Industrial Relations
Part 1
The perspective
industrial relations
Approaches
Part 2
Participants
Trade unions and
management
Government
Context
Concept
Part 3
Process
Employee involvement
and participation
Collective
bargaining
Industrial action
conciliation/arbitration
Part 4
Practices
Negotiation
Grievance, discipline and redundancy
procedure
Part 1: This part introduces student the perspective of industrial
relations, which include;
Chapter 1:
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Approaches to industrial relations:
Understand the definitions of industrial relation.
Understand the different views of employment relationship and
the interaction in an industrial relations system; unitary
perspective, pluralist perspective, Marxist perspective (their view
toward conflict and trade unions), input-output model, system
concept, social action approach, control of labor process, human
resource management.
Understand the integral nature of the concepts of conflict, cooperation and regulations.
Identify the importance and difficulties of comparing industrial
relations in different countries and the issue of convergence and
divergence in industrial relations.
Industrial Relations
Chapter 2: Context of industrial relations
The important of knowing the context of industrial relations and
understand what constitute the context, which include;
 The industrial relations ‘system’ (roles, relationships, institutions,
processes and activities exist in variety of industries and level in
organizations).
 Other segments of social activity (economic, social, political and
technology).
 Time (for example today’s problem stem from yesterday’s
decision, its solution as environments change become a problem
in the future). Also to understand attitudes, expectation and
relationships manifest by the participants are at least the
product of past individual and their collective experiences.
 Mass media, it is important to understand that mass media able
to shape attitudes, opinions and expectations. For most people
information and knowledge come from media however the media
not only reporting but also interpreting issues and present them
to public based on their perspectives. Their view able to shape
the public opinions.
Chapter 3: Concept and value in industrial relations.
Industrial relations is not an objective science. Therefore
perceptions in industrial relations are individuals and value laden. In
this chapter student is introduced to different concepts and values
that commonly mentioned and argued in industrial relations. The
different concepts and values involve include;
 Fairness and equity.
 Power and authority.
 Individual and collectivism.
 Right and responsibility.
 Integrity and trust.
Part 2: This part introduces the participants in the industrial relations
system, which include;
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Chapter 4-6:
Trade unions
Understand definition of trade unions and the differences
between trade unions and other workers’ association.
Understand the definition of trade union in Malaysia and its
implication and understand the Malaysian Trade Union Act
Understand the different between trade unions structure and
trade union organization.
Trade unions development: organizational, political and legal
development.
The function of trade unions: power, job regulation, social
change, and members services and self fulfilment.
The union of employers.
Chapter 7: Management
 Understand the different level of managements,
 Strategy developments.
 Management objectives, management styles and management
strategies.
 Human resource Management and its issues.
 HRM typology of non-union organization.
 Understand the Malaysia employers’ Association.
Chapter 8: Government
 Understand what constitute government and its relationship with
political party.
 The roles and objectives of government related to industrial
relations.
 Government intervention and strategies: as market regulator,
employer, legislator and conciliator.
 Understanding the role of government in the changing of political
and economic of the world and understand how the changes
such as the formation of European Union, GATT/WTO affect the
industrial relations system of a country.
 Understand the Malaysian Ministry of Human Resource and its
Industrial Relations Role
Part 3: This part explains processes involve in industrial relation that
include;
Chapter 9: Collective bargaining
 Objective.
 Requirement.
 Structure of collective bargaining.
 Content of collective bargaining.
 Multi employer bargaining.
 Industry or sectoral agreement; advantage, disadvantage.
 Single employer bargaining; advantage, disadvantage.
 Collective agreement (CA).
Chapter 10:
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Employee involvement and participation
Understand the different in concept, strategy and form between
employee ‘involvement’ and employee ‘participation’.
Understand the different approach to involvement and
participation.
Understand the concept of industrial democracy.
Understand the relationship between employee involvement and
human resource management HRM.
Chapter 11 and 12:
a) Industrial action
Industrial action Resolution of conflict
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Understand the different between trade dispute and industrial
action.
Role and form of industrial action.
Function of industrial action.
Strike indices.
b) Understand the process of;
 Mediation.
 Conciliation and
 Arbitration.
c) Relationship to collective bargaining.
c) Government policy objective.
Part 4: Explain the practices involved in industrial relation system
which include:
Chapter 13: Negotiation
 Essential characteristic of negotiation.
 Power in negotiation.
 Perceived relative bargaining advantage.
 Understand the model of negotiation behaviour.
 Task and skill of negotiator.
 Negotiation encounter.
 Negotiator–response to goal conflict.
 Negotiation convention.
Chapter 15: Grievance, discipline and redundancy procedures
Grievance;
 Understand the grievance process.
 Typology of employee expression of dissatisfaction: complaint,
grievance, trade dispute.
 Grievance policy, grievance procedure, grievance interview
 Understand the Malaysian Context
Discipline;
 Disciplinary process.
 Unfair dismissal
 Discipline policy, discipline procedure and discipline interview
 Understand the Malaysian Context
Redundancy;
 Understand the meaning of redundancy:
 Management and union.
 Redundancy–legal framework.
 Step in handling redundancy.
 Handling redundancy-issues.
 Understand the Malaysian Context