Workers’ rights vs management prerogative
Some human resource (HR) groups on Facebook often give incorrect advice to their members. Many of them are lazy enough to fall back on the so-called management prerogative without realizing the many exceptions where prerogative does not apply. Can you give me a better understanding of these issues? — Lone Wolf.
Your question reminds me of a 30-something gentleman who professes to be a life coach. I asked him: “What good advice can you give when you’ve not reached retirement age?” He ignored me. Indeed, good advice depends much on age. With it, you can easily de- termine what is wise from experience. Of course, it doesn’t mean that all old people’s opinions can be relied on.
To answer your question, the term “management prerogative” is a much-abused excuse given by incompetent people managers. They use it to manage their businesses with a minimum of worker “interference.” Obviously, this is wrong because management prerogative is not an absolute right.
Tempering prerogative is labor rights, which are mostly rooted in human rights. If management refuses or ignores appeals to labor rights, labor and management are headed for conflict, resulting in ruffled feelings, deteriorating productivity, disobedience, falling revenue and many more.
COMPARISON
There are four basic management functions — planning, leading, organizing and controlling or PLOC. It is a systematic approach which means people managers must get things done through their direct reports. This can only happen if they get the full cooperation of the workers without unnecessarily harming work relations.
Performing the PLOC does not mean barking orders as it is in the police and military. Command-and-control management style has become obsolete many decades back. There’s no need for managers to shout at their workers to get things done because there are better ways of doing it. Let me count the ways:
One, management right to choose and hire workers. As soon as the workers come on board, they are secure in their jobs unless these workers prove that they’re unfit. Management must give all the opportunities for workers to prove their worth, not necessarily limited to probationary employment or performance improvement plans.
Two, management right to manage the business. This is best supported by the workers’ right to participate in problem-solving and decision-making. Also known as “industrial democracy” or co-ownership in management lingo, it is the best way to seek high labor productivity.
Three, management right to transfer workers. This includes promotion or demotion. This can be tempered by worker refusal to accept the transfer to another job or location if it means defeating the establishment or propagation of a union. And much more, if the transfer means endangering life and limb of the concerned worker.
Four, management right to set policies and procedures. Office regulations are best issued and managed with the workers’ active support. They can challenge their logic if they adversely affect their best interests. One example is when an employer reduces a worker benefit that has been enjoyed for several years.
Five, management right to set working hours. They must be reasonable and widely practiced in other organizations. There should be no surprise implementation of work schedules that would upset normal human behavior. If this happens, management must be willing to pay a premium, like night differentials or hazard pay to willing workers.
Six, management right to discipline workers. This can be tempered by the workers’ right to be given due process and many opportunities to clear their name, especially if it can potentially result in dismissal. This includes the right to know the specific offense committed and to have at least five days to explain themselves.
Last, management right to earn a fair return on investment. This is one of the most controversial issues in labor-management relations. This means the workers’ right to receive their just share (profit sharing) in the fruits of production or whatever cost savings (gainsharing) that are discovered through the workers’ effort.
ELBONOMICS: Generally, management success is measured by the workers’ opinion.
NO ABSOLUTE RIGHT
The above listing is not comprehensive, but it includes some of the most contentious issues in an organization, especially profit sharing or gainsharing. This happens all the time because current laws do not specify the exact amount to be shared with workers. This is complicated by the fact that employees do not share in the company’s losses.
On the other hand, workers complain that they can’t do so much when employers resort to “creative accounting” to reflect losses, when in truth it has enough profit to spare. This is the main reason why the law requires management to disclose its audited financial statements.