Background information
An employee union refers to a movement formed by employees of an organization to allow them transact with the management as a block. They are formed to sort out work issues, but are not a defining characteristic of companies. In case of their absence, they can be ratified by employees who need it. This happens in a controlled environment subject to checks and balances. Dissatisfied employees may also vote to terminate their unions after following due process.
Manager’s Role in Union Activities
A health care manager uses the union as a go between, because all decisions have to be discussed with its leadership before they are implemented. They are costly to maintain and, maintenance funds are sourced from both employees and managers. While employees will pay union fees, management always caters for expenses incurred during negotiations and any increments in salaries or benefits that may be ratified during these conventions.
The main difference between the unions and management is that unions protect the employees, while the management should protect company interest. The manager’s role is to ensure that the hospital continues to be viable even as they enforce all decisions they agreed on with the unions. It is pertinent to note that staff employeeship in unions, especially in the medical fraternity is steadily on the rise. Most employees join unions, not because of imminent financial gains, but due to the bargaining power hey will get out of it. Nurses, for example, continue to form unions despite the many they currently have in existence. Records show that these nurses were not interested in monetary value from the move but for bargaining power. Their priority is to ensure the safety and comfort of their patients.
Employee’s Roles in Union Activities
Employees constitute the most significant segment of trade unions, because they are the reason these unions were formed initially. Without their existence, the unions will serve no purpose hence they will be unnecessary. Employees are there to be represented.
One of the main duties to be performed by employees involves election of union official’s and member representatives. The officials will carry out all negotiations and any other transactions on behalf of the union. Member representatives will form special committees, which will be consulted in case there is a deadlock. The representatives may also be involved during conflict resolution, either between the organization and employees, or officials and the union employees.
Employees are also required to vote in crucial decisions. The officials and representatives cannot make all important decisions concerning the union. This is achieved during the yearly general meetings organized by the union. Here, all employees convene in a central location and are informed about the pertinent issues that required their attention, after which they vote, either by acclamation or secret ballot. In case of an employee strike, for example, notification for the same is issued only after employees have discussed and agreed to proceed if their demands are not met. It follows that employees will be summoned for a meeting, where they will be required to raise their grievances. These will be discussed thoroughly and reviewed later by the representatives, who in turn forward them to them to the management. After the management has issued a response to them, they call another meeting to relay the same to employees. Employees will then decide if the terms are good enough or not.
They are tasked with the important role of proposing targets and goals then setting reasonable time frames by which they should be attained. This way, the management is informed of their abilities, which gives them an opportunity to establish employee friendly methodologies of achieving their targets.
References
Chandler, P. (2003). An A-Z of employment law: a complete reference source for managers. 4. London: Kogan Page Publishers.
Holley, W. H., Jennings, K. M., Wolters, R. S. (2008). Labor relations process. 9, Illustrated. Ohio:South-Western Cengage Learning.
Sverke, M. (2004). Job insecurity and union employeeship: European unions in the wake of flexible production. Illustrated. Brussels: Peter Lang.