Chapter Eight(8)

Maintenance and Integration

 Employee Discipline
 What is discipline?
 Disciple means orderliness, obedience and maintenance of
proper subordination among employees and a check or
restraint on the liberty of individual.
 It is also a force which prompts an individual or group to
observe certain rules, regulation and procedures that are
considered to be necessary for the attainment of an
objective.
 Objectives of Discipline
 To gain willing acceptance of the rules, regulations,
standards and procedures of the organizations from
employees.
 To develop the feeling of cooperation among employees.
 To maintain good Industrial relations in the organization
 To promote morale and efficiency among the employees.
 To develop a sense of tolerance and respect for human
dignity.
 Types of Discipline
 Discipline is broadly of two types- Positive and Negative
 Positive Discipline(self-discipline):
 It implies a sense of duty to observe the rules and regulations.
 It involves creation of atmosphere in the organization whereby employees
willingly conform to the established rules and regulations.
 Positive discipline can be achieved through rewards and effective leadership.
 Negative discipline (corrective or punitive discipline):
 Under it penalties or punishment are used to force workers to obey rules and
regulations.
 Negative discipline action involves such techniques as fines, reprimand,
demotion, layoff , transfer etc.,
 Indiscipline
 Indiscipline refers to the absence of discipline.
 Indiscipline, therefore, means non-conformity to formal and
informal rules and regulations.
 We cannot afford indiscipline as it will affect the morale,
involvement and motivation of subornments in the organization.
 Indiscipline often leads to chaos, confusion, and reduces the
efficiency of the organization.
 It often leads to strikes, go-slows, and absenteeism, resulting in loss
of production, profits and wages.
 Factors Leading to Indiscipline
 In brief the causes of Indiscipline are as follows:
 Ineffective leadership.  Lack of timely redresses of employee
 Lack of a well-defined code of grievances.

conduct to guide behavior on both  Lack of promotional opportunities

sides. causing a feeling of stagnation.
 Faulty supervision.  Defective communication system.
 Divide and rule policy of  Victimization and excessive work
management. measures.
 Bias or favoritism in disciplinary  Uninteresting work.
actions-Unfair practices.  Low wages and poor working
conditions.
 Forms of Indiscipline
 Absenteeism
 Insubordination
 violation of plant rules,
 gambling,
 incompetence,
 damage to machine and property,
 strikes,
 dishonestly and other forms of disloyalty teed to industrial
indiscipline
 LABOR RELATIONS

 Industrial relations mean the relationships between employers and

employees in industrial organizations.
 Industrial relations refers to the whole field of relationships among people,
human relationships that exist because of the necessary collaboration of
men and women in the employment process of modern industry (Dale
Yoder)
 Parties to Industrial relations

 The scope of industrial relations is quite wide. The main issues

involved here are:
• Grievance and their redresses
• Worker’s participation in management
• Ethical code and discipline
• Collective bargaining
• Standing orders
• Machinery for the settlement of industrial disputes.
 Objectives of Industrial Relations
 The main objective industrial relations are as follows:
• To develop and maintain harmonious relations between management and labor.
• To safeguard the interests of labor as well as management by securing the highest
level of mutual understanding and good will between all sections in industry.
• To establish and maintain industrial democracy based on the participation of labor in
the management and gains of industry.
• To avoid all forms of industrial conflict so as to ensure industrial peace by providing
better working and living standards to workers.
• To raise productivity in an era of full employment by reducing the tendency of higher
labor turnover and absenteeism.
 Causes of poor Industrial Relations
 Several economic, social, psychological, technological and political factors
are responsible for poor industrial relations:

 Economic Causes:
 Poor wages and poor working conditions
 Unauthorized deductions from wages,
 lack of fringe benefits,
 absence of promotional opportunities,
 dissatisfaction with job evaluation and performance appraisal methods,
 faulty incentive schemes
 Organizational Causes:
 Faulty communication system,
 dilution of supervision and command,
 non-recognition of trade unions,
 unfair practices,
 violation of collective agreements and standing orders and labor laws
 Social Causes:
 Uninteresting nature of work
 Tensions and conflicts in society,
 break up of joint family system,
 growing intolerance

 Psychological Causes:
 Lack of job security
 poor organizational culture,
 non-recognition of merit and performance,
 authoritative administration and poor interpersonal relations
 Suggestions to Improve Industrial Relations

 The fundamental principle or requirements for sound industrial relations are

given below:
 Sound personnel policies:
• Policies and procedures concerning the compensation, transfer, promotion, etc. of
employees should be fair and transparent.

 Constructive attitudes:
• Both management and trade unions should adopt positive attitudes towards each other.

 Collective Bargaining:
• Employers’ organizations as well as trade unions should be able and willing to deal
with mutual problems freely and responsibly.
 Participative Management:

 Employers should associate workers and unions in the formulation and

implementation of personnel policies and practices.

 Responsible Unions:

 Unions should adopt a responsible rather than political approach to industrial

relations.

 A strong, democratic and responsible union alone can ensure that workers

honor the agreement with their employer.

 Employee Welfare:
 Employers should recognize the need for the welfare of workers.
 Grievance procedure:
 A well-established and properly administered system for the
timely and satisfactory redressed of employees’ grievances can be
very helpful in improving industrial relations.
 Collective Bargaining
 Collective bargaining is a process in which the representatives of the
employer and of the employees meet and attempt to negotiate a contract
governing the employer-employee union relationship.
 Collective bargaining refers to a process by which employers on the one
hand and representatives of employees on the other, attempt to arrive at
agreements covering the conditions under which employees will
contribute and be compensated for their services. (according to Jucious)
 Collective bargaining involves discussion and negotiation between two
groups as to the terms and conditions of employment.
 Objectives of Collective Bargaining
 The main objectives of collective bargaining are as follows:
• To maintain cordial relations between the employer and the employees.
• To protect the interests of workers through collective action and by
preventing unilateral action on the part of the employer. All employees
are treated on equal footings.
• To ensure the participation of trade unions in industry.
• To avoid the need for Government intervention as collective bargaining
is a voluntary process.
• To promote industrial democracy.
 Importance of Collective Bargaining
 Collective bargaining offers the following advantages:
 It is a pragmatic and democratize method of regulating the terms and
conditions of employment.
 It results in better understanding between employers and employees.
 It provides a flexible means of adjusting wages and conditions of
employment to changes in economic, social, technological and political
environment.
 It helps in establishing a code that defines the rights and obligations of each
party.
 It facilitates better implementation of decisions due to the direct involvement
of both the parties.
 Conditions Essential for Successful Collective Bargaining
 In order to make collective bargaining effective the following conditions must be
satisfied:
 A Favorable Political Climate:
 The Government and the public opinion must be convinced that collective
bargaining is the best method of regulating employment conditions.
 Freedom of Association:
 A strong and representative trade union is required to bargain with the
employer on equal employers to interfere with the right of workers to form
their unions.
 Trade unions must be stable and strong enough to honor the collective
bargaining agreement.
 Recognition of Unions:
• Employers should be required by law to give recognition to
representative trade unions.

 Willingness to Give and Take:

• Both employers and union leaders should bargain in a spirit of
compromise and reciprocity.

 Fair Labor Practices:

• Both the employer and the trade union should avoid unfair labor
practices.
 Problem Solving Attitude:

• The negotiating teams on both the sides must adopt a problem solving

rather than a fighting approach.

 Continuous Dialogue:

• At times it may be necessary to leave highly controversial issues for

the time being and narrow down the field of disagreement on other

matters.
 Availability of data:
• The employer must ensure that all the required records are readily

available.

• Facts and figures concerning rates of pay, fringe benefits,

manpower forecast, technological changes, etc., provide a rational

basis for negotiations.

 Techniques of Bargaining
 No hard and fast rule can be laid down with regard to the bargaining
techniques, but the following should be kept in view.
• Take up one Issue at a time

• Be a good Listener

• Use only verified data and facts

• Side track unrealistic demands without ridicule

• Be factual rather than emotional

• Use proper language which assisted in bargaining

• Try to create an atmosphere of trust

• Do not threaten to strike or lock out

 Grievance handling
 What is a Grievance?
 Grievance is formal complaint which demonstrates any kind of
dissatisfaction in an employee, arising out of the factors which are
related to his job.
 Grievance can be defined as any discontent or dissatisfaction with
any aspect of the organization.
 Why Grievances?
 Grievances may occur for a variety of reasons:

• Economic: Wage fixation, wage computation, overtime, bonus, etc. Employees feel

they are getting less than what they ought to get.

• Work Environment: Poor working conditions; defective equipment and machinery,

tools, materials, etc.

• Supervision: disposition of the boss towards the employee. Perceived notions of

favoritism nepotism, bias, etc.

• Work Group: strained relations or incompatibility with peers, feeling of neglect,

oppression and victimization.

• Work Organization: Rigid and unfair rules; too much or too less work

responsibility; lack of recognition, etc.

 Effects of Grievances

 Grievances can have several effects which are essentially adverse and
counterproductive to organization purposes. The adverse effects include:

 Loss of interest in work and  Increase in employee turnover

consequent lack of morale and
 Increase in absenteeism
commitment
 Increase in the incidence of
 Poor quality of production
accidents
 Low productivity
 Indiscipline
 Increase in wastage and costs
 Unrest. etc.
 Steps in Grievance Handling
 The following steps will provide a measure of guidance to the manager dealing
with grievances:
 Acknowledge dissatisfaction:
• Manager/supervisor should focus attention on grievances, not turn away
from them.
 Define the problem:
• Instead of trying to deal with a vague feeling of discontent, the problem
should be defined properly.
 Get the Facts:
• Facts should be separated from fiction. Though grievances result in hurt
feelings, the effort should be to get the facts behind the feelings.
 Analyze and Decide:
 Grievance settlements provide opportunities for management to
correct themselves, and thereby come closer to the employees.
 Follow up:
 Decisions taken must be followed up earnestly.
 They should be promptly communicated to the employee
concerned.
 If a decision is favorable to the employee, his immediate boss
should have the privilege of communicating the same.