IDRL 312 Conflict and
Accommodation / Lesson
Objectives questions and
answers
What are labour and capital? And how do their interests converge
and conflict in the employment relationship? - answer Labour is the
portion of the population that trades their services and skills for
monetary compensation and Capital refers to the Capitalists that
own the enterprise that capitalizes and earns a profit from the the
labour. Their interests converge in the employment relationship in
that they have a symbiotic relationship whereas they need each
other to survive, both providing something that the other needs.
The conflict lies in the fact that they have interests that conflict
with one another. The Labour is interested in maximizing the price it
receives for the work, i.e. Wages, while the Capitalists interest lies
in earning profits off of the labour, and in order to increase those
profits, it requires obtaining the labour for the lowest price possible
with all factors in the market considered. Therefore, there is a
conflict of interests between both parties that need to be addressed
through Industrial Relations. In order for both parties to achieve
what they both need and balance achieved, there needs to be
accommodation by both sides.
How is employment a social, as well as an economic, relationship? -
answer ...employment is not only an economic relationship but also
a social one. Specifically, by accepting employment, workers are
accepting managerial authority and agreeing to comply with
managerial rules and direction
What is a labour market and how does it work? - answer The labour
market is a market in which workers look for paying work,
employers find workers willing to work, and wage rates are
determined. The way that a labour market works is all parties
involved converge on one marketplace and negotiate wages based
,on factors such as supply and demand (on both sides), skills
presented, talent, attraction, and need. The labour market is not an
actual market but more of a concept. The labour market is
influenced by such factors as region, demand for labour, short-term
supply, occupations and industries. In Canada there are many labour
markets that are distinctly divided and overlap. The most obvious
types are geographical and occupational. Only a portion of the
potential labour force actually participates in the labour market.
What is the labour process? And how does it arise out of the
challenges relating to the effective utilization of labour? - answer
The Labour Process is the conversion of potential into actual work.
The Labour process arises out of the challenges of the effective
utilization of labour in that the employer must first define the
nature of the job. Secondly, the employer must make sure the
employee is a good match for the position. Thirdly, the employer
must go about regulating the performance of the employee on the
job and manage this performance to its maximum effect. Basically
it's the establishment of the need, fulfilling the need, and ensuring
and maintaining the result. It arises out of the challenges relating to
the effective utilization of labour in that the labour costs money, so
it must be used effectively. Selecting the right candidate that can
perform the work is the first step. Taking the skills that person
possesses and then measuring the utilization in the workforce
through Key Performance Indicators.
What sorts of challenges and tasks face employers when trying to
turn the capacity to work into actual work? - answer Employers
face three main tasks when utilizing employees' capacity to work:
- defining the nature of the job
- matching the employee to the job
- regulating the performance and behaviour of the employee on the
job
These tasks suggest that purchasing labour is a bit more complex
than just bargaining about the wage rate. There is a second bargain
struck (most often implicitly) about the exercise of the capacity to
work: the wage-effort bargain. The wage-effort bargain relates to
, how hard and productively the employees are going to work, given
the terms and conditions of their employment contract. This is a far
more intangible and problematic bargain, one that preoccupies
managers and employees on a daily basis.
How have employers changed the organization of work over time,
and why? - answer Over time employers in an effort to increase
profitability have changed the way that work is organized. The first
changes occurred during the industrial revolution and involved
shifting the control of the work from the worker to the employer.
This concept continued throughout history and became more and
more widespread and broken down. Workers no longer needed to
possess the skills to do the entire job, but rather smaller portions of
the job. This has resulted in workers having less power to negotiate
their wages based on skills and the employer having complete
control of the work. The worker control over the work was slowly
broken down over time. The Putting-out System was one of the last
places that workers actually had some control over the work by
being subcontracted to do the entire job. The Putting-out System
was then followed by the Factory System, Taylorism and Fordism; all
of which left the worker with very little control over the means of
production. In the Factory System machines were introduced and
work was broken down into parts and labour and tasks were
divided. Taylorism further broke work down and applied science to
the process. Ford with his introduction of the assembly line broke
work down into very minute tasks. Workers no longer were skilled
outside of being able to perform a single task. The result was
increased profitability and the control of the work resting entirely
with the organization.
How have these changes affected workers? And how have the
workers responded? - answer The primary focus of Taylorism is to
control the worker by controlling the decisions that are made
throughout the course of work. Taylorism benefits the capitalist as
they are provided with yet another way to control the worker and
increase production substantially without increasing wages
comparably. These changes have affected workers by degrading the
skills needed for the type of work where typically skilled labour ha
been provided. Workers have become de-skilled and therefore have
reduced value. workers have responded by Taylorism sees the
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