Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of collective bargaining to the educational institution, on the one hand, and to the general public and students.
A discussion on the operation and management of higher education is substantially incomplete if it fails to touch on the importance and role of collective bargaining. A lot of research attention has been given to the aspect of unionization of faculty staff and management. Collective bargaining has gained ground in advocating for employees rights. It has become the most successful and common tool used by employees of all wage levels who attempt to advocate for better or increased pay, status and environment.
Collective bargaining bears its roots to the trade union movement of the nineteenth century. It hails from a series of informal methods such as strikes and go slows that characterized the trade union movement in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. The industrial revolution however increased the level of activity in the labor sector and the informal methods were no longer economical and practical. This therefore paved the way for the advent of collective bargain arrangements. In the first half of the twentieth century it was popular among the laborers up until the second half when professionals and white-collar workers began to unionize. It slowly crept into institutions of learning including those of higher education. Due to the nature of the sizes and number of higher educational institutions at the time, collective bargain took longer to be incorporated into the professional field than it did in labor organizations.
Collective bargain seeks to address two main rights, the right to a good salary and access to necessary benefits. these two roles are embedded in the professional requirements and contract of employment and form the basis and justification for the collective bargain arrangement. Clearly there is a tendency to adopt a defensive approach between parties to the employment contract once the unionized agreement has been signed. This has often led to impaired communication between the faculty members and the administration. In effect there are certain pertinent advantages and disadvantages that accrue to the administration on one hand and the students and the general public on the other.
To the administration collective bargaining leads to a high level of performance since the worker is confident in an equal standing in matters of problem solving and addressing issues. The collective bargain defines the confines of the employment relationship. It therefore creates negotiated bilateral terms that are agreed on by both parties.
The bilateral agreement spells out the managerial rights and obligations. This therefore provides a clear flow of command to the advantage of the management. Some collective bargain agreements provide for budgetary predications of the total amount that the management will pay over a certain period. This acts to benefit the management on making strategies and planning of resources. It facilitates making of financial decision in the organization. A collective bargain agreement also provides for the compensational due for the termination of employment prematurely, this allows the management to make replacement decisions for instance to take advantage of fresh talent and better skill. this also guarantees the employee security in their employment by placing a mode of resolution for forced termination. The collective bargain also guarantees the employee benefits after such termination (Duderstadt 2000, p 58-90).
The public and student fraternity benefits substantially form collective bargains. The use of informal methods such as strikes and go slows in the mid and late 1990s caused by the economic slowdown after the world wars affected learning heavily with students having to go without classes for days. Collective bargains therefore ensure that the students and public are protected form economic conditions and slow down.
The public from the employee base for the higher education institutions. In effect the existence of a fair and consistent standard in the terms and conditions of employment acts to motivate hard work and standardized service delivery. Employees also receive unionized representation as part of the collective bargain agreement. This therefore ensures that the minority interests receive adequate representation and voice. Collective bargains also act as adequate mechanisms of dealing with workforce development concerns. They place an obligation on the employer to offer the relevant training to embrace technological revolution. This therefore ensures that the employees remain relevant to the job.
Disadvantages
To the management the collective bargain arrangements act as a threat to the authority and freedom of administration. The limited exercise of power often restricts the management’s ability to fully exercise their authority over and above the negotiated rules of work. Similarly it develops the potential for polarization between he employees and managers the bargained agreement generates a since of defensiveness that often leads to polarization of the management.
The collective bargain also limits the potentials and capacities of the employees. This is the case if the collective bargain is a compromise between the most active and least active employees. This causes a disproportionate effect on the labor force quality and aggressiveness. The most active members are forced to compromise for relative aggressiveness since the reward is limited to relative hard work. Those who are least active on the other hand benefit from the higher than worked for bargain and therefore operate at the expense of the administration.
The collective bargain agreement increases the level of bureaucracy that translates to time wastage in decision making. Any adjustment even if positive requires negotiation and re evaluation through lengthy procedures. It also increases the interference from external bodies and individuals in higher education management and decision making affairs. The involvement of arbitrator’s labor representatives and relations boards increases the level of exposure of the management to the outside world.
The rigid nature of negotiated agreements serves to inhibit innovation and change. The management cannot deal with the employees directly and therefore limits the communication infrastructure. This translates for higher management costs.
To the public and students the collective agreements increase the level of dependence on the private sector for quality education and service since the competition in the private sector causes a competition for service and content and an effectual increase in the cost of quality facilities and services in effect it compromises those who seek to gain technological competence by limiting their access to experience and practical lessons.
Inadvertently it is clear that management and the public have more gains than loses in the use and application of collective bargains. I therefore suggest that collective bargains are ether better alternative to normal contracts of employment. The guaranteed sense of stability and consistency acts to the benefit of the administration and the public as well as the students.
References
Corry, J. (2000). Negotiations: The Art of Mutual Gains Bargaining.Aurora: Canada Law Book.
Duderstadt, J. (2000). A University for the 21st Century. Ann Arbor MI: University of Michigan Press.
Fogg, P. (2002). “Bill in Washington State Would Allow Professors to Bargain Collectively, If….” Chronicle of Higher Education, p. A12.