Industrial Relations Literature Research Articles

Writing Red Taylorism into management history

An increasing number of Western scholars are currently arguing that socialist transition theory may provide solutions to industrial relations and management problems that capitalism struggles to resolve. I add to this effort by introducing the debate on whether scientific management could assist the transition from capitalism to socialism that was undertaken in the United States through the first two decades of the 20th century. By so doing, I make two contributions. First, I show that socialist theory has a substantial lineage within management studies from which current progressives might draw lessons. Second, I add to the literature that has problematised the authoritarian depiction of Taylorism that is orthodoxy in the management and industrial relations literature. I do so by showing that a significant body of theorists and practitioners believed scientific management could assist populations to move beyond capitalism. Some welcomed this possibility, while others viewed it as a dire threat, requiring that Taylorism be demonised.

Unions and temporary workers’ wages in Spain: Testing solidarity in the good times and in the bad times

The labour market dualisation theory claims that labour unions bargain against the interests of temporary workers and that they foster inequalities between temporary and permanent employees. Conversely, the industrial relations literature argues that unions commonly follow solidaristic strategies towards outsiders. This study contributes to the literature by analysing unions’ associations with temporary workers’ hourly wages and the wage gap between permanent and temporary workers in Spain: one of the most prominent examples of labour market dualisation. By analysing cross-sectional surveys, unions’ influence through works councils, collective agreements and union density are studied during a period of economic growth (2006–2007) and a period of recession (2008–2010). Results show that there is generally no association between these three institutions and wage differences between permanent and temporary workers. The associations with temporary workers’ wages are insignificant or positive during both the period of economic growth and the period of recession.

How effective are international framework agreements in subsidiary companies of multinational enterprises? A case study of the international framework agreement of Anglogold Ashanti, Ghana

This paper investigates issues relating to the two International Framework Agreements (IFA) of 2002 and 2009 of AngloGold Ashanti (AGA). IFAs have emerged as a necessary and innovative instrument of global industrial governance (Hammer, 2005) and the globalisation of business activities, and they influence financial direct investments and multinational corporations. The study investigated the effectiveness of IFA in the operations of AGA, focusing on stakeholders’ awareness/knowledge and appreciation of IFAs and the relevance and functionality of the IFA in the operations of AGA. The study occurred within the theoretical framework of sociology of law/legal sociology, which stipulates that an agreement is effective if it ensures designated effects and shapes social behaviour in a predetermined and socially appropriate manner. The methodology was qualitative with a case study design entailing data from desk research and interviews among selected mining stakeholder groups of national and local unions, AngloGold staff, government agencies, academics/researchers, other professionals and NGOs. The results showed that there was little or no awareness/knowledge of IFAs and, therefore, there was virtually no appreciation of the relevance and appreciation of these global agreements. Although AngloGold was purported to be an IFA signatory in all industrial relations literature as it deals with such framework agreements, there was no functioning IFA at AngloGold. While such agreements within the world of industrial relations are very relevant and functional especially outside Africa, this research has shown that local and national unions should be assisted by their global counterparts to deal with the challenges of international labour standards to make such IFAs very relevant and functional in Africa.

Co-creating New Dancefloors Through a Parallel Organisation

Across industries, union density is under great pressure from different forms of organisations and, in many ways, a more individualised working life. Employee relations within the public sector have undergone a transition due to privatisation, decentralisation, and the adoption of quality management approaches. Employee relations in Nordic countries are strongly embedded in national regulations and agreements. However, research on workplace development within the public sector rarely includes discussions of the union role. The Nordic model perspective acknowledges that the different social parties share interests and visions, and it promotes a collective effort when workplace development is sought. This paper poses the question of how public organisations can change the “boxing and dancing” behaviour in union–management relationships through the establishment of a parallel organisation (PO). The PO serves as a different organisational mode when the operating organisation is unable to successfully deal with certain prevailing issues, where knowledge rather than authority should determine decisions. The findings show that the PO creates a “dancefloor”, less confined by bureaucratic barriers, where unions and managers co-create new relations. In addition, participants experience more enhancement of their roles, and their focus towards developing their workplace collectively is more prominent. Our findings contribute to the industrial relations literature by proposing POs as a tool for building relations between unions and managers in a public organisation. Our paper also contributes to the PO literature by proposing that the inclusion of unions in a PO can be crucial when attempting to transfer outcomes into the operating organisation.

Why platform capitalism is not the future of work

This article examines the assumptions behind the sociology of work and industrial relations literature on online labour-based platforms. This literature has critically examined working conditions and worker resistance in platform work, but it has done so without criticising what we call the ‘metanarrative of the platform economy’. This metanarrative enables a weaving together of platform work with broader trends such as precarisation, neoliberalisation, financialisation and marketisation, but it makes it difficult for scholars to explain the small size of the platform workforce or to understand the diverse forms that platforms take. We argue that in order to understand the limits and diversity of platforms it is important to understand the inherent problems of platforms as capitalist business models. We suggest a research agenda that decentres some of the better-known platform models (ridesharing and food delivery) and carries out in-depth studies of work and exchange in other sectors.

Trade union community membership: exploring what people who are not in paid employment could contribute to union activism

The industrial relations literature tends to argue that workers join trade unions primarily for instrumental reasons, for example, to obtain assistance if there is a problem at work. But this clearly does not apply to people who are not in work. It is in many ways counterintuitive to join a trade union when one is not an employee or in paid employment, looking for a job, or retired. Generally, there is little material benefit in doing so. Others have noted, however, that personal values, particularly associated with the ideological left, can cultivate a predisposition toward joining a union that is not based on a purely material calculus. Nevertheless, this analysis is usually applied to workers. The research reflected in this article aims to understand the motivation of people who are not in paid employment, such as jobseekers/unemployed, students and retirees, to join labour unions and become active within them. It does so through a case study of the United Kingdom’s largest private sector union, Unite, and considers the contribution to, or rationale for, union activism within community membership and the possibilities for rethinking trade unionism beyond its traditional workplace base.

‘Frames of reference’ in Victorian England: What Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South reveals about perceptions of the employment relationship

Alan Fox’s conceptualisation of ‘unitary’, ‘pluralistic’ and subsequently ‘radical’ frames of reference has been outstandingly influential in the analysis of industrial relations and human resource management since the 1960s. This article demonstrates, however, that these distinctions long predate Fox even though he popularised the terminology. Evidence that observers used comparable frames of reference to categorise perceptions of the employment relationship goes back to the 1830s, and may be found in certain ‘condition-of-England’ novels that were set amid the social turbulence of the time. This article is based on close examination of one such novel, North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell. It informs our historical understanding of Fox’s concept of ‘frames of reference’ through exploration of the relationship between three characters who broadly represent employer (unitary), union (radical) and middle-class (pluralist) perspectives. Their discussions about industrial conflict raise dilemmas similar to those analysed in contemporary industrial relations literature: how to forge closer relationships between employers and workers through processes designed to nurture high-trust dynamics while remaining aware of the underlying power imbalances between the two sides resulting from social inequalities of class and wealth.

The (un)speaking self: an identity-based model for employee voice and silence

Abstract The literature on employee voice and silence has typically explored these behaviors as being motivated by calculative-instrumental purposes (what will I gain/lose if I volunteer information?). I argue that voice and silence are social-functional behaviors that are embedded within everyday interactions at work, and I draw on social identity theory to propose an identity-based model of employee voice and silence (how does speaking up affect my definition of who I am?). The presented model explains how individuals can volunteer information or remain silent by preserving or restructuring their sense of self in the face of identity threats. I also explore the conditions for each identity-based speaking behavior and offer contributions to both the Organizational Behavior and Industrial Relations literature on employee voice and silence.

The (un)speaking self: an identity-based model for employee voice and silence

Abstract The literature on employee voice and silence has typically explored these behaviors as being motivated by calculative-instrumental purposes (what will I gain/lose if I volunteer information?). I argue that voice and silence are social-functional behaviors that are embedded within everyday interactions at work, and I draw on social identity theory to propose an identity-based model of employee voice and silence (how does speaking up affect my definition of who I am?). The presented model explains how individuals can volunteer information or remain silent by preserving or restructuring their sense of self in the face of identity threats. I also explore the conditions for each identity-based speaking behavior and offer contributions to both the Organizational Behavior and Industrial Relations literature on employee voice and silence.

Research Handbook on Labour, Business and Human Rights Law, edited by Janice R.Bellace and Beryl terHaar. Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, 2019, 528 pp., ISBN: 978‐1‐78642‐310‐7, £195.00 (US$290.00)

Research Handbook on Labour, Business and Human Rights Law, edited by Janice R.Bellace and Beryl terHaar. Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, 2019, 528 pp., ISBN: 978‐1‐78642‐310‐7, £195.00 (US$290.00)

Tendenze delle relazioni industriali nel settore suinicolo: il caso italiano in un quadro europeo

The essay deals with some current trends in the industrial relations of the European pork sector. Although it is still relatively little investigated by the labour law and industrial relations literature, the pork sector represents a privileged observatory to understand the profound transformations of the economy, the labour market and the systems of industrial relations. In particular, in its first part, it focuses on some factors that have favored the international opening of the meat market and increased competitive pressure on national industries and on some criticisms of the industrial relations systems in Europe (national examples from the Belgian case and the Danish case). Subsequently it focuses on the Italian case, regarding the structural characteristics of the supply chain and the major criticalities that are emerging in the industrial rela-tions.

Evidence on Trade Union Members’ Dissatisfaction with Inequalities at a Scottish University

The present paper includes insights on trade union members’ perceptions of job dissatisfaction related to inequalities at a Scottish university. Research spanning more than five decades has consistently shown that trade union member employees report higher levels of job dissatisfaction than non-union employees, although industrial relations scholars have been unable to agree on as to why that is the case. Prior research of trade union membership and its link to job dissatisfaction has largely been quantitative. The present study therefore added much needed, individual-level insights to the industrial relations literature through its use of a qualitative approach that included interviews with 23 individuals. This research is part of a wider project in which trade union membership and job dissatisfaction were explored, and that led to the author being awarded a PhD from the University of St. Andrews in the United Kingdom.

“Monday Effect” on Performance Variations in Supply Chain Fulfillment: How Information Technology–Enabled Procurement May Help

If labor productivity varies in unknown ways over time, this could lead to unforeseen fluctuations in production or delivery rates, leading to stockouts or inventory build-up in a supply chain, while contributing to higher operating costs and to lower satisfaction levels for customers. The “Monday Effect,” that is lower productivity and higher error rates on Mondays compared with other days of the week, has been demonstrated in the finance and industrial relations literature. Using a database of 12 months of purchases from the General Services Administration (GSA) of the U.S. government (a key distributor of goods to government purchasers), we show that, indeed, performance is lower on Mondays compared with other weekdays in terms of order fulfillment and order cycle time. However, when purchasers use the GSA’s internet-based electronic market instead of using manual ordering procedures, the fulfillment gap between Mondays and other weekdays narrows considerably, demonstrating the value of information technology in smoothing distribution flows. By acknowledging the Monday Effect, distributors can thus plan for these weekly fluctuations and use information technology to improve service levels.

Regulation, migration and the implications for industrial relations

The debate on migration has extended the scope of industrial relations research and brought questions of regulation to the centre. We suggest that there is a mutuality to the relationship between the debates around migration and regulation within the industrial relations literature: the study of migration has stimulated a new set of debates within industrial relations that allow us to reconsider issues of regulation; in turn, the study of regulation offers a useful perspective on issues relating to migration. The article applies an analytical framework based on the interplay of regulatory spaces and actors to the study of international migration. The framework offers a dynamic approach to mapping the wide range of actors involved in the regulation of migration and the boundaries between regulatory spaces, which may be fluid and contested. Through applying this framework, industrial relations issues relating to migration are located within a wider view of both regulation and the international movement of people.

Global Framework Agreements and Trade Unions as Monitoring Agents in Transnational Corporations

In combining the micropolitics approach in international management, the industrial relations literature and business ethics, this article conceptualizes global framework agreements as an alliance between central CSR managers of transnational corporations and central actors within trade unions to monitor subsidiaries in the implementation of CSR policies. The empirical investigation, based on the qualitative analysis of ten French multinational companies, confirms the relevance of such a conceptualization. It particularly shows that central CSR managers hope mobilizing the union network to increase their capacity to supervise subsidiaries. Over there, it helps understanding concrete mechanisms adopted to implement global framework agreements since, in some of the studied cases, the managerial and union channels are coordinated precisely to strengthen this capacity. It, then, highlights the procedural nature of policies regarding global framework agreements. Overall, this paper examines the conditions necessary for mobilization of the union network and suggests avenues for future research.

Supra-union and intersectional organizing: An examination of two prominent cases in the low-wage US restaurant industry

In this article, we examine strategic approaches by the Restaurant Opportunities Center and the Fight for 15 campaign to organizing low-wage workers in the US restaurant industry. Existing industrial relations literature explains that traditional trade unions have had little success in organizing these workers – a growing number of whom identify as racial minorities, women, and immigrant workers – due in part to structural challenges to unionization. However, despite existing institutional and legal obstacles, in recent years two ‘supra-union’ cases of low-wage worker organizing have spread across the nation, resulting in unanticipated economic, legal, and political gains for this diverse group of workers. To better understand the recent success of these alternative forms of worker organizing, we bring the literature on intersectionality, under-utilized in the examination of labor movement organizing, into the industrial relations context. We argue that the Restaurant Opportunities Center and Fight for 15 campaign’s success is due in part to strategic approaches to organizing that have intentionally focused on workers’ interests not solely as a class, but as workers holding multiple identities in an increasingly diverse workforce. More broadly, this article has implications for the future of worker representation and cross-movement solidarity building in the United States.

Labor Unions and the Great Recession

This article examines the impact of the Great Recession on the U.S. labor movement. After reviewing the classic industrial relations literature on the relationship between unionization rates and business cycles, we analyze historical union density trends. After documenting the relentless downward trend in the private sector from the early 1980s, with no apparent relationship to the business cycle, we analyze the negative impact of the political dynamic that unfolded in the wake of the Great Recession on public-sector unionism in sharp contrast to what took place during the Great Depression. We also explore the new forms of labor organizing that have emerged in the private sector, which have capitalized on the growing public concern about rising inequality sparked by Occupy Wall Street.

When do social actors shape sub-national employment policies? Case study evidence from four multinationals in Belgium

There is an ongoing debate in business and industrial relations literature regarding the role of social actors in shaping employment policies in multinational companies. However, less attention has been given to how sub-national employment levels are shaped by social actors within multinational companies. This article contributes to that question by investigating the conditions under which social actors engage in the development of regional employment policies, inter-firm employment policies and company-specific policies. Based on four case studies of multinational companies with different subsidiaries in Belgium, the study reveals that social actors shape these employment policies in line with their employment aims where they have access to sub-national resources. Furthermore, high levels of entrepreneurship were found if sub-national resources were available at multiple complementary sub-national levels. The availability of these resources is dependent on the specific historical development of each of these sub-national levels.

Industrial relations in New Caledonia: context and focus on the Kanak Indigenous people’s labour struggle in the background of the politics of reconciliation and decolonisation

This article examines industrial relations in New Caledonia with a focus on Indigenous labour. Caledonian industrial relations are absent from English speaking industrial relations literature. Therefore, the first objective of this article is to provide a general introduction to the broad industrial relations context including an overview of the political economy; key features of the labour market; labour market regulation and labour issues. The second objective is to provide historical and contemporary insights on the Kanak labour struggle and political (anti-colonial) activism. The research is informed by interviews in 2011 and 2014 and ongoing participant observation among Kanak political forces. Our argument is twofold. First, Caledonian industrial relations are politicised within the politics of reconciliation – the political platform for a so-called common destiny. Second, the politics of reconciliation have been deployed in response to the long-lasting indigenous struggle for sovereignty, with Kanak organised labour at the forefront of this struggle.

The essence of trade unions: understanding identity, ideology and purpose

Academics have long investigated trade union behaviour through the complex interaction of identity, ideology and purpose. At the same time, there have been increasing calls to gain a deeper understanding of the purpose of strategies but the two bodies of literature seldom overlap. The article proposes a framework to help understand the essence of trade unions and to situate strategies (such as organizing) in this broader context and bridge the gap between the literature on union purpose and identity and on strategies for renewal. It is argued that the essence of unions framework can assist with the analysis of both historical and contemporary trade unionism and allows both clarification and consideration of the range of concepts and terms already in use in the industrial relations literature.