The human resource department has a diverse function in the organization, it understands the current laws that are always varying. The human resource department deals directly with the employees about all matters from the time of employment to termination. Once a union is made and it becomes part of the company, the human resource department loses direct interaction with the employees as the union negotiates employee terms (Dundon, 2016). The priorities of an HR in a union shop and issues that may impact how the HR practices are handled are discussed in the following essay.
The first priority of a human resource manager in a union shop will be to develop and create a human resource plan that is in line with and supports the organizational strategy. The human resource strategy is the foundation of all future decisions the human resource manager will make (Dundon, 2016). The department strategies should go hand in hand with the organization's strategies to help in the attainment of organizational goals.
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Some of the issues that may impact how the HR practices are handled within a union shop include wages, benefits and working conditions. The company will have to negotiate with the union on wages, hours, vacation time and other issues that may affect the employee. The company bargains with the union only for the employee represented by the union and for the other employees they are set according to the company policies. Another issue that affects human resource practices is the settlement of grievances (Butler, 2015). The employee represented by a union might want to include a third representative which might pose as a challenge in some circumstance because they might have a different view of the situation.
In conclusion, HR managers working in a union shop might have a limitation on what they can do. They lose direct contact with the employees since they are represented by a union. The union represents the employee in negotiating employment terms of the employees.
References
Butler, P., & Tregaskis, O. (2015). Workplace partnership and legitimacy: a multi-layered analysis of the shop steward experience. Work, employment and society, 29(6), 895-911.
Dundon, T. (2016). Representative participation. In Encyclopedia of Human Resource Management. Edward Elgar Publishing Limited.
