Collective bargaining is the process of deliberating on the various labor-related factors that define the roles of an employer and employee in an employment contract. Unionization involves rallying the employees in a collective group to improve their bargaining power. The process of unionization is key in the management of an institution as it defines the various relations between the employer and the employee. Implementing new unions in an organization requires a well-defined procedure to ensure that the important issues feature in terms of the unionization agreement. Effective unionization requires the complete support of the sides participating in the collective negotiating contract. Nevertheless, the negotiations for a joint bargaining contract should be approached with genuineness and pragmatism to ensure the parties involved in the bargain are considered on a fair scale.
Methods that Management can deploy to Work with a New Union Effectively
The approach that the management would adopt for successful incorporation of the union should be beginning by the formation of an organizing committee. An organizing committee is a relevant tool in harnessing the grievances of both members of the management and the employer. A section of the management members does not subscribe to the idea of a union. Therefore, an organizing committee would be an ideal tool of harnessing the grievances of the various members of the administrative staff (Berton, Carreri, Devicienti & Ricci, 2019). The organizing committee will harmonize the claims of the administrative staff against the expectations of the employer.
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The next step in ensuring that the new union works are through harnessing for the majority vote from the various members of the management staff. This approach is valid and relevant as it seeks to convince the majority of the administration staff to sign on to the contract offered by the new union. This approach is applicable because the administrative staff is persuaded through a collection of various grievances. The new policy will work through persuading a majority of the management staff that their needs will be prioritized in the contract. The last stage in the approach of introducing the new union in the hospital is to make it a policy (Berton, 2019). The strategy is valid because the majority of the administrative staff supports the contract that is being offered by the new union. The idea of making the new union policy is to create permanence of the culture among the administrative staff.
Preparation for the First Negotiation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement
The ideal approach in preparing for negotiations on the collective bargaining agreement is by being realistic and genuine in considering grievances from both sides. As a newly promoted, Chief Labor Negotiator, I won't want to fail in my first assignment. Therefore, pragmatism and being realistic in negotiating grievances would be key. Genuine and realistic negotiation results to contract that best suits the both sides of the bargain (Berton, 2019). Besides, I would also conduct thorough research on the expectation of the employer from the members of the administrative staff. The research would entail having relevant information on the job description and the official roles that the various members of the administrative staff.
I would prepare for negotiations by researching the expectations of the members of the administrative staff to the union. I would want to know the various needs that the management staff have. I would prepare for the negotiations by researching the challenges that the management staff under and try to come up with relevant solutions. This approach will allow me to have enough information about the needs of both sides of the bargain. The last step in preparing and facilitating the negotiations is to allow the union the power to mediate between grievances of the administrative staff and the employer. This stage involves the collective harmonization of views of both parties (Berton, 2019). The union will harmonize the opinions and come up with a proposal contract. If the first proposal is not favorable enough, the negotiations resume again until the final contract favors both parties equally. The final contract should contain harmonized solutions to the needs of both sides of the bargain.
Analysis of the Necessary Methods in ensuring that the Final Contract protects the Rights of the Parties Involved in the Bargaining
One approach to providing the protection of the rights of the management staff is by ensuring that the final contract aligns with the spellings of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The constitutional act prescribes various labor rights. Besides, the National Labor Act protects the right of the management of the hospital to own their facility and operate it freely (Berton, 2019). The good thing with the act is that it will ensure that the spellings of the contract align with labor laws. I would also ensure that the rights of the administrative staff are respected by prioritizing health and safety grievances. An ideal contract should guarantee the management staff the safety of their health. The contract should facilitate a healthy working atmosphere for the optimum performance of the administrative staff.
The contract will protect the ownership of the hospital by detailing the basic principles and rights of the owners of the facility. The contract should protect the employer from extortion through unnecessary hiking of salaries and allowances. Besides, the contract will protect the management of the hospital from extortion by establishing a remuneration scheme that aligns with the quality of service delivered (Brunner & Ju, 2019). The contract should be skeptical and pragmatic in the valuation of services offered by the management staff. The strategy will ensure that both sides of the bargain are satisfied with the remuneration clause of the contract.
Another method of defending the rights of the administrative staff is through declaring job classification and terms of promotion for the employees. Job classification is essential in establishing a relevant remuneration scheme. The job description will facilitate the promotion of staff based on credibility and merit (Brunner & Ju, 2019). The right of employees to access promotion without favor or prejudice deserve protection by the final contract adopted. The final contract should help the management of the hospital to define the structure of the management staff from the senior staff to the junior staff depending on job group classification and merit of the administrative staff.
The other method of defending the privileges of the administration to own and operate the facility is by adopting a performance assessment procedure for gauging the performance of the administrative staff. The final contract should provide the employer with the right to evaluate the performance of the management workforce. The performance assessment procedure will also protect the right of the administrative staff to fair evaluation void of malice and prejudice. The performance assessment procedure is a necessary tool in defining the various roles that the administrative staff should perform (Brunner & Ju, 2019). The final contract should be keen to provide a balanced performance assessment procedure that does not favor either the employer or the employee.
The final contract will protect the right of the administrative staff by defining lay off procedures. Lay off procedures refers to various steps that the employer should observe in the process of firing an employee. The management staff has the right to a credible lay off procedure that aligns with the spellings of the labor act. Besides, the layoff procedure should also include pension or compensation depending on the prevailing circumstances leading to the layoff (Brunner & Ju, 2019). The final contract should protect the administrative staff from an unnecessary and unwarranted layoff. The final contract should also spell the consequences that the management would face if by breaching the clause describing of lay off.
The Topics to be featured in the Agreement
The topics covered in the final contract are decided based on the type of bargaining. There are three basic classes of bargaining. They include mandatory, permissive, and illegal. Mandatory topics cover the basic needs of the parties involved in the bargain. The final contract will feature mandatory topics which include, health and safety of the administrative staff, the rights of management, working values and conditions, and remuneration (Brunner & Ju, 2019). The final contract will also a feature the nomination of bargaining representatives of both the administrative staff and management as a permissive bargaining topic.
A Response for the Chief Executive Officer
Pros of Unionization in our Hospital
Hallo, the Chief Executive Officer. I have deliberated on the subject of adopting a new union for the administrative staff, and I wish to present my findings on the subject. The subject of unionization in the hospital will help our management staff to have collective power in presenting their grievances. Unionization will enable the administrative staff to be loyal because they feel that their needs articulated (Hawkins, 2018). The new union will give a sense of security to the administrative staff and therefore influencing their performance positively.
Pros of Unionization in our Hospital
However, I also noticed that the unionization idea could lead to extortion of the management through unnecessary hiking of salaries. The administrative staff could include high salary clauses in the demand packages. I wish also wish to bring to your attention the fact that the new union could guarantee so many privileges to the employees and hence risking sluggishness in performance and rude attitudes because of the sense of security provided by the contract. However, I assure the management through your office that the unionization idea will serve both the management and the administrative staff equally and professionally. The process of drafting the final contract has featured the limitations for the various privileges that the management staff are likely to abuse (Hawkins, 2018). Therefore, adopting the new union in the hospital is the ideal step the management should consider taking.
Conclusion
The new union will suit the hospital if the management appoints an organizing committee to research on the grievances of the administrative workforce and those of the administration. As a newly promoted Chief Labor Negotiator, I would prepare for negotiations by investigating the hopes of the members of the administrative staff to the union from the collective contract so as to pursue them into supporting the union. Through declaring job classification and terms of promotion for the employees, the rights of the administrative staff are observed. Unionization will boost loyalty among the administrative staff. Some members of management could be misguided by the sense of security to loss focus on their duty. However, the final contract will benefit both the ownership of the hospital and the management staff because it spells measures to address breach of contract. I therefore recommend the ownership of the hospital, through your office, to endorse the collective bargaining contract.
Self-reflection summary
Upon my promotion to the position of Chief Labor Negotiator, I was able to access various resources that helped in the process of completing credible collective bargaining. I used a selected number of the administrative staff that was nominated by the rest of the administrative workforce to present their grievances in the negotiation platform. Moreover, I also deployed representatives of the management to research on the various grievances and expectations of the management. Moreover, I used my authority in hiring a professional legal advisor who helped in interpreting the spellings of the Labor Act in relation to the final contract.
References
Berton, F., Carreri, A., Devicienti, F., & Ricci, A. (2019). Workplace Unionism, Collective Bargaining and Skill Formation: New Results from Mixed Methods.
Brunner, E. J., & Ju, A. (2019). State Collective Bargaining Laws and Public-Sector Pay. ILR Review, 72(2), 480-508.
Hawkins, D. (2018). Abuse of Discretion Collective Bargaining Agreement. Wisconsin Law Journal.
