The International Labour Organisation describes ADR as a set of processes that comprise of negotiation, conciliation, mediation and arbitration. This description includes a set of approaches to settling disputes, which in practice vary significantly in terms of their nature and use from one institutional context to another. ADR has been analysed by some scholars as a means of bringing workplace justice to more people at lower cost and with greater speed than conventional government channels. Within the context of ADR, conciliation is seen as one of the most common and important forms of dispute resolution. Although there is a rising interest in the extent of and outcomes of conciliation, its nature in some contexts remains underexplored. This study presents empirical evidence collated among employer, management and trade union representatives as well as other stakeholders that have a role to play in collective conciliation in Nigeria. The study is qualitative due to its suitability for generating data and gathering rich and robust information. A total of twenty-three interviews were conducted between May 2015 and March 2016. The findings of this study reveal the impact of the independence and objectivity of ADR institutions while carrying out their responsibilities. It establishes that management and trade union interactions during conciliation are characterised by lack of trust, lack of confidence, fear and anxiety. It demonstrates how the attitude of management during negotiation can be attributed to their perception of the behaviour and demeanour of trade unions and conciliators. Lastly, the study affirms the link between the mind-set and approaches of the actors and highlights its Journal of Management Research ISSN 1941-899X 2018 www.macrothink.org/jmr 59 connection to the actions and behaviour of trade union and management representatives during their interactions as evident within the Nigerian context.
The aim of this paper is to present detailed contextual understanding of employment relations, alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and collective conciliation in Nigeria. This contextual understanding is important in order to comprehend the specific evolution of ADR and collective conciliation in Nigeria, the particular configuration of employment relations institutions and the role of different stakeholders such as trade unions and employers' associations. The outcomes of this study, affirms the significance of the roles and responsibilities of the actors (employer, trade union, state and conciliator) and highlights the procedures inherent in the dispute resolution mechanism hence, revealing how the weakness of state machinery tends to frustrate the process of conciliation in practice. Additionally, this study offers a reflection of what previous studies have presented, concerning the perceptions of users about the outcomes of collective conciliation within the Nigerian context.
This paper presents a systematic investigation into previous studies, conducted among scholars on the nature and process of Alternative Dispute Resolution and collective conciliation in some selected countries. It presents an assessment of previously conducted empirical studies on the factors that shape the nature and process of ADR and collective conciliation. It examines how these factors influence the attitude and opinion of the users of the service and impact on outcomes in practice. The findings of the study illustrate the significance of the state and its machinery in the establishment and funding of ADR institutions. It demonstrate the importance of trade unions and management representatives acknowledging their inability to resolve their dispute and the extent which their request for conciliation indicate their level of trust and confidence in the process as evident in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan. In addition, the findings establish how the behaviour of the state, as reflected through its approach to the employment relationship influences the actions and perception of trade unions and management representatives. The study recommends that in order to further increase the trust and confidence of trade unions and management on the outcomes of dispute resolution, the neutrality and confidentiality of the process of conciliation is essential. The role and style of conciliators during resolution is also important because; it has the tendency to influence the assessment of trade unions and management representatives during negotiation and impact on their attitude to the process and outcomes of conciliation in practice.
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