Partnership Working
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Transcript of Partnership Working
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?