Manufacturing

A Midwest food manufacturer must reduce its cost per pound of product to remain competitive.The union and management believe that a joint initiative will be the most effective way to reach their goal, but they don’t know how to proceed.PIERS helped the joint labor/management committee design a process for work redesign which would uphold the interests of both the union and management.The result: Significant reduction in cost per pound of product, large capital investment, increased capacity and job security.
A West Coast food manufacturer wants to negotiate their upcoming collective bargaining agreement using an interest-based approach. Bargaining committee members on both sides had only negotiated in a traditional way.Their last negotiation was adversarial at best and dragged on past the expiration date.They needed a better way.PIERS taught the entire bargaining committee how to use the interest-based approach.In addition, PIERS taught the bargaining committee how to self-facilitate the bargaining sessions. The result: Negotiations were non-adversarial, contract was ratified, and agreements focused on satisfying interests of both union and management.
A Midwest food distribution center wants to improve their internal capabilities from the time product is delivered from the manufacturer to the time the products are delivered to the customer. PIERS facilitates a joint labor/management design team initiative.The result: The design team presents recommendations for a comprehensive warehouse redesign to the bargaining committee.
A Midwest chemical manufacturer is struggling to remain competitive.PIERS, at the manufacturers request, facilitates a joint strategic planning retreat. The result: A joint strategic plan which aided in the development of a competitive strategy.
A Southeast beverage manufacturer has a history of adversarial union/management relations.Management believes that this has lead corporate decision makers to divert capital investment to other beverage facilities.PIERS is asked to form and facilitate a joint labor/management committee. The result: Following a year of joint labor/management efforts to improve various aspects of the production process, a capital investment of $14M is made to add a new product line to the facility.

Healthcare

The hospital and the union had previously engaged in a bitter strike- PIERS facilitated conversations between the parties that helped to build a shared understanding of how each perceived the strike and the factors that led up to it. The result: a constructive dialogue that helped the parties to develop a common agenda for moving forward and regaining lost marketshare.

A large hospital faced the challenge of redesigning the work of the nursing and other licensed medical providers (non physicians). PIERS assisted the union and management in forming a joint labor management committee to direct the redesign. The result was a joint process of redesigning work between the professional union, line managers, and administration

A hospital system was faced with over-capacity and the need to reduce costs while continuing to provide quality healthcare. Representatives of the three employee unions and the administration agreed to jointly address the challenge. PIERS facilitated the structuring of a committee made up of employees from the 3 unions, physicians, nursing managers, and executives. The result was a successful effort to reduce costs while maintaining high patient satisfaction.

Building and Construction

A Midwest trade’s joint apprenticeship training committee is experiencing complaints from apprentices of discrimination and harassment on the job site.PIERS and the JATC jointly designed and delivered a multi-year educational program for all apprentices focusing on diversity and discrimination issues.

A large construction trade organization hired PIERS to design and present a program for apprenticeship instructors. Result: Apprenticeship instructors were able to transfer adult learning concepts and principles to improve their teaching techniques and outcomes.

Public/Non-Profits

A non profit human services agency faced a challenge of high staff turnover leading to inexperienced staff and recruitment & training costs. PIERS trained the bargaining committee in the interest based bargaining approach and self facilitation techniques. The result was a comparable wage package and procedures to reduce turnover.
A department of state government needed to implement a state-wide joint labor-management effort that had previously been negotiated. PIERS designed and delivered a training program for all locations state-wide. The result: A process for jointly addressing operational issues and solid endorsement of a joint process by departmental management.

K-12 Education

A small town school district faced a challenge every three years when they negotiated the collective bargaining agreement between the teachers' union and the school board. The adversarial nature of the bargaining caused tension and distrust in the community at large. PIERS trained the local union bargaining committee, their union business agent, administrators, and school board members to use an interest based approach to collective bargaining. The result was a smoother, more efficient collective bargaining process and one which is no longer dreaded by the community.

A large urban school district with 3 employee unions and an association of principals faced complex issues and poor relationships between the parties. PIERS facilitated the forming of a labor management committee made up of the representatives of the three unions, the association of principals, and the administration. The result was increased communication and problem solving among the parties leading to a better environment for students.

Colleges, Universities, and Post-Secondary Education

A professional union in a university hospital and their employer representatives desired to negotiate their collective bargaining agreement in a less adversarial way. PIERS trained the committee in interest based bargaining and facilitated their bargaining. The result was a contract with overwhelming support negotiated in a way that allows the parties to continue to work together as professionals.
The building and custodial services of a public university were charged with the task of assessing the value provided by 3rd shift services. PIERS worked with the union and management team to disconfirm charges of malfeasance and to document the effectiveness of 3rd shift operations overal. The result: Proposals to downsize 3rd shift operations were disregarded and numerous jobs were saved.
A large public university negotiated new language in their contract outlining a new disciplinary process. PIERS worked with union and management parties to map out a step-by-step process for investigating allegations of misconduct before disciplinary charges might be filed. PIERS also worked with the parties to develop a half day training session that union and management representatives conducted for all affected supervisors and stewards on all shifts. The result: Clear understanding of the language in the Contract as well as a visual representation of the process. It was deemed an effective and workable process. Fewer grievancees were reported as a result.