An overview is provided of the community college sector of Canadian post-secondary education. The first section points out the characteristics shared by the wide range of institutions termed "community colleges," indicating that: (1) they are public institutions with low or no tuition for conventional full-time students; (2) they are…

Habermas's theory of dialogue was used to evaluate the process of decision making that occurred in a labor-management committee's meeting to discuss flextime. The study attempted to determine why, at that meeting, the committee's consensus process of decision making failed. W.R. Bion's theory of unconscious group motives was also used to…

Collective bargaining is a technology and not a philosophy or set of moral values. There seems to be an almost irresistible urge among authors of educational bargaining statutes to adopt the basic tenets of private-sector labor law. However, employment and collective bargaining are different in the public sector than in the private sector, and one…

After attaining a collective bargaining contract with New York City in 1960, the United Federation of Teachers worked successfully to improve salaries and working conditions. But in the aftermath of the 1975 fiscal crisis, the more equitable participation of teachers in policymaking has emerged as a clear goal. (KH)

A study compared male and female managers' preferences for using communication-based as opposed to power-centered strategies for resolving employer-employee disputes. Subjects, 40 male and 40 female middle and upper level managers, were interviewed and asked to report their preferred manner of resolving four different personnel problems: (1) an…

Four paradigms of labor-management relations are found in American small schools: paternalism, collective bargaining, collegial problem solving, and community problem solving. Examination of the conditions under which each is likely to exist and their unique characteristics, reveals the circumstance which will enhance the effectiveness of each.…

Douglas Mitchell suggests that statute construction issues arise from the interaction between the realities of power resources and the goal of giving each interest group sufficient power to protect and pursue its own interests while preserving the rights or interests of others. California SB 160 explicitly limits the scope of bargaining to wages,…

This paper examines the Newspaper Guild's efforts to secure three types of contractual rights for newsroom employees: employee voice in news content and quality; protection of employee integrity; and employee privileges when protecting news sources. Specific incidents of the guild's contractual negotiations are discussed as they relate to a…

This paper examines the work of resident engineers in a university setting. The need for engineers with industrial experience is established, and the benefits of using resident engineers in training programs are cited. Attributes and problems associated with the practice are studied from the viewpoints of industry, government, universities, and…

Growing problems in education demand practical systems for the peaceful resolution of grievances without hindering the educational process. The American Arbitration Association (AAA), a private nonprofit organization, can provide effective methods for the solution of many different types of disputes. It can administer representation elections for…

The lessons of collective bargaining suggest a permanent, political, adversary relationship between teacher associations and school boards. Therefore, administrators must speak for good education, learn well the bargaining skills, and emphasize give and take in bargaining. Teacher associations may be expected to justify their existence, assume…

Responds to calls for explication of the theoretical basis of argument in negotiation. Uses four current argumentative perspectives to examine the nature and function of argument in organizational bargaining research, and concludes that Toulmin's argument field perspective offers the most thorough analysis of labor-management negotiations. (SKC)

Trust agreements are cooperative arrangements supported by the school district and teachers' union leadership to promote local educational reforms. The ability of trust agreements to establish local professional cultures that support innovative teaching in California is examined in this paper. Included are: (1) an outline of the logic that links…

A survey was conducted of 102 active quality circle members drawn from five organizations to determine how quality circle participation affected communication, as perceived by members themselves. The survey consisted of two parts. The first part contained ten open-ended questions inquiring about the respondent's personal experience in quality…

This paper outlines prohibited practices in collective bargaining when they take place in public education. After discussing rights of public employees as they parallel the language of the National Labor Relations Act, the paper goes indepth into five practices generally prohibited by state law: (1) domination of and interference with employee…