MANAGEMENT STRATEGY AND THE REDESIGN OF WORKRULES

Abstract

The redesign of workrules is rapidly becoming the most important issue in the industrial relations of the US. The arguments that follow present a taxonomy for understanding workrule changes and a series of propositions which explain the success of efforts to change workrules as a function of the general business that managements pursue in the product market and in their general approach to employees. Finally, the interaction between changes in different types of workrules is considered, as are the overall effects of a more flexible system of workrules on industrial relations at the firm.