Chapter 9

Sport Organizations and Employee Relations

Learning objectives• Explain the meaning of employee relations in sport organisations.• Explain the role of the psychological contract in employee-

management relations.• Outline the different forms of organisational justice in the workplace. • Describe employee involvement through effective communication

and participation in decision making.• Describe the concept of trade unions and the collective bargaining

process.• Understand the bases and process of workplace grievance. • Describe the importance and management of health, safety and

employee wellness in the organisation. • Consider the nature of volunteer relations in the sport organisation.• Understand the bases and process of employee termination

Employee-management relations

• ‘HRM approaches based on employee relations have sought to broaden the involvement of employees and take a more participative approach to management through increased communication’ (McKenna & Beech, 2002, p. 255)

Relationship between management & employees

• Based on organisation rewarding its employees fairly, provide a safe and non-threatening working environment, and provide support for them to do the work of the organisation.

In turn, employees have an implied duty to:• be ready and willing for work;• take reasonable care and skill in performing the

job;• obey the employer’s lawful orders;• take care of the employer’s property;• act in good faith. (Lewis et al., 2003, p. 11)

Psychological contract

• unwritten expectations of the employee-management relationship that exist in addition to the formal employment contract

• employees should have a realistic and accurate understanding of what to expect, and what is expected of them, in the sport organization

• these expectations may be formed before starting work (based on pre-entry socialisation) and may need to be realigned upon entry (encounter socialisation)

Organizational justice

• the perception of fairness in all decisions and practices

• a reflection of the organization’s social and moral obligation to fairness

3 basic forms of organisational justice –

• distributive

• procedural

• interactional

3 bases of distributive justice

(1) equity, which is distribution based on members’ contribution to the organisation

(2) equality, which is equal distribution to all members, regardless of contribution

(3) need, which is distribution based on identified individual or group needs

Procedural justice

• fair and just procedures for determining the distribution of resources and rewards

• not only making a fair decision, but being seen (through the correct procedure) to make a fair decision

• employee involvement in the decision making process is linked to perceptions of fairness

Interactional justice

• fair and just communication and explanation of distributive and procedural justice

• particularly important when individuals are not formally involved in decision making

• can help to re-establish a sense of fairness if staff are fully apprised of the basis for the decisions in a respectful and sensitive manner (Lewis et al., 2003)

Employee involvement

• the principle of engaging staff in the organisation through various processes and mechanisms

• associated with trust in management, increased job performance, job satisfaction, and intent to stay

Main categories of employee involvement

Examples of related forms Rationale

Communicative involvement: information provision/downward communication

Team briefing; other briefing groups; corporate newspapers, journals and reports aimed at employees; videos; audiotapes; email; recorded telephone briefings

To provide information; uniform messages; to be educative or re-educative

Communicative involvement: problem-solving involvement and upward, two-way communication

Briefing groups with feedback and managerial response loops; quality improvement teams; suggestion schemes; employee surveys

Explicit access to employees’ experience and skills; gain cooperation and opinions

Communicative involvement: consultation

Joint consultation committees, working parties or groups; staff forums

Providing information and testing reactions

Task involvement at job and work organizational levels

Job redesign: job enlargement and job enrichment. Work reorganization: (semi) autonomous working groups; problem-solving involvement

To be re-educative; providing greater levels of motivation and satisfaction; empowering

Financial involvement Employee share ownership plans; profit-related pay; performance-related pay; bonus schemes

To be re-educative; providing incentives and promoting effort

Managerial actions and style of leadership

Participative managerial style; being visible; accessible and informal; creating credibility; ensuring actions in line with key messages

To provide support; encourage positive working relationships and trust; reduce barriers

Employee Participation

• a specific form of employee involvement which includes ‘direct involvement of individuals in decisions relating to their immediate work organisation and. . . indirect involvement in decision-making, through representatives, in the wider socio-technical and political structures of the firm’ (Brannen, 1983, p. 16).

Right to receive informationRight to raise objectionsRight to make suggestionsRight to be consultedRight to reject a proposal, temporarily or permanentlyRight to make a decision jointly with managementRight to exercise sole control over a decision

No influence

Complete control

A Continuum of Employee Influence over Organizational Decisions (Lewis et al., 2003)

Decision types

• strategic (what the organisation is doing)

• operational (how it is doing it)

• individual task (what each person is doing as part of operations)

• effective employee involvement through decision making relies on effective communication and shared influence

Trade unions & collective bargaining

• the primary function of a trade union is regulating the employment relationship

• the underlying premise of unionization is that individual employees have little power when dealing with their employer, but they can increase their power as a collective group or union

• local labour laws dictate the formation and nature of unions

Union & non-union organizations

• union - the legal basis for the employment relationship is a collective agreement negotiated by the union.

• The basic terms of employment are identical for all employees in a given job category covered by the collective agreement eg the standard players contract in the CBA of North America’s National Hockey League Players Union (NHLPA, 2007)

• non-union - the legal basis for the employment relationship is individual contracts which negotiated individually by the employee. The terms of employment may be variable and unique for each employee.

An Overview of Players’ Unions in the North American Professional Sport Industry

National Hockey League (NHL) Players’ Association (NHLPA)

National Basketball Association (NBA) Players’ Association (NBPA)

Major League Baseball (MLB) Players’ Association (MLBPA)

National Football League (NFL) Players’ Association (NFLPA)

Year established

1967 1954 1885, 1966 1970

Current collective bargaining agreement (CBA)

2005-2011 2005-2011 2007-2011 2006-2011

Key features of CBA

Hard salary capRevenue sharing across lower revenue teamsPlayer compensation floor (min.); Entry level compensation ceiling (max.)Free market system, players can move to any team when their contract expiresRegulation of player agent certification

Soft salary cap (ceiling with several exceptions)‘Luxury tax’ for excess payroll penalty (distributed to teams with lower payrolls)Player compensation floor and ceiling Free market system Regulation of player agent certification

No salary cap ‘Competitive balance tax’ for surpassing threshold (to lower revenue teams)Player compensation floor Free market system Regulation of player agent certification

Hard salary capFines paid to NFL and distributed to NFL-related charitiesPlayer compensation floor Free market system Regulation of player agent certification

Collective bargaining

• a process of negotiating a labour contract that is acceptable to both management and unionized employees

• local and national labour laws dictate what issues can be addressed

• Comprise substantive issues (e.g., pay, hours of work, holidays) and procedural issues (e.g., negotiation or bargaining, disciplinary action)

Grievance

Basic steps in grievance procedures:

1. Attempt informal resolution first

2. If unsuccessful or inappropriate, move to formal resolution

3. If there is no resolution, the grievance may move to arbitration, where an independent body renders a final decision

Health & safety

Hazards and risks can be controlled by: (1) elimination of the hazard from the workplace (2) redesigning the workplace so that the hazard or risk is

reduced (3) administrative controls, which involves altering the way

the work is done and work practices standards (4) personal protective equipment worn by employees to

reduce the risk of harm (e.g., water shoes for lifeguards, sun hats for camp counselors)

(CCOHS, 2006)

Employee programs

• Employee assistance programs (EAP) include a variety of confidential services made available to an employee

• assist an employee whose job performance may be adversely affected by personal problems

• services include support for problems pertaining to mental health, substance abuse, marital problems, parenting problems, and financial management

Employee wellness programs

• encourages employees ‘to engage in a range of behaviors and activities associated with better health’ (Covell et al., 2003)

• includes exercise and nutrition programs, regular medical examinations, healthy lifestyle seminars

• wellness programs are often used in recruiting new staff and as a point of differentiation from the benefits offered by competitor sport organisations

Volunteer relations• Volunteering Australia (2003, p. 1) list of volunteer rights, based on

moral and legal obligations, includes: • to work in a healthy and safe environment;• to be interviewed and engaged in accordance with equal opportunity

and anti-discrimination legislation;• to be adequately covered by insurance;• to be given accurate information about the organisation;• to be reimbursed for out of pocket expenses;• to be given a copy of the organisation’s volunteer policy and any

other policy that affects one’s work;• not to do the work of paid staff during industrial disputes;• to have a job description and agreed working hours;• to have access to a grievance procedure;• to be provided with orientation to the organisation; and• to be provided with sufficient training to do one’s job.

Termination

• Includes dismissal, voluntary departure & retirement

• ‘Fair’ dismissal ie involuntary requirement for the employee to leave include: (1) conclusion of a fixed-term contract, (2) gross misconduct, (3) lack of capability or qualifications for the job, or (4) redundancy

• law prohibits employers in most countries from unreasonably, harshly or unfairly dismissing workers and sets out legal remedies should this occur

Exit interviews

• Used to understand, and try to identify patterns in, reasons for resignation

• conducted face-to-face, by telephone, or as a survey

• focus is on reasons for leaving, reflections on the positive and negative aspects of the organisation, level of satisfaction with various aspects of the workplace (e.g., pay, workload, safety, training, promotion opportunities, leadership)

Summary

• Employee relations - the activities and processes that maintain a productive workplace while satisfying the needs of employees

• employee-management relations are based on mutual obligations, reflected in the employee’s psychological contract with the organisation

• when an employee/volunteer resigns an exit interview can assist understanding of the reasons for the departure and insights into their positive and negative experiences in the organization