South Africa is a country where unions will often threaten a strike as an option to try to drive home a better deal for their workers and that’s when the process of collective bargaining becomes one that can assist to absolve the situation, avoid the strike and have workers back to work and employers back to productivity as soon as possible.
This mini-series takes a look at these four important questions:
- What is collective bargaining?
- What types of collective bargaining are used and in what circumstances?
- What are some of the methods or steps that taken?
- What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of Collective bargaining?
Hopefully, at the end of it, you will have a better understanding of the role of collective bargaining in strike action in South Africa.
WHAT IS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING?
As one observer describes it “The term collective bargaining refers to the negotiation of employment terms between an employer and a group of workers. Employees are normally represented by a labour union during collective bargaining and the terms negotiated during collective bargaining can include working conditions, salaries and compensation, working hours and benefits.’’
One could say the real goal is to come up with an agreement, via collective bargaining, which is committed to a written contract. Employers must never forget that according to the International Labour Organization, ‘’collective bargaining is a fundamental right for all employees!’’
What types of collective bargaining are used and in what circumstances?
There are essentially 4 types of collective bargaining that are used depending on the circumstances of the action or other factors at play when the action takes place. These are…
- Integrative Bargaining
One could say this is the ideal type of collective bargaining because in this scenario both sides attempt to consider the other’s position and bring beneficial issues to the table which aim for an early resolution. This is a win-win situation as both parties are prepared to give and take until an amicable agreement is reached.
- Concessionary Bargaining
This usually only comes about when jobs are being threatened and union leaders feel it is necessary to make concessions to ensure job security. This could happen during the time of severe economic downturn like in the recent COVID pandemic when employees were forced to take knocks just to maintain their positions. Here the focus is more on ensuring that the business will survive.
- Distributive Bargaining
This type of collective bargaining generally happens when unions and their workers are in a strong bargaining position and the end result usually favours workers over employers. This gives employees benefits like increased salaries, better working hours and other financial benefits like annual bonuses etc. This is usually strengthened if the union has a large number of members and a strike would definitely be best avoided.
- Productivity Bargaining
When productivity is the employer’s focus this type of collective bargaining may be favoured as it calls for compensation and the increased productivity of employees. Employers tend to favour this as Labour union leaders use higher salaries and compensation to boost employee productivity which benefits the employer. This can only work though when the financial terms are agreed on by both parties.
GET LABOUR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS SPECIALISTS ON YOUR SIDE
These articles are meant to inform and educate you on some of the issues faced by employers when it comes to labour and industrial relations and we hope they are helpful. They cannot, however, replace the solid expertise of professionals in this field and that’s where Platinum Businesses Solutions come in.
We are specialists in this field and have sound knowledge and understanding of all the labour laws and their impact on labour relations and we devise strategic and practical ways of dealing with conflict management in the workplace, including collective bargaining to avoid strike action.
Talk to us about your labour and industrial relationship needs and do watch this space as we examine the methods used and the pros and cons of collective bargaining in ‘the role of collective bargaining in strike action in South Africa – part 2.’