Industrial relations is the term that describes how the management and the employees of a company interact with each other. Specifically, it is the relationship that exists between the upper management of a small business and the staff that carries out the duties of the small business. Because there is a divide between these two aspects of a business, problems also arise when maintaining a relationship between management and staff.
In many businesses, an issue that arises out of industrial relations is a narrow focus by the employees of the organization. An employee or staff member may only view the task at hand that they have to perform to complete their job rather than viewing how the role the employee plays benefits the organization as a whole. Many employees simply see their managers as someone who tells them what to do rather than as a facilitator that can help the employee achieve their own professional goals as well as bring the company to a point where it reaches the goals of the business.
Inflexibility of Employer
When an employer is inflexible, this can stifle the creativity of employees. When employees feel as if their creativity is being squashed or that their opinions do not matter, this can cause strife between the employees and management of the business. When creativity is squashed, this can cause the company innovation to lack, which can ultimately create an uncompetitive position for the company in the marketplace. Employers that allow employees to participate in running the company by allowing suggestions and feedback from the employees and even empowering employees to take on more responsibility for the route the business takes, typically enjoys a more successful business environment—internally and in the marketplace.
Another issue that arises in industrial relations is an “us against them” mentality. Many employees believe there is a great divide that exists between them and the management of the company. This division between the two groups of a business can cause a myriad of issues such as contract negotiation problems, strikes and the required intervention of trade and labor unions. When management and employees can relate and communicate with each other, it typically alleviates the problems, such as not being able to negotiate work contract agreements or having to bring in the labor union to negotiate the terms and conditions between employees and management.
- Three office workers image by Vladimir Melnik from Fotolia.com