HRM IIB

The Three
Perspectives on
Industrial Relations
and Management
Style of IR
 Overview of the Lecture

 Explain the three views on industrial relation:

 Unitarist perspective
 Pluralist perspective
 Radical perspective

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 Introduction

 In developing a theory of industrial relations

various approaches or perspectives have been
identified.
 Important to remember that these are
analytical categories and not predictive
models.
 No single perspective is “correct”, they all
emphasise a different aspect of IR.

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 Introduction

 Unitarism emphasis the organisation as a

coherent team united by a common purpose.
 Pluralism sees the organisation as an
amalgamation of separate homogeneous
groups within some kind of dynamic
equilibrium.
 Radical perspective is based on class analysis
and class conflict in society.

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 Unitarism

 In terms of this approach the organisation is

seen as a single entity, with a single authority
and a loyalty structure.
 The organisation has a common set of values,
interests and objectives shared by all members
of the organisation.
 Managements right to manage is seen as
legitimate and rational.

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 Unitarism

 Any opposition to managements right to

manage is seen as irrational.
 This view sees no conflict between employers
and employees since both are partners to the
common aim of production and profit.
 All employees strive for greater productivity in
order that all can share the rewards.

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 Unitarism

 This means that each worker does his or her

best, accepts their place in the hierarchy and
follow the appointed leader.
 Conflict is seen as irrational and antisocial.
 Conflict is seen to be caused by agitators.
 If conflict exist it is the fault of employees and
not management.

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 Unitarism

 Trade unions are intrusions from outside

competing with management for the loyalty of
workers.
 Trade unions has a negative effect on the
prerogatives of management.
 Trade unions redirect the loyalty of employees
away from management.

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 Unitarism

 Many businesses promote unitarism because:

 It legitimises managements authority.
 It emphasises managements right to rule.
 Employees promote the interest of
management.
 That any challenge to management is
misguided and subversive.

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 Pluralism

 This perspective sees the organisations as

being composed of individuals who come from
a variety of distinct sectional groups with each
having its own interests, objectives and
leadership.
 The organisation is seen as multi-structured in
terms of groups, leadership, authority and
loyalty.

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 Pluralism

 The organisation thus has to manage tension

and competing claims in order to maintain a
collaborative structure.
 Conflict is accepted as inevitable due to the
existence of different interest groups.
 Conflict is limited due to the interdependence
of parties for economic survival.

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 Pluralism

 Unions and management will use interactive

mechanism to settle disputes.
 Negotiations and collective bargaining are
important mechanisms for the settlement of
disputes.
 Employers recognise trade unions as part of
the labour scene.

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 Pluralism

 Trade unions recognise managements role

within the enterprise.
 Management do not place restrictions on what
is being negotiated and bargained for.
 Trade unions are recognised as organisations
capable of communicating workers needs and
aims to management.

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 Pluralism

 Pluralism recognises that the organisation is in

a dynamic state of tension due to competing
interests.
 Institutions and processes must be in place in
order to manage the conflict.
 Due to the interdependence of the parties
destructive conflict is to a large extent avoided.

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 Radical Perspective
 This approach has its source in the works of
Marx.
 Class conflict is the source of change in
society.
 Class conflict arises out of the distribution of
and access to economic power.
 Principle conflict is between those who own
capital and those who supply labour.

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 Radical Perspective

 Societies, social and political institutions favour

capitalist.
 Working class have unequal access to
educational, economic, political, and other
social institutions.
 Social and political conflict is an expression of
the underlying economic conflict in society.

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 Radical Perspective

 Organisations reflect wider society and the

division is between owners and non-owners of
the productive system.
 Management’s main aim is profit, and control
over work is enforced by management towards
that aim.
 Industrial conflict is a natural part of the
system.

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 Radical Perspective

 All conflict stems from the division in society

between those who own and manage the
means of production and those who sell their
labour.
 Conflict is thus natural to the capitalist system
and gets reflected in the organisations.

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 Radical Perspective

 Trade unions are seen as part of the class

struggle.
 Trade unions should link their activities to
political parties to achieve fundamental change
in society.
 Collective bargaining is seen as a way of co-
opting trade unions into the capitalist system.

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 Management Strategy

 Why should management have a strategy?

– “That which differentiates management, as a group,
from other roles in the organisation, is that, through
formal authority structure of the organisation, they
represent, make decisions and act on behalf of the
organisation as an entity” Michael Salamon

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 Management Strategy

 Employers like unions are major actors in IR:

– Shape the path of IR within firm and nationally
 IR strategy is connected to:
– Union strength
– Political and social objectives of unions
– Need to regulate conflict
– Sensitivity to market competition

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 Management Strategy

 British studies have shown:

– Firms have no IR strategy
– Management tends to react rather than deal with
issues proactively
– Fire-fighting tactics the norm in IR
 Constraints and choices influences strategy:
– Constraints: limitation on power, resources
– Choices: cultural values of management

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 Management Strategy

 An organisational value based on Unitarism will

lead to a IR strategy that:
– Suppresses unions – leads to conflict
– Avoids unions thru comprehensive HRM also leads
to conflict
 A strategy based on Pluralism:
– Union accommodation – collective bargaining
– Union cooperation – participation, development

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 Management Strategy
 Bendix:
– Identifies various styles of IR management
 Fox developed 5 types of relationships:
– Traditional unitariast by both employers and
employees
– Management is resistant to unions and wants to win
at all times
– Sophisticated modern: both parties adopt a
pluralist perspective

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 Management Strategy
– Both parties accept each other collective bargaining
is institutionalised, procedures established to
regulate behaviour
– Sophisticated paternalistic style: management
wants a pluralist approach but employees adopt a
unitarist approach
– Paternalism prevails and employees are motivated
by good human resources management

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 Management Strategy
– Conflict & challenge style: management stuck in
unitarist style and employee are pluralist.
Employees place demands and management
refuses to acknowledge such demands
– Standard modern style: ambivalence on both
sides. Management is aware of pluralist approach
but adopts a unitarist style. Employees occasionally
make demands but don’t rock the boat

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 Management Strategy

 Purcell: 6 possible managerial styles:

– Traditional style, also autocratic unitarism.
Management wants to maximise profits and labour
costs are kept low.Employees have no job security,
management is autocratic and conflict is
suppressed
– Paternalistic style: company cares for the
employee who knows his place in the hierarchy,
communication and motivation but no unions

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 Management Strategy
– Sophisticated human relations style: unions are
actively avoided but there is promotion and
development of the individual thru sophisticated
HRM such as higher wages, training & development
and good communication
– Bargained constitutionalism: accept unions to
contain conflict, bargaining on narrow range of
procedural issues

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 Management Strategy
– Management retain its right to manage make
decisions, unions treated fairly if remain within
constitutionally established relationship, unions help
maintain discipline and order & reduce conflict
– Modern paternalistic style: effort to build
constructive relationship thru consultation, briefing
groups set up to deal with IR as well as operational
issues – paternalistic in style in that management
share to gain commitment

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 Management Strategy
– Sophisticated consultative style: management
shares all aspects of organisational training with
unions, but reserves the right to make final
decisions, uses teambuilding, quality circles, profit
sharing and share ownership schemes
 M Finnemore: using same research has
reduced the typologies to 4 models

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 Management Strategy

 Autocratic Unitarism and union suppression

– Company looks to maximise profit
– Labour cost kept to a minimum – no unions
– Management controls the emplm. relationship
– Unions are aggressive org. and against the co.
– Strategy to suppressive union development
 Used extensively in SA during apartheid and with
collusion of police

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 Management Strategy

 Sophisticated paternalistic unitarism and

union avoidance:
– Use sophisticated HRM systems to undermine
union support
– Aggression and confrontation is avoided
 Strategies used to discourage unions:
– Wages higher than market rates
– Investment in training and career development

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 Management Strategy
– Stabilise employment and avoid retrenchments
– Communication and information sharing
– Effective grievance procedure
– Weed out workers who are pro-union
– Social functions to develop company identity
– Elite core of permanent workers with benefits
– Peripheral group of casual & part-time workers
– In-house workers association for consultation

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 Management Strategy
 The above mentioned strategy has been used
effectively in the USA
 Unionism has been in decline and 15% of the
workforce is unionised
 Strategy might not work in SA because of
strong tradition of unions
 Companies may not have resources to
implement benefits to satisfy employees

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 Management Strategy

 Adversarial pluralism and collective

bargaining:
– Since 1970 companies have to deal with the reality
of trade unions in SA
– Due to vulnerability to strikes, consumer boycotts
and international pressure companies had to accept
the presence of trade union

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 Management Strategy

 In this strategy the company:

– Accepts the freedom of association
– See unions as a necessary interest group to the
workplace
– See shop stewards as a way of communicating with
workers
– Accept the rights of unions to bargain collectively

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 Management Strategy
– Uses collective bargaining on a win-lose basis
– Accepts the right to strike and lockout
– Emphasis is on workplace rule and procedures to
regulate conflict
– Use labour law to enforce compliance to procedures
and agreements
– Attempt to restrict range of items to be negotiated
– Maintain prerogative to run the business

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 Management Strategy

 Consultative pluralism – employee

participation and cooperation
– Groups have different interest at the same time
there is a common interest in the survival of the firm
– Employee participation and union/management
cooperation seen as creating a stable business
environment

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 Management Strategy
– Business objective of profit is maintained
– Satisfaction of employees are assured
– Emphasis on WCM and strategic planning
– WCM produces goods at a price and quality that is
competitive on the world market
– Calls for flatter org. and workers who are
accountable for their own performance
– Core jobs add value and other jobs are peripheral:
part-time, casual

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 Management Strategy
– Emphasis is on development of HR thru education,
multi-skilling, and career paths
– Less top down supervision and greater worker
control
– Full information disclosure and joint decision making
with the unions
– Implementation of performance based incentive
schemes
– Unions adopt flexible accommodation

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 Management Strategy
 Historically in SA as unions developed,
companies:
– Used aggressive union bashing tactics
– Unions responded by using legislation to protect
rights
– Collective bargaining arose but emphasis on rules,
procedures, legal enforcement of agreements,
adversarial bargaining
– Subsequently participation and cooperation

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 Next Lecture

 History and development of industrial relations

in South Africa.

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