‘Human Resources Management’ and ‘Trade Unions’

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Table of Contents

Outline
Introduction
Main Body
Conclusion
References

Outline

Human Resources Management (HRM) comprises of a set of functions in any organization that engages in recruitment, and managing and providing guidance for employees in the organization.

Most Human Resources Management functions are carried out by the HR department as well as by supervisors and managers. HRM is the part of the organization’s functioning that looks into matters associated with people in the context of organizational development, employee motivation, performance management systems, recruitment, emoluments, training and administration.

Since HRM is directly related with performing functions relating to workers, it has to coordinate with trade unions in creating an environment of harmony and mutual cooperation that results in maximizing profitability as well as in improving employee welfare. This paper critically evaluates the future role of trade unions in representing the interests of workers in the modern workplace.

Introduction

Human Resources Management (HRM) comprises of a set of functions in any organization that engages in recruitment, and managing and providing guidance for employees in the organization.

A trade union is described as an organization that has members comprising of union leaders and workers. The trade union’s primary functions are to negotiate the quantum of wages and terms relating to working conditions. They standardize and legalize working relations amongst workers and employers, initiate combined actions to execute the elements of collective bargaining, put up new requirements on behalf of workers and assist in settling issues concerning their working conditions.

Trade unions are mostly categorized as company unions that represent the issues of a single firm and do not necessarily have a direct link with the trade union movement. Thus, trade unions are understood as organizations of workers that act as a collective force in efforts to safeguard and cater to their common interests by making use of collective bargaining methods.

The most important influence of a trade union upon human resources is its impact in framing HR policies and guidelines. If an organization is not having a strong trade union its HR policies may not prove to be efficient, because upon the entry of a trade union, the management has to structure such policies in ensuring that they reflect concern for worker preferences that are represented by the trade union.

Therefore, it becomes possible for the union’s pressure for higher wages and job security to be included into the management’s agenda while considering employee preferences. In this way workers are able to express their dissatisfaction and grievances in terms of the working environment that impacts their jobs.

Main Body

First Body Paragraph

According to Tattersall (2010) trade unions are distinctive organizations and their roles are interpreted differently and recognized in different ways depending upon the relevance of related groups in any country. Conventionally, the roles of trade unions have been to safeguard jobs and to protect the real earning of workers, provide them security and better working conditions and to struggle against mistreatment and uncertainty in order to ensure fair treatment and equality in the context of employment.

The trade union movement has a long history of built up benefits that have been made possible through collective bargaining, because of which there have been a large number of legislations and industrial laws There is increasing literacy and consciousness amongst workers in this regard.

The trade union movement is characterized with the spreading of different social organizations and consumer and public protection groups, because of which there have been significant qualitative changes in the context of trade unions. Although the protecting roles of trade unions continue to be in shape, it now varies considerably in terms of substance.

Currently, there is a strong debate about the purpose and roles of trade unions. However, the most prominent view point is the one that relates to trade unions extending their roles further than just bread and butter issues. By adopting different forms of industrial action such as strikes and protests; and political actions such as influencing government policies; trade unions have been able to institute reasonable levels of legal and economic frameworks.

They have also been able to considerably restrict exploitation of labor in all industries where labor is organized. Many view trade unions as ethical organizations that play a major role in uplifting the poor and the helpless and in providing them with the status, respect and justice that is truly deserved by them.

In most countries public opinion has been quite hostile towards trade unions. Although the public is principally not opposed to trade unionism, it is opposed to the manner in which unions and union representatives go about performing their work. Mostly the public view point of union leaders is that they are repressive, dishonest and unconcerned towards the public.

Macbeath (1979) has held that they are characterized as exercising excessive power without much morality. Recent years have witnessed considerable decline in union memberships in most industrialized nations of the world. Trade union memberships have fallen drastically in a large number of European countries.

For instance, France is the worst effected where union membership has fallen to only 10 percent of the labor force. Similarly, in Holland it has fallen to 25 percent and in England it is presently 44 percent. The picture is not very bright in the US either where trade union membership has dropped to 16 percent.

In Japan it is quite low at 25 percent while in India it is only 10 percent. However, in some countries there is a different pattern. In Sweden, trade unions are highly respected and member ship is the highest at 91 percent. Trade unions in Sweden take part in all decision making exercises at local and national levels in addition to participating in the administration of legal systems. In Denmark and Norway also, trade union membership is quite high at 82 and 63 percent respectively (Getman, 2010).

In having originated in Europe, trade unions had become extremely popular in several countries during the industrial revolution. At this time, the inadequacy of required skills amongst workers in performing the tasks at hand had allowed employers to exercise immense power that resulted in the ill treatment and exploitation of many workers. Trade unions are known to comprise of individual workers and the main purpose of unions is to maintain and enhance the working conditions of worker employment.

During the last three centuries several trade unions expanded into different forms in being impacted by varied political goals. Historically, trade unions were mainly involved in providing benefits to their members. The earliest trade unions that were known as Friendly Societies mostly aimed at providing benefits to workers so that they did not get unemployed or adversely suffer because of health issues or old age.

Although in most developed nations such functions are now performed by the government, providing professional training, legal advices and representing workers is still considered to be a crucial role of trade unions. Another historical role of trade unions has been collective bargaining, which allows them to negotiate wages and working conditions for workers.

Trade unions have been known to effectively confront managements of companies by enforcing lockouts and strikes in order to pressurize managements to achieve their objectives. Trade unions are also known to participate in promoting legislation for the benefit of workers. To achieve these objectives they conduct campaigns and take part in lobbying and supporting specific people or parties in the context of attaining public offices (Klaus, 1980).

Second Body Paragraph

The structure, political involvement and legal status of trade unions vary significantly amongst different countries. Trade unions can organize themselves by including only specific classes of skilled workers, general unionism or industrial unionism. Such unions are generally alienated on the basis of local credentials though being united as national associations. A trade union can also be designated as a legal entity with mandates to involve in negotiations with managements for workers that are its members.

Such trade unions have legal authority to take part in collective bargaining exercises with managements in the context of working hours, wage settlements and other conditions of service. When the two parties are not able to reach an agreement, the next course of action is industrial action that culminates in lock outs or strikes. Sometimes extreme circumstances develop whereby activities become violent or unlawful in regard of such events.

Trade unions are also known to get involved in broad social and political struggles. Social unionism is in the nature of encompassing several trade unions that make use of their combined strengths to support social legislation and policy measures that are beneficial for their workers (Stiglitz, 2002).

In some countries trade unions are known to be closely associated with politics and political parties. The working systems of trade unions are also defined in terms of their organization model and service model. Service model is characterized in terms of focus being placed upon rights of workers, worker services and in settling worker/employer disputes. The organization model is characteristic of involving full time union organizers that involve in developing confidence, efficient networking and leadership amongst workers.

They also engage in provoking movements that involve many union members. In general, most trade unions have been seen as being a blend of these two philosophies. Despite the fact that the political philosophy, structure and sovereignty of most trade unions is diverse, they are all characterized in having leaderships that come to the forefront by way of a democratic election process.

Many feel that workers that are trade union members are able to enjoy better wages and working conditions as compared to those that are not union members. For instance, in Britain, the widely believed leftist environment in trade unions has led to the creation of an intransigent right wing trade union organization named Solidarity that enjoys support of the rightist British National Party.

Nevertheless, it is accepted that the presence of an established trade union is a pre requisite for ongoing industrial harmony. It is well recognized that settlements made through the procedure of negotiation and collective bargaining amongst employers and trade unions prove to be more lasting and acceptable.

Trade unions form an important part in any industry and assist in establishing meaningful communication amongst employers and workers. They have the competence to provide requisite advices and sustainability in ensuring that the disparity in belief systems does not transform into major disputes.

The main objective of trade unions is to stand for workers but they perform other broader roles in safeguarding workers’ interests. They also engage in providing requisite training to workers on different matters in order to enhance their competence, skills and career prospects. Another major objective is to enable a safe and healthy working atmosphere (Cockburn, 1976).

Trade unions play a positive role in assisting the Human Resources department in the recruitment process by selecting workers and inculcating a sense of discipline amongst the workforce (Edwards, 1995). They assist in settling disputes in rational ways and help in making social adjustments.

Workers are required to orient themselves in the new working environment and with new regulations and policy initiatives. It is common for workers to get confused, frustrated or dissatisfied because they come from different backgrounds and trade unions assist them in adjusting to new environments. Trade unions are thus an integral part of society and have to also consider issues involving national integration.

They undertake social responsibilities by encouraging and sustaining national integration by trimming down the numbers of industrial disputes and by encompassing a feeling of corporate social responsibility amongst workers. The basic objective to pursue such objective is to achieve industrial peace.

Trade unions have begun to face several problems in view of the present pattern of globalization. Globalization has virtually transformed trade unions into outdated organizations. Modern developments such as technological and organizational changes are taking place in all industries across the world.

Other issues such as the impact of the present global competition, transformation of the labor market, the introduction of innovations in personnel management practices, the substitution of public capital by private capital and properties, the presence of large numbers of small firms and the perceptions of new and distinctive ideologies have created adverse circumstances for the survival of trade unions.

Many theorists have argued that the conventional labor force in big industrial establishments is consistently diminishing while the numbers of workers engaged as fixed term or part time contractual work are increasing rapidly. A unique characteristic of the labor force is that workers are no more enduringly employed at one place of work. All these issues are viewed as reducing the impact and membership in trade unions (Hicks and Palmer. 2004).

It is evident that in order to increase its influence and effectiveness a trade union has to aim at achieving continuous growth, but the number of trade union members is declining across the world. According to Gospel and Willman (2003), trade union leaders appear to be much worried because most of the strength of any union is represented through the number of workers it has as its members.

Therefore, trade unions have to find ways to source larger number of members. Another problem faced by trade unions is the identity crisis that is impacting most trade unions in the previous totalitarian socialist nations of Europe. Such trade unions had been actively participating in creating new political systems in these countries.

This function is considered to have been the main reason for creating conflicting loyalties. On the one side trade unions seek to continue with their roles of being defenders of the workers and on the other they started fostering and advocating democratic, capitalist and market oriented relationships. Theorists argue that such contradictions significantly restrained the classification of workers with trade union systems, especially in Europe.

Third Body Paragraph

It is true that globalization has led to a complicated and multi faceted process for workers across the world. Trade unions have to now cope with the new challenges and develop strategies in the context of alliance building, global cooperation and the adoption of global labor standards in this age of fast paced changes.

The future demands that trade unions will have to enhance their agenda by including issues so that they actively engage with global organizations in order to impact their policies. Getman, (2010) feels that they have to organize international movements as well as extend and deepen their cooperation at global levels.

For instance, many international unions, such as the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD (TUAC), Global Union Federations (GUF) and International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), have started interacting with agencies such as the World Trade Organization, World Health Organization, World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund to foster and advocate a just system of globalization.

It is known that beginning with the 1990s, many international union leaders have been lobbying for including the International Labor Organization central labor principles into the procurement and lending practices followed by the World Bank. Such initiatives delivered positive results whereby the International Finance Corporation (IFC) declared in May 2006 that all firms that dealt with the IFC will have to comply with its central labor processes and standards.

Similarly, in December 2006, it was declared by the World Bank that the central labor standards requirements have been made applicable to all public works initiatives supported by the International Development Association and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The World Bank has also commenced with the inclusion of central labor standards in all procurement contracts funded by it after May 2007 (Getman, 2010).

Trade Unions will have to work towards expanding their network and towards alliance building, which in other words, is a step towards international cooperation. They will also have to address issues related to accountability and governance in view of the increasing pattern of globalization. The significance of this aspect arises from the fact that there is increase in coordination of productive activities by multinational companies in different nations.

Therefore, the enhanced integration of different economies into a global whole and the introduction of a new global production system demands added harmonization of national and global trade union plans. Given that global labor standards need to be framed in forming a catalyst to improve the working environment, the international labor movement should mobilize international communities to pressurize nations that do not adhere to international labor standards.

Conclusion

The role of trade unions is difficult to define in the present context because the market economy has immensely broadened the perceptions of enterprise ownership and labor relations are now more dependent upon other issues that are characterized by a global economy and fast changing economic order.

We are now living in an age of dynamic global atmosphere in which globalization has led to strong impulses for developing the world economy. Increasing practices of deregulation and global agreements on reducing tariffs and non tariff restrictions have created new options and complexities for industries across the globe. The world has begun to change in a manner that has never been experienced before.

Exciting opportunities have been created that may initially indicate the decline of trade unions but the fact remains that labor will always remain a major factor of production and has to be dealt with in manners that workers across the world have to be dealt with in uniform ways. To achieve theses objectives, trade unions will have to alter their strategies and create visions for working in a global environment.

The globalization of production activities also leads to increase in the flows of trade and related structural changes in trade patterns because of which there is considerable change in patterns of division of labor. This also implies that trade unions will have to reformulate their strategies in addressing the needs of workers in such circumstances. The main objective of trade unions should be to impact international agendas so that globalization results in bringing prosperity and fundamental rights to all workers.

References

Cockburn, Claud. 1976. Union Power : The Growth and Challenge in Perspective London, William Kimber.

Edwards, Paul K. 1995. Human Resource Management, Union Voice, and the Use of Discipline: An Analysis of WIRS3. Industrial Relations Journal, Vol. 25, No. 4, pp.205–20.

Getman, J. T. 2010. Restoring the Power of Unions: It Takes a Movement, Yale University Press.

Gospel, Howard, and Paul Willman. 2003. Dilemmas in Worker Representation: Information, Consultation and Negotiation. Representing Workers: Trade Union Recognition and Membership in Modern Britain. Routledge, Chapter 9, pp.143–63.

Hicks, Stephen, and Tom Palmer. 2004. Trade Union Membership: Estimates from the Autumn 2003 Labour Force Survey. Labour Market Trends, Vol. 113, pp. 98–102.

Klaus, von Beyme. 1980. Challenge to Power: Trade Unions and Industrial Relations in Capitalist Countries, SAGE Publications.

Macbeath, Innis. 1979. Votes, virtues, and vices: Trade union power, Associated Business Press.

Stiglitz, Joseph. 2002. Employment, social justice and social well-being, International Labour Review, 142 (1-3), p.19-29.

Tattersall, A. 2010. Power in Coalition: Strategies for Strong Unions and Social Change Ilr Pr.

Wood, Stephen, and Toby Wall. 2002. Human Resource Management and Business Performance. In Peter Warr, ed., The Psychology of Work. Harmondsworth: Penguin, Chapter 15, pp.352–373.

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