The impact of the merger between the office of the premier and North West communication services on labour relations

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of the merger between the Office of the Premier and the North West Communication Services on Labour relations with a view to provide recommendations to the management of the Office on how to resolve grievances and disputes arising from the merger. The study focuses on the Office of the Premier. A qualitative research design which made use of data obtained from the Management of the Office, Advisory Committee, NWCS staff and a union representative was used in this study. The memoranda and other correspondence on the merger were analysed. The population in this study was confined to the Office of the Premier. The investigation conducted showed that the grievances/dispute lodged by the NWCS staff arise out of the merger. The merger negotiations were conducted in an atmosphere that was not conducive to proper negotiations, which consequently had adverse effects on labour relations. Employees who were absorbed from the NWCS into the Office of Premier had their benefits discontinued. This gave rise to litany of grievances/disputes wherein the grievants accuse the Management of the Office with unilateral change of terms of conditions of employment. There is a need to re-negotiate the terms and conditions of employment of the employees affected by the merger to ensure a smooth completion of this process. The amended Labour Relations Act, Section 197, on transfer of a business as a going concern allows parties to the negotiation to enter into an agreement regarding new terms and conditions of employment. It is an option that the office is advised to pursue to bring the merger process to finality .