Structure and Strategy in the Case for Worker Participation

Abstract

The case for increasing worker participation in management has been a popular subject of Australian industrial relations debate over the last ten years, but the debate has so far had little effect on Australian management practices. Workers are generally no closer no w to participating in decisions than they were ten years ago.

Economic recession and high unemployment help to explain why worker participation has made little progress, but they do not provide a complete explanation. It is thought that advocates of worker participation have generally argued their case badly and so have not made the case convincing enough. Factual claims have often appeared exaggerated, and arguments have sometimes adopted illegitimate or illogical forms. Furthermore, advocates have made a serious strategic mistake by relying too much on facts and empirical reasoning, which has probably resulted from a poor understanding of the structure of the case and its implications for choice of strategy.