Unions Good for Business – Study

[ The University of Melbourne Voice Vol. 3, No. 2  12 May - 9 June 2008 ]

Unions can have a positive impact on organisational competitiveness according to research led by Dr Carol Gill of the University of Melbourne’s Melbourne Business School.

The research found benefits to industry flowed from the unions’ role in the adoption of the High Performance Work Practices (HPWP) necessary to increase organisational productivity and financial performance.

It found that organisations with a union presence and good employee relations are more likely to adopt HPWP, such as employee empowerment, than those with poor employee relations and no union presence.

The findings contradict the simplistic notion that unions are ‘bad for business’, says Dr Gill.

She says the research found unions could help remove barriers to HPWP adoption by advocating long-term investment in change that is positive for the organisation and providing the communication infrastructure to enable the introduction of HPWP.

Unions could also create the employee trust, co-operation and job security that are required for the effective introduction of HPWP.

The paper is available at: works.bepress.com/carol_gill/12/