This module will help you to

understand -

Essential conditions for sound Industrial

Relations

Significance of Industrial Relations

Psychological Approach

Sociological Approach

Human Relations Approach

Gandhian Approach

Human Resource Management Approach

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The Unitary Approach

The Pluralist Approach

The Marxist/RadicalApproach

Weber’s Social Action Approach

Socio-Ethical Approach

The Oxford Approach

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The problems posed in the field of industrial relations cannot be solved within the limits of a single discipline, and hence it is bound to be inter-disciplinary in approach.

Any problem in industrial relations has to be approached on a multi-disciplinary basis, drawing from the contributions of a number of disciplines.

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Problem of industrial relations lie in the perception and attitude of the participants.

Study by Mason Haire on the behaviour of two groups, namely, “Union leaders” and “Executives”.

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Results of Mason Study:

a) The general impression about a person is radically different when he is seen as a representative of management from that of a person as a representative of labour.

b) The management and labour see each other as less dependable.

c) The management and labour see each other as inadequate in thinking regarding emotional characteristics and inter-personal relations.

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• This approach includes various sociological factors like value system, customes, norms, symbols, attitude and perception of both labour and management.

• As industrialization gets momentum, a set of new industrial-cum-social patterns emerges. These influences shape the industrial relations.

• Now a days industrial relations are determined by power.

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The term, human resource management (HRM) has become increasingly used in the literature of personnel/industrial relations.

The term has been applied to a diverse range of management strategies and, indeed, sometimes used simply as a more modern, and therefore more acceptable, term for personnel or industrial relations management.

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Some of the components of HRM are

(i) HR organisation

(ii) HR planning

(iii) HR systems

(iv) HR development

(v) HR relationships

(vi) HR utilisation

(vii) HR accounting

(viii) HR audit.

.

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Emphasises individualism & the direct relationship btn management & its employees.

Quite clearly, therefore, it questions the collective regulation basis of traditional industrial relations.

• Each offers a particular perception of workplace relations & will therefore interpret such events as workplace conflict, the role of unions & job regulation vary differently.

• The radical perspective is sometimes referred to as the "conflict model", although this is somewhat ambiguous, as pluralism also tends to see conflict as inherent in workplaces.

• Radical theories are strongly identified with Marxist theories, although they are not limited to these.

The organization is perceived as an integrated & harmonious whole with the ideal of "one happy family", where management & other members of the staff all share a common purpose, emphasizing mutual cooperation.

Has a paternalistic approach where it demands loyalty of all employees, being predominantly managerial in its emphasis and application

Trade unions are deemed as unnecessary since the loyalty between employees & organizations are considered mutually exclusive, where there can't be two sides of industry. Conflict is perceived as disruptive and the pathological result of agitators, interpersonal friction and communication breakdown.

The organization is perceived as being made up of powerful & divergent sub-groups, each with its own legitimate loyalties and with their own set of objectives and leaders.

In particular, the two predominant sub-groups in the pluralistic perspective are the management and trade unions.

The role of management would lean less towards enforcing & controlling and more toward persuasion and co-ordination.

Trade unions are deemed as legitimate representatives of employees, conflict is dealt by collective bargaining and is viewed not necessarily as a bad thing and, if managed, could in fact be channeled towards evolution and positive change

Here IR looks at the nature of the capitalist society, where there is a fundamental division of interest between capital & labour, and sees workplace relations against this history.

Inequalities of power & economic wealth as having their roots in the nature of the capitalist economic system.

Conflict is seen as inevitable

Trade unions are a natural response of workers to their exploitation by capital.

Whilst there may be periods of acquiescence, the Marxist view would be that institutions of joint regulation would enhance rather than limit management's position as they presume the continuation of capitalism rather than challenge it.

Pluralistic

Co-operation

Conflict

Authoritarian

Paternalism

Unitary

Humanresource

management

Systems

Evolution

Revolution

Marxist

Control ofthe labourprocess

Input Conversion Output

Conflict(differences)

Institutionsand

processes

Regulation(rules)

Approaches to industrial relations

Social action

Wider approaches to industrial relations

Labour market Comparative

Forms of Industrial Disputes

Forms of Industrial Disputes

Causes of Industrial Disputes

Machinery for Prevention and Settlement of Industrial

Disputes

Voluntary methods Government machinery

Statutory measures