F601 Employee Relations: UK’s History of Employment Relations

and the opposition party which could be quoted as the competitor which matters the most to ensure growth and tallies the performance in a reliable manner. This practice helps in inculcating the value and belief within the organization and built up the better organizational structure and culture thereby strengthening the internal environment of the organization (Edwards, 2017).  

Role of Trade Union in grooming employee relations in the UK

A trade union is an essential element for the sake of employees benefit. The motive behind the establishment of a trade union is to curb the exploitation of the employees. The initiative was taken in the pre-independence phase of the country where the hike of atrocities was prevailing, the revolution was taking place at the world level and almost every country was fighting for the rights (Moeti-Lysson & Ongori, 2011). The most popular revolutions in the history in terms of employee relations and trade unions were the French Revolution which was also denoted as Bloodshed. Similarly, the Coal Mines Revolution also took place where employee safety was not focussed and long working hours were allotted with the less payment that was only enough for the family to have the two times meals, another example for the similar situation was the Russian Revolution (Horn, 2017). Thus, the trade union plays the vital role in building up the employee relations. Labour law is designed and applied to make factory owners follow the policies and practices and should strictly abide by the laws. This helps in building the belief and faith in the employees and the employer now treated the employees as the king and mutual understanding is been maintained. The more emphasis has been paid on smoothing and advancing the external environment of the organization and as it is said that discipline is the key to success and success starts from inside thus to build up external environment internal structure has to be strong enough (Sinha, Sinha & Shekhar, 2017). Grievance cell has to be build up so that the conflict resolution could be made and the trade union supports the employee by quoting the labour law and raising the voice on behalf of those employees who are not able to fight themselves, they are made aware of their rights and appropriate advice are given to them in case the employees are at the fault (Saundry, Antcliff & Hollinrake, 2017). The trade union reinforce justice at both the ends and helps the society to educate and stay aware of the fundamental rights. Timely inspections are made to scrutinize the status of employees in the organization and all the good & justified actions are promoted and the lacks are fulfilled. The timely meeting is conducted by the trade union to analyze the current situation and figuring out the solutions in case the uncertainties occur and immediate action has to be taken. The drawback with the trade union is that they do not accurately evaluate the situation as the research undertaken is inappropriate and limited which does not fulfill the dual end specifications thus the conclusion drawn is not entirely reliable (Brewster & Hegewisch, 2017).

Roles of key players in Employment relations

To maintain the employment relations in an organization there are certain key players that play the vital role in the development of the enterprise. These key players prove to be the factor to change the organizational scenario and ensure the growth and decline of the organization are an employer, employee, trade union, employer association and government (Masum, Azad & Beh, 2016). To get the clarity upon their roles the brief discussion of each is under quoted:

• Employer: The employer is the owner that raises the job opportunity for the candidates. They need to follow the labor law designed by the government to provide the employees with their rights and prevent the exploitation thereby creating the situation of generosity in the organization as well as in the social environment as well by fulfilling the corporate social responsibility. For securing the future of employees’ pension schemes, gratuity fund, the creation of provident fund has been initiated after the retirement to secure the old age of eth employee who devoted the most portion of life in serving the company and the employees. It is the way to pay gratitude and maintain relations with the staff (Sturman & Park, 2016).
• Employee: Employees are the second most important player in the organization where the employment relations surround. To maintain the employment relations and contribute towards the organizational commitment the employee need to focus on the behavior and discipline within the company. The norms and policies of the organization have to be abiding by and contribution towards the organizational welfare has to be given. Even the employee need to be loyal towards the work and must follow the manger’s advice for the betterment. The injustice act needs to be avoided by them as well to maintain the healthy employment relations (Guest, 2017).
• Trade union: As discussed earlier trade union is the crucial part in the maintenance of employment relations. Trade union works on behalf of the employees who are not able to raise their voice against unethical acts and collectively introduce the new activity in favor of employees and the society that prevails outside the organization. They take the initiative to educate the employees about the current situations and provision designed in their favor which is suitable for the employer and other stakeholders as well (Bonoli, 2017).
• Employer agencies: The employer agencies are for the protection of employees from the injustice done by the employees. It is also created with the motive to add on certain policies and inculcate them into the practices. This is to discuss the market scenario and setting up the trend and deciding the pricing strategy in the monopolistic market so that equal distribution of income takes place to manage the balance of economy and contribute to the GDP of the country in a positive manner (Findlay et al, 2017).
• Government: Another major player that contributes in enhancing the employment relations is the government. Government constructs the various laws and policies to control the exploitation from both the ends. Also government has set certain organisational parameters for the employee as well which the employees should also follow with the discipline so that healthy relations and mutual understanding remains and employer-employee relationship continues to flourish in the long term and the employee turnover rates decreases along with increase in employee referrals (Naff, Riccucci & Freyss, 2017).

Case Study: Junior doctors contract dispute

Procedures followed while dealing with the situation of conflict

In an organization there are varieties of problems that occur, some are meant to be certain and planning of these issues have been previously made on as it occurs the solution is applied to resolve the problem but there are some uncertain situations as well that pops up suddenly and immediate actions are required to be undertaken. In the uncertain situations, the decision making the power of management is tested that how effectively they deal with the problem and what best solution could they be able to extract out. The decision-making skills of managers are been scrutinized in such an uncertain situation (Hasani & Nouri, 2017). The NHS followed the particular method to resolve the resisting conflict have been quoted as under:

• Single employee: In the single employee conflict the employee is given the opportunity of being heard and both the ends are heard thereby the conclusion is drawn. The employer needs to keep patience and calmly deal with the employee so that trust retains and the belongingness of employee is gained so that the employee engagement is earned and even the employee feel committed with the organization (Rockett, Fan, Dwyer & Foy, 2017).  
• Between employees: The conflict that arises between the peers need to be mutually solved. The employer needs to analyze the situation so as to know the root cause of the gap that has aroused. The employer should always stay neutral and both the parties must be given the equal opportunities to explain their parts so that the understanding of the issue is developed and the gap is bridged up (Babalola, Stouten, Euwema & Ovadje, 2016). This manner of solving the issue is always preferred as both the points are served and clarity is derived and both the parties come to know the real problem whether it is who’s part was incorrect or there was the communication gap.
• Group of employees: The most critical conflict is the group conflict among the employees. The numbers of employees are involved and discussion with each at the same time will worsen up the situation. Such a situation has to be wisely dealt with. Part of the employees need to be heard individually and the cause needs to be measured and the topic of conflict should be made clear. The employer needs to evaluate the problem that had arouse and the better solution has to be given which is possible only on appointing the arbitrator and making the group understand the matter and bridging up the gap. Also, the redressal forum could be opted for to reach the authentic solution (Howard, Turban and Hurley, 2016).

Key features of employee relations

Employee relations are complex they need to be strong enough but are delicate to handle. In the context of the conflict that occurred in the case study the key features of employee relations are been discussed as under:

• Ideological framework: The ideology that the person holds over is the values and beliefs of the individual or the group of individuals. In the context of the particular case study, the major cause of conflict that has been identified is that BMA members voted for the strike that is to take place against the disagreement of the government decision. The disagreement that took place against the government was a negotiation in relation to the contract of new junior doctor that was done between BMA, NHS employer and government (Ryan & Wallace, 2016). After the disagreement by new doctors yet the contract was developed in the May with the involvement of government. Though even after the agreement the junior doctors wanted to continue the strike for the sake of patients, they quit the strike. For the doctors, it is the prime responsibility to treat their patient first and then the other aspects are considered so the junior committee settled on the ground of public safety and focusing over the Hippocratic Oath (Inversi, Buchley & Dundon, 2017).
• Conflict and cooperation: The junior doctor continues to protest against the contract that has been implemented by the government stating that the contract was unlawful and unethical and the government should take a step to take back the contract and wind up the decision that has been undertaken. The mutual understanding was not maintained and silent fights were continuing which resulted in non-cooperation of junior doctors. Only the necessary and procedural things were made to follow so that entire working does not get stopped and human safety is been focussed which is the premium cause and duty of doctors (Valizade, Ogbonnaya, Tregaskis & Forde, 2016).
• Consultation: The consultation was made to the regulatory bodies to find out a genuine solution in the context of the case study that follows. The 3 parties were collected to seek the solution and resolve the long-lasting quarrel between the government advisors, NHS employer BMA association. The point of discussion was based on the safety of patients along with the new junior doctors. The employer needs to provide the safety measures to the employees so that they could comfortably work in the safe environment which will automatically increase the efficiency of the employees. The trade union also participated in the arbitration of the conflict and extract out the solution to over the issue and convincing government to reach towards the fair result and award generated should be such that satisfy the government advisors, NHS employer, BMA association and the trade union as well (Jennings & McCarthy, 2017).
• Negotiation: The first negotiation took place between the government advisors, NHS employer, BMA associates and the trade union to settle the redressal that has caused the unrest situation. The conflict was mainly about the safety of employees and rendering of compensation and other benefits have to be there to render a better understanding of employees and adhering them towards the company else the high employee turnover will take place. Due to this presentation and disturbance negotiation was made and the result was awarded by the government in the form of launching the new contract which again boosted the dissatisfaction among the junior doctors and they again sat down for the conflict and creating issues thereby pressurizing the government and its advisor’s to revoke the contract. Lastly, the negotiation got canceled as the strike was called off by the Junior Doctor Association Committee for the sake of patient’s safety and health care issues (Devenyi, 2016).

Effectiveness of the conflict resolution procedures

The BMA association members and the new junior doctors adopted only one procedure to express their demand and it was strike through which they made the protest and even after the resolution was passed the non-cooperation continued to flow, whereas, the government chose collective bargaining method to resolve the conflict and finding out the way to satisfy both the parties (Gounaris, Chatzipanagiotou, Boukis & Perks, 2016). In 2016 May government announced the new contract which was not acceptable by the BMA association and new junior doctors and again the quarrel took place in which 42% of doctors accepted the contract and the 2% of doctors were against the contract as per the voting was done (Webb, Coleman, Rossignac, Tomasulo & Higgins, 2017). The award given by the government was unjust with the doctors as they were not given their rights what they actually deserve. At the end, for the welfare of society, the entire strike was called off and postponed. The adverse effect of the strike was faced by the patient and their families which was not ethical on the ground of doctors. Therefore to safeguard the society and paying regards to the duty junior doctor association sacrificed their rights and continue to serve the patients for their well-being (O’Neil, Hoffart, McLamon, Woodley, Eggermont, Rosehart & Brennan, 2017).

Role of negotiation in collective bargaining

In order to settle the conflict and arrive at the appropriate decision, negotiation is required where alternatives are discussed and settlement procedure is made so that the final decision could be achieved which is suitable for all the parties. In collective bargaining, the negotiation is upon the terms and conditions of the conflict that has taken place between the employer, employee and the association of employee & employer. The conflict that arouses between the people and for which the collective bargaining is demanded involves the employer and employee and topic on which negotiation is demanded is to flourish employee with their rights (Jackson, Leopold, Tuck & Shams, 2016). Their exploitation needs to be avoided so that free and focused working takes place and employee belongingness is achieved to maintain the employment relations. The benefit of negotiation in collective bargaining is that when at times the decision is not in the favour of employees thought they were correct at their part and unjust award has been declared yet the public support is achieved by the employees and they stand collectively understanding the unfair acts that have happened with the employees and support the party to attain the rights they deserve (Long, 2016).

Impact of negotiating strategies

Negotiation, as discussed, is the conflict resolution technique to settle both the parties at the common point. Negotiation strategies are the acts where both the conflicting parties come together and argue over the situation and present their views to gain clarity upon the case. As per the current case study, the negotiation is taking place between the government and BMA association that is supporting new junior doctors of NHS employers (Caputo & Ayoko, 2016). The negotiation trick used to resolve the quarrel is the positivism adopted by the employees by sacrificing their rights for the betterment and safety of patients.  The negotiation strategies followed in the particular conflict is as under:

• Preparation: The preparation in negotiation depicts the terms and conditions that have been previously decided so that at the time of discussion and driving out of conclusion the points prepared are quoted so that strength is achieved and chances to get the positive result increases.
• Evaluation of best and worst results: After gaining the information from different sources and preparing for the resolution of conflict the results that came up on understanding the part of both the parties need to be analysed and evaluated to take out and make a count over the best and worst conditions that could occur and how the worst part be resolved.
• Give and take: This strategy is the sacrifice done by either of the party for paying gratitude to the corporate social responsibility or any other reason as done in this particular case by the NHS employees for the safety of patients.
• Building value by being articulate: The negotiation strategy suggests that eth arguments need to be direct and relevant. The quality of negotiation should be appropriate. Concerning about the particular case the solution could have been better if eth arguments have been presented in a relevant manner and mutual understanding was given importance than results might have changed (Steele, 2017). 

EU Perspective

Influence of the EU on industrial democracy in the UK

In the industrial democracy, attention is paid to the decision-making skills of the workers and how they act in the given situation. The delegation of authority and responsibility has been focussed upon. These authority and responsibility energize the employees and they focus themselves more towards the self-growth and development of the organization. Employee engagement is gained and the employees feel connected with the organization. Now the threat relations between the employer and employee has been replaced with the employment relations where the generous and kind relations are been maintained (Nugent, 2017). All the employees are treated equally, no biases are promoted, labor laws have to be followed and also the employees need to maintain the decorum of organization and abide by its confidential policies and other practices. According to European legislation, the decision making authority should be transferred to the worker’s as well, to build up the confidence. The Union is now considered to impart knowledge and spread awareness among the employees to know their rights and policies that are made in favor of them. The works council is formed that suggests the various strategies for the growth of business (Casey, 2016).

Methods used to gain the Employee Participation and involvement of Decision Making process

The organization selected for better understanding the employee participation and decision-making process is Tesco which was established in the year 1919. In the UK the largest group is been operated around 3400 stores in which almost 3, 10,000 colleagues are employed. They offer their customer with reasonable prices and improvised quality of work. The code that Tesco follows is to set the minimum expectations with the colleagues (Tescoplc, 2017).   

In the decision-making methods, the crucial role is played by undertaking the attitude survey. In the attitude analyses, it is evaluated that how the employee perceive their work and in what manner they accomplish the task. The opinions based on human resource policies are evoked and the information is gathered in the context that renders the equal opportunity of growth, safety measures and compensation to the employees are paid. Attitude surveys are made possible by using the questionnaire method and conducting a direct interview to gather the primary data which is authentic (Basterretxea & Storey, 2017).

  Another method that is been used by employees to participate in the decision making is quality circles. The employees could discuss their problems with the management about what their outlook in the context of conflict is and how the perception could be turned other way around. Another way of decision making is the direct participation of the employees in the decision-making forum and approaching directly to the management to solve the quarrel on the early notice (Alsughayir, 2016). 

Impact of Human Resource Management on Employee Relations

Involvement of employees in decision making is a crucial element of an organization as the direct influence of such an act is on the performance of employees. Also if the employees are not involved in the decision making of then it might lead to the demotivation among the employees and they may feel the neglected part of the organization. The commitment with the organization is lost when only are orders are given and no sense of responsibility and authority is delegated to them (Rothenberg, Hull & Tang).

The advanced theory of HRM is introduced at the Michigan Business School that specifies the role of HR to be reactive and perform the functions of organizations and less focus is over the external factor as the smoothening of internal factors have been concentrated on. The Michigan model states two aspects of human resource management that affect the working of organization and thereby elucidates the employee relations. The two versions of human resource management are hard version and soft version. The hard version argues over the economic factors and the focus is paid on the adoptions of human resource management techniques and rational activities that are being carried over, it also encourages the optimum utilization of resources and allocating the resource effectively and efficiently (Jiang, Hu, Liu & Lepak, 2017). The second version of human resources management is the soft version that emphasizes on treating the employees in a valid manner, the healthy competition needs to be promoted so that competitive advantage is gained and belongingness of employees are seen. When the employees are treated as up. The performance gets better and the hidden potential reflects out. This result in gaining job satisfaction and the employee feel self-motivated (Sparrow, Brewster & Chung, 2016).

Conclusion

The report has been divided into three parts that are that is UK specific, Case study of Junior Doctors Association and EU Perspective. From the entire report, it could be cultivated that in the UK specific portion frame of references has been discussed which involve unitarism, pluralism and radical. The impact of a trade union is discussed in grooming the employee relations and thereafter the roles of key players have been examined discussing their contribution towards the growth of employment relations. Proceeding towards the case study of junior doctors the procedure has been discussed which is used in resolving the query followed by the key features of employee relations. Role of negotiation has been investigated along with the impact of such negotiation on the collective bargaining. The case study focused on the social responsibility as well as the conflict between NHS employer and government. The final section argued from the perspective of European Union, the first in this was the influence of EU on Industrial democracy of UK. Thereafter the methods of involving employees in the decision making part have been elucidated and different decisions were discussed quoting the example of Tesco. Lastly, the impact of human resource management on the employee relations have been described supporting the theory with the Michigan model that carry the hard and soft views related to human resource management.  

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