THE CHALLENGE

A challenging history of difficult employment relations led this organisation to look for a new approach to tackling disagreement and conflict.

They sought help with how to capitalise on the extensive experience and knowledge of line managers and union representatives to solve problems together.

THE APPROACH - Joint problem solving

We put joint problem solving at the centre of this change programme.

In the short term, it tackled particular problems and proposed solutions. In the longer-term, the objective was to gradually change the relationships between managers and union representatives to be less adversarial and more collaborative.

The programme provided a 'stepping-stone' approach, where the longer-term benefits develop from the success of the short-term projects. In addition, all parties developed new relevant skills.

Three key pillars enabled the programme:

Key stakeholders were persuaded to support a 'bottom-up' approach
A Joint Steering Group was established to lead the new approach and provide governance of the change programme
All changes were designed and implemented by joint problem-solving teams. These teams worked on the issues raised by the initial joint diagnosis of the company's industrial relations.

THE OUTCOME

The employment relations climate improved significantly over the five-year period following the introduction of the joint problem solving approach - according to the perceptions of key managers and union representatives.

Specifically,

Fewer issues were taken to formal bodies as they were effectively resolved at a local level. This freed up the formal bodies to focus on more strategic issues.
Meetings were more constructive and more joint solutions were agreed.
Problem solving teams were introduced in two areas of the business to regularly resolve employment relations and operational issues.
Line managers had more clarity of their role in employment relations and where to go for support.
Managers were no longer recruited into ER-sensitive roles without relevant experience or a clear development plan.
Union representatives and managers had a shared understanding of each other's roles, as a result of the joint training.

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