Managers of Discontent by Diane H. Watson

Author:Diane H. Watson [Watson, Diane H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Sociology, General
ISBN: 9781134985777
Google: PvZKDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2018-02-06T04:41:39+00:00

Industrial relations managers

Managers' personal accounts of their careers indicated a number of positive and negative feelings about their work. These were by no means as extreme in either direction as were the views of union officers but, by virtue of their common involvement in industrial relations, both groups shared a number of feelings.

Union officers had a sense of being able to conduct their work as relatively autonomous individuals, and 'autonomy' and 'freedom' were the words used by many of them to describe their work. Managers, on the other hand, appear more conscious of their role as 'part of the team' responsible for handling organisational change and conflict. As a consequence, it seemed that managers invested far less of themselves in their work. Work for them was far more an occupation than it was a vocation, we can say. As one union officer explained to me, 'Industrial relations is about relationships not procedures.' This contrasts with the view expressed by several managers that 'industrial relations is about relationships and procedures.' Union officers were clearly aware that they work as part of a wider organisation and that this imposes constraints on them. But the more 'public' and more 'personal' nature of their work, combined with increasing emphasis upon 'individual casework', shifts their attention towards 'relationships'. Managers are equally aware of the 'human problems' side of their work but, for them, relationships take place within a framework of procedures. This enables managers to place more distance between themselves and their work and to take success or failure in less personal terms than do full-time officers. Managers appeared to be able, more easily, to adopt an attitude of 'you win some, you lose some', not readily expressed by union officers. For example, one manager in mining explained that

You have to accept, I think, that nothing is black and white and nothing is perfect. You're bound to make mistakes and some people get hurt, or unfairly treated. This is where I'd use the term 'professional' — that your own feelings don't enter into it. Each week you've a new set of problems and you've got to learn to live with it. The world isn't perfect, far from it. I don't lose sleep, take pills or worry about decisions I take. If you know you've done your best, there's not a lot more you can do. If you know you've done something wrong — you admit it.

Managers in different sectors of the economy interviewed expressed positive and negative feelings which related in part to the nature of their particular industry or the level of their post within the hierarchy. There were, however, some problems and difficulties which were common to managers in all three sectors. The most frequently referred to negative aspects of their work related to their involvement in dismissing people or making them redundant. All managers had been involved in dismissals, most had some experience of redundancy and a couple had been involved in the closure of several factories. The common view was that,

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