Pluralistic-Perspective

In pluralism the organization is perceived as being made up of powerful and divergent sub-
groups - management and trade unions. This approach sees conflicts of interest and
disagreements between managers and workers over the distribution of profits as normal and
inescapable. Consequently, the role of management would lean less towards enforcing and
controlling and more toward persuasion and co-ordination. Trade unions are deemed as
legitimate representatives of employees. Conflict is dealt by collective bargaining and is viewed
not necessarily as a bad thing and if managed could in fact be channeled towards evolution and
positive change.Realistic managers should accept conflict to occur. There is a greater propensity
for conflict rather than harmony.

They should anticipate and resolve this by securing agreed procedures for settling disputes.

The implications of this approach include:

·0 The firm should have industrial relations and personnel specialists who advise managers
and provide specialist services in respect of staffing and matters relating to union
consultation and negotiation.

·1 Independent external arbitrators should be used to assist in the resolution of disputes.

·2 Union recognition should be encouraged and union representatives given scope to carry
out their representative duties

·3 Comprehensive collective agreements should be negotiated with unions

Pluralistic Approach
The pluralistic approach totally departs from the unitary approach. The pluralistic approach
perceives:

1. Organizations as coalitions of competing interests, where the management’s role is to mediate

amongst the different interest groups.
2. Trade unions as legitimate representatives of employee interests.

3. Stability in Industrial Relations as the product of concessions and compromises between

management and unions

Legitimacy of the management’s authority is not automatically accepted. Conflict between the
management and workers is understood as inevitable and, in fact, is viewed as conducive for
innovation and growth. Employees join unions to protect their interests and influence decision-
making by the management.

Unions thus balance the power between the management and employees. In the pluralistic
approach, therefore, a strong union is not only desirable but necessary. Similarly, society’s
interests are protected by state intervention through legislation and industrial tribunals which
provide orderly process for regulation and resolution of conflict.

The theories on pluralism were evolved in the mid-sixties and early seventies when England
witnessed a resurgence of industrial conflicts. However, the recent theories of pluralism
emanated from British scholars, and in particular from Flanders and Fox. According to pluralists,
industrial conflict is inevitable and it needs to be contained within the social mechanism of
collective bargaining, conciliation and arbitration.

Pluralistic Approach: The pluralistic approach is just the opposite of unitary approach which is
based on the assumption that an organization is an alliance of powerful and divergent sub-
groups (management and trade unions), having different competing interests are mediated by
the management. The management and the trade unions (association of workers) are the
powerful sub-groups that may not agree with certain terms and conditions prevailing in the
organization and to resolve those management tries to mediate the interest of both the groups.

During mediation, if the management pays less attention to the needs of the workers then they
form unions in order to protect their interest and influence the management decision. The
unions so formed helps in balancing the power between the management and employees. Thus,
it is based on the notion that the conflict between the management and the employees is
inevitable and is viewed as instrumental in the innovation and growth.