Michael Salmon postulates “industrial relations encompass a set of phenomena, operating both within and outside the workplace, concerned with determining and regulating the employment relationship”. J.T. Dunlop states “Industrial relations are the complex interrelations among managers, workers and agencies of the government”
Industrial Relation can arguably be viewed as the “Cinderella” branch or aspect of management, which overtime has emerged with its own high degree of importance. Many reasons surround the emergence of industrial relations as a subject matter and operational activity, both at the organizational level and academic level. Such as, the cost associated with disruptions and dislocations in production processes and systems over time as results of misunderstanding and mishandling of industrial conflict. In industrial relations, there are concepts (abstract ideas) which require subjective, value judgements (based on moral and ethics) for which there are no universally accepted criteria. Some of these concepts are; fairness/equity, power/authority, individualism/collectivism, rights/responsibilities and integrity/trust.
The term fairness in relation to IR allows the worker to challenge the decisions of the employer when they believe they are being treated unfairly. Equity on the other hand requires the employer to treat right with right. The concept of Fairness/Equity has always been raising eyebrows with questions like; A fair day’s wages for a fair day’s work? But wat is a fair day’s work? It is important for managers to recognize that while people are not equal, every employee is entitled to equal opportunity. It’s equally important to recognize the role your personal biases, however subtle, play in influencing the perceptions others form about your actions and behaviors. In decision making pertaining to an employee performance, capabilities, and potential, some would say that asking yourself these questions; it may assist with the outcome: How much of this is about the employee, and how much is about me? Does this employee deserve the benefit of the doubt? Is an extra push needed? Under what circumstances am I making this decision? Is the decision based totally on merit? Who else have I considered? What made me decide in favor of one employee over the other? Do I like or not like this employee? How is my biasness affecting my decision? Take for instance, a cashier that was hired at a prominent wholesale distributing company and is under a three month probationary period before becoming permanent. The employee’s contract is then terminated within one month of employment without a fair and appropriate performance appraisal. This concept of fairness/equity underlies the entire conduct of Industrial Relations and is most frequently related with considerations of pay and dismissals. The concept is so fundamental to IR that the IRA commands the court to use it in the determination of cases like the example given above. The Court can exercise its power by Section 10 (3) of the IRA: Notwithstanding anything in this Act or in any other rule of law to the contrary. Fairness is a relative and variable concept to examine the conduct of human relationships, it is about being free from favoritism and therefore equal treatment is expected. Look at procedural fairness in disciplinary matters. The principles of natural justice are used. These include the right to a fair trial. Thus he/she is presumed innocent until proven guilty. He/she has the right to appeal any decision against her and the right to be heard must be given to every employee by their employer. There are different meanings of fairness. Think about unfair behavior, unfair treatment, unfair statement, unfair action, unfair practice, unfair opportunity, and unfair policy. Where equity is concerned, it can be understood as the ratio of my inputs to the outcome equivalent to those around me.

The employment relationship is essentially a Power/Authority relationship. Power is the ability of a person or group to influence the beliefs and actions of other people. It is the ability to influence events, to get the other party to make a concession etc. Power can be personal power. Personal power most often comes from internal sources, such as person’s special knowledge or personal characteristics. Personal power is the primary tool of the leader. Power can also be legitimate or official power. This power comes from a formal management position in an organization. Authority is the legitimate use of power, in the absence of it there will be chaos and disorder in any institution. It can also be viewed as the right given to a manager to achieve the objective of the organization. A manager can’t do his work without authority. Authority is often legitimized by socialization. We were brought up to accept the orders of those appointed to govern us. To understand negotiations and the relationships (or common ground) that emanate, the study of power and its effect must first be fully understood. In our previous case, the cashier can use the power of her union to meet with her ex-employers with regards to her unfair and unjust dismissal. The power of a union revolves around collective bargaining over wages, benefits, working conditions, and also representing their members in disputes with management over violations of contract provisions, like our cashier. In other related or inter-related sources of power, we have reward power- which is having control/influence over the achievement of some goal/benefit which is desired by another, for example our friend Keshawn Walcott can display this kind of power after winning a goal medal for his achievement at the Olympics. Then there is coercion power- which is the ability to inflict some punitive measure against another, e.g. a judge has the power to determine whether the murder accused is sentenced to the death penalty. Also there’s referent- is having the personal attributes which lead others to defer in their decisions or opinions. A great example of a leader that displays this kind of power is Martin Luther King. And last, we have expertise- that is having particular knowledge which is considered superior to others. E.g. Albert Einstein. Power can only exist if there is reciprocal perception of power – if I feel stronger than you there is no guarantee that you feel weaker than me. The notions of power being legitimized through authority have important implications for IR; the use of power is perceived to be unacceptable while the exercise of authority is acceptable, and the rights or entitlements of workers are closely bound up with the exercise of power and authority: ( right to collective bargaining; right to consultation). The concepts Individualism/Collectivism, may be used to refer to three different aspects of Industrial Relations: management is free to treat employees as it sees fit or trade unions regulate the work situation on an equal footing; employees treated differently even if they are doing the same work or employees receive the same terms and conditions irrespective of their individual abilities or performance; the individual sees their economic well-being as a matter for his/her own efforts or the individual perceives a bond with the fellow employees and believes individual needs can only be met with collective action. This can be seen as the center of debate between ‘human resource management’ and ‘industrial relations’. Individualism allows employees to directly engage corporate management and negotiate wages, salaries and benefits. An employee can negotiate based on her individual merits and values to the company. On the other hand Individualism perspective of employment relationship mainly focuses on individualized rewards for employees and seems to discourage need for collective efforts. The putting of private or individual concerns above the common or collective interests; a theory that nothing exists but the individual self; or the principles that all actions are performed for the advantage of the individual. This action weakens the union’s bargaining power. In terms of the cashier, if she had gone to the union for representation on her own, the union may have problems building a case against the company. But if other people came forward with similar disputes with the same company, they can more than likely present evidential material against management and try the case. This is where collectivism comes in. Under the concept of collectivism, individuals choose to benefit from the collective bargaining power of a union. By combining with others, workers achieve more than when acting alone. Principle of control by people as a whole. Initially, waged work was no more than an extension of the master/servant relationship. The master treated with employees on an individual basis (individualism). Eventually, workers were forced to combine their efforts to better their welfare (collectivism).

The difference between Rights/Responsibilities is, a right is a freedom that is protected, a just or legal claim or title, which is due to anyone by law, tradition or nature. Rights are not absolute- ie freedom of speech but not immune from slander or libel. I have the right to stop work but the work must first pose a threat to life and limb. Management’s right to manage- one of the most fundamental “rights” issues in IR. “This is an area of decision-making over which management believes it should have (and acts as if it does have) sole and exclusive rights of determination” (Storey). It is against this right that the rights of workers have to be judged. Whereas responsibilities, is defined as a duty/ obligation (eg. To take up grievances) or having control over something (I have a responsibility to my superiors). Employers and employees have responsibilities to each other, they should also expect their rights to be upheld. These rights and responsibilities relate to areas such as health and safety, the provision of Terms and Conditions of employment, Equal opportunities and the right to be paid minimum wage. Employees are expected to receive the terms and conditions of their work setting out when their work commences, what their main duties are, who they are accountable to, rates of pay, and other entitlements. Employees also have the right to work in a respectable inclusive work environment free of discrimination. There are many questions surrounding the fact that an employee should or shouldn’t be discredited or dismissed because of their medical or native background. Employers should also exercise their responsibilities to protect their employees against such discriminants. For example, employees should not make offensive jokes or comments based on a co-workers race, gender or any other protected ground under the AHR Act. Employers cannot require employees to ‘sign away’ their human rights. Equal opportunities legislation sets out that all employees should receive the same pay and conditions for carrying out the same or broadly similar work (fairness and equity). If this concept is breached or not carried out in accordance to the law, the employee has the right to consult their union and organize measures to correct the informalities or bring justice to the injustice. Questions like “Must a right carry with it some equal and opposite responsibility? I have the right to strike, but do I have a responsibility not to harm innocent by standers? Would you take away my right if the exercise of this right is deemed unacceptable to others?” plague IR studies everyday.

A workplace that is characterized by suspicion and lack of trust is not likely to be a happy or productive place. A healthier workplace is created when both management and workers are consistent in their actions, open and productive in their attitudes and honest in their dealings with others. With the concepts Integrity/Trust, the phrase “it’s a matter of principle” is often a matter of ad hoc expediency. A solid foundation of trust is necessary of an organization to be effective, especially in today’s work environment. Innovation cannot thrive in places where people are reluctant to share creative ideas in fear of criticism or lack of support. Trust may also be established between people rather than organizational collectives called ‘management’ and ‘unions’. It is difficult to establish trust but easy to lose it. Whereas Integrity, can be defined in terms of the individual acting in accordance with his/her personal values and belief rather than some universally accepted code of conduct. It also means honesty, openness, and transparency. We just have to look at our personal experiences to see how important these factors are in building trust and sustaining relationships. People don’t give their best to someone they don’t trust. Take for example the manager of Shermica’s Wholesale Enterprise, asked employees to work overtime for two weeks to make back productions lost due to system failure the past week. Workers agreed to work the extra hours only if double time was added to their salaries which management signed to. After the one week past, management circulated a memo stating that they are not paying double time, but in fact the employees were to receive regular pay for their overtime work. Due to this move taken by management, employees felt betrayed and had in fact lost trust in their superiors. Management’s integrity was also tarnished. This concept does not imply that management has to keep their word or agreement. It just suggests that it helps with work production and all in all a better work environment. Integrity and Trust are two key ingredients in developing relationships in Industrial Relations. Today’s successful organizations need a performance management system that drives focus and clarity by linking individual performance to strategic priorities and organizational values. This helps create an environment of openness, trust, and involvement, which helps foster personal growth and organizational commitment.