Trade Unions and the Reform of the Quality of Work Life: Ergonomic and Other QWL Reforms Have Limited Goals and Are Held No Substitute for Labor Involvement

Gordon DiGiacomo

American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 1987, vol. 46, issue 4, 399-414

Abstract: Abstract. North American labor unions have typically responded to management‐ initiated Quality of Work Life (QWL) reforms: by co operating in their design and implementation, or by rejecting involvement and relying on traditional collective bargaining. Neither response addresses the distribution of organizational power. Workplace reform in North America confines itself to the technical aspects of job design. Traditional collective bargaining, however, tends to be highly circumscribed, focusing on pay and fringe benefits. To be meaningful, workplace reform must take place within a context of changing power relations between unions and managements Otherwise it may be overwhelmed by events occurring in the external environment. Labor unions, therefore, need to participate in QWL initiatives while simultaneously making new types of demands at the bargaining table, and seeking input into strategic decisions.

Date: 1987
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