Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label labor relations

Persuasion and Manipulation Among Managers

Persuasion and manipulation are two workplace activities that follow many of the same paths yet have different means of achieving their ends. Some managers will engage in persuasion while others will lean towards manipulation. Those who are engaged in persuasion are more likely to gain the respect of their employees while those who are more manipulative often receive immediate gratification but loose out on long-term effectiveness. Companies should recognize and remove manipulators to ensure a positive work environment. Persuasion is an attempt to show certain facts in a positive light without hiding or leaving out crucial information. It is generally a positive experience. Ultimately the listener can make a free choice on the issue as all the important information is presented to them. The influencer seeks to create a prevailing logic that both parties can agree with that leads from agreement to performance. Manipulation attempts to leave out particular facts and distort their mean

The Benefits of Active Listening for Employee Relations

It is difficult for manages to understand their workplace and how to improve performance if they are not actively listening to their employees. This means listening to their conversations, paying attention when employees are talking, and trying to find improvements in the workplace that creates congruence between employee desires and firm performance. Managers that listen are better able to coach and counsel their employees to higher levels of functioning. Listening is a skill that takes considerable time to develop but can be learned with practice. Active listening is in presence form where the manager listens without interrupting the employee. They may ask probing questions but ultimately want the employee to express themselves fully because this adds to the managers knowledge of both the employee and the organization. Those managers who fail to actively listen often find that employees no longer bring their issues to them nor are they enthusiastic about speaking up about opera

Improvements in American Worker Productivity

Labor productivity and relative wages have increased during the third quarter of 2014. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that output increased 4.4%, labor productivity rose 2 %, and working hours increased 2.3%. When comparing the third quarter of 2013 to 2014 you find that productivity increased a total of .9%. Hourly compensation also increased 2.3% putting more money into worker’s pockets. American workers have a tough job and are trying to forget the nasty years of the recession. Improving productivity and subsequently raising wages has a duel benefit of keeping overall costs lower, effective use of labor resources, and paying productive workers higher compensation. It is a win-win situation for investors, business owners, and employees. Labor productivity is calculated by dividing an index of real output with an index of all hours worked. It is a fairly simply calculation that determines how much per unit productivity each worker increased or decreased ov

Does Negotiating Pay with Employees Lead to Higher Performance and Profits?

Employers seek to create higher levels of employee performance as well as high firm profits. Standard employment contracts with predefined pay may not be offering an appropriate level of motivation for employees. Research conducted by Kuang and Moser may provide insight into how such negotiable contracts would work in the marketplace. Participative decision-making can improve firm performance in two ways (Zwick 2004) which includes information transference and employee involvement. In the first case, the transference of information creates a more efficient organization while employee involvement improves overall satisfaction with the organization. Both help tie the individual to the organizations success and mission.  Employees need accurate information in order to make choices within the workplace. The information disseminates useful data to employees (Freeman & Lazear 1995) that encourages effective organizational operations. The more useful information employees have