In this case study we are going to discuss the CRA case. The CRA case is mainly about the mining company breaking/dissolving the unions and making the employees sign the individual contracts. Here we will discuss and analyse how they went about pursuing the workers to leave the unions and sign the individual contracts. Before that we will briefly look into the profile of the CRA.
CRA is a major Australian mining company, it is a large employer with about 15000 employees directly employed and another 8000 workers in associated companies (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
CRA had sales of $ 5.5 billion in 1994 and assets in excess of $ 5 billion. The company has been undergoing a period of restructuring, reflecting the turbulence in mining and commodity markets. CRA suffered a net loss of $ 17.4 million in 1996 down from a profit of $ 295 million in 1995. CRA ‘s outputs are very price sensitive with small changes in exchange rate having a large impact in the company’s profitability (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The response of CRA was to restructure its operations, introducing a significant change in management style and culture aimed at achieving a greater competitive advantage. (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
There were three unions n the CRA namely the AWU, CFMEO and AMFEU. The restructuring of the various operations caused a considerable union tension, fuelled by managerial approach which sought change at any cost. The CRA case is significant because it involved not only ‘heart and minds’ of employees, but over ideas concerning the role of unions and how employment relations should be managed. It shows how the CRA changed its personal and industrial relations approach to HRM approach. The CRA adopted the method which it saw as a more individualist, employee relations approach. It was a change brought about in the context of globalisation, increasingly competitive commodity markets and growing managerial militancy towards collectivist industrial relations. (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003)
The Research paper on Acid Rain: the Southern Company (a) Case Analysis
Acid Rain: The Southern Company (A) Case Analysis | Production Processes and Costs| Executive Summary In the year 1992, the Southern Company that held the Bowen plant, a coal-fired steam electric plant had to decide on the various options available to comply with the amendments in the Clean Air Act, effective 1995. The Bowen plant was an unusually large plant with a capacity to serve the ...
The companies introduced single union sites, bonus or performance pay, annual salaries, introduction of 12-hour continuous shifts and single stream workforce. Under a single stream workforce classification structure employees are reclassified according to ‘generic’ job roles. With the loss of specific job titles and duties, it was no longer clear to miners which union was the most relevant to their needs. The effect was to produce instability in the relationship between unions. (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003)
The senior company managers were told by their chairman that the CRA’ s future competitiveness depended on organising and managing individual potential. This culture was based on breaking down the collectivist mindset of unionism and instilling a work ethic of individual performance and direct accountability (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The aim of this new strategy was to ensure that the interests of the employees were aligned to those of the company. The CRA used the individualised contracts with employees. Contracts served the company’s purpose of aligning the object of the business with the need of the individual (HRM approach).
Once signed, such contracts makes winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of employees unnecessary, as employees have cogent economic reasons to align their goals with those of the company (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The introduction of staff contracts at CRA was done in two stages. The first stage involved establishing a new company value system based on individualism (HRM approach).
The second involved establishing the appropriate HRM systems and practices to reinforce individual accountablilty (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The Essay on Phone Calls Employees Company Phones
A couple of months ago, my company installed a system to record the phone calls of certain employees. They set the recorder to record only the employees who have outside contacts with customers, regulatory boards, or contract personnel. The company implemented this system to resolve conflicts, clarify positions, protect the integrity of the company's contracts and verbal commitments, and provide ...
The first process was separating out collective bargaining (HRM approach) and trade union involvement from the employment relationship. This was achieved by changing employee values and attitudes through company – inspired propaganda or ‘myths’ . The new narrative was kept simple, focusing on the negative role of the unions in the company’s efforts to project jobs (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The aim was to reduce employee opposition to the individual contracts. Company ‘myths’ included: things would have to change if the company was to stay in business; the unions were forcing the company out of business; every individual’s performance matters; and the company looks after the best interests of every employee (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
CRA’ s strategy also included separating and dividing employees, particularly those who were strong unionists. They were tagged ‘poor performers’ and ‘troublemakers’. The unilateral nature of the changes introduced by CRA was AIRC during proceedings. The signing of the staff contract represented an employee’s trust in company management (HRM approach) and those who did not sign ran the risk of being tainted as troublemakers and disloyal (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
Employees at certain operations were offered wage increases (HRM approach) of 11 per cent to 15 per cent under staff contracts, when they had not had a wage increase since 1991 due to breakdown in collective negotiations. The company offered a unilateral and non-negotiable contract. Unions were not a party to these contracts. By the end of 1995, the vast majority of employees had agreed to sign. Workers regarded this as the only way to gain wage increases and possibly some form of job security (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
First leadership training for supervisors was a prerequisite for cultural change. It was proposed that for successful leadership, management needed to demonstrate the employees values (HRM approach) such as trust, honesty, fairness, dignity and love. This was reinforced by employee value training sessions. A retrenchment system ensured that unionised elements in the workforce has been gradually weeded out. A performance review (HRM approach) was conducted annually and managerial judgment is made of employee’s performance in technical abilities, programming abilities and people skills.(Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003)
The Term Paper on Collective Bargaining Employees Employers Unions
Definition of collective bargaining: " Employees do not negotiate individually and on their own behalf, but do so collectively though representative." (The Donovan Commission, 1968). Collective bargaining can be defined as an arrangement for settling wages and conditions of employment by an agreement between an employer, and an association of employees. It has been regarded traditionally e. g. by ...
The unions made applications to the AIRC to protect the role of the unions in collective bargaining using its arbitral powers. This involved CRA from using individual contracts. The unions tried to convert the individual contracts into a ‘paid rates’ award. The AIRC agreed with the union claims that the company’s individual contracts discriminated against those employees who sought to remain under the award, the AIRC concluded that the actions of the company were contrary to the objects of the Industrial Relations Act. The AIRC also found that the improvements in work practices at CRA could have been obtained ‘through a system other than the staff contract system’. The AIRC decision was subsequently reversed by the Federal Industrial Court. The AIRC agreed with the unions that CRA had behaved in a discriminatory way to union members. (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003)
The AIRC issued interim orders that CRA extend staff contract benefits to the remaining award employees on the basis that they were prepared to accept all the terms of the staff contracts. Despite the apparent union victory, problems remained in giving legal effect to the interim orders and the vast majority of employees had already opted for contracts (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
Employer moved towards individual employment contracts are normally justified on the grounds of efficiency and productivity. The aim can be interpreted as transferring risk from market place into the employment relationship. It is also about removing any effective collective employee representation (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003).
The Essay on Collective Bargaining Union Labor Contract
Collective Bargaining, in labor relations, negotiations between employers and employees about terms and conditions of employment. The bargaining process is concerned with wages, working hours, fringe benefits, job Security, safety, and other matter relating to working conditions. Any or all of these may be the subject of consideration. Besides representatives of management and unions, private ...
The experience of the CRA shows how fragile union loyalties can be, given appropriate circumstances and inducements. It is also an example of a company adopting a strategic view of HRM, which was linked to broader business objectives that justified de-unionisation.
Though what the CRA did was good for the company, they way the implemented the changes was unethical, they forced things on the employees and destroyed the unions in a disgraceful manner. “The campaign was kept secret so that even ‘supervisors were deliberately deceived as to the real company purpose’ and ‘were only briefed as to pro forma answers to be given to employees to encourage them to accept staff contracts’”. (Petzall, Abbott and Timo: 2003)
Now moving on to the case study given i.e. The Doom and Wiser case s similar to the CRA case. But we cant force things as done by the CRA as the law does not allow us to do it today. Motivation is a big factor which affects the performance of the employees. Motivation can be defined as ‘the processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction and persistence of effort towards attaining a goal’ (Robbins, Millet and Waters-Marsh 2004: 164).
Here I will introduce a pay hike and motivate the employees, as we know pay is the biggest motivator to make the employees work hard for the company benefits. It is important to make them believe that whatever the company does is in the best interest of the employees. I will introduce a performance appraisal system and award people who perform better and thus urging the other employees to work better.
Then once they start believing that the company management cares about them, I will explain to them the advantages of the individual contracts like how its going to benefit the individual and the company. As the union has a pretty open and trouble free relationship with the management, I will not try and destroy them, it is possible to work in tandem with the union and perform better. I will explain the employees of how the opening of a new retail outlet could affect our profit and business and it is important that we make the necessary changes now so that we do not suffer later by not being able to compete with the other retailer.
I will try to convince the older family shareholders that the changes we are proposing is only for the good of both the company and the employees and assure them that it is not going to do anything bad to the employees. I will explain to them the advantages of the HRM approach and also that the relationship with the union need not be trouble free for ever, it might change if the leadership of the unions change, so it is better for everyone to accept the proposal of the management so that the company can withstand the competition and continue to make profit and thus the employees can benifit.
The Review on Employee Resistance to Change
Contemporary business dynamics are pressuring organisations to change and adapt effective strategies to operate and remain competitive within this competitive environment. As a result, organisations are responding by embracing change as part of the transformation and strategising process (Pieterse, Caniels & Homan, 2012, p. 799). However, when changes in the organisations occur, employees are ...
References
S. Petzall., K. Abbott., & N. Timo (2003).
_Australian Industrial Relations in an asian context_ (2nd. ed).
Melbourne
Gary Dessler., John Griffiths., & Beverly Lloyd – Walker (2004).
_Human Resource Management_ (2nd.ed).
Australia: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Stephen P. Robbins., Bruce Millet., Terry Waters – Marsh (2004).
_Organisational Behaviour_ (4th. ed).
Australia: Pearson Prentice Hall.
