The Employment Relationship Is Inherantly Conflictual, Discuss

Work in its essence can be defined, as by Michael Sutherland (2001) as the fulfilment of tasks for someone else. This is the basis of the employment relationship, and the exchange system that operates between the two main parties involved in this relationship, the employees and the employers, the details of which are known as the employment contract. The issue of control is essentially important in the employment relationship and the contract, and this can be seen as to where possible conflict can be initiated, the someone else telling the worker how to do the job. However, first the employment relationship itself must be examined, and the three dominating factors that determine this relationship, the economical, legal and social factors. These factors are the stem of the conflict between the two parties of the employment relationship (Dufty and Fells 1989: 2). The issue of how this inherent conflict is managed also must be dealt with, and this is done through two management ideologies, unitarist and pluralist, as well as legal, economic and social solutions.

Before one can look at the inherent conflicts surrounding these factors, one must look at the factors

ubordinates, under a unitarist manager, after discussion with other managers, swift effective action would be taken, punishment for either supervisor or employees. This "shooting from the hip" attitude reflects a suppression of the conflict in not negotiating an solution between the aggrieved parties. Hence conflict will always be an inherent part of unitarist management because it is not dealt with properly in the first place. The pluralist ideology accepts the fact that an organisation is a group of individuals, with individual interests and goals. (Fox et al 1995:243-244, Fox 1966:4). A pluralist manager accepts conflict as an inevitable and in some cases legitimate, but not destructive force in an organisation, arising from the competing interest, except for survival. A pluralist manager accepts the role of trade unions as a social avenue for employees to combine and try to achieve their interests (Fox 1966:7, Fox et al 1995: 244). A pluralist manger seeks to accommodat!

e all intrusts and desires, and achieves an "approximate balance of power between employers and employees...no one party dominates...get some of what they want; none will get everything.." (Fox et al 1995:244). Conflict is negotiated, and management as well as employees adapt and change according to the situation. Pluralists counter conflict, they do not sweep it under the carpet as "stupidity" (Fox 1966:12) like unitarists do.

themselves, and how they are interdependent pieces in the employment relationship. In theory, the most dominant force in the employment relationship is the economic factor. Firms have to make a profit, otherwise they will not survive, therefore they must use their limited resources in the most cost efficient manner using economic rationality (Goodman 1984: 6). All firms, and subsequently employees are literally at the mercy of the market forces of demand and supply. Supply of labour will be determined in the long run by trade offs between present income and training, investment in human capital, and in the short run by the workers choice between income and leisure (Whitfield 1987 18-20). Demand for labour will be influenced by the final product value, cost of labour, efficiency of management and use of technology (Dufty and Fells 1989: 5). So from a purely economical point of view, labour will be allocated to where its needed, where the demand is, and where the profit is. .This is essentially the capitalist theory, maximising profit through minimum inputs, the generating of excess capital.

Conflict is inherent in the employment relationship due to the fact that the employment contract involves two totally different groups of people with different goals, perspectives and expectations. Conflict stems from the unequal relationship that inherently exists between employers and employees, because in today's democratic society, we demand that no one group of people should be disadvantaged by another. As put by Hill, (the economic, social and cultural

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