Purchase Solution

Collective Bargaining: Unions, Boulwarism, and Negotiations

Not what you're looking for?

Ask Custom Question

Question 1
What are four identifying principles of Boulwarism? What are the reasons for its success and failures during the years from 1940 to 1970?

Question 2
What are five methods to avoid a crisis situation in contract negotiations? Explain in what stage they are best utilized.

Question 3
What are challenges that multi-national corporations pose to unions? Why do some foreign countries present greater roadblocks to "one big global union" than others, explain?

Question 4
How does the threat of a strike (or actual strike) affect the negotiating process and its tendency to bring about conditions necessary for agreement by union and management?

Purchase this Solution
Solution Summary

This detailed solution identifies the four principles of Boulwarism, five methods to avoid a crisis situation in contract negotiations, challenges multi-national corporations pose to unions, and how threat of strike impacts contract negotiations. Includes APA formatted references.

Solution Preview

Question 1
What are four identifying principles of Boulwarism? What are the reasons for its success and failures during the years from 1940 to 1970?

Identifying principles of Boulwarism include "studying employees' concerns, correcting easily fixable problems, and improving communicate to between management and employees" (Weir, 2013). The most famous principle of Boulwarism is the "final and best offer" strategy, in which management studied the situation and determined the best way to respond. The offer was presented near the end of negotiation, and with the understanding that the company was prepared to accept a strike if the offer was not accepted. The company then refused to modify the author in any way. This was done by Lemule Boulware at GE. These tactics were successful because the Congress of Industrial Organizations had just expelled the UE for "alleged communist influence", and was being challenged by a rival labor group. These conditions plus the strength of GE's position increased the success of the negotiating style. Another reason for the success of this method was the fragmented unions during this time. Other companies adopted the practices until 1964 when "the National Labor Relations Board ruled that Boulwarism constituted an unfair labor practice and outlawed the practice of refusing to negotiate" (Weir, 2013). While some impacts of Boulwarism were still evident after this time, it became difficult to prove that the "final and best offer" was the result of negotiation. Unions also worked to coordinate their efforts more, thus becoming more powerful.

Sloane, A. A., & Witney, F. (2010). Labor relations (13th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Weir, R.E. (2013). Workers in America: A Historical Encyclopedia. pp. 78-79. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?id=PnJ7PmAyi_MC&dq=principles+of+boulwarism&source=gbs_navlinks_s

Question 2
What are five methods to avoid a crisis situation in contract negotiations? Explain in what stage they are best utilized.
In order to avoid a crisis situation in contract negotiations, it is important to begin contract negotiations in good faith and ...

Solution provided by:
Sally Baldwin, Ed.D
Education
  • BA, University of Southern California
  • MSS, United States Sports Academy
  • Ed.D, Boise State University
Recent Feedback
  • "Thk u"
  • "Thank you!:)"
  • "Thank you!:)"
  • "Thank you!:)"
  • "Thank you!:)"
Purchase this Solution
Free BrainMass Quizzes
Transformational Leadership

This quiz covers the topic of transformational leadership. Specifically, this quiz covers the theories proposed by James MacGregor Burns and Bernard Bass. Students familiar with transformational leadership should easily be able to answer the questions detailed below.

MS Word 2010-Tricky Features

These questions are based on features of the previous word versions that were easy to figure out, but now seem more hidden to me.

SWOT

This quiz will test your understanding of the SWOT analysis, including terms, concepts, uses, advantages, and process.

Cost Concepts: Analyzing Costs in Managerial Accounting

This quiz gives students the opportunity to assess their knowledge of cost concepts used in managerial accounting such as opportunity costs, marginal costs, relevant costs and the benefits and relationships that derive from them.

Situational Leadership

This quiz will help you better understand Situational Leadership and its theories.

View More Free Quizzes
Related BrainMass Solutions

  • Collective Bargaining Questions

    The process of collective bargaining or creating a pattern of agreement between unions and management in organizations creates a lot of pressure on both parties.

  • Collective Bargaining: How Unions Form

    On the other hand, the collective bargaining is defined as "negotiations between a union and employer for a collective agreement", a contract.

  • Mid-Term Bargaining

    Allowing mid-term bargaining broadens the scope of negotiations, reduces the restrictions on negotiations, and allows the unions to have a more balanced position in bargaining.

  • Necessity of labor unions

    Both sides in the agreement (management and labor unions) are required to uphold the approved bargaining agreement and must amicably settle issues that arise.

  • Collective Bargaining's Use in Correctional Agencies

    Let's take this assignment and break it down. The focus is obviously on "collective bargaining," which is another name for "employee unions."

  • Unions: Bargaining/non-bargaining

    There are some pros of bargaining and negotiations within a union environment. From the perspective of workers there is good collective negotiation which gets better wages, working hours, health and safety, and overtime.

  • Unions and the Collective Bargaining Process

    157307 Unions and the Collective Bargaining Process Explain how unions are formed. Explain the collective bargaining process. Describe what happens when collective bargaining breaks down. Describe a typical grievance procedure.

  • The Local Union, National Union and Collective Bargaining

    601567 The Local Union, National Union and Collective Bargaining Why do local unions request the services of the national unions in the collective bargaining process? How does the staff representative play an important role in this process?

  • Collective Bargaining Case Study

    Thank you for using BrainMass.com The relationship between city management and the unions are examined for collective bargaining case studies.

View More Related Solutions