union management relations

7/28/2019 Union Management Relations

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Introduction: The Union initially remained under the British Crown as a self-governing

dominion of the British Empire. Union was considered equal in status to the other Dominions, and the United

Kingdom could no longer legislate on behalf of South Africa. Unions in SouthAfrica have a history dating back to the 1880s. From the beginning unionscould be viewed as a reflection of the racial conflict of the country, with theearliest unions being predominantly for white workers.

People who work for a living know about the inequality of power betweenemployers and employees. Hence presence of Union has a significant implication for the structure of theorganisation and for management of human resources
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Unions are independent organizations that representworkers to their employers to achieve common goalssuch as protecting the integrity of its trade, achievinghigher pay, increasing the number of employees anemployer hires, and better working conditions. The Trade Union, through its leadership, bargains withthe employer on behalf of union members andnegotiates labour contracts with employers. The mostcommon purpose of Unions is "maintaining or

improving the conditions of their employment.


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Today Unions are an important force in South Africa,with 3.1 million members representing 25% of theformal work force.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions(COSATU) is the largest of the three major trade unioncentres, with a membership of 1.8 million, and is partof the Tripartite alliance with the ruling AfricanNational Congress (ANC) and the South AfricanCommunist Party (SACP).


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A Union worker wins respect on the job, better wagesand benefits, more flexibility for work and familyneeds and a voice in improving the quality of theirproducts and services. Workers in Unions counter-balance the unchecked power of employers.

Unions help make sure our nation prioritizes workingpeople's issues: unions hold corporationsaccountable, make workplaces safe, protect SocialSecurity and retirement, fight for quality health careand ensure that working people have time to spendwith their families


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Trade unions and employer organisationsare also obliged to: Provide certain information to the registrar within thetime periods stipulated in the Act (s 100); Advise the registrar of a change to their name orconstitution (s 101); and Inform the registrar if they amalgamate with another

organisation (s 102).


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Union membership is important to all of these people,helping them gain decent wages and workingconditions and have a say in their jobs. Working people in all walks of life join together inunions to gain a voice at work. Union members have a

say about pay, benefits, working conditions and howtheir jobs get done -- and having that say gives thema "union advantage."


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Here are seven practical reasons why1. Money: Union jobs pay significantly more than non-union

jobs. From top to bottom, industry to industry, region toregion, union wages are roughly 15 per cent higher thannon-union wages. Its as simple as that.

2. Benefits :Pensions, medical insurance, paid vacation,holidays, personal holidays, sick pay, overtime premium pay,penalty pay and shift differential are generally not only betterin a union shop, often the only way to obtain them is througha union contract

3. Safety: A union contract gives employees the immediateright to insist on a safe work environment. Rather thanhaving to petition a remote government agency in the hopethat they come to your aid, as a union worker you caninstantly grieve an unsafe condition


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4. Dignity:As a union worker you dont have to put up with flaky bosses,arbitrary decisions, or co-worker harassment. You can still be fired forsubstandard work performance, but you dont have to tip-toe around in

fear or be at the mercy of weird or grossly incompetent managers.Because administering the provisions of a union contract requires acertain level of expertise, you tend to get better, more efficient bosses.Instead of flitting about making arbitrary, off-the-cuff decisions, theyreforced to behave like professionals.

5. Security: The boss cant walk up and fire you because he wants to giveyour job to his wifes nephew, whos looking for a summer job beforereturning to school. Management cant lay you off out of sequence. Theycant demote you arbitrarily. Nor can they prevent you, without sufficientcause, from promoting to the next higher job when its your turn. AfricanAmericans and women didnt get their fair shot at higher-rung

manufacturing jobs until labour unions gave it to them, a fact thatdoesnt receive enough recognition.


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6. Competence:Union workers tend to be better workers than non-unionworkers. Just think about it: Which job in the community is going to attracta higher caliber performerthe one with the good wages, benefits and

working conditions, or the crap job with low pay, lousy benefits and no air-conditioning? Not only will better workers apply to a union facility, butmanagement will have a significantly greater number to choose from,allowing them to hire the very best.

7. Activism :You have the opportunitythe privilegeof one day becominga shop steward, of representing your fellow workers, if they feel justified ingiving you that responsibility. Shop steward is no glorified popularitycontest, like being elected class president in high school. Its an important

job. People on the floor are going to select the person they deem bestqualified to represent their interests. As a union official, whose authority isrecognized by federal labour law, you will forever be a footnote in the

history of the American labour movement

8. Fair and just supervision:The day has long gone when the supervisorscould rule their employees with an iron fist. A significant reason for thegeneral shift leadership style from automatic to people-oriented patterns isthe insistence by unions that supervisors treat their employees fairly, justly

and respectfully


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Main union federationsAccording to the 2001/02 South Africa Yearbook, therewere about 17 trade union federations at the end of2000. This number could be higher, though, asfederations are not required by law to register, andunaffiliated unions spring up all the time.There are, however, three prominent trade unionfederations with affiliates operating in the differentsectors of the economy.


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These are the Congress of South African Trade Unions(Cosatu), the Federation of Unions of South Africa(Fedusa), and the National Council of Trade Unions(Nactu).Although the three federations and their respectiveaffiliates compete for membership, they co-operate inforums such as Nedlac. They have also embarked onjoint campaigns, including demonstrations againstamendments to the Labour Relations Act.


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Early labour unions attempted to organize workers inorder to obtain safe working conditions, better wages,and shorter working hours in the day. Some unionsbelieved it was necessary to accomplish those goalsthrough the political process. Other unions met insecret and did not want owners of industry orcompanies to know they existed.

Some thought only violence would accomplish theirgoals. As labour unions grew, they became importantvoting blocs. Most unions started out trying to obtainthe "bread and butter" issues--better wages, safeworking conditions, fewer hours


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These goals spread to include : Medical leave without a deduction in pay; Pensions provided by owners and workers; Medical insurance paid for by owners and workers; Laws against child labor; Support for free public education, protection ofpolitical and civil rights of workers; and the right to hold collective bargaining elections,so that the workers could vote to join a union.


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Union Rights at WorkplaceOrganisational rights of recognised majority union in theworkplace are regulated by sections 11 to 22 of the LabourRelations Act.Some of these rights state that: An office bearer or official of the union can enter theemployers premises in order to recruit members,communicate with members or serve the interest of itsmembers; To hold meetings with employees outside working hours atthe employers premises;


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The members of the union are entitled to vote at the employers

premises in any election or ballot contemplated in the unionsconstitution; To assist and represent employees in grievance and disciplinaryproceedings in the workplace; To perform any other function agreed upon between the unionand the employer.


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YOU ALL KNOW ABOUT THERECENT MARIKANASTORY!!!!


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THANK YOU!!!!

union management relations

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