Don't let a dispute get as far as industrial action.
By Briony Edwards of thePublican.com's team of legal experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.
It seems that the Gate Gourmet ordeal has come to an end, with the workers having voted to accept a deal which sees the majority of them either going back to work or taking voluntary redundancy. The relationship between Gate Gourmet and British Airways (BA) has improved, with an agreed contract being reached between the two parties. The signing of this new contract seems to be only a matter of weeks away.
These developments bring about a resolution to the conflict which erupted in August when staff at BA walked out in sympathy with the 670 staff sacked by Gate Gourmet. The two-day 'wildcat' action by BA staff stranded more than 100,000 passengers and the airline lost approximately £40m.
What lessons are to be learned by publicans and other employers? Irrespective of which industry you work in, when employees walk off or refuse to work, it is detrimental to the business. While losses may not quite hit the stratospheric heights that BA's did, there will definitely be some impact.
In the pub trade losses would include, first, the direct cost of losing productivity in serving customers but also the loss of business as a result of a damaged reputation.
Would anyone like to sit in a pub having a quiet one while there are screaming matches going on between staff and management? Furthermore, should the employee/s decide to leave, there are costs involved in finding and training new staff. If one believes the statistics, it costs five times more to recruit and then train a new employee than it does to keep an existing one. This figure does not even begin to cover any legal costs and possible awards to employees who happen to launch unfair dismissal claims against a former employer. Conversely, even if the employee decides to continue the working relationship, there is no guarantee that productivity and efficiency levels will return to pre-conflict standards. The conclusion is that open conflict costs.
Is there a solution? In reality there are no simple ways of avoiding conflicts between employees and employers. There will inevitably be times when employers need to make hard economic decisions which will not always be in the employees' best interest. However, here are a couple of suggested ways to avoid disputes:
- The employment contract is vital in determining the nature of the relationship between employee and employer. It provides the foundation upon which the working relationship is to grow. The terms of the employment contract should be complete, unambiguous and motivational.
- The key to any relationship, working or otherwise, is communication. Open, honest communication between the employees and employer is imperative to maintaining a rapport. Due to an employer's position of superiority it is crucial that trust is maintained through transparency. Transparency in reasoning allows for difficult decisions to avoid the tag of 'awful surprise' being added, making matters worse.
The employer/employee relationship will never be conflict-free. However, the conflict to avoid is one which will cost the business money, both in the short and long term.