Labor Relations: Striking a Balance - Tapa blanda

This book presents labour relations as a system for striking a balance between the employment relationship goals of efficiency, equity and voice, and between the rights of labour and management. The text broadens the narrow process focus of existing labour relations texts by placing the discussion of contemporary U.S. processes into the context of underlying themes - what are the goals of labour relations, are those goals being fulfilled, and are reforms needed. The tired paradigm of "labour relations equals detailed work rules" is replaced by the dynamic paradigm of "labour relations equals balancing workplace goals and rights." Labour law, union organizing, bargaining, dispute resolution, and contract administration are central topics, but these processes are not presented as self-evidently good; they are placed in the broader context of the goals of the employment relationship, conflicting rights, and the environment of the 21st Century. This serves to make labour relations more engaging and relevant to students. It also allows instructors to raise important "big picture" ideas while covering the applied business functions and strategies of the existing processes.