Instrumental and relational determinants of trust in management among members of works councils
| Pages | 623-637 |
| Date | 01 October 2003 |
| Published date | 01 October 2003 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/00483480310488379 |
| Author | Peter Kerkhof,Annemieke B. Winder,Bert Klandermans |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour |
Instrumental and relational
determinants of trust in
management among members
of works councils
Peter Kerkhof, Annemieke B. Winder and Bert Klandermans
Free University Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Keywords Administration of justice, Employees, Trust, Works councils
Abstract In Western Europe, works councils are a common form of indirect employee
participation in management decision making. Trust is often assumed to play an important role in
the nature and outcomes of labour negotiations and in management-works council consultations.
So far, however, the antecedents of trust in management within works councils have not been
studied. Using longitudinal data collected among the members of 75 Dutch works councils, the
current study tests predictions regarding the relative influence of instrumental vs relational
antecedents on the level of trust in management among works council members. An important role
of instrumental predictors (e.g. perceived influence of the works council on management decision
making) supports a view of trust as a calculative phenomenon. On the other hand, strong effects of
relational predictors would lend support to trust as a relational phenomenon. The data show that
trust in management among works council members is related to relational rather than
instrumental antecedents.
Introduction
Works councils are a widespread phenomenon throughout Western Europe.
Works councils consist of employees that in most cases have been elected to
represent the interests of the work force in management decision making, and
to improve communication between management and the work force. Rogers
and Streeck (1995, p. 6) define works councils as:
[...] institutionalised bodies for representative communication between a single employer
(“management”) and the employees (“workforce”) of a single plant or enterprise.
In most European countries, the rights of works councils are statutory. For
example, in The Netherlands, works councils have, depending on the issue at
hand, the rights of information, consultation and co-determination.
Despite the fact that these rights are the same for every Dutch works council,
large differences exist in the (perceived or factual) influence of works councils
and in the way this influence is brought about (Visser, 1995). Whereas some
works councils fully co-operate and share information in their negotiations
with management, others deal with management in a much more
confrontational style. In the literature on negotiating these differences in
bargaining styles have been strongly associated with different levels of trust.
Works councils and management typically deal with issues that have a high
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Determinants of
trust in
management
623
Personnel Review
Vol. 32 No. 5, 2003
pp. 623-637
qMCB UP Limited
0048-3486
DOI 10.1108/00483480310488379
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