Question

Bob Ulrich, CEO of nonunion retailer Target, justifies his company's antiunion philosophy by saying that Target "simply doesn't believe that third-party representation would add anything for our customers, our employees, or our shareholders. We just do not believe it's productive and adds value." Critique this stance. Labor Relations book, chapter 6 reflection question 3.

Answer 1

Answer: There are both advantages and disadvantages of having a union in a company. The anti union stance of Bob has some substance as the involvement of the third party during the trade disputes may not lead to the productive outcome as the third parties do not have the same interest level in the issues as the conflicting parties may have. Also when the company is conscious about the rights of the workforce and is ready to provide anything to the employees, then there is not much need for an intervention from the third party. But at the same time the importance of a union inside the organization cannot be ignored. The individual workers are not technically or resource wise capable of fighting for their rights. They require experienced and professional people for negotiations with the company. Also the union acts as an arbitrator between the company and the employees.   Hence the importance of the union cannot be fully ignored. Thus Bob’s stance is partially correct.