Strategic industrial relations can bolster worker productivity

If one were to approach the average person and pose the question – what is the role of unions or management in the workplace, the most likely answer would be to negotiate salary increases. Over time and since the advent of a democratic dispensation in South Africa, the goalposts in terms of what union aspire to do, have slightly shifted.

The fundamental principles and battles remain but one would not be miffed by an answer from the average person on the street that solely views unions as a body whose existence is merely focused on placing more cash in the pockets of workers. On the other hand, management are simply viewed as exploiters whose primary target is to increase the bottom line at all costs with scant regard for the plight of the workers. Unfortunately these are perceptions that exist even though if one were to look through the eye of a needle, the reality is that the role that unions and management play is diverse.

Primarily, industrial unionism is a method through which workers in a particular industry mobilise or organise into one body or association thereby providing workers with more leverage in bargaining and strike situations. Outside wage negotiations and consequent strike action, unions and management hardly interact and most meetings are driven by conflict resolution as opposed to finding better ways of working. This approach can be counterproductive as it is reactionary more than it is proactive.

Productivity is a concept that inculcates a line of thinking that advocates the continual improvement of the production methodologies and prior to reacting to an impasse, unions and management should be working towards avoiding the emergence of such a stalemate. One of the fundamental ways to minimise conflict between unions and management is for both parties to engage continuously outside “wage season” and work together to implement improvement methodologies within the workplace. According to the director of the Labour Culture Network in Japan, Fujikazu Suzuki, one of the features of industrial relations in Japan is a joint consultation system.

The consultation system is a standing body for discussing various managerial issues between labour and management in a particular enterprise. This kind of set up is enabled by what is termed as enterprise unionism. Enterprise unionism is an organisation of a single trade union within one company rather within an industry. More 90% of union members in Japan belong to an enterprise union whose membership is restricted to employees belonging to same enterprise rather than same occupation or same industry unions.

While these methods cannot really be advocated in South Africa given that the demographics are quite distinct, unions and management in South Africa can enhance their relations through ensuring that management strategy both short and long term are discussed among all parties. Unions should be provided with the platform to participating in the strategic direction of the company. Suzuki says information sharing, collaborative processes, stakeholder consultations and employee motivation should be the cornerstone of the enterprise. Quality and productivity tend to increase when employees more involved in arriving at decisions at point of production.

Participation is a great motivational tool because it gives people a degree of control, recognises personal worth and provides scope for personal growth. Corporate management should take into account interests of a variety of stakeholders, including employees, consumers and regional community. Internal democracy within the corporate community can and should contribute to form a stakeholder corporation which takes care of every stakeholder in civil society. While disagreements will continue to reign, productivity in the workplace can improve through a collaborative approach.

By: Bongani Coka – CEO of Productivity SA