Allen Pascoe has a wealth of experience in the New Zealand labour movement. He is currently self-employed but has worked with the Post Office Union, the Communications and Energy Workers, and, until recently, was Executive Officer of the Flight Attendants Union.
"The New Negotiators" appeared as a headline in the December 1997 edition of Management. The lead-in stated " make way for a kinder, gentler variety of business bargainer – they don't want to win, they want to have a relationship".
Is there a place for such an approach when negotiating wages, conditions of employment and resolving disputes and grievances where the relationship is based on an employment contract?
In our view there is. We've been involved in assisting parties to resolve employment issues through the use of an interest-based approach, where the results were better than if a position-based approach had been used.
The traditional position-based approach most people reading this article will be familiar with is the process nearly always used to negotiate contracts of employment. It effectively involves parties adopting positions they are then "persuaded", by one means or another, to move from. It has a strong historical linkage to New Zealand's industrial relations culture. Prior to the mid-1980's, this culture was one where conflict was frequently seen as the first and sometimes only means of resolving disputes. This is somewhat understandable given that the industrial relations framework was firmly routed in an adversarial approach. Even the language of the legislation then in existence was arguably confrontational. For instance, there was a need to "create a dispute" before an issue could be resolved.
The position-based approach to negotiations, with it's 'log of claims', regularly results in compromises or win-loss outcomes. Such an approach, because of tensions and conflict can be hard on relationships; (the "my way or the highway" type of aggressive stance) and is limiting on the range of possible settlements (see Appendix 1). It can however, be advantageous if trust is not an issue or where the parties do not want to disclose privileged information.
From the mid-1980's changes that dramatically impacted upon industrial relations began to occur. We have seen:
As could be expected there was strong employee opposition to much of this change. Reductions in employee benefits and conditions were vigorously opposed. The implications flowing from such change and frequently the manner, in which the change was affected, combined to have a negative impact upon employer-employee relations. In such workplaces, any immediate cost benefits derived from employee related cost cutting exercises were eroded in the long term because an aggrieved and mistrustful workforce is unproductive.
The changes that the New Zealand workplace has experienced and is to a large extent still experiencing, requires a greater recognition of human resources and a negotiating style reflective of this change in attitude. Workplaces that encourage employee relations issues to be dealt with positively, deliver win-win outcomes when negotiating contracts and resolving disputes and grievances, and work hard at improving employer-employee/union relationships, create a culture where innovation and creativity is more likely to thrive and ultimately lead to a competitive advantage. An interest-based approach to negotiating has become an integral part of this new culture.
Such a change in culture requires a move away from the traditional negotiating model based on 'positions' towards an approach that encourages the participants to resolve their differences through what is known as 'interest'-based or 'principled' negotiation. With this type of approach, management and employees (and their unions) explore each other's interests in an open, up-front, co-operative manner. They work together jointly to develop mutually acceptable solutions. Brainstorming is commonly used.
So, what are interest-based negotiations?
Interest-based negotiating is a strategy that focuses on satisfying as many interests or needs as possible for all negotiators. It is a problem-solving process used to reach an integrative solution rather than distributing rewards in a win/lose manner. It is not a process of compromise. With this approach:
Tangible results aside, the process also role models constructive behaviour and as such, assists in building long-term industrial relationships. For it to work, the interest-based approach relies on working levels of trust and information disclosure. For this reason, where the parties are nervous about proceeding on their own, it may be appropriate to obtain the services of a third party. While some organisations may have internal people with the appropriate skills, for one reason or another these people are often not acceptable because they are not seen as being independent and neutral.
The process normally goes something like this:
So, how has the interest-based approach worked in a practical sense?
We've been involved in a variety of different negotiations where an interest-based approach has resulted in positive outcomes.
In one instance, the parties had been involved in negotiations for some months. They had become entrenched over their respective positions. Levels of mistrust were high. For historical reasons there was a great deal of emotional baggage. A three-day rolling strike occurred. When the parties resumed negotiations they had the assistance of a third party. Eventually a long list of issues was resolved to the mutual satisfaction of both parties. The parties also agreed to communicate more regularly and openly during the term of the new contract. Relationships improved dramatically. Disputes relating to the new contract were resolved amicably with the result that litigation costs were virtually eliminated.
In another case the union presented a claim for standardised sick leave entitlement across the workforce instead of the existing entitlement that increased according to length of service. The employer responded by saying that the cost of sick leave was already too high and as such the union's claim could not be agreed to. An interest-based approach, again with a third party assisting, produced a creative solution that met everyone's needs. The parties agreed there would be unlimited sick leave, provided the use of sick leave across the workforce was reduced. Targets (a decreasing sliding scale) with milestones and transition arrangements were agreed to. In addition, it was agreed the cost savings from the reduction in the use of sick leave could be utilised to fund other parts of the union's claim. Surely a win-win outcome.
The thought of renegotiating that collective contract need not be the daunting prospect it sometimes is. So often in employee/industrial relations we frequently get 'bogged down' arguing about process rather than getting on with the job. Whether or not everyone is satisfied with the end result and whether or not the deal 'sticks' is the real litmus test. An interest-based approach to those negotiations, in our view, enhances the chances of meeting those objectives.
Why not give it a go?
Bibliography. 'Mediating Employee Relations Disputes'. A manual prepared by CDR Associates; Boulder, Colorado.
Copyright © Allen Pascoe 1998. First published in Employment Today (New Zealand).
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