Employee Participation and Involvement Presented by:- Dikshee Verma Vincent Clement
Employee Participation
and Involvement
Presented by:-Dikshee Verma
Vincent Clement
Introduction Participation has been defined as “a process which allows
employees to exert some influence over their work and the conditions under which they work”
Alternatively “a process in which influence on decision making is shared between hierarchical superiors and their subordinates”
Employee participation’ involves workers exerting a countervailing and upward pressure on management control, which need not imply unity of purpose between managers and non-managers
Introduction
Employee involvement is, perceived to be a ‘softer’ form of participation, implying a commonality of interest between employees and management, and stressing that involvement should be directed at the workforce as a whole.
Workers Participation in Management
Participation may take two forms;-1) Ascending Participation- workers may be given
an opportunity to influence managerial decisions at higher levels through elected representatives to joint councils or the board of directors of the company.
2) Descending Participation- workers may be given more power to plan and to make decisions about their own work.
Workers participation
The participation has to be at different levels of management, at the shop-floor level, at the department level, and at the top level.
It underscores the willing acceptance of responsibilities by the body of workers
It is conducted through different forums and practices which provide association of worker representatives.
Objectives
Increasing productivity for the general benefit of the enterprise, employees and community
Giving employee a better understanding of their role in the working of the industry.
Satisfying the workers urge for self – expression Achieving industrial peace, better relations, and
increased cooperation Development of leaders from within the industry
Importance of Workers Participation
It has earned great importance in the recent years due to the following Advantages;-
1) Reduced Industrial Unrest2) Reduced misunderstanding3) Increased organization balance4) Improved communication5) Higher Productivity6) Increased Commitment7) Industrial democracy8) Less Resistance to change
Levels Of Workers Participation
Influencing through Information Sharing- subordinates are allowed to have a ‘say’ in or to influence decision making.
Joint-Decision Making- Actual decision making by the workers and not a mere say.
Self-Control- subordinates exercise control on decision-making mechanism.
Modes of ParticipationThis includes;-1. Works Committee2. Joint Management Council3. Collective Bargaining4. Co-partnership5. Worker-Director6. Suggestion Scheme7. Grievance Procedure8. Quality Circle
Works Committee
It consists of equal number of representatives of both employees and workers.
It meets for frequent discussion on common problems of the workers and management
Joint decisions are taken and such decisions are binding on both the parties.
They are extremely popular in France and England In India there is a statutory provision for the
establishment of work committees under the Industrial Disputes Act 1947.
Joint Management Council
It was started in the Uk It involves setting up of joint committees represented by
the workers and the management to discuss and give suggestions for improvements with regard to matters of mutual interest
The decisions are not binding on either party yet they are implemented as they are arrived at by the mutual consultation.
It includes problem areas such as labour welfare, safety measures working hours etc.
Collective Bargaining
It is an industrial relation process in which employees through their elected leaders participate on equal basis with management in negotiating labour agreements, in administering the agreements and in redressing the grievances of workers
Co-partnership
In this workers are allowed to purchase shares of the company and thus become its co-owners.
They can participate in the management of the company through their elected representatives on board of directors
They can also attend general meetings of shareholders and exercise their voting rights
Worker-Director It means that a worker representative is being given a seat on
the board of directors However the countries like britain and USA where the trade
unions are strong, rejects this Idea. According to them, this would simply cause a confusion of roles
and the unfortunate worker-Director would not be able to reconcile his position as a trade unionist representing the workers interest with himself being a member of the management
A worker-Director would be in minority and thus his views would carry little weight.
And he may be an effective leader but not necessarily an effective manager
Suggestion Scheme
The workers are encouraged to give their suggestions related to the administrative matters and their suggestions are considered carefully and accepted, if found suitable.
Rewards are also given to those who give constructive suggestions
Suggestion boxes are kept in all departments Suggestions are collected every month and suitable
decisions are taken jointly by a committee consisting of representing of workers and management.
Grievance Procedure It is established for an early settlement of workers grievances. In India sec 9-C of the Industrial disputes Act provides that in
every establishment in which 100 or more workers are employed or have employed on any day in the preceding twelve months, the employer shall set up a time bound grievance redressal procedure.
The Model Grievance Procedure evolved by the 15th Indian Labour conference has three tier system for the settlement of grievances at the level of
1) The immediate supervisor2) Departmental head3) The bipartite grievance committee representing the
management and the union
Continued..
If the grievance committee is not able to redress the grievance, there is provision for appeal to the CEO of the organization
There are successive time bound steps, each leading to the next-step in case of non-redressal of the grievances
Quality Circle Voluntary participation by the workers in the
direction of quality improvement and self-development
It started in Japan in 1962 and then spread to other countries including India
Autonomous units are led by a supervisor, or a senior worker and organized as work units.
Weekly meetings to discuss, analyse and propose solutions for ongoing problems.
Requirements of Effective Workers Participation
Democratic Attitude of Management Strong Union Mutual Trust and Faith Clarity of objectives of Workers Participation Continuity Cordial Industrial Relations Training in Participation
Measures For successive Workers Participation
Progressive Management A truly representative, enlightened and strong trade union
should come into being and should function strictly on constitutional lines
There should be unanimity between labour and management on the basic objectives of the organization and a mutual recognition of their rights and obligations.
Atmosphere of trust to be created Both the workers and the management should be made
conscious of the benefits of participation Only one union should be recognised in each industrial unit
so that inter-union rivalry does not take place.
Thank-You