HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Prepared by: Teresa Dimaculangan

Week 8
Labor Relations Management

The Purpose of Labor Relations Functions in the HR Department

Labor relations are the term used to define the process between employers and employees,
management and unions in order to make decisions in organizations. The decisions taken refer to
wages, working conditions, hours of work, and safety at work, security and grievances.

The purpose of great labor relations is to establish and strengthen the employee and employer
relationship. This can be achieved by measuring employee satisfaction, identifying and resolving
workplace issues, and providing input and support to the performance management system of the
company.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Labor Union

Pros of Unions

Here are some of the most important pros of labor unions.

1. Unions protect workers' rights to work.

Many workplaces employ workers with at-will contracts, which means that they can be fired for really
any reason — including for things that don't take place within the four walls of their workplace. Union
representation, however, looks out for workers so that they have a better chance of retaining
employment.

2. Unions increase workers' negotiation powers.

Unionized workers can better negotiate their contracts because they can bargain as a collective unit.
Without a union, workers have to negotiate their pay and benefits on their own — and studies show
that many women and minorities have a tougher time doing this.

3. Unions help workers to defend themselves.

Unionized workers have a guaranteed advocate in the workplace. Unions promise them enhanced job
security, fair pay and a level of defense against things like disciplinary action statements and warnings at
work. Unionized workers have grievance processes if they disagree with disciplinary actions taken
against them, for example.

4. Unions ensure that workers have better retirement opportunities.

Unionized workers have better access to retirement benefits. Employees that are represented by a
union in the workplace have better access to retirement benefits. In fact, workers who are employed
within a unionized workplace are more likely to have 401ks or IRAs, as well as pensions.

5. Unionized workers tend to earn more than non-unionized workers.

Unionized workers tend to earn more than non-unionized workers all across the country. And it's not
just pay either. Unionized workers have tougher ground on which to stand when negotiating all types of
benefits like health and life insurance, paid vacation time, sick days and more, for example. In fact,
about 93 percent of unionized workers were entitled to medical benefits compared to 69 percent of
non-unionized workers, according to the National Compensation Survey published by the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics.

Cons of Unions

Here are some of the downsides of labor unions.

1. Unions do not provide representation for free.

Unions aren't free. Union dues can actually range from about $200 to several hundred dollars per year,
which takes a serious chunk out of workers' paychecks — if they're in a place to pay the dues (not all
unionized workers are required to pay!). Workers, therefore, pay a portion of their salaries in order to
receive the benefits of union representation, which may be upwards of 2.5% for some unions. There are
also yearly fees, initiation fees, apprenticeship fees and more for some unions, which, of course, all adds
up.

2. Unions may pit workers against companies.

Some may argue that unions pit workers against companies — always fighting for their rights, instead of
working together with the company to fight toward a common goal. For companies, of course, this can
hurt the culture of a workplace.

3. Union decisions may not always align with individual workers' wishes.

Many unions are active politically and, as such, will lobby governments at the local, state and national
levels. Of course, not all employees in a union will share the same political views. This can cause some
tension, especially because the lobbying efforts often come out of the dues that workers pay to be part
of the union. Some employees may not want to support causes with which they don't agree.

Likewise, unions may advocate for changes in the workplace that don't necessarily benefit all employees
— or they may advocate for certain benefits over others that aren't of the utmost priority for some
workers who'd rather push for different changes. Because it's a group effort with unions, all advocacy is
made on behalf of the majority, not the individuals.

4. Unions can discourage individuality.

Individual identities may arguably fall to the wayside with unions, which inherently operate with a group
mentality. While there's, of course, strength in numbers, individuals may have a tougher time exercising
their own power when it's masked by that of the group. Voices are louder together, but this means that
individuals don't get to share their own voices beyond their votes, either. After all, unions make all
decisions based on majority votes — not based on an individual's thoughts, opinions or ideas.

5. Unions can cause businesses to have to increase prices.

Because businesses tend to pay unionized workers higher pay, they also have to charge consumers
higher prices. This also causes taxpayers to foot the bills in the long run — which can be a serious con for
both businesses and consumers. Businesses might lose clients and customers if their prices are too high
for people to pay, so this could be a dangerous loop.

Three Phases of Labor Relations Process

The process of labor relation contains three phases that include administration, negotiation, and
recognition. The recognition phase defines the responsibilities and legal rights of management and labor
union representatives. This stage defines the labor law that defines the behaviors, and responsibilities of
managers and union representatives. The phase also defines the workers right to join or not to join a
union at free will. The negotiation phase entails labor agreement negotiation and determining a process
of dispute resolution (Antonellis, 2012).

The negotiation includes suitable tactics, strategies and deadlock resolution methods.Negotiation of
contract entails jointly determination of work rules controlling the parties’ responsibilities and rights
impacting working hours, wages, or other employment condition by the management and union
representative. The results of the negotiation of this kind contain significant effect on the living standard
of the covered employee, their management’s right and company’s labor cost. Most disputes on interest
are voluntarily resolved by the negotiation between management and union in the bargaining process
(Holley, Ross& Wolters, 2016).

The administration phase involves enforcing and applying the conditions and terms as delineated in the
conveyed labor agreement. Once the phase two contract terms are settled, there is a requirement to
apply the terms on daily bases as per the agreement. Administration phase ensure that all agreement
are implements, and in case this is not possible, the management has to work with the union to resolve
the disputes (Antonellis, 2012).

The process of labor relation engages labor organization and managers designated by workers as their
special negotiating agent to represent their interests. Union representative and managers work jointly
to administer and determine work rules. It is therefore important for human resource to understand
labor relation so that they may be able to table their side of bargain to have a fair agreement. Their
understanding also assists in reducing the level of disputes, strikes and other extreme cases of
disagreement. It also assists the human resource to avoid losses through litigation or to be intimidated
to compromise more than the organization can take. With clear understanding of the labor relation, the
human resource can be able to predict what any of action may receive as a counter action from the
labor union and prepare to handle it adequately based on the law for the benefit of the organization.

Unionization in the Philippines

Trade or Labor unions in the Philippines are organizations sanctioned by Labor Code of the Philippines as
an acknowledgment of Filipino workers' freedom to self-organize. Trade unions aim to promote
enlightenment among Filipino workers concerning their wages, hour of work, and other legal rights.

Unions in the Philippines are classified into two (2)

types of sectors: public and private.

Public Sector Union or Public Employees

Organization refers to any organization, union or

association of employees in the agencies of the

government which exist in whole or in part for the

purpose of collective negotiations or mutual aid,

interest, cooperation and protection.

Private Sector Union or Labor Organization refers

to any union or association of employees in the

private sector which exist in whole or in part for the

purpose of collective bargaining or mutual aid,

interest, cooperation, protection or other lawful

purposes.

Labor Organizations are further classified into two:

Formal Labor Organization refers to an organization with employee-

employer relationship and is also known as Enterprise-Based Unions.

It is composed of Chartered Locals, Affiliates and Independent Unions.

Informal Labor Organization refers to organization with no definite

employer.

How many unions in the ecozones?

As of December 2018, there are 438 registered

Enterprise-Based Unions in the economic zones of the

country. Most of which are in the following:

 124 are in Cavite Economic Zone (Rosario, Cavite)

 113 are in Bataan Economic Zone (Mariveles,

Bataan)

 41 are in Camelray Industrial Park (Canlubang,

Laguna)

 28 are in Subic Shipyard Special Economic Zone/

Subi Bay Freeport Zone (Subic, Zambales); and

 27 are in Laguna Technopark Inc. (Sta. Rosa &

Biñan, Laguna).