AWWA ACE58253

The last two decades have brought about major changes in the American economy, and in labor-management relations in the United States. Many factors including the emergence of a global economy have facilitated downsizing of American companies and American unions. In the face of this new environment, many have argued for a redefined role for unions, in the form of labor-management partnerships. The newly emerging paradigm is that of cooperation, instead of confrontation, the scheme of labor-management partnerships. It shouldn't surprise anyone that there are those who strongly advocate such involvement and those who think such ideas make for bad business decisions. What type of labor-management philosophy should an organization incorporate? When attempting to answer this question, two central ideas must be considered. First, what type of future are you attempting to build? One that involves all employees or one that involves only a select few. One that actually involves those who do the work or those who "think" they know how to do the work. This is a very important question because herein lies the very essence of a business' organizational philosophy. Secondly, are organizations that have implemented pre-decisional involvement with unions successful? Does this new partnership approach work? The answer is both yes and no. This paper answers key questions concerning such partnerships and addresses the impact of union participation. Includes 17 references.