Abstract:
Existing literature reveals a gap in the empirical knowledge in respect of factors that
affect Labour-Management Relationship (LMR) at the firm level. The present study,
which was part of a comprehensive study of effects of some union-related factors and
management-related factors on LMR, empirically evaluated six union-related factors that
could have an effect on LMR namely union satisfaction at work, grievance handling,
worker discipline administration, worker performance evaluation, union attitudes to
management, and competence of union officials. The study involved 202 union officials
who were selected from 23 unionised manufacturing firms in Sri Lanka. The results
indicated that all the independent variables were positively and significantly correlated
to LMR. However, results of regressing the independent variables on LMR showed that
union satisfaction at work, grievance handling, worker discipline administration, worker
performance evaluation, and union attitudes to management are strong predictors of
LMR while competence of union officials is a weak predictor. On the whole, the
independent variables accounted for almost 70% of the variance in the LMR. The paper
is of empirical and theoretical importance as the findings confirmed an original
explanatory model of LMR that could enhance our understanding of the dynamics of
LMR and can be applied to enhance LMR in the manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka.
