Better than Nothing? Is Non-union Partnership a Contradiction in Terms?

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Johnstone, Stewart
Ackers, Peter
Wilkinson, Adrian
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2010
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Abstract

Though the notion of union-management partnership commands an extensive body of literature, little is known about non-union partnership arrangements. This article addresses the relatively unexplored issue of non-union partnership through a detailed case study of WebBank, a British Internet bank. Three main themes are explored. First, we seek to understand more about the meaning of - and rationale for - partnership in non-union settings. Second, we explore the operation of non-union partnership in practice. Finally, we evaluate the effectiveness of non-union partnership from the perspectives of various organizational actors. The article suggests that in judging the effectiveness of a partnership arrangement, or indeed any voice regime more generally, there is a need to re-consider the benchmarks for success, and to place them in the context of contemporary employment relations. The evidence suggests that it would be deeply unhelpful and inaccurate to dismiss a non-union partnership a priori as a 'contradiction in terms'.

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Journal of Industrial Relations

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52

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2

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© 2010 Industrial Relations Society of Australia. This is the author-manuscript version of the paper. Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitive, published version.

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Applied economics

Business systems in context not elsewhere classified

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