Drawing on case study research in seven NHS Trusts, this article considers the role and management of ward managers and paramedic supervisors, focusing on their human resource management (HRM) responsibilities. In the National Health Service (NHS), these front-line managers are critical to the...

The changing environment within which SMEs are operating is examined by reference to detailed case studies of three medium‐sized firms (one in the pharmaceutical sector and two in engineering). Following the development of a framework for analysis the cases are discussed to illustrate the...

A new breed of tough managers, almost contemptuous of unions and negotiating procedures, seems to have emerged. “Macho Management” one British Leyland shop steward called it at the time of the strike, referring to plant management's rediscovery of the management prerogative. The spirit is...

Industrial relations in the finance sector has always exhibited rather special features; a virtually exclusive white collar work force dispersed in numerous branch offices; relatively high unionisation with membership split between TUC‐affiliated unions and in‐house staff associations;...

The Oxford Institute for Employee Relations (OXIFER) is a small research and teaching community based at Templeton College, Oxford. It aims to link advanced research with teaching and the widespread dissemination of findings, focusing primarily on the role of management in employee and...

The Commission on Industrial Relations' (CIR) report on industrial relations training was published on 13 December together with a short practical guide for unions and employers. The CIR had been asked in 1970 by the Secretary of State for Employment to inquire and report on the facilities for...

It is argued that policy makers, in government especially, use crude output measures such as the link with performance to argue the case for, or more often against, employee participation. The paper considers the problems associated with the use of such crude output measures but argues that...

It is often assumed that firms have freedom of choice over their HR policies and practices, however, the networks within which they operate suggest that the HR practices themselves may be influenced by clients, suppliers, partners and other collaborators. This paper aims to examine the...

The late 1980s and early 1990s saw rapid economic growth and subjugation of social policy and environmental concerns, as development was driven through the corporate and financial sectors in East and Southeast Asian economies, fuelled by free market reforms as societies edged towards...