Thesis statement
Effective labor relations help identify different systems and mechanisms necessary for successful implementation of the reform process to streamline organization operations (Castro, 2014). To justify the rationale of active labor relation, the paper outlines the various demerits of having a bad industrial relation in organizations and why voters often become reluctant to implementing change.
The essay takes account of the views of different scholars on the subject with a justification of the existing theories on the matter. In the first section, the critical analysis justifies the need to conduct the study, indicating that the concept of workplace relation has a critical role in determining the success of business. The second section explains the concept in detail, indicating the views of different scholars on the matter. The study further shows the need to have positive relations and the binding regulation agents concerned (Watanabe, 2015). Although some scholars state that governments have a mandate of managing cordial relations amid employers and employees, others indicate that the free market does not require government intervention. Furthermore, the study suggests that in most organizations, people are often reluctant to change the workplace relations to meet the global standards so as to preserve their organizational culture among other concerns.
Description
A change in labor relation in an organization is accomplished by the shift in management practices. Outlook towards workplace relations should be backed by adequate theory understanding and effective practices that will guarantee effective organizational behavior. Most organizations in the global setting subject their employees to clear lines of authority, specialization, division of labor and working under close supervision, a feature that does not contribute to the corporation, but leads to increased cases of conflicts among workers.
In his study, Kelly (2015), states that employees should be considered as humans other than taking them as machines. Therefore, for efficient management, people ought to be considered as part of the enterprise, a feature that calls for the need to have productive labor relations. The concept, therefore, calls for the need to establish human relationships with each other, develop trusts and appropriate delegation of authority.
Managerial theories hold that managers ought to depend on their workers in achieving the respective goals of the business. Berger (2015) suggests that people are not reluctant to the implementation of change in an organization, but rather have the potential to be developed and designated with necessary responsibility. Therefore, the management has a role in organizing business operations to match with the different responsibilities of the people in establishing the respective goals of an enterprise. For an organization to grow overtime, it has to invest in its employees, a feature that indicates the rationale for having effective industrial relations.
Apparently, industrial relation deals with efficient management of the human resources with an objective managing the various aspects of unions in a work setting. The labor union leaders have the mandate to protect employees from unfair treatment, a feature that refers to the company's management. Some of the sectors that are involved in the protection of the workers' rights include the collective bargaining agreements, efficient handling of employee grievances and management of the daily operations of an organization. It is imperative to understand that organizations do not need to be in conflict with the unions as long as necessary conditions are met (Lindqvist, 2012).
Governments, through the development of practical policy issues such as the national labor relations act, help harmonize the interests of all employees. The tool has the mandate of explaining the various responsibilities of the union as well as the employers in organizational management. For the ideal relation to be developed amid the employers and the union, there is a need to set in place effective policies to guide the relation (Grosse, 2005).
Analysis
The debate on government intervention on reforming industrial relations has received tremendous growth over the decades. Different stakeholders possess varied opinions on the subject, a matter that attracts global concerns. While some scholars assert that a free market should not be subjected to government intervention, others indicate that the government has a role to play. The statement can be justified by the existence of a wide range of adverse effects that are realized in organizations with bad relations (Workplace Reform, 2015). Almost all the sectors of the society are influenced by the issue, a feature that calls for the development of effective policy tools to manage the situation.
As evidenced by the study, industrial relations have a positive contribution to organizational management. Organizations that establish good relations between the employers and the unions experience shared interests and can eliminate any problems. However, for cases of organizations that establish inappropriate industrial relations, such atmospheres are characterized by restlessness and consistent strikes. Furthermore, businesses that ignore the significance of the concept often experience high cost of production. This can be explained by inefficient operations, negligence of responsibilities among workers, and absenteeism (Chun, 2016).
Moreover, poor industrial relations do not only influence the interest of the laborers but the employees and the whole society in general. Some of the effects experienced by workers include loss of wages, injury, unfair subjection by employers and other diseconomy effects. However, the aspect has varied influence on companies as it contributes to decreased production, hence less revenue for the business and deteriorated relations among employees. The government is no exemption from the adverse effects of bad industrial relations as it experiences reduced taxes and disorderly in the society (Creighton, 2012). In a nutshell, different parties suffer the negative impact of the existence of bad relations between employers and the union. However, to manage the situation and achieve the desired goals, there is a need to establish cordial relations with the employers and the employees (Ravenswood, & Kaine, 2015).
In most organizations, workers are reluctant to accept changes to their management systems as the concept defines the culture of an organization for which it is renowned. However, in some cases, most of the management changes do not consider interests of all the concerned stakeholders, an aspect that may result to unfair treatment (Boddewyn, 2016). For example, in management practices that fail to favor the interest of the employees, most workers will be reluctant to such changes as it will subject them to harsh conditions. A company that has experienced successful change management plan is British Airways. In 1981, British airways received a new chairperson. This was the time the company was experiencing inefficiency, wasting a lot of resources (Kotter, 1990). The chairperson had to re-structure the whole organization and recover its losses. To avoid resistance to change, the chairperson utilized a change methodology management tool.
Government intervention meets the interest of the public other than its goals. The government helps employers and employees to reach shared goals and prevent future conflicts that may result in more trouble (Blaylock et al., 2015). For example, if manufacturing firms such as Toyota, Samsung Electronics, Apple and, Nestle experience inefficient policies experiences, this action may negatively affect their productivity, an aspect that might lead to reduced revenue for the business. In return, the workers are affected by the situation as they are paid less or subjected to harsh conditions. Due to reduced productivity, the government experiences reduced revenue as it collects less tax, an aspect that hinders economic growth. From the analysis, it is worth indicating that industrial policy reforms are essential for effective management. The concept helps in the management and workers to reach in harmony in establishing the organizational goals (Schlanger, & Kim, 2014).
Both the union and the employers have a shared goal, which is to create good relationship amid the employers and the employees. The objective is achieved through fair treatment and appreciation of the workers' skills and contribution towards achieving success (Bose & Mudgal, 2016). However, while the union relies on the collective activity to establish the goal, the management takes a different approach, an aspect that often results in conflicts. For the management to realize the set goals, industrial relations are essential. In the case of bad workplace relations, employees in most cases are the losers as they are subjected to harsh conditions by their employers. Nonetheless, the companies (employers) emerge, and the companies experience increased profit margin (Young, Willis & Stanton, 2005).
Conclusion
Workplace relation plays an essential role in the management of an organization as it contributes to effective communication among workers, coordination and collective work to achieve business goals. The matter has always attracted concerns of different scholars over the decades, an indication of its significance in business success. Different scholars such as Taylor assert that satisfied employees commit their effort in meeting the organizational goals.
The matter of workplace employees is further justified by the government’s intention to intervene in enacting of effective policy tools to develop cordial relations among employees. Different stakeholders suffer when bad workplace relations exist in an organization, and therefore, the government intervenes to eliminate the negative externalities impacted by such situations. Moreover, based on the nature of the policy tools used by the organizations, different stakeholders are subjected to loss.
In conclusion, the analysis established that although implementation of change in workplace reform is difficult, it is a necessary aspect of organizational management. The implementation of the process has more benefits than disadvantages and hence should be employed in organizational management. The operation influences almost all the sectors of the society, and if not well managed, it has adverse effects to organizations. Moreover, Taylor echoes that workers in an organization out to be regarded as an asset and should, therefore, be treated with utmost caution.
References
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