Chapter 2
A Stakeholder Approach To Human
Resource Management In South Africa
Contents
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Introduction
A brief history of labour relations and HRM in South Africa
The South African macro environment
Stakeholder theory
Stakeholder engagement and societal corporatism
Stakeholders in the South African HRM and labour relations
environment
7. Summary
8. References
Learning Outcomes
• Explain The Historical Development Of The Human Resource
Management (HRM) Function In Organisations
• Identify The Forces In The Macro Environment That Are Impacting
Upon Organisations
• Analyse The Implication Of These Macro Environmental Forces For
The Management Of People And The HRM Function
• Explain The Reasons For Adopting A Stakeholder Approach To
Organisational Strategic Management In General And HRM In
Particular
• Identify The Key Stakeholders Of An Organisation And The Key
Expectations And Needs That They Have
• Prioritise Stakeholders And Stakeholder Issues
• Plan How To Engage With Stakeholders
• Identify The Main Stakeholders Operating Within The South African
HRM And Labour Relations Environment.
A Brief History Of Labour
Relations And HRM In SA
• Colonialism And Then Apartheid
• Undermined Workers’ Rights And Promoted Racial Division
• A Two-Tier System
• White, Coloured And Asian Workers Covered By The Industrial
Conciliation Act
• Black Workers Were Covered By The Black Labour Relations
Regulations Act
• Wiehahn Commission In 1979
• All Workers, Irrespective Of Race, Covered By The Labour Relations
Amendment Act 57 Of 1981.
• Militant Trade Union Movement: Workplace A Primary Site For The
Struggle Against Apartheid
• First Democratic National Elections In April 1994
• New Labour Relations Act (LRA) (1995)
The King Reports On
Corporate Governance
• Responsibility Towards Shareholders And Other Stakeholders:
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•
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•
Proper Governance
Economically Sound And Profitable
Exercise Their Responsibilities Towards Society
Take Care Of The Natural Environment.
The South African Macro
Environment
• Political And Legal Forces
• Economic Forces
• Social Forces
• Technological Forces
• Environmental Forces
• Global Forces
Political And Legal Forces
• National Legislation
• Labour Relations Framework
• Economic Transformation
• Employment Equity
• Skills-Development
• Sector Education And Skills Authorities (Setas)
• Joint Initiative On Priority Skills Acquisition (Jipsa)
Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (Bbbee)
• Increasing The Number Of Black People Who Manage, Own And Control Enterprises And
Productive Assets
• Human Resource And Skills Development
• Achieving Equitable Representation In All Occupational Categories And Levels In The
Workforce
• Preferential Procurement
• Investment In Enterprises That Are Owned Or Managed By Black People.
Economic Forces
• The Economic Prospects Of A Business Affect By:
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•
•
•
•
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Interest Rates
Inflation
Unemployment
Salary And Wage Demands
Economic Cycles
Demand For Labour
Social Forces
• Diverse Workforce:
• South Africa’s Multiracial, Multi-Ethnic, Multilingual Composition
• Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) And HIV/Aids
• Combination of:
• High Incidence Of Unskilled, Unemployed People
• Shortage Of Skilled Labour
Technological Forces
• Fourth Industrial Revolution:
• Digital Economy As A Disruptor:
• How Managers Design, Produce Or Distribute Goods And
Services
• Design Of Organisations And Jobs
• Development Of Information And Communications Technology
• Digital Economy Opportunities
• Mobile And Geographically Dispersed Workforce
• Alternative Work Arrangements:
• Telecommuting
• Virtual Teamwork
• Nature Of Work Itself
Environmental Forces
• Carbon Emissions And Climate Change
• Global Response:
• Sustainable Development Goals
• Climate Change Agreements
• Excessive And Unsustainable Use Of Natural Resources
• Pollution Of The Environment
• Organisations Expected To:
• Reduce Their Adverse Impact Upon The Environment
• Manage And Mitigate Risks
• Rehabilitate The Environment
• HRM Implications:
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•
•
•
Revising How Jobs Are Designed
Greening Jobs And Creating Green Ones
Educating Employees On Environmental Sustainability
Promoting More Sustainable Business Practices
Global Forces
• Globalisation:
• Removal Of National Barriers To International Trade
• Pressure On Local Businesses To Remain Competitive
• HRM Function Helps Organisations Remain Competitive By:
• Improving Productivity
• Reducing Labour Costs
• Removed Barriers To Labour Mobility:
• More Globally Diverse Workforce
• HRM To Assist Managers In:
• Dealing With Diversity In The Workplace
• Acculturation Of Expatriate Staff
Stakeholder Theory
• An Alternative Approach To Strategic Management
• The Stakeholder At Its Centre, Or As The Basic Unit Of Analysis
Definition: Stakeholder
• A stakeholder is a person, group or organisation that has an
interest or concern in an organisational project, and can either
affect or be affected by it (Freeman, 1984).
The Process Of Stakeholder
Engagement
Identify stakeholders
•List the main stakeholders
•Identify their main issues
(i.e. expectations, demands
and needs)
•Group stakeholders
according to their similarity
Map Stakeholder
groups
•Map stakeholders according
to their levels of power,
interest, legitimacy,
urgency, etc.
•Identify the most important
stakeholders
Prioritise issues
•Develop an issues matrix in
a table format, listing the
main issues down the first
column, with an additional
column per stakeholder.
•Rate the importance of each
issue to each stakeholder
•Identify the most important
issues overall
•For each important
stakeholder, identify what
the most important issues
are for them.
Plan for stakeholder
engagement
•Determine what level of
engagement is required for
each stakeholder
•Plan when to engage each
stakeholder
Stakeholder Groups
• Two-Tier Categorisation And Arrangement:
• Primary Stakeholder Groups:
• Financiers
• Suppliers
• Employees
• Customers
• Communities
• Secondary Stakeholder Groups:
• Government
• Competitors
• Media
• Special-Interest Groups
• Consumer Advocate Groups
Levels Of Stakeholder
Engagement
• Monitor:
• Simply Monitor The Activities Of Trade Unions, But Do Not Engage
With Them.
• Inform:
• Keep Trade Unions Informed About Decisions Taken By The
Management Of The Firm After They Have Been Made.
• Consult:
• Consult With Trade Unions Before Making Decisions. However, The
Views Of Trade Unions May Or May Not Be Taken Into Account
When Making The Final Decision.
• Participate:
• Create Fora Wherein Trade Unions Can Participate With
Management In Problem Solving And Decision Making.
Levels Of Stakeholder
Engagement
Participate
Consult
Inform
Monitor
Labour Relations Legislative
Frameworks
• Radical:
• No Common Interest Between Labour And Management So Change
The Economic System.
• Unitarist:
• An Organisation Is A Coherent Team With A Single, Commonly
Accepted Goal, So Trade Unions Are An Intrusion
• Pluralist:
• Employers And Employees Will Have Different Goals And Conflict
Will Be Unavoidable, So Trade Unions Represent Workers
• Societal Corporatist:
• Conflict Is Acknowledged In The Employment Relationship, But
Emphasis Is Placed On Greater Cooperation And Agreement Among
The Parties
Reasons Workers Join Trade
Unions
• Economic Needs
• Job Security And Regulation
• Political Reasons
• Social Needs (Workers Are United)
• Self-Fulfilment
• To Protect A Trade/Skill
• For Representation.
LRA Structures: Legislative
engagement procedure
• Bargaining Councils
• Statutory Councils
• Workplace Forums
NEDLAC
• Key stakeholders meet at A national level in relation to economic
and labour matters related to:
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•
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Public Finance And Monetary Policy
Labour Market Policy
Trade And Industrial Policy
Development Policy
• Representation:
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•
•
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Government
Organised Labour
Organised Business
Community-Based Organisations
Stakeholders In SA HRM And
Labour Relations Environment
• The State
• Employers And Employers’ Associations
• Employees And Trade Unions
• Trade-Union Federations
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•
•
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Craft Unions
Industrial Unions
General Unions
Public-Sector Unions
• Worker Representatives
• Local Communities
• Education Providers
Major Trade-Union Federations
• Congress Of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu)
• Federation Of Unions Of South Africa (Fedusa)
• National Council Of Trade Unions (Nactu)
• Confederation Of South African Workers’ Unions (Consawu)
• South African Federation Of Trade Unions (Saftu)
HRM in practice
• Identify an organisation of your choice and conduct an analysis of
its stakeholders as follows:
• Make a list of the key stakeholders. If there are too many, group
some of them.
• For each of the stakeholders, identify the key issues, needs and
expectations that they would have of the organisation.
• Develop an issues matrix to identify the key issues overall, and those
that are prioritised by each stakeholder.
• Map the stakeholders in terms of their power and interest in the
organisation.
• Based upon the issues matrix and the stakeholder mapping, decide
how the organisation should engage each of stakeholders, and on
what issues.
Case studies
• Surance Brokers
• External forces
• Stakeholders
• Stakeholder engagement
• Global Adventures and Hospitality (GA&H)
• Stakeholder identification
• isiZulu Craft Traders Incorporated
• Stakeholder analysis