Benefits of Consultation
If you manage in a unionized workplace then there are a number of ways in which you can communicate with your union representatives, not many of which are very productive or effective from a management perspective. There's the negotiating table which by its nature tends to be adversarial in nature; usually it means the union asking for more and you saying no. There's the grievance procedure which is a harder place than negotiations to build a good rapport and is often a signal that things aren't going well at all in the union management relationship. So where can you can actually meet the union to get something of what you want? The only real place to do that is through regular meetings with union representatives in some form of consultative process.

Labour management consultation is simply a formalized way to meet with union representatives in your workplace and it can offer benefits for both management and labour. Union representatives can get regular face time with senior managers to talk about organization wide problems and concerns. Management representatives get the opportunity to bring forward some of their concerns and get union and worker feedback on any new policies or initiatives that they want to introduce. They can begin discussions on operational challenges and help to solve potential problems before they become bigger concerns or turn into formal complaints or grievances.

Consultation is not negotiations but rather a discussion about issues outside of the grievance process or collective bargaining. It is a good idea to formalize the process because that gives it structure and the benefit of regularity. Then it can be a good and neutral avenue to discuss issues of mutual concern.

How it Works
Consultation can be a way for management and labour to create a process for exchanging views and discussing issues as well as seeking and providing information and getting input from a wide range of employees on areas of concern and interest to the whole organization. It can also be a way to open up lines of communication that are not in an adversarial manner but rather in an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust.

Labour management consultation committees work best when both sides are willing to communicate and cooperate openly for the benefit of the entire workforce. If everyone is committed this can be a great vehicle for information sharing and problem solving. At their best these committees are based on not just exchanging views from participant's own perspective but actually listening to each other's opinions, observations, and recommendations, before any final decisions are taken or before positions become hardened for or against any particular idea or suggestion.

The Basics
There are a few basic guidelines to follow regarding labour management consultation but any organization big or small can develop their own model and process within this general framework.

The place to begin is with a terms of reference for the committee that should be jointly developed and approved by both parties. You can always change it later but it is important to set the rules under which the process will unfold right from the beginning so that there are no misunderstandings later. The terms of reference should deal with what can and won't be discussed at the meetings, who should attend and how often you plan to meet.

Meetings
Most labour management consultation committees meet at least twice a year with special meetings called as necessary to deal with urgent or emerging issues. The meetings should be held on the employer's premises and during normal working hours. This will ensure that everyone starts off an even footing and will reduce the need for either side to assume additional expenses.

Many committees agree with having a co-chair from both union and management while others rotate the chair. The agenda should be prepared with input from both sides and additional items can be added at the last minute if there are urgent or emergency issues that come up. It is a good practice to have the person or side presenting an issue to provide explanatory notes and pertinent documentation prior to the meeting. This allows everyone a chance to prepare and if management is expected to comment or respond to an item they should have the time to at least think about it.

Usually management will volunteer to produce the minutes of the meeting since they likely have more resources available to do so. Draft minutes should be circulated to all consultation committee members for comment prior to approval and all action items and decisions should be highlighted. Once they are approved by both sides they can be posted for all staff to review.

Who Should Be There
There should be equal representation from both labour and management at the consultation meetings. This is important to create an equal footing when establishing a labour management consultation committee. It also shows that senior officials of both parties are committed to the process and to improving communication. The management people at the table should include individuals with the appropriate managerial authority to make decisions and to speak to the issues of concern raised by union representatives.

If both sides agree the committee can invite additional people to attend meetings when they have particular information or insight on specific agenda items. The committee can also choose to establish sub-committees or working groups when they want to study a particular issue in depth. Whenever it is possible the same management representatives should attend each meeting and substitution or alternates should be kept to a minimum. This gives continuity and stability to the process and ensures that discussions which begin at one meeting can continue and be concluded at a subsequent meeting.

Some labour management consultation committees agree to a process of joint training for all committee members right at the beginning of the process. This training can be provided by internal or external resources and will not only equip all members of the team with the basic skills and understanding they need to carry out their mandate but also creates another sense of joint commitment to the process.

What Issues Can Be Discussed?
Any organization wide issue or problem can be brought to the labour management consultation committee as long as it does not intend to change the wording or intention of the negotiated collective agreement. This leaves a wide field of items and issues that can be addressed by the committee. Management representatives should feel free to bring items related to work scheduling, absenteeism, and training as well as employee health and welfare, morale, production and safety concerns and issues.

Any individual manager or employee can bring an issue to their designated representative on the labour management consultation committee. Then their representative can bring that issue to the table for discussion and a hopeful resolution. It's a good idea for management representatives to consult with the other members of the management team prior to the meetings to get their feedback on current agenda items and to see if there any other issues that hey would like raised in this forum.

What Issues Shouldn't be Raised?
It is very important the rights of both management and the bargaining agent must not be compromised or interfered with as part of this process. These meetings are not negotiations but rather a vehicle to have a discussion that can improve communications and collectively resolve issues by consensus. Managers have the right to manage and unions have the right to represent the workers they have been elected to represent.

As noted above the intent of labour management consultation is not to re-negotiate the collective agreement through this committee and the provisions of collective agreements and their intentions should not be interfered with or altered. Another area that should be avoided is discussing individual complaints or grievances. There are separate processes for these discussions, either between the supervisor and the employee or through the formal grievance process. There is the question of confidentiality but even more so it is not the place to resolve individual concerns and the committee should focus on system wide issues and solutions.

Evaluation and Monitoring
It may be best to agree to start your labour management consultation committee on a trial or pilot basis for one year. This will give you a couple of meetings to test drive your process and you can mutually agree to make amendments after seeing the process in action. There should also be an opportunity for all committee members to provide regular feedback on how they think things are going and to seek their suggestions for improvements.

You will also need to evaluate and assess the effectiveness of the labour management consultation committee on a periodic basis. You just don't want another committee that is just spinning its wheels or meeting for the sake of meeting. From a management perspective some questions to ask might include whether you feel there is a more trustful and respectful relationship between management and labour. Are the discussions productive and do both sides feel they can raise and discuss issues and have them addressed positively at the meetings? Is management able to not only get input from union representatives that reflects the views of their employees but are you able to utilize the process to bring forward changes you require for your operational needs?

Labour management consultation is not a panacea and it does take some work. But it is another way to reach out to your employee group, improve communications, and hopefully build a better and more positive environment for all employees.