consequences of work force reduction: some employer and union evidence

Consequences of Work Force Reduction: Some Employer and Union Evidence*

TERRY H. WAGAR

Saint Mary's University, Halifax, NS B3H 3C3 Canada

Despite the popularity of work force cutbacks in the 1990s, large-scale empirical studies at the bargaining unit level are rare. I explore some of the consequences of permanent work force reduction using data from both employer and union respondents. About 56 percent of employer pdrticipants and 57 percent of local union officials reported a permanent reduction of bargaining unit employees. In comparing bargaining units that experienced a permanent reduction of union members, results obtained from both employers and union officials indicated a significant negative impact on overall employee satisfaction and labor climate. Additional analyses with union respondents' revealed that the reduction of bargaining unit employees was also associated with a higher rate of grievances and absenteeism and poorer relations between union members and their supervisors.

I. Introduction

The decade of the 1990s was characterized by an almost obsessive preoccupation with downsizing as organizations in North America and around the world cut back staff at unprecedented rates. The decade also witnessed the publication of a large number of articles, particularly at the individual level of analysis, demonstrating the negative effects on the "survivors" of organizational downsizing (Burke, 1998). The literature indicated that a vast number of downsizing programs were hastily formulated, not linked with the strategic plans of the organization, and largely unsuccessful in meet- ing employer objectives (Cascio, 1993; Cameron, 1994).

Despite the preoccupation with downsizing, there is limited research at the bargaining-unit level of analysis. Moreover, little of the research has involved local union officials. I use data from both employer and union respondents to explore the relationship between permanent work force reduction and a number of workplace outcomes.

II. Background

The psychological contract between employers and employers has changed (Rousseau, 1996), and many workers have little expectation of lifetime employment (Cappelli, 1995). The growth of new employment relationships among unionized employers is coinciding with an appeal for greater labor-management cooperation. However, it can

JOURNAL OF LABOR RESEARCH

Volume XXII, Number 4 Fall 2001

852 JOURNAL OF LABOR RESEARCH

be strongly argued that downsizing of the unionized work force is totally incompati- ble with the goal of fostering labor-management cooperation. This section of the paper examines a number of issues including the definition of downsizing, the consequences of downsizing, and downsizing and financial performance.

A Definition of Downsizing. One of the problems in the literature is that both schol- ars and practitioners use the word "downsizing" without defining it. For example, is cutting an organization's assets downsizing? Is rightsizing a synonym for downsizing? Does downsizing necessarily mean a reduction in employment? Littler et al. (1994) have noted the problems in studying downsizing when we are unclear about its con- tent. Cameron's (1994, p. 192) definition is that "downsizing is a set of activities under- taken on the part of management and designed to improve organizational efficiency, productivity, and/or competitiveness. It represents a strategy implemented by managers that affects the size of the firm's work force, the costs, and the work processes."

Cameron's three types of downsizing strategies are work force reduction, work redesign, and systematic change. Work force reduction, which is my focus, is usually a short-term strategy aimed at cutting the number of employees through such programs as attrition, early retirement, voluntary severance packages, layoffs, or terminations. Not surprisingly, most organizations have focused their downsizing efforts on work force reduction rather than the more complex and longer-term strategies of job redesign and systematic change (Cameron, 1994).

Consequences of Downsizing. Although organizations engaging in downsizing often believe that cutting employment will lead to a host of benefits (such as reduced bureaucracy, lower overhead costs, better decision making, increased productivity, and greater innovation), much of the empirical evidence suggests that the anticipated benefits often fail to emerge. For example, some of the early research examining organizational decline found that declining firms experienced a number of dysfunctional consequences such as increased conflict and negative reactions by employees (Cameron et al., 1987).

Tomasko (1990) described a number of negative attributes common to organizations engaging in downsizing including the high human costs, psychological trauma experienced both by the victims of work force reduction and the survivors, lower employee commitment to the organization, reduced performance by employees, a focus by management on the downsizing process at the expense of customer and client needs, loss of valued workers, greater concern over protecting one's turf, and reduced morale. These findings are supported by Cascio (1993, p. 100) who noted that "study after study shows that following a downsizing, surviving employees become narrow-minded, self- absorbed, and risk averse. Morale sinks, productivity drops, and survivors distrust management." While effective human resource management and a focus on work redesign and systematic change may mitigate the negative consequences associated with downsizing (Cameron, 1994), many downsizing efforts fail to meet organizational objectives.

Employees remaining after a downsizing often report increased stress, burnout, reduced self-confidence and self-esteem, lower job satisfaction, and lower commitment

TERRY H. WAGAR 853

to the organization (Mone, 1994; Ryan and Macky, 1998). Moreover, employers express concern over the fact that a downsizing does not always result in the departure of poor performers; rather, quality employees may opt to leave because they have job prospects elsewhere and do not want to work in an environment poisoned by downsizing. Neg- ative employee attitudes and behavior, in combination with the loss of valuable human resources, may be devastating to team-based programs and ultimately result in lower productivity (Mone, 1994).

Survivor reactions to work force reduction may be affected by several factors including how the downsizing was communicated (Wanberg et al., 1999), the job inse- curity of survivors and the perceived support from the organization (Armstrong-Stassen, 1998), and advanced planning and coordination of outplacement services (Havlovic et al., 1998).

Downsizing and Financial Performance. Does downsizing enhance the organization's financial performance? Research indicates that a layoff announcement, on average, leads to a drop in the organization's stock price, especially if the announcement was related to financial concerns or a large-scale and permanent cutback of employees (Worrell et al., 1991). A number of other studies have also observed a negative reac- tion by investors to layoff announcements (Lee, 1997). Cascio et al. (1997) found that the downsizing strategy used by the organization may be associated with the firm's return on assets and common stock. Firms following a "pure employment" downsizing (that is, a cutback of at least 5 percent of the work force combined with little change in plant and equipment expenditure) did not outperform other firms in their industry.

III. Data and Methods

My data were obtained from both employer and union respondents. The employer data set was constructed by combining results from two surveys of Canadian workplaces. The first survey was a regional sample of establishments in Atlantic Canada while the second survey was for employers elsewhere in Canada. All major sectors of the economy, including not-for-profit employers, were surveyed using mailing lists provided by Dun and Bradstreet. The weighted response rate for the two employer surveys was just over 42 percent.

Each survey was sent to an establishment using the contact name provided by Dun and Bradstreet (usually the chief executive officer or senior human resource management executive). The contact person was asked to complete the survey or pass it on to an appropriate person. Since both union and nonunion employers completed the survey, it was necessary to exclude the nonunion participants from the survey. Eliminat- ing nonunion employers and respondents with missing data on the variables resulted in a useable sample of 918 establishments,

The union data set was also obtained by merging the results of a mail survey of local unions in Nova Scotia and a similar survey of union locals across the rest of Canada. Surveys were sent to the local union president (or, where appropriate, the busi- ness agent), and the participant was asked a series of questions about the bargaining


unit s/he represents. After eliminating respondents with missing data, 1,478 useable responses were obtained. The overall weighted response rate was 34 percent.

Dependent Variables. Since this study focuses on work force reduction of bargaining unit members and includes respondents from the nonprofit sector, the use of objective measures of performance was not possible. As a result, measurement of the dependent variables was based on participant perceptions. Respondents were not asked to attribute the degree to which the variables were affected by the primary independent variable (permanent work force reduction).

Although using perceptual measures as outcome variables is open to criticism, such measures are frequently the only available measures at the establishment or bargaining unit level. Moreover, such measures have been employed in several other studies. As noted by Cooke (1992), the use of perceptual measures permits comparison across workplaces in a variety of industries and informed managers and union officials should be able to provide reasonable approximations of performance within a restricted response range.l Recent studies using perceptual measures of performance include Cameron (1994), McNabb and Whitfield (1998), and Hoque (1999).

Both employer and union respondents were asked to provide information on WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE and OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION. WORK- PLACE PERFORMANCE was determined by averaging responses to three items (productivity, product or service quality, and customer/client satisfaction), and OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION was calculated by averaging responses to four items (employee morale, employee commitment to the organization, employee satisfaction, and employee quality of work life). Each of the variables was initially measured on a six-point scale (1 = very low; 6 = very high). Respondents were also asked to provide the extent of change (over the past five years) for each of the variables (1 = substantial decrease; 6 = substantial increase). Each of the dependent variables was reduced to six categories of approximately equal size and coded 0 through 5.

LABOR-MANAGEMENT CLIMATE was measured using six items from Dast- malchian et al. (1991). Three of the items dealt with "fairness" issues and three addressed "union-management consultation. ''2 The items were measured using a six- point scale (1 = strongly disagree; 6 = strongly agree). The Cronbach's coefficient alpha was .88 for both the employer and union samples. Employer respondents with more than one bargaining unit were asked to identify the union representing the largest number of employees and respond to the LABOR-MANAGEMENT CLIMATE and other labor relations questions with reference to that union.

Additional Union Dependent Variables. A further set of dependent variable measures was obtained from union respondents only. These variables included the RATE OF GRIEVANCES, RATE OF ABSENTEEISM, EMPLOYEE TURNOVER, RESIS- TANCE TO CHANGE, LEVEL OF CONFLICT, and SUPERVISOR-UNION MEMBER RELATIONS. These variables were also measured on a six-point scale (0 = very low; 5 --- very high). Similarly, union officials were asked to indicate the extent of change over the past five years for each of these variables (using the anchors 0 = substantial decrease; 5 = substantial increase).

TERRY H. WAGAR 855

Primary Independent Variable. My objective is to examine whether permanent work force reduction of bargaining unit members was related to a number of outcome variables. Employer and union respondents were asked whether the number of bargaining unit employees was permanently reduced over a two-year period (1 = permanent reduction; 0 = no reduction). 3 As noted previously, employers with more than one bargaining unit were asked to respond with reference to the unit that represents the largest number of employees.

Control Variables. A number of control variables were also entered into the multivariate estimations. Demand for the establishment's primary product or service, which was measured using a six-point scale (1 =substantial increase; 6=substantial decline in demand), was controlled for because of the relationship between declining demand and a number of negative consequences.

Investment in new technology (measured on a six-point scale; 1 = no investment; 6 indicating substantial investment) was also controlled for. Although new technology may enhance organizational performance over the long term, it may also be related with negative people consequences.

Percentage of the work force represented by the bargaining unit was controlled for because evidence from the industrial relations literature suggests that union den- sity may be associated with organizational behavior and employee satisfaction (Gun- derson and Hyatt, 1995).

Finally, there was a need to control for bargaining-unit establishment characteristics such as size, industry sector, and length of the bargaining relationship because such characteristics may be associated with measures of organizational effectiveness (Ng and Maki, 1994). Size of the bargaining unit was measured using the natural logarithm of the number of bargaining unit members while industry sector of the workplace included service, health care, education, government, and manufacturing (the omitted category). Length of the bargaining relationship was calculated as the natural logarithm of the number of the years the union had represented employees at the workplace.

IV. Research Findings

Characteristics of the Respondents. Descriptive statistics for the 918 employer respondents and 1,478 union participants are provided in Table 1. Note that the samples are not matched. Table 1 indicates some modest variation occurring between employer and union respondents. In particular, employer respondents reported a higher number of bargaining unit employee s, a greater investment in new technology, and a larger percentage of the work force being represented by the specific bargaining unit under study. In addition, employers were more likely to operate in the private sector (manufacturing and service industry groups) and have a slightly less mature bargaining relationship, When considering the presence of a permanent work force reduction of bargaining unit employees, there was little difference between the employer and union groups - - 56 percent of the employer respondents and 57 percent of the local union officials reported a permanent reduction of bargaining unit employees within a two-year period.


Table 1

Characteristics of the Employer and Union Samples

Characteristic Employer Sample Union Sample

Permanent Work Force Reduction 0.56 0.57

Market Demand 3.21 2.94

Investment in Technology 4.05 3.65

Percentage Union 74.40 63.19

Industry Sector (Percent):

Manufacturing 0.37 0426

Service 0.28 0.22

Health Care 0.14 0.22

Education 0. I 0 0.13

Government 0. I 1 0.17

No. of Bargaining Unit Employees (natural log) 5.48 4.98

Years Union Represented Members (natural log) 2.91 3.12

Effect of Work Force Reduction: Employer Sample. The ordered probit estimations for the combined employer sample are reported in Table 2. 4 Note that while each of the five models was analyzed with all of the control variables entered into the estimation, Table 2 only contains the results that relate to the primary independent variable (permanent work force reduction of bargaining unit members). Moreover, for each of the ordered probit models, the overall chi-square test was highly significant (p <.001).

Although the coefficients on both the WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE and CHANGE IN WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE variables were negative, only the WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE variable was significant (p <. 10 using a two-tailed test). However, the coefficients on the OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION and CHANGE IN OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION outcome measures were both negative and highly significant (p <.01), indicating that permanent reduction of bargaining unit employees had a negative effect on employees. Similarly, permanent work force reduction of bargaining unit employees was negatively related (p <.01) with LABOR-MANAGEMENT CLIMATE - - as anticipated, the cutback of bargaining unit members was associated with a lower score on the LABOR-MANAGEMENT CLIMATE m e a s H r e .

Effect of Work Force Reduction: Union Sample. Tables 2 and 3 contain the multivariate estimation results for the union sample. Again, while the tables only contain the results that relate to the permanent reduction of bargaining unit employees, each of the models was estimated with the full set of control variables.

TERRY H. WAGAR 857

The five dependent variables in Table 2 address the same measures as those used with the employer sample. For all five of the variables (WORKPLACE PER- FORMANCE, OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION, CHANGE IN WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE, CHANGE IN OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION, and LABOR- MANAGEMENT CLIMATE), the coefficient pertaining to the reduction of bargaining unit members was both negative and highly significant (p <.01 ). In other words, the union results indicate that employment cutbacks were associated with poorer performance, lower overall employee satisfaction, and a less favorable labor-management climate.

When collecting data from the local union officials, I asked about a number of other outcomes as reported in Table 3, Note that for all of the additional outcome measures except SUPERVISOR-MEMBER RELATIONS and CHANGE IN SUPERVISOR- MEMBER RELATIONS, a positive coefficient on a particular variable is regarded as a less desirable outcome.

With reference to the RATE OF GRIEVANCES, RATE OF ABSENTEEISM, and LEVEL OF CONFLICT, the coefficients on the permanent reduction of bargaining unit members variable were both positive and highly significant (p <.01). In other words, reducing the number of bargaining unit employees was associated with a higher griev- ance rate and absenteeism rate and a greater level of conflict between the parties. This pattern of results was also found when examining the respective change variables - -

Table 2

Multivariate Results for Employer and for Union Sample (standard errors in parentheses)

Employer Sample Union Sample

Coefficient for Coefficient for Dependent Work Force Work Force Variable Reduction N Reduction N

WORKPLACE PERFORMANCE ~0.129 * 909 (0.073)

OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION -0.215 *** 891 (0.075)

CHANGE IN WORKPMCE PERFORMANCE ~).020 895 (0.073)

CHANGE IN OVERALL EMPLOYEE ~).313 *** 891 SATISFACTION (0.074)

LABOR-MANAGEMENTCLIMATE M3.188 *** 918 (0.059)

~).383 *** (0.063)

M3.403 *** (0.059)

4).380 *** (0.062)

~0.497 *** (0.059)

4).629 *** (0.062)

1,362

1,443

1,309

1,409

1,462

Note: ***(**,*) indicate significance at the 1 (5,10) percent levels using two-tailed tests.


Table 3

A d d i t i o n a l R es u l t s f o r Union S a m p l e

Coefficient for Dependent Work Force Variable Reduction

Standard Error N

RATE OF GRIEVANCES 0.422***

RATE OF ABSENTEEISM 0.341 ***

EMPLOYEE TURNOVER M).006

RESISTANCE TO CHANGE 0.143**

LEVEL OF CONFLICT 0.297***

SUPERVISOR-MEMBER RELATIONS -0.371 ***

CHANGE IN RATE OF GRIEVANCES 0.402***

CHANGE IN RATE OF ABSENTEEISM 0.294***

CHANGE IN EMPLOYEE TURNOVER 0.036

CHANGE IN RESISTANCE TO CHANGE 0.067

CHANGE IN LEVEL OF CONFLICT 0.300***

CHANGE IN SUPERVISOR-MEMBER -0.420*** RELATIONS

0.057

0.057

0.061

0.059

0.058

0.058

0.057

0.058

0.060

0.059

0.059

0.058

1,477

1,468

1,446

1,478

1,471

1,477

1,463

1,453

1,421

1,464

1,454

1,465

Note: ***(**,*) indicate significance at the I (5,10) percent levels using two-tailed tests.

an increase in the R A T E O F G R I E V A N C E S , R A T E O F A B S E N T E E I S M , and L E V E L

O F C O N F L I C T were related to permanent work force reduction.

The results relating to E M P L O Y E E T U R N O V E R and R E S I S T A N C E T O C H A N G E

were less consistent. Although there was some evidence of a relationship between R E S I S T A N C E TO C H A N G E and bargaining unit cutbacks (p <.05), the coefficient on E M P L O Y E E T U R N O V E R was not statistically significant. Moreover, C H A N G E I N

E M P L O Y E E T U R N O V E R and C H A N G E I N R E S I S T A N C E TO C H A N G E were not significant. On the other hand, permanent reduction of bargaining unit employees was associated with poorer supervisor-member relations and a decrease in the quality of the relationship between supervisors and bargaining unit members (p <.01).5

Unions a n d the A p p r o a c h to D o w n s i z i n g . Although not part of the original study, I did some follow-up research with a subset of the union respondents. 6 Union officials that had experienced a permanent work force reduction were asked a set of nine questions addressing aspects of the approach to downsizing (measured using a six-point scale; 1 = strongly disagree and 6 = strongly agree with the question). The nine questions focussed on the assistance to union members who were terminated, the extent to which management explained their rationale for reducing employment, bargaining unit

TERRY H. WAGAR 859

input into the decision-making process, and perceptions of the fairness of the process. The Cronbach's coefficient alpha for the scale was 0.76.

On average, union officials did not perceive the employer's approach to downsizing as favorable (overall mean of 2.67 on the six-point scale; standard deviation of 0.99). Further breakdown of the measure indicated that 79.5 percent of the respondents had an overall score of less than 3.5 (the scale midpoint). I also examined whether the approach to downsizing was associated with the full set of union dependent variables outlined previously (with a full set of control variables also included in the estimations). For the most part, the approach to downsizing was not significantly related to the dependent variables. However, there was evidence that a higher score on the approach to downsizing scale was positively associated with OVERALL EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION (p <.10), SUPERVISOR-MEMBER RELATIONS (p <.01), and LABOR- MANAGEMENT CLIMATE (t9 <.01) as well as a decrease in the number of grievances (p <.10) and lower levels of conflict (p <.05).

V. Conclusion

Using data from both employers and union officials, I examined the relationship between the permanent work force reduction of bargaining unit employees and a number of workplace outcomes. While there is an emerging literature on downsizing at the organizational level, very little research has been conducted at the bargaining-unit level of analysis. In addition, studies involving work force reduction using data from a large sample of union officials are also quite rare.

My results support the position that reduction in bargaining unit employment is associated with a number of negative outcomes. The findings are less conclusive when considering employer perceptions of performance - - the results obtained from union officials indicated a significant negative effect on workplace performance while the employer results were weaker. However, evidence from both employers and union officials revealed a strong, negative relationship between overall employee satisfaction and work force reduction. This is consistent with past research indicating that work force cutbacks often are associated with negative "people" consequences (Cascio, 1993; Cameron, 1994).

Results obtained only from the union sample indicate that work force reduction may be related to increased grievances, higher absenteeism, workplace conflict, and poorer supervisor-union member relations. While reducing the number of employees has been a popular strategy among organizational decision makers, this study points to a number of potential negative consequences.

In light of the growing interest in cooperative labor-management relationships and evidence that labor-management climate may be related to workplace performance (Wagar, 1997), the finding that a lower labor-management climate score was associated with bargaining unit cutbacks is important. Improving labor-management climate requires trust and commitment on the part of the both employers and unions - - not surprisingly, reducing bargaining unit employees is inconsistent with the ingredients nec-


essary to build a positive labor-management climate. As DeMeuse et al. (1994) note,

high involvement programs demand employee attachment and commitment while the

shedding of workers is associated with organizational detachment.

There is some evidence that how the employer manages downsizing may mod-

erate some of the negative outcomes associated with downsizing. Cameron (1994) con-

cluded that factors such as increased communicat ion, employee participation, and a

systematic analysis of tasks may mitigate at least some of the negative consequences

associated with employee cutbacks, and there is substantial evidence that employee

perceptions of fairness and equity are important in explaining how survivors adjust to

organizational downsizing (Armstrong-Stassen, 1998; Wanberg et al., 1999). Follow-

up research with a subset of the union officials indicated that the approach to down-

sizing was significantly related with such variables as labor-management climate and supervisor-union member relations.

It is important to acknowledge some limitations of my research. Although obtain-

ing data from both employer and union respondents is desirable, the individual sam-

ples are cross-sectional and the outcome measures are based on perceptions (it is not

common practice for employers or unions to have objective performance data at the bargaining unit level of analysis).

With reference to future research, there is a need for considerably more work with

union participants. Are the findings generalizable outside of Canada? What is the impact

of such strategies such as work redesign and systematic change on performance? To

what extent are unions willing to participate in such strategies? Are the negative con-

sequences of work force reduction mitigated by such considerations as open commu-

nication, union participation in the decision-making process, and strategic planning

of the process? The answers to such questions will be of interest to policy makers, employers, and unions.

NOTES

*This study was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

IA number of the relevant issues relating to the measurement of performance that have been debated in the strategic management literature are provided in Naman and Slevin (1993).

2The three fairness items were: grievances are normally settled promptly, negotiations take place in an atmos- phere of good faith, and employees view the conditions of employment as fair. The three union-management consultation items were: union and management make sincere efforts to solve common problems, management seeks input from the union before initiating changes, and the parties exchange information freely.

3Respondents reporting a reduction of the bargaining unit were also asked to indicate the percentage of the work force reduced.

4Note that Ordinary Least Squares regression was used for the estimations relating to LABOR-MANAGE- MENT CLIMATE.

5I also ran the estimations using percentage of the work force reduced as the primary independent variable. The pattern of results generally echoes those reported above.

TERRY H. WAGAR 861

6Only a subset of the union officials were involved in the follow-up survey that contained questions on the approach to work force reduction. A total of 303 local union officials reported a permanent reduction of the work force and provided complete information on the items addressing the work force reduction approach.

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consequences of work force reduction: some employer and union evidence

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