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Everybody is looking at the bottom line when it comes to employee participation programs, says Jill Casner-Lotto, director of policy studies at the Work in America Institute. And some companies have impressive results, according to the institute's recent study, "The Participative Leader, from Autocracy to Empowerment," which cites the virtues of participative programs. At LTV Steel in Pennsylvania, for example, crews that have been involved in work redesign have demonstrated excellent bottom-line results--more value per hour worked.
Magna Copper's San Manuel Mining Division in Arizona experienced a significant gain in its copper-recovery process, increases of 74 percent in productivity and decreases of 22.5 percent in costs, Casner-Lotto says. The company, which had particularly bitter labor relations before implementing participative programs, two years ago negotiated a 15-year labor contract collectively with the United Steel Workers of America (USWA) and nine other unions. Casner-Lotto says its key to success is a strategic planning committee that includes heavy union representation.
The programs discussed in the institute's study occur in both union and nonunion settings. Participative programs are defined as ones in which the support for employee involvement in decision making is basic to high performance, where open communications are real and continuous and where the system of rewards recognizes and reinforces the participative manager. The study says that those who have chosen participative management have found that the benefits are enormous. They include improved communications and information sharing, improved business results, better customer relations and service, increased job satisfaction, improved labor management relationships, improved quality of work life and continuous, responsive training. Case studies of companies in the union environment include LTV Steel, Scott Paper and BellSouth Telecommunications, where the USWA, the United Paperworkers International Union (UPIU) and the Communications Workers of America, respectively, have played major roles in helping to shape programs resulting in job redesign, cost improvement, multiskill training, improved labor-management relations and increased job satisfaction.
"Partnerships work best in union settings when top levels of the unions are involved," Casner-Lotto said. "Unions become more of a partner in the planning process, and as a result, issues that are sticking points can be worked out more smoothly. Unions are insisting that middle management also be included in the process."
Some unions are now training their representatives...