Laying the Ground Work

Once the union is committed to participating in a joint initiative with management, the first job is to develop its own goals and objectives. Management will have an agenda; the union should too. A strategic plan helps the union define its goals and how best to achieve them, and guides the union's representatives as they work with management to redesign the workplace.

Addressing internal union issues

When entering into a joint quality initiative, the union and its members must begin by addressing internal issues:

• are members willing to accept additional responsibilities? Some workers are perfectly comfortable operating in the old mode, doing their jobs and collecting their paychecks without the burdens involved in redesign. If the decision is made to go forward, these workers must be assured that there will continue to be a role for them; 
  
  
• to what extent should union resources be used for the new program? Union resources are already stretched thin handling traditional collective bargaining chores. Add in a joint initiative, and issues arise concerning the allocation of scarce resources, such as how much time is needed for the new program and whether this will divert time from current projects; and 
  
  
• what efforts will be made to educate union members? Much of the ongoing training needed for participation can be provided jointly with management. But the initial decision to become involved or not requires internal education. Members cannot be expected to be familiar with quality programs, and the union cannot leave it to management alone to familiarize them. For members to see quality as part of a union agenda, they must look to the union for answers.

One possible vehicle for developing a plan is an internal structure for addressing the new responsibilities: a union "Committee on Quality of Services," for example, to assess what members would like to get out of the new program, evaluate the direction in which services are moving, and gauge how that will affect jobs. Members must see their interests, and not just the interests of management, being addressed by the new program. They also must see the union as the vehicle protecting and advocating their interests.

In the AFL-CIO publication Changing Work, labor researcher Robert Baugh identifies five steps in successful union planning efforts.

1. Agree on an overall mission statement. Before the employer and union define their joint mission, the union should define its own mission. This gives the union basic principles to guide its efforts to change the workplace, built with leaders' and members' support. 
   
   
2. Assess resources and obstacles. The union needs to assess the environment within which it operates. This includes identifying allies and resources available to help the union achieve its goals, as well as obstacles and potential sources of opposition. 
   Baugh recommends the SWOT power analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) to examine the factors affecting the union's capacity to foster change. 
   
   
3. List goals to accomplish the mission. Short-term goals are the immediate steps the union should take to achieve its mission. Long-term goals are what the union would like to achieve in the months and years ahead. Both should reflect where the union is now and what can be accomplished in the time alloted. 
   
   
4. Develop an action plan. The action plan specifies how the union's goals will be addressed. Priorities are set, tasks necessary to meet each goal are identified, responsibility is assigned for each task and target dates are set, and the desired outcome is stated. The plan should also include the support or approval needed at each step as well as the resources necessary to carry out the tasks. 
   
   
5. Follow up on implementation and revise the plan as needed. The union should periodically review its progress to identify obstacles and opportunities, and make adjustments.

Getting together with management

The next step is often to jointly develop a strategic plan with management. The following are some basic steps and features of strategic plans:

• create an implementing agreement and/or charter - local circumstances will dictate whether the agreement or charter is included in the basic collective bargaining contract or in a separate memorandum. Ideally, labor-management agreements for joint activities should include; 
  
  
  • employment security language. This should include a no-layoff provision, assuring that no jobs will be lost as a result of the joint activities. Such an agreement does not necessarily rule out retraining or redeployment to new positions should some workers be displaced. In the absence of no-layoff guarantees, downsizing proposals should be presented to the union for evaluation and proposal of alternatives. 
    
    
  • union responsibility for appointing any bargaining unit employees to committees or teams. The number of union members on a committee or team should be comparable to the number of management members. 
    
    
  • consensus decision making. Consensus is defined as a process by which a group reaches an acceptable decision. The decision may not be each individual's first choice, but all members of the group can publicly support it. 
    
    
  • initial and ongoing training for employees and union representatives as well as supervisors and management, typically paid for by the employer. The content of the training and choice of providers should be decided together. 
    
    
  • requirements that joint committees and teams be provided with the resources necessary to complete their tasks. Resources include work time, information, and administrative support. 
    
    
  • language specifically identifying the program as a joint endeavor. All communications should contain both the employer's and the union's name/logo and should be jointly signed. 
    
    
  • a description of the relationship between joint activities and traditional collective bargaining. Traditional subjects of bargaining and issues subject to grievances, arbitration, or other established appeal procedures usually are outside the realm of the collaborative process. 
    
    
  • provision of "on-the-clock" time for the union to hold worksite meetings with employees to discuss the employees' and union's role in the collaborative process. The meetings should occur outside of the presence of management officials to allow employees to freely air their concerns. 
    
    
  • language describing the conditions under which either party may withdraw from the process. Circumstances may change, causing one or both parties to rethink their involvement. 
    
    
  • provisions for financing. Costs associated with a joint program include training, consultant services, and lost work time. Ideally, the union should negotiate for a jointly administered fund for expenses in order to avoid employer domination of the process. 
    
    
• set principles and goals - commit to writing a meaningful statement of principles and the goals the parties will work together to achieve. Join pro cesses are rarely successful in the absence of goals that are expressed in terms of measurable outcomes. TheQStP statement of principles on the following page is an example. 
  
  
• develop a structure - the structure for the joint process may be recorded in the negotiated agreement or charter. Below are some issues that should be addressed: 
  
  
  • Committees and Councils. Often an "Executive Steering Committee" or "Quality Council" comprising top leaders of the parties is created, with other committees or councils at lower levels. Joint redesign efforts that emanate from the top level of an organization are likely to produce the most dramatic results. Joint efforts can, however, be undertaken at any level provided that management has the authority to implement changes. 
    
    
  • Committee Membership. The size and makeup of committees and councils are related to the responsibilities of the committee. In general, a committee should be manageable in size, with equal union and management representation, and include representatives with specific knowledge of the issues. 
    
    
  • Frequency of Meetings. How often the committee meets depends on the functions of the committee and the necessity for timely decisions. If meetings are infrequent, it may be necessary to determine how decisions can be made between meetings.
    
    
  • Committee Functions. Each committee should have a set of basic goals and objectives that are jointly determined. Normally, committees are devoted to establishing processes that will lead to improved service delivery and efficiency. 
    
    
  • Logistics of committee operation, including who chairs meetings, how agendas are developed, and how minutes are maintained, are jointly determined. 
    
    
• educate the participants - topics for instruction may include joint problem solving, team building, communication and listening skills, and the fundamentals of Total Quality Management and the High Performance Workplace. Training may also involve visits to sites where there is successful collaboration between labor and management. In TQM, statistics are used to analyze the work process, so some training in basic statistical techniques may be needed.

Caution: consultants ahead

Consultants are often used in joint initiatives. Consultants retained and paid by the employer may feel compelled to pursue the employer's agenda. Moreover, many are not experienced with joint labor-management processes and do not appreciate the need for active union involvement. In fact, some consultants consider the union a "barrier" to change or - at best - a "delay" in getting things done. Therefore, consultants should be selected carefully and used wisely. The following guidelines can minimize problems:

• the choice of the consultant should be by mutual agreement of the parties and a request for proposals, if required, should be developed jointly; 
  
  
• the consultant should be asked about prior experiences in union settings and feedback should be obtained from other unions with which the consultant has worked; and 
  
  
• the union should inquire about the consultant's view of the role of labor and front-line workers in the redesign process.

Problems with consultants can also be minimized if the parties are clear as to what is expected. Consultants can perform the following roles:

• train the top leadership of each respective organization jointly; 
  
  
• facilitate meetings to ensure that all parties have an opportunity to present their views, that agreed-upon rules are followed, and that decisions are reached; 
  
  
• provide independent feedback to the parties to help resolve conflicts and keep meetings focused; and 
  
  
• provide an experienced voice to help the parties benefit from others' experiences with collaborative efforts.

A consultant should not be accorded the status as "judge" or "arbitrator." Participants in the process have the right and responsibility to disagree.

Affiliates may want to contact AFSCME's Department of Research and Collective Bargaining Services to see if any information is available concerning a particular consultant.

The issue of costs

Joint activities are not free, or even cheap. Costs include staff time spent in meetings, training, consultant fees, and so forth. These expenses may seem especially daunting during the beginning stages when substantial start-up costs will be incurred.

There are two sides to the issue of who bears the costs of joint activities. On one hand, it can be argued that joint activities should be paid for by the employer since it is the employer that will reap the fruits of these activities. Despite the initial expense, the program could pay for itself over time through improved productivity. On the other hand, if the joint process is completely employer-financed, this could translate into employer domination. Since the employer would be bankrolling the program, management may feel entitled to "call the shots," thereby reducing the union to "junior partner" status. If the union was to provide a portion of the funds, its financial stake in the effort could reinforce its status as a full partner as well as its commitment to the joint process. The relative importance of these arguments will have to be weighed in each situation.

In addition to joint labor-management activities, union resources are also required to support internal efforts to educate and prepare members for their new role. The International Union can provide training, publications, and technical assistance to AFSCME affiliates or provide referrals to other possible sources of assistance.