THEORY AND PRACTICE. Relations. MARK BRAY University of Newcastle PETER WARING University of Newcastle RAE COOPER University of Sydney

Transcription

1 THEORY AND PRACTICE Employment Relations MARK BRAY University of Newcastle PETER WARING University of Newcastle RAE COOPER University of Sydney The McGraw-Hill Companies Sydney New York San Francisco Auckland Bangkok Bogota Caracas Hong Kong Kuala Lumpur Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan New Delhi San Juan Seoul Singapore Taipei Toronto

2 CONTENTS IN BRIEF PART 1 THEORY AND CONTEXT 1 1 What is employment relations? 3 2 The study of employment relations 21 3 Theoretical comparisons 47 4 The changing context of Australian employment relations 73 PART 2 THE PARTIES The state Management Employee representation: Trade unions Employee representation: Non-union 235 PART 3 PROCESSES AND OUTCOMES Statutory regulation Bargaining structures and processes Industrial conflict Employment relations and performance 371 PART 4 THE FUTURE Recent developments and the future of Australian employment relations 405

3 Contents About the authors About the contributor About the previous authors Preface Using the case studies XIII xiv xiv XV xvi E-student E-instructor Highlights of this edition Text at a glance Acknowledgments XVIII xix xx xxii xxv PART 1 THEORY AND CONTEXT CHAPTER 1 WHAT IS EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS? Introduction 4 Commonsense, industrial relations and employment relations 5 Examples of employment relations situations 8 The nature of the employment relationship 11 Rules and the employment relationship 12 Concluding observations Discussion questions 15 Bibliography 19 THE STUDY OF EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS CHAPTER Introduction Describing patterns of employment relations What is 'descriptive' analysis? Theoretically-informed description Taxonomies as descriptive devices Describing the parties to employment relations 25 The authorship of rules 26 Explaining patterns of employment relations 28 Description and explanation 28 Beyond description: Explanatory factors and models 28 Models in employment relations 30 Explanation requires both context and agency 31 More on agency 33 More on context: Dunlop's contribution 34 More on context: Beyond Dunlop 36 An explanatory model of employment relations 41 Concluding observations Discu&sion questions 43 ^Bibliography 45 Analysing the Individual contracts at PastaCo. Absenteeism at Happy Valley Council Uneasy times at Seaside Restaurant Working life at MaiICo Just tell it as it is! How could it be so different? ACF, CFMEU jointly call for climate action Changes at an Australian shipyard

4 CHAPTER 3 THEORETICAL COMPARISONS Introduction Distinguishing different approaches to the study of the employment relationship A pluralist perspective: Neo-institutionalism Pluralism Neo-institutionalism A unitarist perspective: HRM Unitarism The analytical tools of HRM A radical perspective: The labour process Radicalism 61 Class struggle and control in the labour process 63 Concluding observations Discussion questions 68 Bibliography s Right-wing warriors who changed the workplace The 1989 pilots' dispute CHAPTER 4 THE CHANGING CONTEXT OF AUSTRALIAN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS 73 Introduction 74 The context of national systems of employment relations 74 Globalisation, the state and the national economy 76 The nineteenth century: The origins of a vulnerable, state-led economy s-1960s: The operation of a protected economy s-1980s: An open economy and a policy turning point s-2000s: The neo-liberal ascendancy 84 Labour markets 86 Trends in aggregate unemployment 87 Employment by industry 90 Participation rates and the feminisation of the labour force 92 Non-standard employment 93 Politics and the changing legal framework s-1890s: The British heritage s-1980s: Stability and change in a new federal system s-2000s: Neo-liberalism and greater federal powers 100 Concluding observations Discussion questions 103 Bibliography 106 High Court only appeal from fairness test The decline of manufacturing employment FinanceCo

5 PART 2 CHAPTER 5 THE PARTIES THE STATE Introduction 114 The structure of the state 115 The legislature 115 The executive 117 The Minister of Workplace Relations 117 The Workplace Ombudsman 118 The Workplace Authority 119 Tribunals and commissions 120 The Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) 120 The Australian Fair Pay Commission 122 Human Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 122 The Remuneration Tribunal 123 Australian Safety and Compensation Council 123 Office of the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner (ABCC) 123 The judiciary 123 The functions of the state 125 Patterns of state intervention in Australia 128 Traditional forms of state intervention 128 The corporatist state? The Accord in the 1980s129 The receding state? Neo-liberalism in the 1990s and 2000s 133 The state as employer 135 Managerialism in the public sector 135 Concluding observations Discussion questions 144 Bibliography 'Labor IR policy more than a change in name' 116 Workplace Ombudsman pursues Chili's 118 Rank and file ALP to protest against electricity sale The 'new' public-sector management at Happy Valley Council 142 'All's fair in love and war' the Hunter Valley No. 1 mine dispute and the federal tribunal 145 CHAPTER 6 MANAGEMENT Introduction 152 Structures for the management of employment relations 153 Resources and staff 154 The division of responsibilities 155 The role of employer associations 155 Goals and functions of management 157 The management of labour 160 Management control strategies 162 Business strategies and employment relations 165 Evidence on managerial practices 168 Understanding management practices 171 Managerial style and attitudes 174 Concluding observations 180 i 180 Discussion questions 181 libhography 186 Bosses in dark on WorkChoices: Survey Managing under stress A new approach for PastaCo Cost minimisation at Qantas, part I Cost minimisation at Qantas, part II

6 Vtl CHAPTER 7 Introduction What do unions do? Unions at work Unions beyond the workplace Jnion structures EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATION: TRADE UNIONS Internal governance structures External union affiliations and alliances The origins and evolution of Australian unions 1800s s and 2000s Explaining declining union density Reduced demand for unions Changing composition of employment Role of management Government policies Union policies and structures Strategies for union renewal Amalgamation and rationalisation Organising Female representation in unions Concluding observations Discussion questions Bibliography QQ loo Your rights at work: Worth fighting (and voting) for Mighell slams 'out-of-touch Rudd' The experiences of an activist Anatomy of a union in decline A CHAPTER 8 EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATION: NON-UNION 235 Introduction 236 Forms of non-union representation 236 The OH&S committee at Top Trucking State-sanctioned non-union representation 238 Company 239 The Australian experience of state-sanctioned Non-union voice at Seaside Restaurant 245 non-union representation 239 Occupational health and safety committees 240 'English only 1 claim is a union smear Non-union collective agreement making 240 campaign: Cochlear 241 Individual contracting 243 Unions fade on campus 251 Management-initiated non-union representation 247 Management-initiated employee representation 'Tell Dell': employee representation in a in Australia 249 non-union multinational organisation 256 Concluding observations Discussion questions 255 Bibliography 258

7 PART 3 PROCESSES AND OUTCOMES CHAPTER 9 STATE REGULATION Introduction 266 Statutory regulation: Some theoretical concepts 267 Federal developments, Developments in the states, Federal developments, The Workplace Relations Act, The WorkChoices Reforms, Developments in the states, Concluding observations Discussion questions 293 Bibliography 295 Unfair dismissal proceedings at Happy Valley Council Pregnancy doesn't pay: Women workers tell of discrimination Enterprising bosses work for women Push for parental leave of 48 weeks Do discimination laws work? A case study at Qantas CHAPTER 10 BARGAINING STRL CTURI=S AND PROCESSES Introduction Key concepts: Bargaining structures and processes Managerial prerogative Definitions Potential restrictions on managerial prerogative Greater restrictions on managerial prerogatives during the 1980s The expansion of managerial prerogatives during the 1990s and 2000s Individual contracting Definition, types and history Incidence and coverage Claims and counter-claims about processes and outcomes Collective bargaining Definition and the importance of the law The changing legal status of collective bargaining Historical trends in the practice of collective bargaining Incidence and coverage of collective bargaining Award making Definition, status and role Number, structure and coverage Scope The complexity of bargaining structures Concluding observations Discussion questions Bibliography Who makes change happen? AWA median pay 16.3% less than under collective deals We are being true to promises: Gillard Enterprise bargaining at Hydro, Kurri Kurri

8 CHAPTER 11 INDUSTRIAL CONFLICT Introduction 348 Forms of industrial conflict 348 General explanations of industrial conflict 351 Industrial disputes: Strikes and lockouts 352 Absenteeism 356 Labour turnover Discussion questions 365 Bibliography 368 CHAPTER 12 EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS Introduction 372 Trade unions and productivity 374 The monopoly face of unions 374 The collective voice/institutional response face of unions 375 Evidence on unions and productivity 376 United States 376 Britain 377 Australia 377 Climate, partnership, HRM and performance 380 Employment-relations climate 380 Union-management partnerships 381 HRM and high performance? 382 Employment relations and national economic performance 386 National institutional structures and economic efficiency 386 National institutional structures and equity 388 Concluding observations Discussion questions 393 Bibliography 398 IRC asked to probe bus drivers' sickies Labour turnover and industrial conflict at PastaCo 363 Lockouts as a form of industrial conflict 366 AND PERFORMANCE 371 We'd like to work less and even take a pay cut 379 Constructive relations at Top Trucking Company 384 High-involvement work at a Victorian aluminium smelter 394 Climate change and aluminium smelting 396

9 PART 4 THE FUTURE 403 CHAPTER 13 RECENT DEVELOPMENTS AND THE FUTURE OF AUSTRALIAN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS 405 Introduction 406 Employment relations and the 2007 federal election campaign 406 Early responses to WorkChoices 407 Labor Party policy 409 Coalition policy and employer activities 411 The election and postmortems 413 Employment relations reform under the Rudd Government 414 Competing pressures on the new government 414 The early administrative and legislative initiatives 416 The Coalition 419 Concluding observations Discussion questions 420 Bibliography 421 Index 425