For the past 20 years, part of HRs role in industrial relations has been to make sure that the chips stay up between employees and employers. Good strategic HR is about making more of the collective talents of the former to meet the objectives of the latter. Neither can function effectively without the co-operation of the other. Fortunately, a relatively benign industrial relations climate over the past two decades has favoured a conciliatory approach between the two.
Now trade union activism is on the increase. John Monks, the outgoing general secretary of the TUC, has seen this coming for some time. In an excellent article by Stefan Stern, Monks explains that workers are feeling more confident, more assertive and less ready to turn the other cheek. High on the hit list of woes for the more radical union leaders such as Derek Simpson, the general secretary of the Amicus, are some of the carefully nurtured partnership agreements between employers and employees in which HR has played a crucial role. In Simpsons view many amount to little more than terms ofsurrender. Partnership has been a euphemism for the exploitation of many of our members over the past 20 years, he has claimed. The possibility of unpicking the partnerships, along with a marked pick-up in disputes doesnt bode well for a peaceful winter.
When trust breaks down between employer and employee, what role does HR have? On the one hand, the HR director is likely to come down firmly on the side of management, arguing that strategic HR must seek to develop people to fit the needs of an organisation, rather than the other way around. On the other hand, HR needs to be able to rebuild trust with employees (and their union leaders) once a dispute ends.
Its a difficult balancing act. One of the best HR practitioners in the business, Tony Ward of BAA (see the article by Andrew Davidson), has been suddenly thrust into the media spotlight as a spokesman in a dispute with firefighters and security staff. The fact that he has been given such a prominent role says much about his own credibility. The real test though will be whether he will still be able to play a key role in rebuilding relations once the dispute is over. How well Ward and other HR managers in the firing line manage this tricky task in the coming months will tell us a lot about how far HR has come.
Trevor Merriden, editor
