Roderick Martin - Böcker

Bargaining Power examines the balance of power between management and unions, showing why some managements–and some trade unions–are more powerful than others. Bargaining power has long been recognized as central to industrial relations, but no previous work has taken the issue as its central focus.Using both sociological and economic evidence, the author shows how managements and unions approach negotiations and how they use power to achieve their bargaining objectives. In turn he analyses different perspectives on power, negotiations, the industrial relations context, and human resources management.The book concludes with an examination of the changing position of trade unions in Britain in the 1980s, arguing that union bargaining power remains more significant than suggested by the decline in union membership.

One of the major intentions of the Conservative governments of the 1980s was to redraw the landscape and map of industrial relations. They aimed to achieve this through a combination of measures: political initiatives and campaigning; a changed economic and social environment; and most directly a programme of industrial relations legislation that increasingly curtailed the role and influence of trade union. This book examines the policies and associated legislation directly intended to change union behaviour. It considers origins, purpose and impact on union behaviour and structure, focusing on the role of ballots as the central mechanism chosen for changing union decision-making. The changes that occurred as a consequence of this legislation are placed in the wider union context and the relative influence of the balloting legislation is assessed against other developments affecting union behaviour, including the strategies adopted by the unions' leaders. It finds the results were not always as intended by the Conservative governments. In a concluding chapter the authors ask whether the framework created in the UK will be an exemplar or exceptional case when compared with developments in other European countries. The book itself is the result of research carried out over almost a decade by a highly experienced and respected team who base their analysis on interviews, detailed analysis of legislation and union rule books, and a series of in-depth case studies. This richly detailed and authoritative book will be essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand how the changing framework of labour relations affected changes in union behaviour. the book will thus appeal to students and academics working in industrial relations, human resource management, labour law, labour economics and politics. Employee relations practitioners and policy makers - managers and trade unionists - will also find it useful for increasing their understanding of the purpose and effect of the legislation.

Transforming Management in Central and Eastern Europe analyses changes in enterprises in seven European countries since 1989 - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, and Slovakia. Economic trends have differed vastly between these countries, but nevertheless, there are common objectives, common problems, and significant similarities in developments. This book shows the continuities, as well as the discontinuities, between the Socialist and the post-Socialist periods. It argues that Central and Eastern European countries are developing a distinctive, hybrid form of post-Socialist economic system, largely dominated by enterprise managers in alliance with state administrations–politicized managerial capitalism. Privatization has not transformed management practices, competition has.

Transforming Management in Central and Eastern Europe analyses changes in enterprises in seven European countries since 1989 - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, and Slovakia. Economic trends have differed vastly between these countries, but nevertheless, there are common objectives, common problems, and significant similarities in developments. This book shows the continuities, as well as the discontinuities, between the Socialist and the post-Socialist periods. It argues that Central and Eastern European countries are developing a distinctive, hybrid form of post-Socialist economic system, largely dominated by enterprise managers in alliance with state administrations–politicized managerial capitalism. Privatization has not transformed management practices, competition has.

The growth of shareholder value has been a major change in Western economies since the 1980s. This growth has reignited debates concerning relations between investors and managers. This book argues that investors are more than passive providers of finance, on whose behalf managers seek to maximize shareholder returns. Instead, many investors directly influence management practice, through investor engagement. The book examines the role of institutional investors and private equity firms, two types of investors with overlapping but different reasons for engagement. Questions addressed include: What are the incentives, and disincentives, for investment engagement? How is investor engagement organized? What areas of management practice are of particular concern to investors? The discussion shows in detail how private equity firms play a major role in developing new companies, beyond the provision of finance, especially in the IT, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical sectors.The discussion is primarily based on British and US research. The debate has wider international relevance, because there are strong pressures for establishing shareholder value as the international 'norm' for systems of corporate governance. Following a detailed discussion of Germany, the authors conclude that there is no inevitable trend to shareholder value: shareholder value depends upon complementary institutional arrangements in national business systems, which are far from universal. The book concludes with a critical analysis of the justifications for shareholder value and investor engagement, highlighting the weaknesses of both efficiency and equity justifications.

The balance of economic power in Europe is shifting eastwards. Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Romania have all seen increases in their contributions to international trade and in the rate of GDP growth, whilst other countries have seen declines, and firms in these Central and Eastern European economies are becoming increasingly influential participants in international production systems, centred largely on Germany. This book presents an up-to-date, theoretically informed analysis of how these four countries have developed distinctive business systems since the political revolutions that transformed this region in 1989, combining the structures of liberal market capitalism established in the 1990s with practices established earlier. Influenced by the socialist inheritance of communism and increasingly diverse sources of capital, different forms of capitalism developed, less responsive to shareholder interests, and more responsive to managerial and national strategic interestsThis book concentrates on changing patterns of ownership and control, means of capital accumulation, the relations among multinationals, regional enterprises, and governments, and the role of the state. Whilst recognizing the role of multinationals in generating export-led growth, the book emphasizes the central role of government at national and international level. The forms of capitalism under construction differ from expectations common in the 1990s, combining elements from both US/UK and continental European models of capitalism.

First published in 1977, The Sociology of Power presents a broad comparative study in the sociology of domination by placing empirical research in political and industrial sociology in a comprehensive theoretical framework, derived from Marxism and social exchange theory. Roderick Martin argues that conventional definitions of ‘political sociology’ are no longer relevant, having been replaced by a revival of interest in wider problems, which need to be approached from new theoretical positions. He contends that what is needed is a more general definition, based on the analytical concepts of sociological theory.Three initial general chapters locate the study within the social action tradition and discuss problems of definition and measurement in detail. The major part of the book examines the distribution of power under different systems of labour exploitation-slavery, feudalism and especially capitalism. Professor Martin sees power as most concentrated in slavery, most dispersed in capitalism, and shows the extent and importance of this dispersal by a detailed discussion of power relations within industrial and political organizations, including trade unions and a critique of contemporary elitist theories. By reorienting political sociology around the concept of power and by analyzing the conventionally distinct fields of industrial and political sociology within a common theoretical framework, Roderick Martin offers a persuasive redefinition of the sociology of politics. This is a must read for scholars and researchers of sociology.

First published in 1977, The Sociology of Power presents a broad comparative study in the sociology of domination by placing empirical research in political and industrial sociology in a comprehensive theoretical framework, derived from Marxism and social exchange theory. Roderick Martin argues that conventional definitions of ‘political sociology’ are no longer relevant, having been replaced by a revival of interest in wider problems, which need to be approached from new theoretical positions. He contends that what is needed is a more general definition, based on the analytical concepts of sociological theory.Three initial general chapters locate the study within the social action tradition and discuss problems of definition and measurement in detail. The major part of the book examines the distribution of power under different systems of labour exploitation-slavery, feudalism and especially capitalism. Professor Martin sees power as most concentrated in slavery, most dispersed in capitalism, and shows the extent and importance of this dispersal by a detailed discussion of power relations within industrial and political organizations, including trade unions and a critique of contemporary elitist theories. By reorienting political sociology around the concept of power and by analyzing the conventionally distinct fields of industrial and political sociology within a common theoretical framework, Roderick Martin offers a persuasive redefinition of the sociology of politics. This is a must read for scholars and researchers of sociology.