FOCUSED COLLECTIVE BARGAINING DURING RECESSION

Introduction
 The occurrence of dispute, confusion, quarrelling in any
human relationships is inevitable and it arises as a
result of difference of opinion, views and above all in a
bid to try and protect one’s interest against another
especially in times of deep concern like a recession .
Dispute can occur between individuals, groups or
people, organisation that leads to war.

 Here, dispute that may occur between employee(s) and
employer(s) would be the focus of this paper. The issue
has necessitated the states intervention to regulate
labour management relations through the use of
‘’collective bargaining’’ where the parties involved could
‘’negotiate’’ with the view of reaching an agreement to
settle and manage their differences. This paper
recommends that collective bargaining can serve as a
tool for maintaining industrial harmony and good
labour management relations during a recession if
properly streamlined .

Definition of terms
 The international labour organization (ILO) (1976)
defined collective bargaining as negotiations about
working conditions and terms of employment between
an employer, a group of employers or one or more
workers representative organization or the other, with
a view of reading an agreement.

 The term collective bargaining originated in the
British labour movement. But it was Samuel Gompers,
an American labour leader, who developed its
common use in. The following is a modern-day
definition: "Collective bargaining is defined as the
continuous relationship between an employer and a
designated labour organization representing a specific
unit of employees for the purpose of negotiating
written terms of employment "(Somers, 1980:553-556).

 Beatrix and Sidney Webb described collective
bargaining as:"...one method whereby trade unions
could maintain and improve their members' terms and
conditions of employment (Bendix, 2001:233).
 This description is correct, because: Collective
bargaining is an union-initiated process, and The
initial purpose of collective bargaining is to obtain
improved employment employment conditions for
trade unions members.

 The description given by Webbs may be insufficient,
because of the following reasons:
 it fails to highlight the interactive nature of the
process its paradoxical basis and its central position in
the conduct of the traditional relationship.
 It also fails to describe the dynamic nature of the
collective bargaining process, its reliance on the power
of the parties and its susceptibility to outside
influences.

 Bendix (2001:232-233) described collective bargaining as:
 "a process, necessitated by a conflict of needs, interest, goals,
values, perceptions and ideologies, but resting on a basic
interdependency and commonality of interest, whereby
employees/employee collectives and employers/employer
collectives, by the conduct of continued negotiation and the
application of pressure and counter pressure, attempt to achieve
some balance between the fulfilment of the needs, goals and
interest of management on the one hand and employees on the
other - the extent to which either party achieves its objectives
depending on the nature of the relationship itself, each party's
source and use of power, the power balance between them, the
organizational and strategic effectiveness of each party, as well as
the type of bargaining structure and the prevalent economic,
sociopolitical and other conditions".

 Collective bargaining is a process of decision-making
between employers and trade unions, with the purpose
of arriving at an agreed set of rules governing the
substantive and procedural terms of the relationship
between them, and all aspects of and issues arising out
of the employment situation (Le Grange,1 996:13).

Purpose
 There are two main purposes of collective bargaining,
namely:
 Collective bargaining aims to regulate terms and
conditions of employment (secular level).
 Collective bargaining has the purpose of being an
avenue for the resolution of disputes (enterprise level)
(Basson, et al., 2003:57).

The bargaining agents
 These are three institutions recognised by the Labour
Relations Act, which represent employers and
employees in collective bargaining. They are namely,
trade unions, employers' organisations and workplace
forums (Grogan,1999:218).

 Workplace forums differ from trade unions in that
they are 'in-house' institutions operating within a
particular company or division, and membership is
confined to employees of the particular employer

Reason for cb
 COMMONALITY
Collective bargaining would not take place if the
employer and employee did not share common
interests and have to work together in order to produce
goods and services. Both the parties to the labour
relationship have the organisations well being and
profitability at heart, and for this to take place, the
parties are forced to sort out their differences.

 CONFLICT
Conflict usually arises because each party to the labour
relationship wants to pursue their own goals according
to their own interests, needs and values. If collective
bargaining did not exist and conflict continued in the
labour relationship, it would have destructive effects
and would negatively affect both parties.

Bargaining styles
Distributive bargaining : This form of bargaining is
associated with the typical bargaining positions
between management and unions. It takes place when
the two parties' interests are in conflict. It involves the
two parties making proposals, counterproposals and
compromises.
Integrative bargaining: This form of bargaining occurs
when there is a common problem at the workplace.
The involved parties work together to define the
problem, analyse it, gather, exchange and explore
information and creative solutions.

THE PROCESS OF DISTRIBUTIVE
BARGAINING
 Preparation for negotiation. Preparation involves
four different aspects, namely:
1. The collection of information. The information
that is collected is relevant to the issues on hand
and unions and employers tend to collect similar
information. The information could have a bearing on
the determination of the final agreement.

 The choice of the negotiating team. Negotiation
requires a great deal of skill because negotiators must
be able to read each other's behaviour as well as to
judge the authority of other's. Therefore, the choice of
the negotiating team is very important because this is
where the parties attempt to maximize their strengths
at the bargaining table.

 The identification and analysis of the issues. This
aspect is included in negotiation and opening
demands, bargaining ranges and fallback positions for
each issue is established.
Strategic planning. Strategic planning includes
assessing the climate in which negotiations will be
conducted and the determining of power realities, the
usage of resources and the information to be given to
employees and the public.

Bargaining range
 Finnemore and van der Merwe (1994:183) state that the area
between the demand and first offer is called the
"bargaining range" and sets the limits within which the
negotiations will be carried out. Each party will strive to
obtain a settlement as near as possible to its point of
departure, but there is usually a tacit acceptance of "game"
that has to be played before agreement is reached. Our
negotiation culture demands that each party be seen by its
constituents to be taking a tough Line. Ultimately,
however, divergent demand and offers usually move close
enough to enter a "settlement zone". At this point the
parties are sufficiently close for a compromise to become
possible.

Opening the negotiation:
 The first negotiating session is generally an extremely
important occasion in that the climate for bargaining
is set, the bargaining boundaries established, offers
and demands justified and manipulative attempts are
made to influence the expectations of the other party

Signalling. After both parties have presented their
demands and debated their positions, they begin to
signal one another on the areas in which they are
prepared to move.
Proposing. After the signalling phase, cautious
proposals begin to emerge. These proposals must be
treated with respect and their clearness must be
established and written down.

Packaging. This phase is very important because this is
where the proposals are integrated and shaped by the
parties into packages that are acceptable to one
another.
Closing the agreement: The power reality between
the parties will have to be carefully assessed at this
point. For example, are union tactics seen as
sufficiently disruptive or unreasonable that an
employer feels that, irrespective of the cost in terms of
lost production and damaged relationships;

 a strike must be precipitated or lockout planned?
Alternatively a trade union may feel that a too
confident management needs to be shown that
workers are prepared to use the strike weapon and that
the consequences will be serious for business. Only an
overt confrontation can resolve such situations and
often the new power reality that results provides for a
greater measure of respect and realism in future
relationships

 INTEGRATIVE BARGAINING
Integrative bargaining occurs when both parties have the
same preference for a successful outcome or are equally
concerned to solve a problem (Bendix, 2001 :245).
Matters dealt with in integrative bargaining include
items such as promotion, job security, benefits and
procedures.

 DESTRUCTIVE BARGAINING
During this type of bargaining on of the parties try to
harm the other parties despite the damage the party
itself will suffer. The point of departure can be
described as a lose-lose strategy. According to Pienaar
and Spoelstra this type of bargaining only proves that
self-destruction is used as reprisal and retaliation (

Features of collective bargaining
 It is not equivalent to collective agreement because
collective bargaining leads to the drafting of a
collective agreement.
 It seeks to restore the unequal bargaining process
position between employers and employees.
It is also method used by trade unions to improve the
terms and conditions of employment of their
members.

 Where it leads to an agreement, it modifies rather
than replaces the individual's contract of employment.
 The process is bypartite, but in some developing
countries, the states play a role in the form of a
conciliator where agreement occurs or where collective
bargaining infringes on government policy.

Objectives of Collective Bargaining
 The setting of working conditions and other matters of
mutual interest between employer and employees in a
structured, institutionalized environment.
 Conformity and predictability through the creation of
common substantive conditions and procedural rules
of engagement for parties involved.
 The promotion of workplace democracy and employee
participation in managerial decision making.

 The resolution of disputes in controlled and
institutionalized manner. (Finnmore and Van
Rensburg, 2001)

Characteristic of Collective
Bargaining
 It is a group process, where in one group representing
the employers and the other representing the
employees, sit together to negotiate terms of
employment

 Negotiations form an important aspect of the process
of collective bargaining i.e. there is considerable or
mutual give and take in collective bargaining.
 Collective bargaining is a formalized process by which
employers and independent trade unions engage
themselves on matters of concern to them.

 Collective bargaining is a process in the sense that it
consist of a number of steps it begins with
presentation of the charter of demand and ends with
reaching an agreement which would serve as the basic
law governing labour management relations over a
period of time in any expertise. Moreover, it is a
flexible process and not fixed or static but mutual trust
and understanding serve as the products of
harmonious relations between the two parties.

 It is a bi-partite process this means there are always
two parties involved on the process of collective
bargaining. The negotiations generally take place
between the employees and the management. It has a
form akin to participation.

 Collective bargaining is a complimentary process that
each party needs something that the other party has;
labour certainly can increase productivity and
management can pay better for their efforts.

 Collective bargaining hopes to improve relations
between workers and the union on the one hand and
the employer on the other.
 Collective bargaining is a continuous process it enables
industrial democracy to be effective. It uses
cooperation and consensus for settling disputes rather
than conflict and confrontation

 It is a political activity frequently undertaken by
professional negotiators.
 Collective bargaining takes into account day by day
changes, policies, potentialities, capacities and
interest.

Importance of Collective
Bargaining
 Collective bargaining includes not only negotiation
between the employers and union but also includes
the process of resolving labour management conflicts.
 This collective bargaining is essentially one recognized
way of creating a system of industrial jurisprudence

 It acts as a method of introducing level rights in the
industry, that is, the management should be
conducted by rules and rather that arbitrary decision
making.
 It establishes rules, which defines and restrict the
traditional authority exercised by the management.

Result
 The purpose of collective bargaining is to reach an
agreement. Usually this is achieved through
compromises or concessions made by both parties.
 A collective agreement means a written agreement
concerning terms, conditions of employment or any
other matter of mutual interest concluded by one or
more registered trade unions and one or more
employers and / or registered organisations

Bargaining to Employee
 Collective bargaining develops a sense of self-respect
and responsibility among the employee. It increases
the strength of the work force, thereby increasing their
bargaining capacity as a group.
 Collective bargaining increases the moral of
employees.

 Effective collective bargaining machinery strengthens
the trade unions movements
 The workers feel motivated as they can approach the
management on various matters and bargain for
higher benefits.
 It helps in securing a prompt and in good faith
settlement of grievance

Bargaining to Employer
 It becomes easier for the management to resolve issues at
the early stage rather than taking complaint of individual
workers
 Collective bargaining tends to promote a sense of joint
security among employees and thereby tends to reduce the
cost of labour turnover to management.
 Collective bargaining opens up the channel of
communication between the workers and the management
and increases workers participation in decision making. To
what extent is workers interest or bargaining protected?
 Collective bargaining plays a vital role in settling and
preventing disputes.

Other importance
 It has an economic role in its establishment of wages
and standards for employees that are reasonable.
Collective bargaining must also be remembered that
no sector of the economy is immune from the effects
of collective bargaining. For example, if unions and
employers in the steel industry were to collectively
agree that the wages of steel workers should be
increased, the price of steel too would have to increase,
thus affecting the buyers.

 Collective bargaining fulfils a social function in that it
establishes an industrial justice system that protects
employees from arbitrary action by management and
which recognizes the right to human dignity.
 Collective bargaining performs a political function, it
brings a measure of democracy to the workplace,
allowing the employee to have a say in matters that
affect their working lives.

Bargaining Power
 Bargaining power is a concept related to the relative
abilities of parties in a situation to exert influence over
each other. If both parties are on equal bargaining
power, such as a perfectly competitive market or
between an evenly matched monopoly and
monophony. It becomes an issue of respect for
superior argument.

 Collective bargaining is usually referred to as a process
because it involves interaction. This interaction
involves more than one person or group and these
persons or groups have a common effect on one
another because the behaviour of one person or group
affects the behaviour of the other.

 Collective bargaining as communication process:
collective bargaining is essentially a process of
communication, and therefore it displays all the
problems usually associated with communication,
added to the other inherent problems surrounding
collective bargaining

process
 Collective bargaining as a process usually occurs either
when an existing agreement terminates and the
management-union relationship must be reviewed, or
when conflicts of interest arise and existing
agreements are rejected, or when the need for an
agreement arises because of a dispute or grievance
(Nel, 2002:135).

Steps in Collective
Bargaining
Definition of appropriate bargaining
unit
Preparation and submission of
demands
Negotiation proper
Conclusion and writing of agreement
Registration of agreement

Levels of Collective
Bargaining
Negotiation limited to a single
plant
Negotiation covering more than
one plant of the same employer
Negotiation covering a group of
employers that is , industry wide

Structure of Collective
Bargaining
Bargaining level
Bargaining form
Bargaining Scope
Bargaining Unit

Bargaining Principles
 Parties should be organized
 Parties should be prepared to bargain in good faith
 Bargaining unit should be well defined
 Avoidance of foul tactics and strategies during and
after negotiation
 Parties should be willing to give and take

Strategies for Effective
Bargaining
Negotiated policies, rights and
benefits should be regularly
communicated
Regular monitoring
Collaboration with relevant
stakeholders
Adequate publicity on the progress
achieved

Contd.
 Establishment of intellectual power house
 Canvass for prompt implementation
 Promotion of cordial relationship and constant liaison
with senate house committees on employment and
labour
 Adequate knowledge of the relevant labour laws.

Conditions for Effective
Bargaining
 Favourable climate
 Freedom of Association
 Recognition of trade union
 Avoidance of unfair labour practices
 Willingness to bargain in good faith
 Stability of workers’ organization
 Willingness of parties to give and take

Conclusion
Collective bargaining has been successfully used as a
means of improving the standard of living, terms and
conditions of employment of the Nigerian workers.
This apart, it has been deployed as a veritable
stratagem to effect comprehensive participation of
workers in decision making in the workplace and as
machinery for industrial democracy.

Contd.Because of its numerous
advantagies, labour unions, as
well as employers associations
should continue to utilize, analyze
and adapt it, so that it would
continue to yield immense
benefits to all for the overall good
of the enterprise.

Recession
 a period of temporary economic decline during which
trade and industrial activity are reduced, generally
identified by a fall in GDP in two successive quarters.
 "the country is in the depths of a recession"
 Synonyms: economic decline, downturn, depression,
slump, slowdown, trough, credit crunch, credit
squeeze; stagnation, hard times;

Spotting the recession
 The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of an economy is the value
of goods and services produced in an economy like Nigeria. GDP
is basically the sum of Consumer Spending, Government
Spending, Investments and then Net Exports.
 It is a good measure of economic activity in any economy and is a
benchmark for Government Budgeting, income and expenditure,
investment inflows in and out of an economy etc. The private
sector also relies on the GDP of a country to determine which
areas have robust economic activity helping them decide where
to invest.

 GDP Growth rate is the difference between the GDP of
one period compared to the GDP of a prior period
mostly over a year. When estimating GDP growth
rates, economist adjust the values for inflation.
Economists believe that countries that experience
robust GDP growth rates over time will attract
investments as it signifies a business opportunity for
everyone.

 On the flip side, countries that experience little or nor
GDP growth rate are considered as either too large that
there is little room for growth or are in a period of slow
economic growth due to structural issues. Developed
countries like the US and Germany usually have low
single digit GDP Growth rates. A recession on the
other hand is a sign that things are really bad with that
economy.

Keys
 GDP Decline – Consecutive declines in quarterly real
gross domestic product below zero. For example if the
real GDP of Nigeria declined in Q1 2016 into the
negative and also declines or remains in the negative
territory in Q2, Nigeria is in a recession.

 Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate declined to -0.36 per
cent in the first quarter of this year (Q1 2016) compared to 2.11 per cent in Q4 of
2015, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS)
 The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) in real terms declined by 2.06 per cent in second quarter of 2016. This is
contained in the Nigerian Gross Domestic Product Report for Second Quarter
of 2016 released by NBS.
 The report stated that the figure was lower by 1.70 per cent points from the
negative growth rate of 0.36 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter. It
stated that it was also lower by 4.41 per cent points from the growth rate of 2.35
per cent recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2015.

 Decline in economic activity spread across the
economy, in both the manufacturing and non-
manufacturing sectors and lasting more than a few
months. Production level, business activity, new
orders, employment level and raw material inventories
all decline at a faster rate.

 Decline in income and profits reported by
businesses – Another very good sign of a recession is
when publicly quoted companies mostly declare a drop
in their revenues or profits. In fact, most companies
post massive losses during a recession. A Nairametrics
analysis of some company results in 2015 projected
that a recession was imminent this year.

 Dip in Government Revenue – As explained, a dip in
government revenue is also a very good sign that a country is
sinking into recession. In Nigeria for example, we have seen
government revenue dip so much that most states have to seek
for a bailout to enable them pay for something as basic as
salaries.
 Job losses – There are massive layoffs as most companies cut
cost to remain afloat. Since consumer and government spending
has dropped, businesses can no longer produce at same level and
therefore cut back to remain in business. The National Bureau of
Statistics revealed a few months ago that over 528000 jobs were
lost

 Inflation rate drops or gallops – Developed countries who
experience a recession also record low inflation numbers. This
occurs because both consumer spending and production drop
simultaneously. However, in developing economies like Nigeria,
reverse is the case. Because we mostly import, cost of goods and
services sold locally increase forcing consumers to even spend
less. In Nigeria, the drop in oil prices triggered capital outflows
and then a loss in value of the Naira. This meant imported goods
and services recorded a hike in prices. Nigeria’s inflation rate is
currently 17.5,as at October 16.

 Companies go bust – Another major sign of a
recession is that companies in key sectors of the
economy such as manufacturing, financial services
and insurance typically go bankrupt. Industries that
also rely heavily on government expenditure suffer
from a recession.

Why is Nigeria in recession
 There are multiple reasons why countries enter into a recession
and it all depends on the economic framework of that country.
For Nigeria, a recession could be triggered by a dip in
government revenues and /or a drop in consumer spending. A
drop in oil prices for example, can trigger a drop government
spending due to government not being able to earn what it used
to earn before the dip. In Nigeria where government are the
highest spenders in the economy, a drop in Government
spending can dovetail into a drop in consumer spending which
in turns means business can’t invest in products and services.

IMF
 THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected that the
Nigerian economy will most likely contract by 1.8 percent this
year. If that forecast comes to pass, it will be the first time in
about 26 years that the nation’s economy will record such a low
level of growth. Consequently, the global financial lender has cut
its 2016 growth forecast for Nigeria from the 2.3 percent
projected in April. The projection for next year has been reduced
to 1.1 percent from 3.5 percent. The IMF’s latest forecast is
contained in its World Economic Outlook update released on
25th July 2016.

 The negative growth forecast by IMF has also been corroborated by the
Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele. He
told the Senate that recession appeared imminent because of more
than two quarters of consecutive slow economic growth, noting that
the performance of the economy in the last one year has been abysmal.
He attributed the situation to current global economic conditions,
accentuated by contracting growth, low oil prices and hyper inflation,
which has hit an all-time high of 16.5 percent in June, according to the
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Also, the Finance Minister, Mrs.
Kemi Adeosun, told the Senate some time ago that Nigeria is
“technically in recession.”

Bargaining during recession
 Bargaining during the recession highlights not only the
complexities of negotiating in a highly unequal society but a
situation compounded by the striving by workers to share gains
the gains of the good times. Hence, the economic realities may
not necessarily reflect in the demands tabled and the perception
of rising inequality and corresponding expectations (also fueled
by the political changes which were unfolding in the build up to
the 2015 general elections) proved to be key drivers for higher
demands.
 During this recession, workers believed they had lost out in
previous years because of the decline in real wages and will want
to recoup their losses irrespective.

 Especially when at the same time, they see little or no
sign that other sectors of society are tightening their
belts; instead they see politicians consumed by a
culture of enrichment and conspicuous consumption.
Thus, collective bargaining during the recession will
be accompanied by industrial action if need be.

 At the same time the period will see a decline in trust
between the negotiating partners and a real sense that as a
result of the neglect of collective bargaining, strains are
beginning to appear – as reflected in some bargaining
institutions.
 bargaining councils actually need to effectively maintain
and carry forward the old traditions of collective
bargaining but with great innovation and sincerity of
purpose. Adopted new bargaining approaches and
strategies is key to survival.

The bargaining environment
during the recession
 The bargaining environment from onwards will very
much be shaped by the developments which will be
unfolding in 2016, if acrimonious, expect high levels of
industrial action. Worker expectations will be high
even in the recession, this is clear looking at the
general environment that has encapsulated high cost
of living.

 and in the political arena, the anticipation of the
election of Gen. Buhari as President gave workers an
increased sense of their own political power. Hence,
the country faced agitation as parties sought to
renegotiate multiyear agreements, where workers
expect to get an increased share of the pie.

 By the time President Buhari came to power in 2015, the
economy had moved into looking at a recession and the
environment proved to be decidedly different. Today deep into
technical recession companies have come under immense
pressure , for workers the recession just added further economic
hardships (with rising cost of living especially among lower paid
workers who are more affected by food inflation than the overall
inflation rate), job insecurity and job losses. Again, where
workers spent a larger percentage of their wages/salaries on food
and transport, these workers are therefore heavily affected by the
recession. .

 Hence, demands need to reflect the economic realities.
 interviewees have inferred that within the prevalent culture and
climate of enrichment, workers focused on short-term survival
instead of making strategic decisions in light of deteriorating
labour market conditions. In the face of rising member
expectations, unions will be finding it increasingly difficult to
win settlements that could maintain living standards or even
ensure their improvement. At the same time however, union
leaders who fail to sufficiently challenge and interrogate worker
mandates will be facing backlash leaders from members.

 further issue to emerge during the crisis will be the growing
dissatisfaction among union members with the outcomes of multi-year
agreements, minimum wage etc which research has shown is becoming
increasingly prevalent across the key sectors. In these cases, with
inflation spiking in 2016, workers realised that their increases were
below inflation and in some instances unions will try to reopen
negotiations but we will see employers refuse.
 Finally, the bargaining environment will begin to look more
adversarial not only because of the quality of bargaining – across both
private and public sector – but the lack of trust which exists between
the parties with no real dialogue happening on the shopfloor between
line management and employees on how to influence business
outcomes.

Wage settlements during the
crisis
 workers experienced a decline in real wage growth
prior to the crisis, and this trend is continuing through
2016 but by the second to third quarter of 2017 the
situation will get worse according to IMF report of a
projected 1.1 instead of 3.2.

Outcomes of collective bargaining
during the recession
 social partners will respond in trade-offs agreement in
order to save jobs during the crisis. This section
addresses the role of collective bargaining in
mitigating the effects of the crisis by looking at how
earnings will be protected; ensuring employment
security and improving skills during the downturn.

Collective bargaining and
employment security
 In using collective bargaining to mitigate the effect of the crisis
on jobs the measures to consider in order to save jobs, will
include; working short-time, reduced working week, job
sharing, extended annual leave,an employment guarantee in
exchange for wage moderation and the like. This section also
focuses on the extent to which permanent employees negotiate
their job security by ensuring that jobs were not contracted out,
for example, the extent to which collective agreements included
a ban on the use of labour brokers or the phasing out of the use
of labour brokers – limiting the externalisation of labour to
protect permanent jobs.

 Other types of arrangements to save jobs will also consider:
 negotiated voluntary retrenchment packages, while in
other companies will agreed to reducing the wage rate in
order to save jobs. As an alternative to retrenchment, the
companies can propose salary debasing (reducing the
actual hourly rate to the minimum of that grade) as well as
the payment of part severance pay (the difference between
earnings then and now).

 In heavily affected sectors, a tripartite and multi-
stakeholder forum can be set up set up. This structure
will seek to manage the impact of the crisis and to look
at how to reposition the sector for growth.

 A further measure that can be explored in terms of the
protection of jobs is the extent to which collective
agreements deals with the use of contract labour. The
demand to ban labour brokers has been a central demand
by the unions for a number of years, an increasing number
of collective agreements will begin to reflect either a move
towards a total ban on the use of labour brokers while
others are seeking to regulate its use by phasing it out in
certain areas or having threshold for the number of
permanent workers as compared to casuals/contract
workers.

Earnings
 This section focuses on whether during the crisis
collective bargaining will effectively provide
protection for earnings. The study has shown, firstly,
that during the crisis collective bargaining largely
ensured the protection of workers’ wages.

 again, our collective bargaining push should be a
system that seeks to find a balance between protecting
earnings and worker benefits while at the same time
assisting companies which might be facing difficult
times. This is achieved through the exemption process
whereby employers can apply for exemptions from the
main agreements.

Innovative agreements
 It is imperative to state that during the recession
attempts are to be made by the bargaining partners to
look at areas of innovation to improve productivity
during the upturn. In this regard also productivity
incentives is very cardinal. We can also utilise the
downturn to up skill our own employees.

Indexation
 Collective bargaining can also insist that parties agree
to allow wages to rise only as much as the change in
the cost-of-living index.

Great recession
 During the Recession industry-level bargaining came
under pressure in many countries and in some it ended.
There is no sectoral or other multi-employer bargaining
framework in Ireland except in construction and some
parts of the hotel business. Company level bargaining takes
place in the unionised sectors of the economy, which is
predominately made up of traditional industry and the
semi-state sectors (Erne 2011, Regan 2012).

Decentralization
 In the context of this paper I define decentralisation as moving
negotiations and decisions over wages and terms of employment
closer to the individual enterprise. Decentralisation occurs when
central or sectoral agreements are articulated with or replaced by
enterprise agreements. This occurs either through the breaking
up of sectoral or national agreements when employers stop
negotiating jointly and some or all of them negotiate an
enterprise-level agreement. Or decentralisation happens
through a process of articulation or devolution within the central
or sectoral agreement when more issues are settled at lower
levels (Guigni 1965; Crouch 1993).

 Traxler (1995) has coined the movement of retaining
sectoral (or central) bargaining with more room for
additional enterprise bargaining ‘organized
decentralisation’, which he has contrasted with
‘disorganized decentralisation’ when national or
sectoral agreements are ended

Temporary opening clauses
 Temporary opening or ‘inability to pay’ clauses have become rather
popular during a Recession. They are to be distinguished from the
general derogation clauses. General derogation clauses delegate
particular issues to be decided at enterprise level under conditions
specified in the sector agreement and with outcomes that can deviate
from sectoral minima or standards. In the limit case, as in some sector
agreements in manufacturing in Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland and
the Netherlands the sector agreement does not specify (minimum) pay
provisions. Temporary ‘inability to pay’ clauses allow the suspension or
renegotiation of (part of ) the agreement in cases of hardship, although
how tightly this is defined varies.

 General opening or derogation clauses are an instrument of
organized decentralisation within sectoral agreements;
they have no place in enterprise agreements. Temporary
hardship clauses can apply to any collective agreement at
any level and rather being an element of decentralisation
they are a safety valve in agreements that define hard
minimum or standard conditions, and in agreements that
cover a period longer than one year.

Responsiveness of institutions to
the crisis
 With the creation of industrial unions, industry-wide bargaining became the
vogue and replaced bargaining at the plant level. Multi-employer bargaining is
negotiation between the representatives of the employers (Employers
Association) and representatives of workers (Trade Unions) belonging to the
same occupational industry e.g. negotiation between your national union and
employers association . Under this arrangement, the Employers Association
negotiates substantive issues and discusses non-substantive ones with both the
junior and senior staff unions at different sessions. Atimes, the outcomes of the
negotiation are regarded as minimum standard and parties may improve on
the negotiated rates at the enterprise level. Management has as final decision
on the outcome of non-substantive issues.

 Aside from industry-wide bargaining, the actors in industrial
relations interact at two other levels to consider matters of
mutual interests and problems arising from workplace situation:
 National or Tripartite Bargaining This is a negotiation involving
the three actors in industrial relations – government, labour
unions and management representatives. The essence of
bargaining at this level is to lay down guidelines or perhaps, the
minimum level or standard which establishments in each sector
(public or private) should not go below e.g. National Minimum
Wage Act.

 Joint Consultation/Single Employer Bargaining (JCC)
 Under this, parties discuss matters of mutual interest at the unit or grassroot
level between the management and the workers’ representatives (Shop
stewards or Committee of Shop Stewards or). Matters discussed at this level are
issues that are not subject of negotiation at the industrial level. It should be
borne in mind that JCC issues are meant for discussion only and not
mandatory or binding on the employer. Atimes, JCC can serve as an advisory
body with management making the final decision. In the event that
negotiation between the parties fails through the process of collective
bargaining, the Trade Disputes Act of 1976 makes allowance for voluntary
settlement of disputes by parties concerned through mediatory process before
resorting to external or statutory processes which involve conciliation,
arbitration and adjudicatory processes.

 Before the advent of industrial unionism, collective
bargaining was mainly between individual enterprise
or house unions and their various employers. The
scene however, changed drastically with the
restructuring of the erstwhile multifarious enterprise
unions into industrial unions.

 While highlighting the important role that collective bargaining
can play in mitigating the effects of the recession, the huge
inequalities which exist within the society have strained
employment relations. Collective bargaining played a key role in
protecting earnings and ensuring equal treatment of contract
workers in some sectors. However, collective bargaining has
played a limited role in terms of saving jobs (through
negotiations on reduced working hours, short-time and the like).
One or two innovative agreements were reached on using
downtime to improve the skills of the existing workforce so that
jobs were not lost.

 Furthermore, the capacity and resources among social
partners needs to be enhanced so as not to hamper the
quality of agreements reached. Capacity issues include,
among others, a lack of basic negotiating skills, turnover of
negotiators and lack of access to information and resources
so as to prepare properly for negotiations. The challenge for
the social partners in moving forward is how to improve
productivity and ensure workers share in productivity
gains.

Conclusion
 Realising that collective bargaining as it where is
hampered by the following,
 Poor communication
 Bad faith bargaining
 Restrictive laws
 Inequality of bargaining power
 Unfair practices

Cont.,
 Lack of unity
 Corrupt union leaders

Other reasons
 Lack of suitable and favourable political atmosphere
 Unsuitable recognition of trade union Lack of stable
organization
 Failure to implement collective agreement.

 It is made even more herculean by the trust of the
economic recession. But Collective bargaining and
many of its underpinning laws and institutions are the
product of major crises, not least the Great Depression
of the 1930s, which became the inspiration for multi-
employer bargaining and the rules that for half a
century and longer ensured wide-ranging coverage of
wage agreements.

Solution
The following are probable solution to the already identified
causes:
1. there should a platform for the enhancement of effective
communication process between the parties (management and
labour) involve in the collective bargaining process.
2.Nigeria labour legislation and jurisdiction should be structured
in a way that will afford more freedom to the trade union in
making known their request to the management. In other words,
the laws should not be too restrictive on the part of the union.

3. Importantly there should be equality in bargaining power
between the management and the labour. This will foster the
success of collective bargaining in Nigeria.
4.Crucially there should be ultimate unity among and within
trade unions. Unity is the tool that can effective aid in the
success process of collective bargaining.
5.Both the management and labour should forsake every unfair
practice that can serve as hindrances to the success of collective
bargaining process.

6. Trade union leaders should put the interest of every
member of the union as paramount and not to be too
involved in personal gains.
7. In any collective bargaining process, both the
management and the labour should manifest good
faith towards mutual agreement between the two
parties.

Conclusion
 Yes just as we have seen collective bargaining was an
upshot of crisis geared towards ensuring a solution.
Hence in this period of recession it becomes
imperative for parties to approach the process of
collective bargaining with the original intention of
that building consensus and maintenance of the
system and enterprise as raison de tre.

FOCUSED COLLECTIVE BARGAINING DURING RECESSION

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