Online HRM L5: Employment Dispute Case Study of BMA vs Government

This case study examines the employment dispute between the British Medical Association (BMA) and the UK government in 2016, focusing on the junior doctors' strike against a new contract imposed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. The analysis covers the context of the dispute, including the indeterminate nature of employment relations and the impact of factors such as management style and employee engagement. It distinguishes between official and unofficial industrial actions, highlighting the BMA's support for the junior doctors' strike as an official action. The study also addresses conflict and misbehavior, suggesting alternative actions the BMA could have taken. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of effective grievance and conflict handling procedures for line managers and recommends the use of consultation and information processes, external conciliation, mediation, and arbitration for dispute resolution. The case study concludes by referencing various sources to support its analysis and recommendations.

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
DER assessment activity 1 template
Employment dispute case study
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Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
Table of Contents
Introduction............................................................................................................................... 3
Context..................................................................................................................................... 4
Analysis.................................................................................................................................... 5
Advice, guidance and further support.......................................................................................6
References............................................................................................................................... 7

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
Introduction
Employee relations term is used for the efforts of a company which is focused to manage
positive relations in the employer and employees. It is a significant factor for any organisation
and sector to manage potential to attain its objectives. Different programmes are used to
manage it in a positive manner and to provide fair and consistent treatment to the employees
in an organisation. It also effects on the employee’s engagement in the work to enhance
loyalty in the employees. This assignment is based on the employment dispute occurred in
the British medical association and government in the year of 2016. It will define the
description of the dispute and action taken by both parties, and effect of the industrial action
on the parties involved in the dispute. It will focus on the official industrial action, conflict and
misbehaviour, and action taken by the parties involved in the dispute. This assignment will
provide some recommendations on the case.

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
Context
Employment relations always have indeterminate nature due to change in the contracts and
working policies which were also the key reason in the dispute between the BMA and
government. Employment relations are based on the contracts, working policies and
procedures which affects positively and negatively on the employees. It is found in the case of
British Medical Association and government. Jeremy Hunt is the Secretary of State for Health
and Social care which was intended to impose a new contract with the junior doctors of the
UK (Independent, 2016). Junior doctors were not in the favour to impose this contract on
them which was the key reason to show their protest by using the action of a strike against
the UK government for this new contract. It shows that employment relations are having
indeterminate nature and employers must have to be tended to manage these in a positive
manner. This dispute mainly arises in the junior doctors and government in which junior
doctors have used the strike to protest against. The government has made changed in eth
contract to deal with doctors and to engage them in the work (Seifert, 2013).
Different factors effects on the employment relations as management style, succession
planning, management chain and command, employee engagement, working and personal
life and lifestyle issues. Some of these issues have affected the employment relations in the
case of BMA and junior doctors in the UK as well. Industrial action is a term which is used for
employee’s action to protest. In the case of BMA and government, junior doctors have used
strike against the government which has negatively affected on the people and citizen of the
UK. Association of junior doctors has announced the strike against in the month of December
2015 which was a complete strike on December 1, 8 and 16. After it, in the month of January,
the British Medical Association has announced three more strikes in eth month of January
and February in which emergency services were available. These strikes have affected the
UK citizens and as well as on the government which compelled them to make changes in the
contracts. On the date of 16 January, the UK government has made changes in the contract
and enhanced the duration of premium rate to work on Saturday (Ney, 2012).

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
Analysis
Industrial actions are taken by employees to protest against the organisation or employer.
Official industrial actions are endorsed by the trade unions to protest for the benefits of the
employees against the organisation and employer. Official industrial action provides a
minimum protection to those staff or employees which are involved in the industrial action.
Unofficial industrial actions are also used by employees or union members in whom trade
unions are not involved. Involvement of trade unions is the key base to distinguish the official
and unofficial industrial action. The official industrial action is properly endorsed by the trade
unions and industrial actions which are not endorsed and guided by trade union are
considered as an unofficial industrial action. In the case of a strike from the junior doctors in
the UK against the new imposed contract by the government in which Saturday and late
evening working considered as a normal working week. British Medical Association has
supported in the protest of the junior medical doctors to not implement this contract on them.
It is a piece of official industrial action taken by the British Medical Association to protect
junior doctors from the new contract which will enhance their working hours and liabilities
which is totally unethical. It is found that junior doctors are already working in a busy schedule
and heavy workloads and this new imposed contract will enhance their responsibilities on
them. It is an official nature kind of case in which trade union have supported to employees to
protest against the organisation (McDowell, et. al. 2012).
Conflict is a ream which is used for the disagreement in the two parties which are involved in
a shared work. Parties which are involved in the situation in which people have a distinct
opinion for a topic which creates an internal disagreement issue on the topic. Employees
which are working in the same organisation may have different opinions in the work or for
changes needed in the work. Sometimes conflict can occur in the in the employer and
employees as well which is found the case of British Medical Association and government.
Both have a different opinion regarding the new imposed contract which is the key reason to
develop a conflict with both parties. Misbehaviour is the unethical action taken by a person to
react on an issue or challenge. It is an outcome of a situation which creates a sudden effect
on the person. Misbehaviour can be taken by employees on the sudden changes imposed by
eth employer in the company. In the case of BMA and government, junior doctors have used
the proper strike of workers in the December month which has negatively affected the UK
citizen which can be considered as misbehave from them. The British medical association
can use other forms of official industrial action to protest against the government to not
impose the new contract (Bal, et. al. 2015).
It is essential for the line managers to effectively apply the grievance and conflict handling
procedure to handle and manage issues arisen in the organisation. Proper guidelines are
needed to implement the grievance and dispute handling procedure. It is essential for the
higher management and authorities to provide a proper guideline to the line managers to
handle a dispute and issue in the company. Examples are also needed to implement
effectively grievance and conflict handling procedure. Higher management has to provide
proper examples to their line managers to use these procedures in an appropriate manner to
reduce the redundancy of the same kinds of issues in the future. In the case of BMA and
government, BMA has users’ official strike against the government to protest to not impose
the new contract. The British medical association has announced the three official strikes in
the January and February 2016. But the BMA has continued their emergency services to save
lives. It is much different from the 1970 and 1980 high profile industrial disputes in which
employees had tools down to increase their pay by 20% in the case of “Steelworkers strike

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
over pay”. The BMA has not used the full strike and they have provided their services for
emergency case (Teague and Roche, 2012).

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
Advice, guidance and further support
Managers can play a significant role in the dispute resolution by identifying the issues and
conflicts. It is essential for the line managers to have knowledge of grievance and dispute
handling procedure which can help them to resolve issues and conflicts. The line managers
can use these procedures in the conflicting situation which can help them to make changes in
the problematic scenarios. It is essential for the senior management to provide proper
guidelines for grievance and dispute handling procedure to implement it in the significant
situations. In the case of BMA and government, line managers which are working with the
junior doctors can use consultation and information process to communicate about the
actions of government and views of doctors for these (Mackie and Mackie, 2013).
External conciliation is a process in which external party will help to develop conciliation in the
parties involved in the conflict. Employer and employees related conflicts refer to Employment
Tribunal to resolve. Mediation is a process to develop a communication in between the parties
involved in the conflicting situation. It can be done by an internal and external person which is
involved or not in the conflict. Arbitration is also a type of mediation by the person authorised
by the legislation or court as an arbitrator to resolve an issue. One and more arbitrators can
be engaged in a dispute by a court to bind the parties involved in a dispute under the
agreement. All of these are different from each other according to their nature and procedure
to resolve issues (Roche and Teague, 2012).

Online HRM Level 5 DER - Assessment activity 1 template
References
 Bal, P.M., Kooij, D.T. and Rousseau, D.M. eds., 2015. Aging workers and the
employee-employer relationship. Amsterdam: Springer.
 Independent, 2016. Junior doctors' contract: A timeline of the dispute between the
BMA and Jeremy Hunt [Online]. Available at
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/junior-doctors-strike-contract-
dispute-timelines-bma-jeremy-hunt-nhs-a7001061.html [Accessed on 4 July 2018].
 Mackie, K.J. and Mackie, K., 2013. A handbook of dispute resolution: ADR in action.
Routledge.
 McDowell, L., Anitha, S. and Pearson, R., 2012. Striking similarities: representing
South Asian women's industrial action in Britain. Gender, Place & Culture, 19(2), pp.133-
152.
 Ney, S., 2012. Resolving messy policy problems: Handling conflict in environmental,
transport, health and ageing policy. Routledge.
 Roche, W.K. and Teague, P., 2012. The growing importance of workplace ADR. The
International Journal of Human Resource Management, 23(3), pp.447-458.
 Seifert, R.V., 2013. Industrial Relations in the NHS. Springer.
 Teague, P. and Roche, W.K., 2012. Line managers and the management of
workplace conflict: evidence from Ireland. Human Resource Management Journal, 22(3),
pp.235-251.