Unice Cuajao

Impasses, Strike and Dispute Resolution

Based on my own understanding, a bargaining impasse occurs when the two sides
negotiating an agreement are unable to reach an agreement and become deadlocked. An
impasse is almost invariably mutually harmful, either as a result of direct action which may be
taken such as a strike in employment negotiation or sanctions/military actions in international
relations, or simply due to the resulting delay in negotiating a mutually beneficial agreement.
The word impasse may also refer to any situation in which no progress can be made. Impasses
provide opportunities for problem solving to provide an insight that leads to progress. Impasse
may also if parties suffer from self-serving bias. Most disputes arise in situations where facts are
able to be interpreted in multiple ways, and if parties interpret the facts to their own benefit they
may be unable to accept the opposing parties’ claim as reasonable. They may believe the other
side may be either bluffing or acting unfairly and deserves to be punished.

I can conclude that impasses can be resolved through different strategies. The goal is
not to overcome impasse per se but to help both parties analyse and negotiate constructively.
For me, one of those is do not cut off communications, even if negotiation appears dead. Then,
conveniently look past what the person said when they declared negotiations over and offer
them a way back in that saves face. Most importantly, ask for apology. Make an open but there
is very small move of graciousness to the other side and if they reciprocate, make another, until
talks are back on. So based on my own interpretation, it is best to have good mediator in order
to resolve this type of conflict between the employees and their employers.

I was also able to understand that a strike occurs when workers stop work in order to
pressure the company to make bargaining concession. The concept of this activity is to hurt the
company where it counts- in the company coffers. Stopping work costs money because the
company will still have overhead and fixed expenses. It also often results in loss of profits. I also
learned the different types of strikes to wit: (a) economic strikes- strikes over wages, benefits,
and work rules (mandatory bargaining items) during contract negotiations; (b) unfair labor
practice strikes- strikes in protest against an employer’s unfair labor practice; (c) recognition
strikes- strikes to force an employer to recognize and bargain with a union; (d) sympathy strikes-
strikes in support of other workers on strike; (e) wildcat strikes- strikes over grievances while a
contract is still in force; (f) jurisdiction strikes- strikes over the assignment of work to bargaining
unit employees; and (g) non-economic strikes-strikes over permissive bargaining items during
contract negotiations.

Last type of conflict is the dispute, an agreement or disagreement between or groups

usually between the employees and their employer. And I can say that it is very important to
resolve this one. Dispute resolution is the process of resolving disputes between parties. This
term be used interchangeably with conflict resolution, where conflict styles can be used for
different scenarios and is judicial system which supply an apparatus for resolution of
antagonism between citizens and government. I found out the following methods of dispute
resolution: lawsuits, arbitration, collaborative law, mediation, conciliation, negotiation, and
facilitation. The legal system provides resolutions for many different types of disputes. Some
disputants will not reach agreement through a collaborative process. Some disputes need the
coercive power of the state to enforce a resolution.

A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law.
This may involve dispute resolution of private law issues between individuals, business entities
or non-profit organizations. A lawsuit may also enable the state to be treated as it were a private
party in civil case as plaintiff or defendant regarding on injury or may provide the state with the
civil cause of action to enforce certain laws. On the other hand, arbitration is a form of
alternative dispute resolution used for the resolution of commercial disputes outside the court.
Then, the collaborative law is a legal process enabling parties to have fair settlement. Mediation
is the dynamic, structured interactive process where a neutral third party assists disputing
parties in resolving conflict through by the use of specialized communication and negotiation
techniques. Conciliation is whereby the parties to a dispute use a conciliator, who meets with
the parties both separately and together in an attempt to resolve the differences. It differs from
the arbitration in that the conciliation process has no legal standing and the conciliator has no
authority to seek evidence or call witnesses, usually writes no decision, and makes no award. In
addition to these, negotiation is a dialogue between two or more persons or parties intended to
reach a beneficial outcome over one or more issues where a conflict exist with respect to at
least one of key issues. Lastly, facilitation is an activity that makes a social process easy or
easier.