Trends and developments in industrial relations law Industrial tribunals-what next?

Here the author outlines recent proposals for reform of the industrial tribunal system and analyses the dilemmas and differences amongst proponents of reform.     

Industrial relations in Korea

This paper sets out to examine the unique industrial relations systems of East Asian developing countries with special reference to Korea. Following the presentation of a framework of analysis, there is an assessment of environmental conditions, the strategy of the main actors and the changes to them arising from the progress of industrialization. Trade union organizations and collective bargaining in Korea are then examined. This involves special reference to an account of major differences between the Korean system and that of Japan. Outcomes of industrial relations and their recent changes are next discussed. Finally, the analysis is concluded with a review of prospects for the future.     

Industrial relations of recession

With unemployment reaching record levels and the economy showing signs of long run recession, attention is focused on the implications of this for the future of British industrial relations[1]. The authors examine key issues both nationally and in their local region, the North.     

Industrial relations and the construction of the Channel Tunnel

This article looks at industrial relations on the Channel Tunnel construction project. Contrary to many other developments in the industry, industrial relations here followed a pattern of joint regulation, strong trade union organisation, and the restriction of the fragmentation of the labour force into a large number of self-employed individual sub-contractors, known in the UK as ‘the lump’.     

Industrial relations law commentary: the Employment Act 1982—Statutory Sick Pay

In this commentary, the first of two parts, the Employment Act 1982 and the Statutory Sick Pay scheme are described. The second part will assess the significance and likely impact of recent industrial relations legislation.     

Hospitals and material management in the coming decade

The 1990s will be a decade of increasing dramatic and traumatic change for hospitals. Reimbursement, technology, and consumers, either alone or in concert, will be the forces that will shape hospitals in the future. At the end of the 1990s we will have hospitals that offer technology to the critically ill, outpatient surgical services, and comforting care for those in the late years of life. Material management will be important to hospitals because expense control will be as important as ever. However, I believe the role of a material manager will diminish as the services provided change and as the role is folded into the responsibilities of those who manage one of the three critical business areas hospitals will be in. This new hybrid of today's manager will still apply all of the concepts to the distribution of supplies in a hospital as today's material managers do but will use them as only a part of their overall management responsibility.     

Service: the next frontier

There is a revolution taking place in the U.S. economy, a service revolution. Today, over 70 percent of the gross national product and 75 percent of all jobs can be attributed to the service sector. This monumental change is affecting not only service firms but also manufacturers. It is estimated that anywhere from 30 to 70 percent of the value added by a typical manufacturer is due to the service component. This article discusses the increased importance of services in our economy and on our shop floors. If manufacturers are to prosper in the coming decade, they will need to embrace this change and put services and service operations at the forefront of their strategic plans.     

what next after the ERM debacle?

What sort of policy should the government pursue after quitting the ERM. Five leading monetary economists give their views on what the government should do now. J.M. Keynes provides a far-sighted commentary from the past and G.R. Steele speculates whether it was ever reasonable to expect a single currency to evolve from the ERM.     

Consumers alone shouldn't trigger the next recession

• ? If consumers in advanced economies were to hike their savings and rein in their discretionary spending in response to fears about the economy, we project global GDP growth in 2020 would slow to a subdued 2.1% (below our 2.5% baseline forecast), but the world economy would avoid a recession.
• ? The risks of rising precautionary savings aren't uniform across the advanced economies. For instance, the UK, Australia, Canada and Japan look particularly vulnerable to slowing retail sales, which could trigger a stronger downturn in those countries.
• ? Economies with the highest rates of consumer debt are also likely to be more at risk to weaker discretionary spending. In this respect, Australia, the Netherlands and Canada stand out the most.

     

Management-labour relations in the new Chinese economy

This article sets out to cast greater light on employment practices in an emerging ‘socialist market economy’. It is based on empirical research carried out in a range of Chinese enterprises, which are then examined in terms of their management-labour relations, employment practices and human resources. Although the ‘iron rice bowl’ system of job security and ‘cradle-to-grave’ welfare coverage found mainly in state-owned enterprises is now being phased out, the study concludes that the degree of overlap with Sino-foreign joint ventures which are often portrayed as more likely to implement labour market-driven practices, to be as yet only partial.