WORK1003 Chapter Notes - Chapter 6: Child Care, Australian Council Of Trade Unions, Proportional Representation

• School: University of Sydney
• Department: Work and Organisational Studies
• Course: WORK1003
• Professor: all

Document Summary

Distinguish between the different forms of employee representation. Informal collective bargaining w/ no compulsion for employers to recognize or to bargain w/ unions. Identify what unions "do" both in the workplace and beyond the workplace. Primary purpose = to improve the wellbeing of its members. Unions are a mechanism for employees to advance their interest in the regulation of the employment relationship. Freeman & medoff the 2 faces of unions: monopoly face uniting workers to increase wages & conditions, collective voice face - communicating to employers the concerns of employees about their employment conditions. Critics: unfair monopolies in the labour market prevent labour market achieving an efficient allocation of resources, need to be replaced w/ individual freedom of contract. Supporters: a corrective to the imbalance of market power that favours employers, channel for the employee voice that can actually improve efficiency. Unions pursue political objectives: must have at least minimal state support to succeed, many affiliated w/ the alp.