by Bert Alweiss

Created on: March 22, 2009

Collective Bargaining is a process whereby organized labor negotiates with management for new terms and conditions of employment with special focus on increases in salaries and benefits of employees within the bargaining unit.

Experience shows that the process of negotiations itself, with the unraveling of character, traits and personalities of both parties, plays a more important role than the prepared strategy or financial parameters tucked in the sleeves of negotiators. It accords management and labor the opportunity to know each other better and to discover for themselves the rationale for their co-existence.

When management describes the philosophy and values of the corporation in terms that are understandable to the workers, the union takes its own position and defines the philosophy from the vantage point of the workers, thus opening up an entry point for common understanding, rather than enmity.

Sometimes, negotiation immerses both parties in the depth of their emotions when denials of certain demands are taken as a blow to the sensitivity and dignity of the workers. At this juncture, the negotiator needs to keep the lid from blowing up by a sincere demonstration of good faith and by accentuating on the quality and benefits of previous agreements and by highligting the fact that those agreements have been reached because of mutual respect and understanding placed on the process.

Fruitful and successful negotiations in many companies have some things in common: sincerity, mutual trust, good faith and realistic thinking. In the case of well managed firms, long-held practices and structures of mutual cooperation between labor and management such as problem-solving committees, safety committees, productivity improvement groups, etcare the principal factors in creating mutual trust and the readiness for realistic thinking which should be laid down at the start of the collective bargaining.

The process of negotiations, no matter how painful they can be in the greater portion of the time the bargaining is held, will tell in the end that the companies have as much right to survive as the workers. As a matter of course, what the workers will ultimately realize is the fact that there is always a bond holding them and the firm that cannot be torn sunder by irresponsible negotiators. The bond created by the continuing process of open communication, showing concern for people and inculcating the value of excellence will strengthen the worker's resolve to win in the end along side with the company winning too.

It is a Win-Win Situation.

(Published also by same author in ciao.com March 7, 2009)

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