Chapter 1

Question 1

Strike

Answer 1

an action by workers that leads to cease to perform work duties and do not report to work

Question 2

Precarious Employment

Answer 2

Employment with minimal security, lower wages and less protection

Question 3

Human Resources Management

Answer 3

The study of the employment relationship between employers and individual employees

Question 4

Employee Relations

Answer 4

the study of employment relationships between employers and individual employees usually in a non-union setting

Question 5

Industrial Relations

Answer 5

the study of employment-related issues and relationships often in a unionized situation

Question 6

Labour Relations

Answer 6

Union management relations, the study of employment relationships and issues between groups of employees (union) and management

Question 7

Union

Answer 7

A group of workers recognized by law who collectively bargain terms and conditions of employment with their employees

Question 8

Collective Bargaining

Answer 8

the process by which management and labour relations negotiate the terms and conditions of employment in a unionized workplace

Question 9

Collective Agreement

Answer 9

a written document outlining the terms and conditions of employment in a unionized workplace

Question 10

The rise of precarious employment

Answer 10

• started during the recession of the 90s, low demand for labour and high unemployment
• initially concentrated in less skilled workplace
  -20% of Canadians are precariously employed, about 60% of that are women
• plan to increase

Question 11

Four elements of the systems model. Dunlop’s Relations Systems Model

Answer 11

1. actor
2. shared ideology
3. contexts
   4 web of rules

Question 12

Actors

Answer 12

specialized governments
hierarchy of management
hierarchy of workers

Question 13

Shared Ideology

Answer 13

set of ideas and beliefs held by the actors
- helps in binding and integrating the system

Question 14

Contexts

Answer 14

environmental factors such as market, workplace and work community constrains, distribution of power in the larger society

Question 15

Web of rules

Answer 15

rights and responsibilities of the actors

• procedural
  -substantive
  -distributive

Question 16

Criticism of the Dunlop Model

Answer 16

1. it is descriptive but static
2. it lacks the ability to predict the outcome
3. underestimation of power conflict
4. can not explain the rapid decrease of unionization

Question 17

Craig’s Industrial Relations Model

Answer 17

Outline to explain the Canadian context of industrial relations

Systems model
a) inputs (external vs internal)
b) processes
c) outputs

Question 18

What comprises the external inputs ?

Answer 18

legal subsystem, economic subsystem
ecological subsystem, political subsystem, sociocultural subsystem

Question 19

Who are the actors in this case?

Answer 19

Labour
employers
goverment
end user

Question 20

Internal inputs

Answer 20

values (standards), goals(sought out by actors), strategies (process developed to achieve goals), power(ability to make another actor agree to you)

Question 21

Conversion mechanism

Answer 21

processes actors use to convert internal and external inputs into outputs

Question 22

Examples of conversion mechanism

Answer 22

collective bargaining, grievance, day to day relation communication, conflict resolution, third party intervention (arbitration), join committees, strike

Question 23

outputs example

Answer 23

employee outcomes: rights and responsibilities of Management in the employment relationship
- productivity, profitability

Labour outcomes: ways to achieve fairness

Workperception: work climate, employee morale, union satisfaction, and organization commitment

Conflict resolution: strikes and lockout (both an outcome and conversion mechanism)

Question 24

Industrial relations

Answer 24

an interdisciplinary field: law, history, sociology and psychology, political science

Question 25

Neo-classical view

Answer 25

economic view that sees unions as a barrier to the free market

Question 25

Pluralist and Institutional view

Answer 25

• stresses the importance of multiple actors including labour in employment relationships
• sees labour unions as a countervailing force that attempts to balance the interests of employers and employees
• predominant viewing of Canada
• most closely related to IR

Question 25

Human Resources and Strategic Choice View

Answer 25

• push not non-unionization
  -Links HR practices to the firm’s overall strategy and foster cooperation between employees and employers, thus minimal need for union

Question 26

Political economy

Answer 26

• based in the fields of sociology and political science
• stresses inherent conflict between labour and management

Question 27

two key areas of Dunlop Model

Answer 27

• product and labour