Employee Relations: An International Journal

Keith Sisson

1999 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425459910292098

There appears to be some doubt about the future direction of both the theory and the practice of employment relations. This article therefore speculates about the prospects of the "new" European social model becoming the orthodoxy in the field. This model, which has strong similarities with the UK's "partnership" agreements, stands up very well to many of the criticisms levelled at the "HRM" paradigm that was the most recent contender. The plausibility of the "new" model is in doubt, however, given the prevailing economic and political context in the UK and other EU countries. Even so, if people are looking for a dominant focus for analysis and policy, this "new" model has much to recommend. In particular, it is especially relevant to handling the implications of the restructuring likely to be the main concern for the foreseeable future.

Hans Jürgen Drumm

1999 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425459910371144

Classical transaction cost theory is not applicable to decisions on HRM or organizational design. This article overcomes such a fruitless situation. First on an operative level the two types of HRM and separately organizational transaction costs will be analyzed and then linked together in a substitutive or cumulative way. Second, transaction cost analysis is extended to the higher level of strategic HRM and organization design. There both types of transaction costs are linked again. Furthermore, they control types and size of HRM and organizational transaction costs on the operative level. As a decision base consequently both levels and both types of transaction cost should be analyzed and determined simultaneously.

Stella Kufidu; Dimitrios Mihail

1999 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425459910292106

Labour flexibility is a central theme of management's rhetoric in Greece. At the same time the securing of greater flexibility has been identified by policy makers as a central component of industrial relations reform. In spite of this endowing of flexibility with major significance there is a marked absence of empirical data indicating the growth of flexibility at the Greek workplace. This paper entails an examination of the extent to which private companies in Greece have adopted crucial aspects of flexibility such as decentralized bargaining, pay, working time and employee participation. Our research analyzed management data from a survey of 22 manufacturing establishments and compares them with relevant European data. Main findings indicate a considerable gap between rhetoric and flexibility implementation in actual practice.

Tung‐Chun Huang

1999 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/01425459910292115

Previous studies have examined the impact of gender on training opportunities, but only within the context of Western societies. This study explores the effect of gender on access to company training in Taiwanese high-tech firms. It finds that although males enjoy a slight advantage over females in obtaining training, there are no significant gender-based differences. Females in Taiwan appeared to be more successful in accessing company training than their counterparts in the USA and the UK. Higher labour-market status is offered as a potential reason for such relative success. Consistent with human capital theory, a direct relationship is found to exist between seniority and the probability of receiving training.