Scope Of Collective Bargaining Research Articles

EU social dialogue revitalisation: Between rhetoric, new rights, political commitments and historical caution

The Council Recommendation on strengthening social dialogue is a positive recognition of the key role of social dialogue in the EU's social market economy. At the same time, episodes of institutional disfavour of the social partners’ co-determination role and resistance to robust sectoral collective bargaining warrant a cautious assessment. This article looks at the current state of EU social dialogue, examining its primary dimensions: the involvement of social partners in policymaking and the scope of collective bargaining. It assesses the Council Recommendation, along with other measures adopted during the Von der Leyen presidency, to ascertain their collective contribution in realigning EU social dialogue with the principles of the EU Treaties. Overall, the analysis reveals a nuanced picture, with both positive and challenging aspects. While collective bargaining has been given a new (albeit partial) boost, the same cannot be said for the social partners’ participation in EU policymaking. Notably, the Council Recommendation reaffirmed the Court of Justice's decision in the EPSU case, solidifying the Commission's discretionary authority to decide on the legislative implementation of framework agreements, to the detriment of the social partners’ regulatory agency. Finally, the article proposes a blueprint for further advancing the EU's aspiration for social dialogue, seeking to reconciling it with the social objectives that, constitutionally, the Union aspires to achieve.

“Decent Work” in the Port Industry- Resilience of Social Dialogue: A Scope Study with Related Analysis

This paper endeavors to review the literature in a conceptual and practical mode with reference to the research work on workplace on a select area viz., labour relations practices at the ports and identifies the importance of theoretical analysis to support workplace social dialogue. The paper is explorative in attempting to provide theoretical imperatives of social dialogue at the waterfronts as institutional framework in the light of democratization of labour-management relations at the ports. The paper has underscored the significance of the institutional framework of Social Dialogue at the port to provide trade unions and other stakeholders with an opportunity to expand the benefits of port reforms, and labour-management relations, beyond the scope of collective bargaining. Further, the paper explores conceptual understanding of Research Methodology in workplace study. In particular, it engages with the epistemological issues surrounding the adoption of a particular method of doing research. This and the epistemic of research method are discussed along the conceptual framework.

About Time: Labour Reform and Ratification of C87 in Malaysia

18 | International Union Rights | 26/3 TOWARDS UNIVERSAL RATIFICATION OF C87 AND 98 Trade unions represent one of the few institutions capable of achieving some measure of equity and social justice for workers. However, trade unionism in Malaysia, being that of the state-employerdominated model, has faced challenges from both employers and the government in bringing about necessary changes to some of the restrictive provisions in the Trade Union Act 1959 (TUA), the Industrial Relations Act 1967 (IRA) and the Employment Act 1955 (EA). A far bigger challenge has been the ratification of ILO Convention 87 (Freedom of Association and Protection of Right to Organise Convention, 1948). Article 10 of the Malaysian Federal Constitution guarantees citizens of their right to freedom of speech, the right to assemble peacefully and without arms, and the right to freedom of association. The protection of worker rights with regard to unionisation and participation in the activities of trade unions is also emphasised in Sections 7 and 8 of the Employment Act 1955 (EA). This protection of worker rights is further strengthened by Section 4 of the IRA which stipulates that that no person shall interfere with, restrain or coerce a workman or an employer in the exercise of his rights to form and assist in the formation of and join a trade union and to participate in its lawful activities. However, in reality, the State exercises great control over that right. The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC), the oldest national labour centre in Malaysia, representing approximately half a million members in unions affiliated to it, has long argued that C87 is an indispensable principle of any democratic society, where parliamentary democracy is being practiced. Many attempts have been made by MTUC to exert pressure on the government to finally ratify C87 but have not been successful thus far. However, it has been relentless in its call for the ratification of this convention. Seeking ratification of Convention 87 Available records show that MTUC had first raised the issue of the ratification of C87, with the Malaysian government, at the Standing Committee meeting of the then National Joint Labour Advisory Council on 7 September 1971. Over the years, the MTUC had at numerous fora and nationwide campaigns, demanded that the Malaysian government revise the key labour laws, as well as ratify C87. Despite MTUC undertaking an extensive study of the restrictive core labour legislation and their impact on freedom of association, and the blunt recommendations by the ILO Committee for Freedom Association in 2003, there was little change on the part of the Malaysian Government. More recently, the Worker members at the 105th ILC session (2016) noted that the Malaysian government had failed to address the major shortcomings in its laws and practices, as well as its institutional framework. The deficiencies concerned key issues including trade union recognition, compulsory arbitration, scope of collective bargaining and antiunion discrimination. The Worker members also expressed serious concerns over various discriminatory tactics used by certain employers against workers engaged in union activities, and the lack of remedies and dissuasive sanctions applied to errant employers. Importance of Convention 87 The right to freedom of association, as enshrined in C87, is the yardstick in which a democratic nation is measured. This right guarantees that workers should be able to form and join trade unions free from interference from the employers and government. The objective of C87 is to ensure workers’ freedom to associate into organisations of their own choosing. In addition, this convention stipulates that the trade unions will be autonomous bodies with the right to draw up their own constitutions and rules, to elect their representatives in full freedom, to organise their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes. The industrial relations system in Malaysia is one that has extensive state control, a high degree of managerial prerogative, little bargaining power for labour and inadequate protection of labour’s rights and interests. The labour laws are generally incongruent with C87, which give rise to serious concerns. Some key arguments on the need to ratify C87 are as follows: ■ When International Labour Conventions are ratified by the national authority for making laws, such as the Malaysian Parliament, they become binding international...

Collective Bargaining, Equality and Migration: The Journey to and from Brexit

Abstract Bob Simpson has documented the evolution of collective labour laws in the UK over several decades and his scholarship reminds us of their intended and unintended consequences. In the highly politically charged context of the 2016 Brexit vote, this article considers how UK and European Union (EU) laws have shaped the nature and scope of collective bargaining in the UK and, thereby, income differentials and equal treatment in the workplace. While it would be possible to provide for equality of treatment between local British and migrant labour in ways that reduce social tensions, instead we have witnessed the imposition of legal frameworks that place workers in a position of competition rather than solidarity. The mistrust of current forms of migration from the EU seems to have been one key part of the journey towards the Brexit vote. An important question is what comes afterwards. If Brexit does not proceed, we should be contemplating reform at both UK and EU levels; but the problems identified here seem unlikely to evaporate in the event of either ‘soft’ or ‘hard’ Brexit. The article concludes that the UK situation offers a salutary reminder to other EU States of the dangers of dismantling systems of sectoral bargaining and mechanisms for extension of collective agreements.

The Paradox of Federal Sector Labor Relations: Voluntary Unionism Without Collective Bargaining Over Wages and Employee Benefits

Federal sector unionism is a paradox. Despite the outlawry of union-security provisions and strikes, sharp limits on the scope of collective bargaining (outside the U.S. Postal Service and airport air traffic controllers), and the absence of card-check certification, federal employees join unions and pay dues. The union membership rate is lower than in state and local governments but considerably higher than in the private sector. Somewhat fewer employee pay dues than are covered by collective agreements but the free-riding effect is smaller than one would expect. The federal sector suggests a model of relatively low-stakes unionism and collective bargaining that perhaps should be considered as an alternative by labor organizations and policymakers. The federal-sector mode may, however, require certain features that are not readily replicable in the private sector: the absence of a right to strike in favor of some measure of interest arbitration as a deadlock-breaking device, an absence of employer opposition, and statutory employment protections.

Collective Bargaining 3.0

The first lesson network leaders learn in the Jobs With Justice training is never give your power away. While easier said in a workshop than in the North Carolina General Assembly, it does compel us to remember how change happens. While we need labor law reform, we should not wait for it to build a movement to expand the scale and scope of collective bargaining. Early industrial unions were bargaining long before the Wagner Act codified the practice, leveraging their ability to halt production when necessary. Only through exercising their power, and even breaking some rules, were they able to win the legal protections to back up workers’ ability to bargain equally with employers.

Teacher evaluation reform implementation and labor relations

The Michigan legislature recently enacted a teacher evaluation law which requires school districts to incorporate student achievement data into evaluation systems and mandated that evaluations be used to make high-stakes personnel decisions. Though administrators have considerable discretion to design and implement their evaluation systems, the legislature also passed legislation which barred teacher evaluations from the scope of collective bargaining, thus restricting any formal role teacher unions would have in shaping teacher evaluation at the local level. Using survey data gathered from local district superintendents and human resources directors (n = 73), this study identifies variations in the features of the evaluation systems adopted by Michigan school districts, and reports on the administrators’ evaluation of the new systems. Further, we quantify the extent to which teacher unions were involved in the development of teacher evaluation reform at the local level, and identify the association between key aspects of teacher evaluation protocols and measures of the labor relations climate. This case study provides insights regarding the capacity and willingness of administrators to reform teacher evaluation, the involvement of teachers and teacher unions in developing those reforms, and the association of these reforms with the local labor relations climate.

Negociación colectiva: construyendo la solidaridad mediante la lucha contra las desigualdades y la discriminación

Equality bargaining in essence is turning the resource of collective bargaining to the objectives of equality and diversity in work and employment. This article traces the progress of equality bargaining, with a focus on the UK. It explores the decline of the coverage and scope of collective bargaining and increase in pay gaps on the vertical plane alongside extant social divisions and inequalities. It looks at legal solutions including statutory mechanisms to achieve collective bargaining and a National Minimum Wage. It notes that in the UK women are more likely to be covered by collective bargaining and despite a hostile economic climate, characterised by the fragmentation of bargaining through privatisation, that a union pay premium has survived and is larger for women. It discusses the limitations of both a National Minimum Wage and voluntary Living Wage for equality and concludes by supporting calls for the rebuilding of sectoral collective bargaining, but emphasises that this needs to be inclusive and expansive.

Economic crisis and the politics of public service employment relations in Italy and France

This article analyses the impact of government austerity measures on the working conditions of public employees and public sector employment relations in Italy and France. The timing and severity of these measures have differed, given the different conditions of public finances in the two countries. The impact on employment levels, wages, working conditions and pensions has generally been more pronounced in Italy than in France. The reform of public sector employment relations institutions predated the economic crisis; in Italy the aim was to limit union prerogatives and the scope of collective bargaining, in France to strengthen social dialogue institutions. But in both cases the ultimate government power to determine terms and conditions of employment unilaterally has been clearly reaffirmed.

Unite meat workers: organising for justice

FOCUS □ ORGANISING ANDSUPPLYCHAINS Unite meat workers: organising for justice I workplace through identified was in The poultry stewards the casualisation agency the spectre increased key meat growing by leaders sector issue work shop and and of identified byshop stewards and workplace leaders inthe meat and poultry sector was the growing spectre of casualisation throughincreased agency work SHARON GRAHAM, Director of Organising, Unite. The mately poultry workforce 40,000 processing workers, ofthe sector UK the and stands majority Irish at meat of approxiwhom and poultry processing sectorstandsat approximately 40,000workers, themajority ofwhom areincreasingly basedatworksites ownedbyglobal multinational companies.In 2005,tradeunion membership inthesector stoodatapproximately 7,500consisting largely ofworkers intraditionallyunionised siteswithin thepoultry supply chain. Tradeunionorganisation outsideoftwoorthree companieswas limited, shopsteward and thereforebargaining co-ordination and strategy nonexistent . Theterms andconditions offered toworkersbypractically every major company were-and remain- comparatively poor and permanent employment was beingconsciouslyeroded by employers feeding-off EUaccessiontoincreasinglycasualisetheworkforce . Operating in western liberaldemocracies that are increasingly defined byliberalised freemarketcapitalism , trade unionsintheUKandIreland have struggled foroverthirty yearsto adaptto and confront a radically changedenvironment. The institutional poweroftradeunionshasbeen weakenedthrough neo-liberal entrenchment of flexible labourmarkets and therejection ofproduction capitalinfavour offinancial capital. This, coupledwith continued commodification through theprivatisation ofpublicand socialgoods,has ledtothetradeunionmovement beingforced to facea setofissuesandproblems that arevery different to thosefacedin theimmediate post-war period.One keyoutcomehasbeenthelongterm declineofboththescope and quality ofcollective bargaining. Thishasledtoa trade unionmovement with a broadly defensive outlook bothindustrially and politically. The meat and poultry sector inthe UKand Ireland Themeatandpoultry processing sector intheUK and Irelandreflected thechangedenvironment within whichtradeunionsremain forced to act. Wherecollective bargaining hadbeen previously establisheditwas increasingly localisedwithin rapidly globalising companies. This,together with thegrowth innon-union workplaces andcompanies ,presented a notuncommon challenge. Themeat andpoultry processing sector displayed characteristics ofearly21stcentury tradeunion presencein theprivate sector.Traditional trade unionpresence waserodedthrough declining bargainingpowercaused bytheformation ofnew entities devoidoftradeunionheritage. Thischaoticpicture ofdeclining collective bargainingcoverage ,whilstnot unusual, should demand a strategic response. Theprimary roleand representative force ofthetrade unionmovement istobe found attheplaceofworkandinitsabilityto facilitate theredistribution ofmeaningful powerto workers, we are left withseveralconclusions . 1.Theerosionofcollective bargaining isa critical issuethat needstobe addressed as without itwe arebereft ofa keytoolthat brings therelevance ofsolidarity toworkers. 2.Theaspiration tobuildmeaningful class powerrequires emphasis on thequality and scope ofcollective bargaining notjustthe level' ofbargaining coverage. 3.Without therepresentative force ofmajority bargaining thepolitical powerofthetrade unionmovement is critically undermined. A keyprinciple of 'forward' organising is the beliefthat tradeunionsaretheprimary andcriticalinstitutional actors through which workers can acquirejusticewithregard to wealthand power within a globalised capitalist economy. Ifthecause oftrade unionsistransformative change, then itis clearthat a strategy basedas a minimum oncomprehensive reform is a pre-requisite tothedeliveryofcoreobjectives . Challenge the market,buildthe movement Inthemeatandpoultry processing sector, theuse ofcoreforward organising principles informed a strategy consistent withourviewofwhatunions arefor: ■ Thedelivery ofsector-wide organising designedtogrowthecoverageofbargaining andtherefore thepowerofworkers. ■ Therebuilding ofourshopstewards movement, first locally, thenbycompany, followed bythenational sector andfinally globally. Theinitiation ofshopsteward coordination andthedémocratisation ofunion decision-making through industrial 'combines'. The development ofa comprehensive forward organising strategy within themeatand poultry processing sector was basedon ourviewofwhat trade unionsarefor andcritical organising principles .Inpractical terms this required a strategy that delivered theopportunity for theformation ofmeaningful poweratwork. Within theterms offorward organising itisassumedthat thedelivery ofmeaningful changewithin a neo-liberal capitalist economymakesconflict inevitable. Risingto a globál challenge maximising power throughproductmarkets Attheoutset themeat andpoultry strategy required certain coreconsiderations: INTERNATIONAL union rights Page 6Volume 18Issue 3201 1 FOCUS □ ORGANISING ANDSUPPLYCHAINS ■ Whattactical approachis neededtodevelop genuine bargaining power? ■ Whattotarget andwho? Asingleorganising 'campaign' isinsufficient to developpower.To be effective thetradeunion movement must looktofacilitate globalsolutions - cross-border productsupplychainstrategies thatchallengethepowerofdominant corporate interests. AtUnite, we target employers thatconstitute a minimum of75percent ofa domestic sector simultaneously for thepurpose oforganising. Wedothis tomaximise theability ofworkers toincrease their powerandtherefore realiserealchangeatwork. Ourobjective is alwaystocreateglobalorganisationthroughout a sector butourability toensure delivery remains localised.In themeatand poultry sector we targeted accordingly andimplemented theprinciple ofdevelopment ofa strong shop steward movement through theidentification of leadersand issuesto buildtradeunionpresence andpower.From a base of7,000themembership hasincreased toapproximately 25,000 andthenumberofaccredited Unite shopstewards hasquadrupled .Critically, collective bargaining coverage has dramatically increased withagreements covering all majoremployers in thesectorand spanning approximately 75 percent of the workforce employed byleadingmultinationals. The keyto delivery has been thesuccessfulpursuit ofthe motive offorward organising - meaningful change atwork. Byseeking changethrough challenge on issuescritical toworkers we buildtherelevance of coretrade unionconcepts - solidarity andjustice. The importanceof a productsupply chain approach isnotjustoftheoretical significance. The identification ofsharedissuesthatcrossdifferent workplaces, occupational groupsand employers requires a sector wideapproach todeliver change. The keyissue identified by shop stewardsand workplace leadersinthemeatandpoultry sector was thegrowing...

Training Provision by Firms and the Scope of Collective Bargaining: An Empirical Analysis Using a Large Firms Panel from Spain

In this article we analyse how labour market imperfections affect training hours using a firms panel from Spain. In fact, we use the scope of collective bargaining as a proxy for the relative strength of organized labour because of the Spanish institutional framework. We find a clear and relevant positive effect of collective agreements at the firm level on training, measured as hours lost from work and devoted to training. As this type of collective agreements is also associated with higher wage compression we interpret this result as supporting the Acemoglu-Pischke model on training in imperfectly competitive labour markets.

Worker Turnover, Job Turnover and Collective Bargaining in Spain

This paper analyses the relationship between the presence of organized labour in firms (approximated by the scope of collective bargaining) and the extent of gross worker and job flows. According to the voice theory of Freeman, those firms having a union presence will have lower worker mobility. However, there is no analysis of the effects of the presence of organized labour on gross job flows. Using a Spanish data base, we find evidence of the existence of a voice effect on gross worker flows but not clear support for a voice effect on gross job flows.

The ‘Representation Gap’ In Australia

Drawing on recent literature from overseas, this article identifies four alternative forms of employee representation, two union-based and two non-union. Using these categories, it argues that there is in Australia a significant and growing ‘representation gap’. To some degree, this gap is not new. The system of compulsory conciliation and arbitration that dominated Australian industrial relations for decades before the 1990s delivered significant support for union forms of representation, but they were less than perfect in their effect. Furthermore, nonunion forms of representation in this earlier period were poorly developed. The gap, however, widened dramatically during the 1990s. The well-known decline in union membership and contraction in the coverage and scope of collective bargaining and state regulation constitute the core of the problem. Less acknowledged, however, is the failure of new non-union forms to deliver effective representation. It is contended that the representation gap should be treated as an urgent public policy issue by Australian governments.

The Teacher Indentured Servitude Act

THE LATEST Ontario education crisis has stumped the adjectivally challenged. Draconian, Dickensian, dictatorial, coercive, and poisonous are among the descriptors routinely used by the critics of Bill 74, otherwise known as the Accountability Act. The critics charge that the bill has nothing to do with accountability and everything to do with accounting. By squeezing more work out of fewer teachers, the number of teachers required to staff the province's high schools will be reduced, thereby saving money that can underwrite the government's tax-cutting agenda. Nonsense, replies Education Minister Janet Ecker. According to her government, Bill 74 is little more than housekeeping, merely legislative insurance to guarantee that the government's will cannot be thwarted by uncooperative unions or weak-kneed school boards. In her view, Bill 74 was necessary because too many negotiated agreements were circumventing the intent of Bill 160, which was designed to force employers to assign an additional class to each high school teacher. However, by declaring scheduled remedial assistance and other in-school activities to be instruction, it was possible to achieve Bill 160's mandated 1,250 instructional minutes per week per teacher without assigning teachers additional courses. Both teachers and boards seemed satisfied with this compromise, and collective agreements were being reached with remarkably little conflict. However, in the minister's own riding (electoral division) of Durham, the school board dug in its heels and refused to be a party to contract that exploited the alleged loopholes contained in Bill 160. The government-appointed arbitrator imposed a settlement that assigned an additional class to each teacher's workload. Durham's public high school teachers responded by withdrawing their participation in activities. A frustrated minister realized that, despite the reams of education legislation introduced by her government, she had no power to order teachers to resume voluntary activities. Bill 74 is designated to take care of this oversight by declaring volunteerism to be compulsory. In classic newspeak fashion, Bill 74 purges the word extracurricular from Ontario's educational lexicon and substitutes co-instructional. The bill goes on to define a co- instructional activity as any activity that supports the operation of schools, from sports programs and staff meetings to cultural activities (and, perhaps, janitorial services, fund raising, and photocopier maintenance). The bill excludes co-instructional activity from the scope of collective bargaining and/or arbitration, which means that a significant part of teachers' work would now be legislated rather than negotiated or chosen. New problem, old solution. The Ontario Ministry of Education has defined every problem in the education system as a function of too much teacher influence and too little provincial authority. Thus the practice of letting teachers be in charge of their school's syllabus would have to end. Under Bill 74, school boards would determine the nature and extent of co-instructional activities to be offered in their jurisdiction, following consultation with parent councils and administrators. The minister would approve or reject these plans. Teachers would have no role other than implementing the activities assigned to them by their principals, who would be free to demand as much compulsory, unpaid overtime from teachers as they pleased. Infuriated teachers pointed out that the bill made it hypothetically possible to assign teacher to do anything, anywhere, day of the week or year, anywhere on the planet. This observation led the Ontario Federation of Labour to nickname Bill 74 the Teacher Indentured Servitude Act. Although a number of other hot-button issues on the government's education agenda were buried in Bill 74, the clauses dealing with co- instructional activities dominated public debate. …

ILO principles concerning collective bargaining

Collective bargaining, as was only to be expected, has felt the impact of the major changes affecting the world over the past 25 years: the general acceptance of the market economy following the fall of the Berlin Wall, the debate on the role and structure of the State, economic restructuring and globalization, the ready availability of efficient ways of fighting inflation, the growth of non-standard forms of work and temporary contracts, the ongoing process of political and social democratization, the growing autonomy of trade unions from political parties, and many other factors too numerous to mention. All these factors have had a varied and significant impact on collective bargaining. The scope of collective bargaining in terms of the categories covered has diminished, owing to inter alia high levels of unemployment and the growth of the informal sector, of subcontracting and of the various forms of nonstandard employment relationship (which make unionization more difficult); there has, however, been a certain tendency for collective bargaining to develop in the public sector. Collective bargaining has also lost some of its margin for manoeuvre as a result of the successive economic crises and the subjection of national economic policy to processes of rationalization and economic integration and agreements with the Bretton Woods institutions. The increasingly harsh competition brought about by technological innovation and globalization has led to a reduction in the influence exercised in many countries by sectoral agreements and has given added importance to collective bargaining at the enterprise level (and at lower levels, such as the work unit, the factory or the workplace), strictly taking into account the criteria of productivity and output. Flexibilization and deregulation of work have thus encouraged the growth of collective bargaining at enterprise level. At the same time, there has been an increasing need for bilateral and tripartite agreements at national level, since certain issues of collective interest cannot be treated in enterprise- or even branch-level bargaining, especially when a country displays significant regional or sectoral differences. The bilateral or tripartite pacts agreed in many countries have a scope reaching beyond conditions of work in the strict sense, given that they cover employment, vocational training, inflation and other social issues ( see, for example, ILO,

Recent trends in collective bargaining in Nigeria

During the 1970s Nigerian industrial relations moved away from the voluntarist tradition into much greater formalisation of processes and practices. This article describes the present structure and scope of collective bargaining in Nigeria in the light of this development.

Housestaff activism: the emergence of patient-care demands.

There have been two trends within the physician housestaff movement: increased acceptance of collective bargaining and unions, and a shift from narrower economic to broader political demands, including some involving patient care. Case studies of politically active housestaff associations in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles are used to examine the emergence of "patient-care" demands and their compatibility with collective bargaining frameworks. As house-staff have become principal providers of care to indigent populations in public hospitals, and economic cutbacks have endangered service as well as the positions of physicians, patient-care demands arise and become infused with demands for participation and control in decision-making. Common factors in the politicization of housestaff have been the contribution of activists of the sixties as leaders, and the impact of fiscal crisis and economic retrenchment in the seventies. However, the emergence and resolution of these issues has differed depending upon legal, political, historical, and organizational variations. In general, patient-care issues are supported by housestaff when they dovetail with housestaff interests. However, physician interests can diverge from those of patients, as in the case of manpower redistribution. On the whole, wages and benefits have done better than educational or patient-care demands. Educational demands have met with counterattack, and patient care, limited by the traditional scope of collective bargaining, has had to evolve indirectly, and has been hurt by long-term economic trends. Finally, national housestaff organization is limited by the wide-ranging politics and ideas of diverse regional organizations which represent different types of training institutions and career orientations.

Developments in Worker Participation in New Zealand

Industrial democracy and worker participation have become important topics for international debate, with developments taking place in many countries. Despite its former reputation for advances in the social field, little has been heard about developments in worker participation in New Zealand. The aim of the present paper is to report and assess such developments whilst placing these within the context of developments in industrial relations in that country. The strong reliance upon legal arrangements and government intervention in industrial relations matters have had a marked effect upon the development of the industrial relations system in New Zealand. Yet, despite this tradition of legalism, successive governments remain singularly reluctant to legislate in the field of worker participation. Recent initiatives by employers have been strongly unitary in nature, whilst the trade unions appear to be concentrating their efforts upon extending the scope of collective bargaining, an opportunity afforded to them due to recent changes in the law. The present Government's wish that voluntary arrangements between employers and trade unions will eventuate to cover worker participation seems less than pragmatic, since employers, unions and the Government itself differ so fundamentally upon what constitutes worker participation, and the forms it might take.

Industrial Democracy and Industrial Relations

Some of the changes which are transforming Western European industrial relations systems under the banner of industrial democracy are in reality serving to ex pand the scope of collective bargaining and to extend it struc turally downward to include the level of the individual enter prise. Through employee representation on corporate boards of directors and enlarged rights of works councils, many issues formerly the exclusive prerogative of the employer are becoming subject to joint decision making. As a general rule, the new rights are being obtained almost entirely through legislation rather than collective agreements. They include, among others, a right to information about vital affairs of the enterprise which management is obliged to provide to employee representatives. Since the scope of col lective bargaining in the United States has always been wider than in Western Europe and the individual enter prise is central to the North American bargaining structure, it is not readily apparent how worker participation in management would contribute to improved labor-manage ment relations in the United States.

Teacher Needs, Militancy, and the Scope of Collective Bargaining

Through a recent study which investigated the relationship between a modified version of Maslow’s five categories of needs and militancy among public school teachers, implications may be drawn conc...