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Strategies for Implementing

ParticipationUNIT 14 STRATEGIES FOR

IMPLEMENTING PARTICIPATION

Objectives

After going through this unit, you should be able to:

G understand the factors responsible for the failure of participative schemes in

India;

G identify the factors which contribute to the growth of the schemes; and

G formulate the strategies for making the participative forums work.

Structure

14.1 Factors Responsible for the Failure of Participative Schemes in India

14.2 Strategies for Making Participative Forums Effective

14.3 Micro and Operational Participation

14.4 Summary14.5 Self-Assessment Questions

14.6 Further Readings

14.1 FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR FAILURE OF

PARTICIPATIVE SCHMES IN INDIA

Broadly speaking, the schemes of workers participation in management have failed inIndia. A variety of factors have contributed to this failure. In this section, we will

discuss these factors.

1) Lack of Positive Attitude of the Management: Managements acceptance ofWPM is very crucial for the success of any participative scheme. However, in India,the employers in general are incredulous about the capacity of participating workmen.

Moreover, most of the employers/managers believe that decision making is their

prerogative and they do not want it to be shared by workers.

2) Lack of initiative on the part of Trade Unions:The schemes workers participa-tion have been sponsored by the Government. There has been lack of initiative on the

part of managements and trade unions. The trade unionists view the schemes of

participation as the ones intruding into their domain.

3) Ideological differences between Employees and Employers regarding thedegree of participation:There is a fundamental difference between employees andemployers regarding the level of participation by workers. The employers contention

is that participative management should be an evolutionary process and that thisshould be experimented at the plant and shop levels. Further, the employers are of the

opinion that as the employees are, by and large, uninformed and lack experience in

participative management, Board level workers participation is not feasible until theworkers are educated. The employees, on the other hand, feel that the scheme of

participation should be simultaneously introduced at all levels. The result is that the

various schemes have been accepted half heartedly.

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Employee Involvement 4) Delays in implementation/Non-implementation of the decisions of the partici-

pative bodies: One of the major handicaps in the effective functioning of the partici-

pative schemes is that there are often inordinate delays in the implementation andsometimes non-implementation of the decisions arrived at by the participative forums.

This often generates apathy or dissatisfaction and frustration among the workersresulting in their alienation to the participative schemes.

5) Workers attitude to Participative Schemes: The workers consider any kind ofparticipation as an eyewash. Further, they feel that the participative forums would

turn out to be forums for passing on to them the entire blame for poor production, low

productivity and lower profits. Why should they allow themselves to be the scapegoats? Historically, the workers have not been asked to do anything more than carry-

ing out instructions. They have never been asked to think and suddenly they are madenot only to think but also to participate in the job of running of the organisation.

Obviously, they will look at the whole thing with suspicion.

6) Political Unionism/Multiplicity of Unions and Inter-Union Rivalries:Too much

of politicialisation and multiplicity of unions and the consequent inter-union rivalries

also have negative effects on the participative schemes. Minority unions in their

struggle for survival will naturally scuttle efforts of the participative forums.

A major issue in a multi union situation is how should workers be represented onthe participative forums? Central trade union federations like INTUC oppose the

suggestion of election of representatives through secret ballot, but on the other hand,

the federations like HMS, CITU, AITUC etc. favour election (through secret ballot)of representatives to these forums. Thus, the inter union rivalries pose a big problem

to the working of the participative schemes.

7) Narrow scope of Participative Forums:One of the reasons for the lukewarmresponse of the workers to the participative forums is that these forums cover only a

limited range of issues such as the 3TsTea, Towels and Toilets. As the workers

are more interested in other issues like grievance settlement, pay scales or wages etc.,

and they expect the participative forums to cover these issues, they show little interestin the working of these forums.

8) Consultative form of Participation: One of the reasons for the unimpressive

record of workers participation is that the major function of participative forums isonly consultative and advisory in nature, and their role is confined to issues of labour

welfare. What the workers expect is decisive participation.

9) Multiplicity of Participative Forums: The existence of a number of participativebodies the workers committees, JMCs, shop councils, unit councils, plant councils,

canteen committees, safety committees, etc. each with ill-defined role and functions

has often created confusion, duplication of efforts and resulted in a waste of time andenergy. The resultant effect has been the improper functioning of these bodies.

Activity A

List out the issues covered under the participative forums of the organisations you arefamiliar with. Suggest most important issues as per your opinion to be included in the

participative forums.

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Strategies for Implementing

Participation14.2 STRATEGIES FOR MAKING PARTICIPATIVE

FORUMS EFFECTIVE

Based on the various studies on different aspects of workers participation, the

following pre-requisites are identified as the ones that make the participative forums

effective:

1) A scheme of workers participation in management cannot be developed unless a

permissive environment is first created. There are three elements which may help

building the permissive environment: (i) industrial relations climate must bepeaceful; (ii) there must be a strong and representative union; and (iii) results ofany experiments in this regard need not be time-bound.

2) Workers Participation in Management can succeed reasonably only when theparties concerned start with an initial faith in the system. This however, is

possible only when both union and management perceive the schemes as a useful

aid to the realisation of their respective goals.

3) It is important that the objectives set for Workers Participation in Managementshould not be ambiguous and consequently vague.

4) It is important not confuse the larger question of the political struggle for powerdistribution between different social groups on the one hand, and participative

management for sorting out shop floor level issues on the other. If the largerquestion of power distribution is separated from the goals of participative

management related to limited and specific issues, the chances of success will

improve.

5) It is important that participative forums must play a complementary role to the

process of bargaining. In such a complementary framework participative forumsshould confine themselves to dealing with the day-to-day work place level issues

including grievance handling.

6) There is scope for selective and careful legislative support to workers

participation in management. Legislation provides a signal to the parities to move

in a particular direction in their interaction process. But legislation should movetowards creating a permissive environment rather than imposing a rigidframework in which participation to work.

7) As far as possible, the institutionalised form of participation should be lessemphasised, and efforts should be made to encourage participation through

changes in the leadership styles, communication processes, inter personal andinter-group relations etc.

8) A realistic scheme for workers participation in management must necessarilystart from a reasonable degree of managerial and supervisory autonomy from

outside control, particularly in the context of public enterprises. In addition the

bureaucratic and rule-oriented practices must give way to flexibility.

9) It is import that the right kind of attitudes and skills should be developed amongmanagers to enable them to practice participative styles. It is less than honest for

a person of authoritarian bent of mind to practice participative management. In

enterprises where such authoritarian practices have prevailed for a long time,probably a beginning will have to be made by a change in the leadership itself.

This will need considerable further reinforcement by carefully designed schemesof management development and organisational change through suitable

techniques.

10) It is needless to enforce uniformity across the industrial scene so far as any form

of participative management is concerned. It is better if the forms, the coverage,and the extent of participation grew in response to the specific environment,

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Employee Involvement capacity and interest of the parties concerned. Perhaps it would be more

worthwhile if some pilot schemes of workers participation in management are

tried in selected undertakings where, organisational and other pre-conditionspermit.

11) It is desirable to have a limited number of forums of workers participation in

management. In this context, there is no need to have the works committee as

well as the JMC. Perhaps works committees with enlarged scope and powershould be given a further trial.

12) In order to create a necessary industrial relations climate, immediate steps mustbe taken to strengthen unionism. All steps that are necessary to develop strong,

representative and recognised trade unions at the enterprise or industry level, asthe case may be, should be taken in all earnest.

13) It is important that after the initial lead from the government, the managers mustseize the initiatives to promote workers participation in management. Once they

are committed and prepared to take the right kind of initiative perhaps it wouldbe easier for them to convince others.

14) At the same time, the enterprise must commit a certain amount of resources forinvestment for the development of participative skills among the workers and the

trade union leaders.

15) Efforts for promoting clarity with regard to the different aspects of participative

management should be undertaken for a group of trade unions separately as wellas jointly with managers of a selected group of enterprises.

16) Once certain decisions are taken, the management is under a moral obligation toimplement such decisions without undue delay.

17) Workers must sense a concrete need to participate.

18) There must be information flows and communication channels.

19) Workers must have a sense of job security and freedom from reprisals resulting

from their participation.

20) The form, coverage, extent and levels of participation should grow in response tospecific environment, capacity and interest of the parties concerned.

14.3 MICRO AND OPERATIONAL PARTICIPATION

Labour is part of the organisation. Hence, they should be encouraged to participate in

decision-making. At the micro and operational level, workers should be encouraged toparticipate in the day-to-day affairs of the organisation. There is a strong case for this

type of participation because man-machine relationship is higher at the bottom level. It

is expected that they should be able to contribute much towards solving operationalproblems. In suggestion schemes, Quality Circles1 etc. workers have proved that by

involving the workers at the micro and operational level the organisations are able to

solve problems which were not thought of earlier. Hence, schemes such as suggestion

schemes, quality circles, etc. should be encouraged so that a meaningful participation

takes place at the micro level.

Activity B

What are the strategies being used in the organisation you are working in or familiar

with, to make participative forums more effective?

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Strategies for Implementing

Participation14.4 SUMMARY

In this unit we have discussed the factors inhibiting the effective functioning of theparticipative schemes in India. To recapitulate, some of the inhabiting factors are: lack

of positive attitude on the part of management and lack of initiative on the part of the

unions towards the participative schemes, ideological differences between employersand employees regarding the degree of participation, delays in implementation/non-

implementation of the decisions of the participative bodies, the workers perception

that the employers involve them in the participative forums with the ulterior motive ofpassing on to the workers the entire blame for poor production, low productivity and

lower profits, multiplicity of unions and inter-union rivalries, narrow scope ofparticipative forums (the range of issues covered by the participative forums being

limited to the 3Ts Tea, Towels and Toilets), only consultative and not decisivenature of functioning of the participative forums, and the existence of multiplicity of

participative forums in the country each with all-defined role and function and

sometimes overlapping of the functions performed by these forums. It was noted thatunless these factors are tackled, the participative schemes will remain at sixes and

sevens.

14.5 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

1) Briefly discuss the factors responsible for tha failure of participative schemes inIndia.

2.) What suggestions would you like to offer to make the participative schemes work

effectively?

14.6 FURTHER READINGS

Chandra, S. and C.S. Venkata Ratnam (Eds.). 1990. Workers Participation inManagement,New Delhi: International Management Institute.

Chhabra, T.N. and R.K. Suri. 2003.Industrial Relations: Concepts and Issues,Delhi: Dhanpat Rai & Co.

IGNOU. 1988. MS 2, Blcok 6, Unit 23, Industrial Democracy and Workers

Participation, pp. 53-66.

IGNOU. 1993. MS-24, Block 4, Unit 16, Strategies and Planning for

Implementing Participation, pp. 21-28.

Mamoria, C.B., Mamoria and Gaukar. 2004.Dynamics of Industrial Relations,

Mumbai: Himalaya Publishing House.

Perumal, S. Velayudha. 1993. Workers Participations: The Myth and Reality inIndia in Ruddar Datt (Ed.) 1993. Workers Participation & Workers Ownership,Delhi: Pragati Publications, pp. 67-82.

Sheth, N.R. 1972. Hazards of Industrial Democracy,Economic and PoliticalWeekly , 7(35), 1972.

Sheth, N.R. 1972.Joint Management Councils:Problems and Prospects, New Delhi:Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources.

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Employee Involvement Sodhi, J.S. & Rama J. Joshi, 1996. In Search of Participation in C.P. Thakur, C.S.

Venkata Ratnam and Pravin Sinha (Eds.). 1996.Economic Transition with a Human

Face, Delhi: Global Business Press, pp. 287-309.

Thakur C.P and K.C. Sethi (Eds.). 1973.Industrial Democracy: Some Issues and

Experiences , New Delhi: Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations and HumanResources.

Virmani, B.R. 1978. Workers Participation in Management, New Delhi: MacmillanCompany of India Ltd.