Labour relations - Essay Example

Question Wal-Mart’s stance in regards to its labor relations is one of union opposition. The company wants control over its human resources without the intervention of outside parties. Some of the reasons for opposing unions are because unions make companies less competitive, they foster complacency, and disagreements with union policies (Financialsamurai, 2014). By making the company less competitive firms are hindered economically which affects the ability of a business to grow. A lot of employees when they become a part of a union feel they are protected, thus they do not put in the effort to continually improve their performance.

Often unions and companies have conflicting views on how human resources should be managed. Another reason that Wal-Mart opposes unions is because unions drive wages upwards in an industry. Wal-Mart does not want unions also because unions often want to interfere with the decision process of a company. Question #2 There are several environmental factors that influence the decisions of Wal-Mart in the case study. The environmental factor that impacted the case study the most is the legal factor.

Wal-Mart faced external legal pressures from the United Food Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) which wanted the firm to reveal its internal documentation policies. They claimed that one of the policies of the firm was to have a union free environment. Wal-Mart was able to use the judicial system to protect its interests in Canada. The legal ordeals the company went through in its battle against the UFCW hurt the image of the company. A second environmental factor that impacted the case study is economic.

Wal-Mart is a company that has a tremendous impact in the economy of a region due to the fact each store employs hundreds to thousands of people, paying millions in taxes to local government, and being able to provide customers a selection of thousands of goods in its stores. An economic aspect of unionization is the fact that union employees get paid higher wages than non union workers. “The median weekly earnings of union workers are 28 percent higher than non-union workers” (Seiu). The third environmental factor that affected the situation of Wal-Mart in the case study is the political factor.

The political factor includes changes in the regulation of a market (Kotler, 2003). The company faced political pressures after the firm close down one of its stores four months after the employees became unionized. The company dismissed the allegations that they close down the store because a union got formed. The government of Canada wants to keep Wal-Mart doing business in its region because this corporation creates a lot of jobs. Politicians want businesses to enter and stay in a marketplace because of the economic benefits it brings to the region.

Companies such as Wal-Mart have to cooperate with the government and maintain good relations because the government has the power to create new regulations or tax policies that can negatively impact the industry in which Wal-Mart operates. The government also controls the permits that are needed to open a business which Wal-Mart needs for future expansion into Canada. References Financialsamurai.com (2014). Are You For Or Against Labor Unions? Retrieved March 4, 2014 from http://www.financialsamurai.

com/are-you-for-or-against-labor-unions/ Kotler, P. (2006). Marketing Management (11 ed.). New Yersey: Prentice Hall. Seiu.org. The Union Advantage: Facts and Figures. Retrieved March 4, 2014 from http://www.seiu.org/a/ourunion/research/union-advantage-facts-and-figures.php