A Symposium on The Role and Influence of Trade Unions in a Recession
| Date | 01 July 1986 |
| Published date | 01 July 1986 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8543.1986.tb00677.x |
| Author | George Bain |
British Journal
of
Industrial Relations
24~2
July
1986
0007-1080
$3.00
A
Symposium
on The Role and
Influence of Trade Unions in
a
Recession
Introduction
by
George
Bain
*
The ESRC sponsored a workshop on ‘The Role and Influence
of
Trade
Unions in a Recession’ at Queen Mary College, London, on 9 January
1986. The following pages reproduce, sometimes in amended form, the
papers that were given at the conference and some of the points made in
the ensuing discussion. The morning session was devoted to Andrew
Oswald’s paper, which discusses recent theoretical and empirical work
on the economics
of
wage determination and recession, and to David
Blanchflower’s paper, which uses the 1980 Workplace Industrial Rela-
tions Survey (WIRS) to estimate the influence
of
unions on relative
wages. The afternoon session discussed William Brown’s paper, which
focuses on the effect
of
changing employment practices
on
managerial
strategies and the role
of
trade unions, and Michael Terry’s paper, which
discusses the extent to which industrial relations at shopfloor level has
been affected by the recession. The conference was attended not only
by
academics but also by representatives from employer and union
organisations, government agencies, and the media.
A discussion
of
the role and influence
of
trade unions in a recession is
highly timely. The ‘golden age’
of
research on trade unions and shop
stewards was the fifteen years that began with the establishment
of
the
Donovan Commission in 1965. With a few exceptions, most
of
our
current theories, models, and generalisations about trade union and
shop steward behaviour, especially those backed by empirical data, are
based upon developments that occurred in this period, particularly in
manufacturing industry. The economic and political environment in
Britain, together with its institutions and processes
of
industrial
relations, has changed dramatically since 1979. The question arises,
therefore, as to the extent to which theories, models, and generalisations
derived from a period
of
rapid inflation and expansion offer insights into
trade union and shop steward behaviour in a period
of
massive
unemployment and recession.
*
Professor
of
Industrial Relations, University
of
Warwick.
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