Introduction
Unit 20 Employee Relation Assignment Help Online
This employee relations assignment from NHS provides comprehensive answers to all pertinent queries on how one of the most renowned shoe brands in the world, Adidas, operates. The German-based business was established in 1949 and produces well-known sports apparel and equipment worldwide. Despite having a very good reputation, the business has come under heavy fire for the subpar working conditions and employee compensation plans. The company’s track record of upholding trade union rights is likewise not very impressive. The subject of this assignment is the company’s personnel relations. A number of initiatives have been proposed that may result in higher employee salaries and a better working environment. Trade unions’ accountability is emphasised, which may result in a range of agreements between employees and management and the efficient operation of Adidas. The rivalry between NHS bosses and employees is the subject of the assignment’s second half. They use a variety of techniques, including mediation, to settle disputes. Employee motivation also stems from higher overall productivity.
Task 1
1.1 Unitary and pluralistic frames of reference explaining the implications of each of the perspectives for the appropriate means through which conflict is to be resolved.
Studying the interaction between an employer and his employee or employees is referred to as employment relations. It also focuses on the different problems that occur at work because of how the employer-employee relationship is structured (Kearney and Mareschal, 2014).
Unitary Frame of Reference: In this case, the management sees it as their duty to oversee and manage the workforce to ensure that the organization’s objectives and other financial targets are met. For the organisation to advance, it is expected that the staff will hold the same values and goals as the management.
If we examine the Unitary Frame of Reference from the perspective of Adidas, the top management of the company anticipates that all employees, regardless of their positions and responsibilities, will have the same attitude toward attaining the organization’s goals. Many reputable businesses have a tendency to think along these lines, assuming that their members hold similar beliefs and behaviours. Adidas, one of the top shoe manufacturers, depends on its employees’ tireless efforts in extremely trying circumstances. Considering the amount of effort these workers put in, the pay they receive is really meagre. The company’s single focus is to impose the numerous objectives and assess success.
Contrary to the unitary frame, the pluralist frame of reference refers to the numerous goals that the company has that are connected to one another. The pluralistic frame of reference places emphasis on the necessity of maintaining a balance between various goals for the organization’s efficient operation (Cullinane and Dundon, 2014).
In this context, a firm like Adidas will contain the operation of a number of employees who each have their own roles and bosses. The numerous groups of employees are accountable to their own authorial heads and work in compliance with the law and organisational goals. The two main groups in Adidas are the management and the labour unions.
On the other hand, trade unions are expected to resolve disputes within the company and take on the role of the employees’ legitimate representatives. Collective bargaining is used to resolve the issues and is seen as a good technique.
1.2 Assess how changes in trade unionism have affected employee relations.
Trade unions are organisations within businesses or professions that deal with a variety of worker rights problems. They mediate disputes between workers and management and deal with the various issues that affect them (Visser, 2011). Trade unions play a variety of tasks, such as negotiating wages, defending employees’ rights and interests, settling disputes, delivering guidance to workers in need, and providing other services to the workforce. Here, we’ll concentrate on the functions played by a trade union within a certain company and how their efficient operation affects employee relations. For a very long time, the employees at Adidas endured tough working conditions and incredibly little pay in order to manufacture shoes that are highly regarded throughout the entire world. Additionally, research has shown that the corporation has a poor track record of upholding the numerous rights of the trade union. These factors have contributed to an increase in the number of disputes between Adidas’ management and its union (Egels-Zandén and Merk, 2014). Therefore, it is crucial for the business to offer better pay and working conditions to its employees.
The corporation should pay wages that are sufficient to cover the necessities of living. In order to successfully reduce the amount of time spent working overtime, the wage increase should be made during regular business hours.
The existence and continuation of these issues at Adidas has increased the number of employees leaving the company in search of better working circumstances elsewhere. By addressing the issues impeding the interests of the workforce, trade unions must foster a healthy working relationship with management.
The trade unions should ensure that there is a balance between the pay offered by the employer and the going rates in the market. The issues encountered at the national and international levels should be addressed on platforms created by trade unions. The promotion of democracy and human rights requires partnerships more than ever. This is crucial for addressing the serious problems that exist on a global scale. Trade unions have a duty to advance the operation of democratic institutions, which is also regarded as a crucial instrument for Adidas.
Unit 20 Employee Relation Assignment Help Online
Task 2
2.1 Explain the procedures an organization (NHS employer) should follow when dealing with different conflict
Conflicts have been seen to have a significant impact on the NHS. However, it may also have a detrimental impact on the business’ productivity (den Hond, de Bakker and de Haan, 2010). Workers that are constantly involved in conflicts, such as strikes, suffer from excessive stress, which poses health risks. In addition to this, people are also engaged in discussions and attempts to persuade coworkers to agree with them, even when these employees have no animosity toward the management. Often equipments are sabotaged and a lot of time is wasted in these disputes instead to any productive work. Conflicts of all kinds, including intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts, occur in the healthcare industry. Other types of conflicts include strategic and structural conflicts. The organization’s management makes sure that each and every dispute-resolution method is always under review. The organisation will be able to maintain a transparent environment where the staff members will have a relationship of trust with the management thanks to the engagement of supervision and diversity (Jones, 2010). The following steps are involved in putting such strategies into practise:
Compromise: It entails coming to an agreement that will allow both parties of a conflict to be resolved. Since neither party will receive what they requested or lose completely, both parties now try to find a solution to the issue. In many situations, this compromise is advantageous.
Avoid: Conflicts are typically avoided by both parties. This occurs mostly when they don’t want to add to the discomfort or make matters worse.
Force: Usually, avoiding a particular clash won’t produce the desired result. Therefore, the supervisors have the authority to impose procedures that might put an end to the quarrel. They have the authority to implement judgments that will improve the situation.
Resolve: The NHS administration can approach the issue head-on and attempt to find a solution. This is thought to be the key action in conflict resolution. It’s critical to hear both sides out and come to some form of understanding in order to make a judgement free of any bias (Cummings and Worley, 2014). It is necessary to pinpoint the issue areas and seek to find solutions on both sides.
2.2 Explain the key features of employee relations with reference to the above conflict situation.
Unit 20 Employee Relation Assignment Help Online
It is crucial for the NHS organisation to handle disagreements well. A person needs to have great communication skills in order to accomplish this. To allow for communication across the organization’s many sections, there is always a need for an open atmosphere (Storey, 2014). The management will be able to take effective action to foster an understanding relationship as the staff will be able to discuss their areas of concern. Employers make an effort to comprehend employee doubts and concentrate on issues. Communication is crucial in the process of resolving issues. A specific problem is easier to solve if there is open communication between the organisational units. Employees should feel comfortable talking to their managers about any issues they are having. Conflicts can be avoided through communication since an open forum would allow employees to express their sorrow and concerns, which are thought to be the key factors contributing to the creation of conflicts. Many disagreements do not have a chance to arise when all of a company’s employees are free to approach one another.
Task 3
3.1 Explain the role of negotiation in collective bargaining as in the above conflict.
Negotiation is the process of resolving a dispute through member interaction when the result is acceptable to both sides. In this situation, the outcomes should be such that both parties come to an understanding where they both get what they want to a certain extent and gain nothing.
Collective bargaining, according to both the management and the trade unions participating in the dispute (Felbermayr, Hauptmann, and Schmerer), is the process of negotiating on contentious matters. Talking and interacting can accomplish this. It is a combined management approach where the operation of the business, the performance of the employees, and the state of the jobs are all monitored.
It is often thought of as a procedure where various salary conversations take place between managers and employees with the assistance of the trade union. Trade unions play the role of bargaining agents who can balance the disparity in individual negotiating power between managers and employees. Between the administrators and the unions, power is divided. Conflicts between management and the unions are resolved through collective bargaining. Motivation is a psychological component that encourages an employee to work toward specific goals.
Scholars have placed a high value on this specific component for an organization’s smooth operation. There was a drop in the NHS’s salary and pension plans, but all of them were later amended by giving staff the necessary information, compensation, and benefits (Britnell, 2012).
One of the main factors that drives a worker to put in all of his effort is money. Employees frequently earn compensation for their efforts. It may also be used as a means of communication for settling disputes. Additionally, money is needed to improve workplace conditions for employees, as well as to address sanitary issues.
An individual’s salary is taken into account while determining his position within a company. The main factor in collective bargaining is money. In theories of expectation, this particular component is accorded the most priority. Given that most instances are resolved by giving money, it can be said that money serves as the key factor in helping to settle conflicts. Additionally, a lack of resources has historically been the main contributor to significant conflicts.
Unit 20 Employee Relation Assignment Help Online
3.2 Assess the impact of the negotiation strategies adopted by both parties in the above conflict situation and comment on other negotiating strategies and the potential impact it could have.
Negotiation strategy refers to the numerous communication techniques that are employed by the parties to a problem in order to arrive at a certain conclusion. The NHS administration may employ a variety of negotiating tactics depending on the importance of the issues that need to be resolved. The decision on the policies is made once the full negotiation process has been planned. Two sorts of negotiating methods have been identified for NHS organisations. In the conventional environment, these include the competitive strategy and the collaborative strategy.
The first tactic, known as the collaborative strategy, promotes information sharing between the parties engaged in the disagreement in circumstances of negotiation (Holmes and Stubbe, 2015). If the information is exchanged between the two sides, a cooperative negotiator will be able to assess the varied needs of the parties that contributed to the disagreement. Instead of focusing on the distinctions, he will assess the different needs. Through the process of negotiation, this will assist in resolving disagreements between parties and benefit both sides. The competitive negotiating approach, which stands in stark contrast to the collaborative approach, focuses on using sanctions, threats, and other forms of argumentation to settle disputes.
Conclusion
The unitary and pluralistic frames of reference, which might contribute to the success of the business, are explained in great depth. For the purpose of achieving goals, it is seen to be crucial to share values and information. Employees at Adidas now work in subpar conditions as a result of the union’s privatisation. Many of them are relocating to work for more desirable companies. The business must adhere to specific bargaining tactics in order to boost productivity. Additionally, mediation and discussion can be used to address the dispute between NHS staff and employers. By paying employees a fair wage and offering incentives, employers are assuming that their workers would be motivated.
References
Blanchflower, D.G. and Bryson, A., 2010. The wage impact of trade unions in the UK public and private sectors. Economica, 77(305), pp.92-109.
Britnell, M. 2012. Motivated staff are the NHS’s best medicine. The Guardian. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/jun/19/motivated-staff-nhs-best-medicine [Accessed on 25 Oct. 2016].
Cullinane, N. and Dundon, T., 2014. Unitarism and employer resistance to trade unionism. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(18), pp.2573-2590.
Cummings, T.G. and Worley, C.G., 2014. Organization development and change. Cengage learning.
den Hond, F., de Bakker, F.G. and de Haan, P., 2010. The sequential patterning of tactics. The International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 30(11/12), p.648.
Egels-Zandén, N. and Merk, J., 2014. Private regulation and trade union rights: Why codes of conduct have limited impact on trade union rights. Journal of Business Ethics, 123(3), pp.461-473.
Felbermayr, G., Hauptmann, A. and Schmerer, H.J., 2014. International trade and collective bargaining outcomes: Evidence from German employer–employee data. The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 116(3), pp.820-837.
Holmes, J. and Stubbe, M., 2015. Power and politeness in the workplace: A sociolinguistic analysis of talk at work. Routledge.
Kearney, R.C. and Mareschal, P.M., 2014. Labor relations in the public sector. CRC Press.
Kerzner, H.R., 2013. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
