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Soms121
week_12.pptLabor Management
Unions and Collective Bargaining
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Introduction
Collective bargaining is a set of techniques under which employees are represented as a group in the negotiation and administration of the terms and conditions of their employment.
Example of negotiated items:
- Wages
- Conditions of employment
- Job classifications
- Grievance procedures (One of the first objectives of a union); one that takes the employee’s grievance outside the managerial chain of command
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History of Union Memberships
- More prominent in the private sector in the 1950s
- Dramatic shift from the private sector to the public sector in the 1960s and 1970s
- Less than 10% of private sector employees are unionized
- Bulk of union membership is within the public sector (Firefighters, police officers, teachers etc)
Some Interesting Findings
In 2007, 35.9% of government employees belonged to unions, contrasted with only 7.5% of business employees (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
A recent public sector survey finds that professional employees in collective bargaining states have weighted mean salaries nearly 20% higher than those in states without collective bargaining (American Federation of Teachers 2004).
Employees may benefit from unions without being members. In 2003, the American Federation of Government Employees had 222,000 dues-paying members, but it represented approximately 600,000 employees. This represents a free rider rate of 64%.
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Public Employee Unionism
Public employees had a union membership rate more than 4 times that of private sector employees (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2004).
The rate of unionization for all public employees was about 40%, with local government employees holding the highest membership rate at 45.8%. However, the rate of unionization in private industry has continued to drop and at 8.6% in 2004.
Riccucci. (2007). The Changing Face of Public Employee Unionism. Review of Public Personnel Administration.
Questions
What factors increase the rate of public employee unionism?
Why is the legal structure of collective bargaining more complex and confusing in the public sector than in the private sector?
Sovereignty
In our federalism, both national and state government have sovereign power and each state is responsible for developing and administering its own laws to regulate collective bargaining by state agencies, while many federal laws regulate personnel practices in state and local government.
Local governments cannot enter into collective bargaining agreements with employee organizations unless the state has passed legislation authorizing them to do so.
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Collective Bargaining Rights by State
Public and Private Sector Differences
Multilateral Bargaining
Dispersed authority in the public sector means bargaining involves more players (e.g., negotiators, public/taxpayers/media, elected officials, courts, other third parties) and more complex approval processes, while bargaining in the private sector is a two-party process resulting in agreements that each party’s policy body ratifies.
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Public and Private Sector Differences
Monopoly vs. Competition
Government is a monopoly and generally not subject to market forces, making product/service (e.g., police, fire) substitution difficult, while businesses are subject to market forces, and consumers can shop for price/availability of desired goods/services.
The Strike
Strikes occur in the public sector, but they are often illegal and strikers/unions can be punished.
Strikes in the private sector are legal and a legitimate tool when negotiations reach impasse.
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Unit Determination
The two most commonly used criteria for the formation of unions are to divide employees either by agency or by occupation.
Agency bargaining establishes each state or local government agency as a separate bargaining unit. While this offers the advantages of working within an existing management structure, it can cause a proliferation of bargaining units and inequities among agency contracts.
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Unit Determination
An alternative is to group employees into general occupational classes, usually based on the state or local government’s job classification system. This will result in the establishment of bargaining units such as health, public safety, teachers, general civil service employees, state university system employees, and so on.
This method has the advantage of limiting the number of bargaining units and automatically including employees of new agencies in pre-established units. Its disadvantage is that it lumps workers with different interests and needs into one large bargaining unit.
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Impasse Procedures
Mediation
Fact-Finding
Arbitration
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Mediation
It is a dispute resolution procedure that relies on a neutral third party who attempts to facilitate communication and bring the parties together to reach an agreement (e.g., an independent individual or one from a group designated by an agency such as the American Arbitration Association or the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service).
It is in the interest of both parties to make a good-faith effort to reach a voluntary mediated settlement.
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Fact-Finding
It is a dispute resolution procedure that relies on a neutral third party who conducts hearings, researches contentious issues, and makes nonbinding recommendations for consideration.
Although this advisory opinion is not binding, the threat of unfavorable publicity may make either side more willing to reach a negotiated settlement.
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Arbitration
It is a dispute resolution procedure that relies on a neutral third party who reviews the facts and makes determinations that are binding on both sides.
The arbitrator’s formal report contains contract provisions that both parties have agreed in advance will be binding.
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Union Security
Closed Shop: An employer was not permitted to hire anyone who was not already a member of the union.
Union Shop: All unit employees are required to join the exclusive bargaining representative after being hired. An employer operating under this agreement may hire employees who are not members of the union. However, the nonunion employees must join the union within the period specified in the agreement, which is usually thirty days, and remain a member of the union as a condition of continued employment.
Union Security
Agency Shop: All unit employees, whether or not they are union members, are required to pay a service fee to the executive bargaining representative. The service fee is designed to make nonmembers pay their share of the expense of representing all of the unit employees.
Right-to-Work States: Individuals cannot be forced to join or pay dues to a labor union. Furthermore, no worker needs to be a union member to acquire or retain employment. This provision means that an employer can reject a union’s demands for the recognition of union security arrangements that are illegal under state law (AL, AR, AZ, FL, GA, ID, IA, KS, LA, MS, NE, NC, SC, ND, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, & WY).
Question
Do you agree with Agency Shop to prevent free riders?
Discussion
The strength of collective bargaining will be affected by unions’ ability to persuade the public and its leaders that strong unions are tied to vital public policy concerns that go beyond the more narrow economic concerns of their current members.
More emphasis on efficiency has sometimes meant less emphasis on employee rights, which has an impact on sympathy for unions.
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Employee-Friendly Policies
Question
What are the benefits of Alternative Working Schedules?
Employee-Friendly Policies
Generation X (those born between 1960 and 1980) and New Millennials (those born after 1980) workers have introduced employee-friendly policies to reduce home/work conflict and to help people achieve a better balance between work and home.
However, “win-win” outcomes of employee-friendly policies between employer and employee are not easy to achieve and they may create problems, such as office coverage and on-time project completion.
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Flexible Work Arrangement
Flex Options: Flextime refers to work schedules that allow differential starting and quitting times but specify a required number of hours within a particular period.
Compressed Workweek: The number of hours worked per week is condensed into fewer days. For example, employees work a set 160-hour schedule per month but do it in fewer than 20 workdays by working more than eight hours a day and fewer than five days a week.
Part-Time Work: Part-time employment is defined by the federal government as involving fewer than 35 hours per week.
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Telework
Flexible Work Arrangement
Teleworkers who participate in a telework policy, in particular, can work away from the traditional work locale, such as at home or at satellite locations, and receive flexibility benefits of work locations and schedules.
Telework policies help federal government workforce to achieve a good balance between work and home, to generate positive effects on motivation, perform better with the flexibility benefits, and personnel recruitment and retention (OPM 2011; Taskin and Edwards 2007)
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Good for the New Generation Workers?
The movement to adapt to the desires of employees by offering Alternative Working Schedules has gained momentum in the workplace, because it allows employees some choice in how and when they work.
Alternative Working Schedules are associated with increased productivity ,decreased turnover, decreased absenteeism , increased work–family balance, and job satisfaction.
Wadsworth, Facer, and Arbon, 2010. “Alternative Work Schedules in Local Government: Cui Bono?” Review of Public Personnel Administration
Good for the environment?
Current studies highlight that the benefits of telework policies for climate protection and energy sustainability overcome any push-backs from management and employees and influence public organizations to utilize telework policies (ICMA 2010; Overmyer 2011; Mahler 2012).
Telework policy reduces the use of fuel from less commuting and air pollution, and save energy costs by having the workforce driving less (Department of Transportation 2006).
Good for the environment?
According to Cisco study (2009), Cisco teleworkers reduced fuel costs from less commuting and greenhouse gas emissions by over 45,000 metric tons.
At the federal government, agencies reduced energy consumption from on-site energy savings, such as office space, real estate, and utility costs (Overmyer 2011). Also, teleworkers in federal government agencies can reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and compressed workweek can reduce the numbers of commute trips.
Diffusion
Due to these benefits, telework policy has been rapidly diffused to local governments, especially the ones in the states which have rigorous climate protection bills.
Since California state passed rigorous climate protection bills, the State of California Department of Personnel Administration offers Telework policies for state civil service employees to save vehicle miles traveled (VMT), save fuel gas, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Diffusion
In order to comply with the rigorous climate protection bills, California cities are also interested in providing a telework for city government employees.
The City and County of San Francisco launched a pilot telework program with technology support from private sector companies and an evaluation found that the program was successful in boosting productivity and reducing VMT.
Questions
What are the challenges of Alternative Working Schedules?
Managerial and Personnel Challenges
Increased scheduling difficulty and monitoring teleworkers are becoming another big concern for government management.
For example, federal agencies often face difficulties to monitor telelworkers and assess telework policies.
Mahler, 2012. “The Telework Divide: Managerial and Personnel Challenges of Telework,” Review of Public Personnel Administration
Other Challenges
Telework policy can cause communication problems and group cohesion hardship among the workforce and HR management may have a hard time monitoring teleworkers who often work remotely.
The increased autonomy and flexibility in managing work are supposed to increase productivity and satisfaction among workers, but teleworkers have difficulty to separate work and personal lives and also feel socially isolated due to lack of physical interaction with coworkers
Telework Policy in California Cities
What factors influence California cities to use telework policies?
What additional efforts do California cities need to undertake to use telework policies effectively?
Kwon, 2013. “Telework Policies in California Cities: Is This HR Policy Employee-Friendly, Green, or Both?” ASPA
Findings
44.1% of California cities provided telework policies for staff members in their local government compared to 25.1% in other states. 39.9% of California cities provided a compressed work week for city government employees compared to 7.9% in other states. Also, 41.2% of California cities provided either a telework policy or a compressed work week compared to 8.5% in other states.
The California state government could have more cities use telework policies than other states by preemptively institutionalizing climate protection requirements, such as AB 32 and SB 375, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Findings
The number of environmental conservation and energy use reduction policies is positively and statistically associated with the use of telework policies in California cities.
Assembly members that support state environmental legislation had a positive and significant impact on the use of telework policies in cities within their district.
Findings
Cities with a higher percent of population diversity are reluctant to use telework policies. It is predicted that potential political and cultural instability from high population diversity impose constraints on the use of telework policies at the local level.
Cities with a higher total population are willing to use telework policies. With high population and pollution, cities need more GHG emissions reduction actions compared to the cities with small population.
Discussions
City government management need to develop clear standards to determine which employees can take telework policies and indentify clear reasons why some employees cannot take the policies. These clear standards and reasons can help city government maintain fairness while managing employees.
City government management need to develop an effective performance measurement model to assess teleworker’s performance.
In order to get political support from stakeholders and legislators, city government management needs to educate them by explaining the benefits of telework policy relating to employee’s motivation, organization productivity, and environmental sustainability. New policy requires more management support and financial commitment to be successfully implemented.
