Partnership Working

The evidence base

Partnership working

• What is partnership working?

• Principles of partnership working

• Benefits?

• Success factors?

• Challenges?

• Developing partnerships?

• Questions for PCTs and Care Trusts

Importance of partnership working for

PCTs and Care Trusts• Improving Working Lives• Recruitment and retention• Shifting the balance of power • Innovative organisations– a great opportunity to

make a difference – huge changes planned• Need to inform and shape improvements by those

who understand the services i.e the users and the people who care

What is partnership What is partnership at work?at work?

• good relationships between unions, employers and employees• based on common interests which• improve the business performance of

organisations and • improve the quality of working life for

employees.TUC Partnership Institute

Six Partnership Six Partnership principlesprinciples

• joint commitment to success• focus on quality of life• recognition of legitimate roles• commitment to job security• transparency• adding value

TUC Partnership Institute

“The Partnership Company”IPA 1998 Guest and Peccei

• Characteristics• high staff involvement

in decision making• Shared common

commitment to goals• Shared values• Joint problem solving

to industrial relations• Low conflict levels

• Benefits• Attitudes, behaviour

and performance improved

• Ability to recruit and retain good staff

• Low levels of absenteeism

Research

• European Foundation – best results delivered by trade union involvement in policy and strategy + individual employee involvement (Sisson et al)

• Trade union presence = higher level of investment in training (Green and Machin)

• DE study - those employers that have negotiated training with unions have delivered better results (Winterton)

Research• Williams, Michie,Pattani 1998 “Improving the

health of the NHS workforce” Lower rates of stress in organisations with good communication, co-operation, training, high levels of control over and flexibility in their work

• Workplace Employee Relations Survey 1998 - Unions deliver higher productivity

• OECD Employment Outlook – Partnership delivers more innovation

Research in private sector?

• Fewer redundancies in partnership workplaces• Non-partnership workplaces – 36% used

compulsory redundancies• Partnership workplaces – redundancies generally

voluntary• Pay for average workers in partnership workplaces

around £50 per week higher• Average hours shorter in partnership workplaces

Benefits for staff

• Influence over their work and services to patients and users

• Involvement in decisions that affect them• Feel valued• Security• Quality of working life and work life

balance• Development opportunities

Benefits for Benefits for UnionsUnions• adversarialism unlikely to deliver

• responds to members’ aspirations

• improves quality of working life

• gives unions strategic influence over business

• strengthens union presence in workplace

Benefits for Benefits for organisationsorganisations• response to pressure/internal crisis/change• sustained business/ service success• motivated workforce• recruitment and retention• skills and flexibility• improved industrial relations• employer of choice

Success Success factorsfactors

• leadership – on all sides• agreed statements of policies, objectives,

process• understanding of the case for change• investment of time, effort and training• monitoring and evaluation• understanding of the pressures on both sides

Challenges• low trust morale security• ‘initiative overload’ • risk of being half hearted• challenge to existing roles:

- managers- full-time officials- shop stewards

• union relationships• departure of key personalities

Developing Partnership Working - a cultural journey

PCTs and Care Trusts are partnership organisations

• How can our people be real partners?

• How can we demonstrate through our actions that we are partnership organisations?

• Are we really ready for partnership working?