Requirements for Effective Joint Labor-Management Change: a checklist for readiness

The following are some of the key requirements for effective joint labor-management change efforts. This checklist is offered to help union leaders and school district administrators and board members insight into what needs to be in place and/or what they need to be prepared to do to achieve successful change outcomes and to participate in an effective joint labor-management change process.

Acknowledgment of the need to change: there must be agreement between union and management leadership of the need to change their relationship.  It is not necessary, at the beginning stage of a joint process, that the parties agree what the nature of that change might look like.

Organizational climate and labor relations: there must be at least a minimal level of trust between the union and management leadership in order to explore the possibilities that a joint labor-management (collaborative) process might bring to the organization.  If trust is low, it is common for the parties to specify the types of behaviors and assurances that they need from the other party in order to feel some confidence in exploring collaboration.

Top leadership support: strong support and commitment is needed to make real and enduring changes in the labor-management relationship.  That support includes participation in early sessions in which the scope and boundaries of the changes are spelled out and the degree of authority granted to a joint process is clearly defined.

Collaboration must be seen as  adding value to the change process.  The parties must believe that mutually acceptable solutions are available and that such solutions are desirable.  They must acknowledge that the contributions of both union and management are necessary for the change to be effective and that the different perspectives will improve understanding of problems and quality of solutions.  They must believe that greater benefits are likely to ensue from collaboration than from competition.

Resources must be available to support a collaborative process.  Effective change will require time, money and internal resources.  For a joint labor-management process to be sustained, union and management leadership must give priority to the effort and make the necessary resources available.

Leadership capability and credibility: joint labor-management change requires strong leadership from both the union and administration.  The change process is difficult and may surface tensions and resistance that might lead to conflict.  The effective leader does not avoid the conflict or attempt to force a solution but seeks agreements that address the needs of the parties.  An effective leader not only champions the change but also promotes a participative process in which constituent input is solicited and respected. 

Labor relations context: it is important that the parties  be aware of the perceptions that each holds pertaining to the success or failure of previous labor-management initiatives.  Previous efforts that fell short of expectations may contribute to baggage that interferes with either party=s willingness to apply a joint approach to new challenges.  The parties must possess the capability to reflect on previous efforts without being defensive and clarify those issues that must be dealt with differently.

Understanding of costs, benefits and risks: whether third parties are involved or not, a joint labor-management change process will take considerable time and at least some money.  The parties must be willing and able to dedicate the time and resources necessary to achieve effective outcomes.  There are also potential risks to unions and districts that engage in joint processes: unmet expectations may decrease job satisfaction and productivity; desired outcomes may require system changes in order to achieve them; hidden agendas may undermine the current process as well as future endeavors.   Awareness of the risks is necessary to support increased vigilance.

Clarity of goals and interests:  It is important that the parties be clear with each other about what they hope that the joint labor-management process will achieve -- what needs or interests that they hope it will address.  Shared goals will emerge from this clarification as will  goals that are separate or  seem in conflict.   The differences need not be a deterrent to jointly approaching change but they do need to be acknowledged so that they don=t serve to undermine the process.

Partnership and Participation: it is critical for the change effort, regardless of the scope, that the union and management perceive and treat each other as partners in the process.  Whether the scope of change focuses on a specific project or task or is organization-wide partnership is the essential ingredient.  For highest quality decisions and greatest amount of commitment, participation by those closest to the work or likely to be affected by the change should also be participants in the change process.

Knowledge, skills, attitudes and abilities: a joint labor-management change process is likely to require behaviors from the parties that are different from those exhibited in a traditional us versus them relationship.  It is unlikely that the parties will be able to demonstrate the requisite knowledge, skills, attitudes and abilities at the optimal level when they first come together to begin to apply a joint approach to their work.  However, the parties do need to  acknowledge that changes in their own personal behaviors may be required along with changes in the organization=s internal systems and be willing to commit to appropriate training.

Access to information: All parties need ready access to information to build understanding as well as trust.   Both the union and administration must be willing to share information that is deemed relevant by either party without deciding for the other party what it is that they need to know.  Joint change processes are likely to increase the demand for information so it behooves the organization to have systems in place to make information retrieval easier.