevalent in various facets of sports, encompassing pay differentials, sponsorship limitations, and unequal access to training facilities. This research aims to explore the multifaceted demand for equal pay in professional women’s soccer through sociological and feminist lenses. It scrutinizes implications not only for female soccer players but also for broader gender equality pursuits in global sports. This investigation endeavors to illuminate pathways toward achieving parity between male and female athletes, envisioning inclusivity and equity in the sporting world. The study concludes with a series of recommendations to achieve equal pay for women in sport, emphasizing the importance of transparency, sponsorship, recognition, media representation and advocacy in collective bargaining agreements and governance. This research contributes to the ongoing debate on gender equality in sport and provides insights into potential solutions to the pay gap.

Forms of defense of the rights and interests of teachers

In this article, are analyzed the forms of defense of the employees’ rights and interests, with application to teachers, and the possible means of achievement within the various forms. At the same time, an attempt is made to determine the role played by teachers, and the place occupied by the alternative forms of protection of rights and interests – civic, juris-dictional non-judicial etc. – in relation to the basic forms of defense of rights and interests – judicial and administrative. As an example of the rights and facilities obtained by teachers in this way, is analyzed the acting collective bargaining agreement, as well as the conditions under which the teachers will be able to benefit from these facilities. The method used in the research includes the analysis of the normative framework in force, including the domain related social part-nership acts and the synthesis of existing rights and guarantees, resulting from collective bargaining.

An examination of public discourse about teachers’ collective bargaining rights in a portfolio school district

Employing an institutional logics framework and critical discourse analysis, this study examines the discourse of participants in a stakeholder-feedback meeting about a proposal by the Denver Public School board to extend collective bargaining rights to teachers in the district's innovation schools. The findings provide insight into the logics that control how teacher unions and collective bargaining agreements are understood by proponents of autonomous schools and portrayed to the general public through media. The analysis explores how connections to power and status allowed some stakeholder groups to influence the board to revise the policy to one more favorable toward market-oriented school reform. In this case, the dominant narrative that emerged from the stakeholder feedback cycle was one in which the collective bargaining rights of teachers were positioned as a threat to autonomous schools’ ability to provide “what's best for kids” in their classrooms. 

An Archival Examination of Gender-Specific Terminology in Public and Private Sector Collective Bargaining Agreements

Organizations and labor unions are at the crossroads of transformational change in workplace demographics.  In increasing numbers, female workers are entering fields and occupations that have historically been primarily occupied by male workers.  However, despite these shifts in workplace demographics, many collective bargaining agreements (CBA’s) are outdated with the use of gender-specific terminologies which are rooted in the historic industrial workplace and contain terminology implicating a workplace and occupation only held by male workers.  This article examined the frequency with which such gender-specific terminology is used in both public and private sector CBA’s.  Additionally, the article also offers recommendations for both organizations and labor unions with respect to terminology changes in their CBAs.  Failure to adapt and modify such language may reflect a lack of inclusion by both organizations and labor unions with respect to their employees and members. 

Collective Bargaining Agreements Implementation Approaches and Equity in Grade Promotion of Post-Primary Teachers in Kakamega County, Kenya

The use of two different implementation approaches for the 2017-2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement of teachers casted doubts on equity in promotion because each union had its own approach. Given that there were two unions at post-primary level, the purpose of this study was to compare equity accruable between them in Kakamega County. The objective was to determine the difference in equity in grade promotion of post-primary teachers between the use of scheme of service and the career progression guideline approaches based on Teacher Performance and Appraisal Development tool between 2017-2021. It was guided by a socialist economics of education theory. A comparative research design with a sample of 1,569 respondents from 5,923 was used. Systematic random sampling was used to select teachers in each union, purposive sampling for principals and saturated sampling for sub-county directors of education and union secretaries. Through piloting, content validity was enhanced with internal consistency reliability of 0.877. In data analysis, pairwise correlation established plausible interactions of variables at α = 0.05 with membership in Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers being statistically insignificant to promotion (p˃.05) through logistic regression analysis. A Gini coefficient 0.0001 found a statistically significant difference (p≤.05) between the two unions with an extra score in 2017, and teaching in extra-county and national schools reducing the odds of promotion to the next grade. It was concluded that promotion was marginally equitable in Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers than in Kenya National Union of Teachers with gini coefficients 0.0567 and 0.0698 respectively.

Legal Consequences For Companies For Violations Of Collective Bargaining Agreements

ABSTRACT
 Collective Labor Agreements (PKB) made between companies and workers' unions must refer to the Law governing Manpower in Indonesia in order to guarantee workers' basic rights, guarantee equality and opportunity and treatment without discrimination for the welfare of workers. If the Collective Labor Agreement made is contrary to applicable laws, it can result in the Collective Labor Agreement being null and void by law. In this research, the writer wants to examine the Juridical Review of the Collective Labor Agreement between PT x and the Workers' Union y. The type of legal research in this thesis is normative legal research and uses qualitative data analysis methods. In the application of the Collective Labor Agreement (PKB) by PT x with the Labor Union y, there are several discrepancies between the contents of the clauses contained in the Collective Labor Agreement (PKB) and the provisions contained in the Law governing Manpower in Indonesia. Even though there are some discrepancies in the contents of the Collective Labor Agreement clause made between PT x and y. However, the substance and other components contained in the Collective Labor Agreement (PKB) are in accordance with the laws governing employment in Indonesia.
 Keywords: Collective Labor Agreement, workers, null and void

Who is the Principal Here? Understanding the Social Conditions of Collective Bargaining Agency and Implementation in Schools

ABSTRACT This study examines school leaders’ implementation of collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) negotiated between teachers’ unions and school district administration. Using interviews with school leaders and drawing on a structure-agency perspective, the research highlights the interplay between school leader decision-making, union power, and school social dynamics in CBA implementation. The findings demonstrate that school leaders employed diverse strategies to manage collective bargaining work rules that varied based on school leaders’ tenure. Experienced leaders defrayed CBA disputes, while less experienced leaders deferred to teachers’ interpretations. Our findings further illustrate how leaders leveraged CBA provisions in ways that privileged efficient school functioning.

Collective Bargaining Agreements and Equity

The approval of two implementation approaches by unions in their bid to implement a joint Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)ofteachers in Kenya, for 2017-2021, was meant to boost equity in promotions. Whereas the scheme of service approachwasforKenyaNational Union of Teachers, the Career Progression Guideline approach was for the Kenya Union of Post Primary EducationTeachers,both of which are domiciled in secondary schools. Since an emphasis was put on academic qualification, the annual declineinaccesstopromotions from 12.9% in 2016 to 5.2% in 2020 with a job stagnation of 15.7 years per grade casts doubts on its effectiveness.Inaddressing this concern, this article is theoretically guided by Walton and McKersie’s behavioral theory for labour negotiations.Itutilizes a sample of 1,569 respondents who were drawn from a study population of 5,923. Systematic randomsamplingsawtheselection of teachers in each union. It was based on the chronological order of their TSC numbers. Content validity andinternalconsistency reliability were enhanced with a co-efficient of 0.877. In data analysis, pairwise correlation establishedthatunionmembership, academic qualifications and grade promotions had plausible interactions. Logistic regression analysis establishedastatistically significant difference in equity between the two unions, based on academic qualifications, with Career ProgressionGuideline reducing the odds of promotion to the next grade by up to 22.58% in KUPPET. The research article ascertainedamarginallyequitable promotion distribution in KUPPET than KNUT, with gini coefficient of 0.0567 and 0.0698 respectively. Consequently,itrecommends a harmonization of the two approaches so as to convert it into one single entity.

Pandemic memoranda: how school district and teachers' union administrators modified collective bargaining agreements during the COVID-19 pandemic

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic prompted changes to the terms and conditions of teachers' employment (e.g. working conditions), leading school districts to renegotiate collective bargaining agreements with teachers' unions. However, limited research has examined how these negotiations occur in times of crisis. This study aims to analyze how school district and teachers' union administrators adapted workplace policies to meet staff and student needs during the COVID-19 pandemic by using a panel dataset of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) negotiated in 187 large US school districts.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used the partial independence item response method to estimate MOU restrictiveness measures that captured the extent to which MOUs limited school administrator autonomy in setting the terms and conditions of teachers' employment. Descriptive analyses and ordinary least squares regression models showed how the scope of collective bargaining negotiations expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how restrictiveness varied across school districts based on district and union characteristics.FindingsResults showed that school district and teachers' union administrators increased restrictions on school administrator autonomy in the spring of 2020, but these restrictions decreased by fall 2021. The level of restrictions agreed upon varied based on the strength of teachers' unions and political partisanship of school districts. The COVID-19 pandemic led to an expansion of collective bargaining negotiations to include previously unconsidered topics such as employee and student health and remote instruction.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first to examine the modifications made to collective bargaining agreements during times of crisis by school district and teachers' union administrators. The findings suggest that there were considerable changes to the terms and conditions of teachers' employment during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that the strength of teachers' unions and political partisanship were associated with negotiation outcomes.

Collective or Collusive Agreements?

The world of work, and indeed the Treaty itself, has changed considerably since the Court first examined the issue of competition law and collective bargaining agreements in the Albany decision. Exempting only those categorised as employees from the scope of Article 101 is no longer adequate to address the imbalance of bargaining power recognised by the Court. Although recognition of the ‘false self-employed’ in FNV went some way towards acknowledging the atypical position of some workers, confusion also stemmed from this intermediary category, which led to inconsistent approaches across Member States. The combination of the COVID-19 pandemic, the increased digitisation of the world of work, and a prominent decision at international level finally prompted the Commission to take action to remedy the uncertainty, by introducing Guidelines on the application of Article 101 to collective agreements regarding the working conditions of solo self-employed persons. The purpose of this paper is thus to critically analyse the likely effectiveness of these Guidelines, focusing on their substance and form respectively, while also exploring potential avenues for the Commission and the Court to provide increased legal certainty for solo self-employed persons seeking to collectively bargain, against the backdrop of an increasingly social understanding of the Treaties. Collective bargaining, Solo self-employed, Albany exception, Interpretative guidelines, Enforcement priorities, Non-competition concerns

The Perils of Asymmetrical Technological Changes in a Knowledge Economy with Complete Markets

How does the asymmetrical adoption of advanced communication technology affect economic and social sustainability? We examined the impact of Industry 4.0 on these two pillars of sustainability, focusing on the productivity divide arising from the asymmetric adoption of advanced technologies. We used a theoretical, general equilibrium model to describe a population within a knowledge economy with complete markets who gets exposed to a generally available advanced technology. Our main assumption was that only the more-knowledgeable individuals are able to adopt or fully benefit from the technology, leaving the unskilled ones behind. We demonstrate that this asymmetry prevents the property of positive sorting to apply, leading to a failure to sustain an equilibrium. The divide between knowledgeable and less-skilled individuals poses challenges for workers situated around the boundary, who face penalties in terms of employability and cost-effectiveness. Bridging this skill gap is crucial for inclusive growth. Policy recommendations include retraining programs, accessible education, and targeted policies promoting technology diffusion. As a possible extension, the model could be adapted to analyze collective bargaining agreements.