Colleague Kim Willoughby shared an article that she had read in the New York Times last week. It had to do with an agreement between General Motors and the United Auto Workers union that included significant wage cuts for a part of the workforce that will help build a new compact/sub-compact car in the U.S. Click here to read the story.
Implications: I’m going to express this as an opinion, but bear with me: Both unions and companies have long thought that for one to win, the other must lose. At times, this prevailing attitude has resulted in harm to the company, the union, or both.
In light of another challenging month for the jobs market (click here to see the Bureau of Labor Statistics report, also from last week), it is not surprising to see unions and companies—finally—look at the world from each others’ point-of-view, and realize that they are mutually dependent entities… not archrivals.
Think about the participants in your own business cycle. Whether product vendors, service suppliers, customers or workers, have you ever looked at a person or company as if they were adversaries to be defeated, rather than partnerships waiting to happen? Review your negotiation/transaction process, and the answer will probably reveal itself to you.
Mike Anderson
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