MGT5ERN: Assignment 3 - Negotiation Role Play and Personal Reflection

This report presents a reflection on a negotiation role-play simulation assigned as part of the MGT5ERN course. The student, assigned the role of an employee (bus driver) for Bundoora Bus Company, details the scenario involving a drug test mandated by the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA). The employee's positive test result triggers a suspension and potential termination, leading to negotiations with the HR manager and an EAP consultant. The student highlights the use of the 'power of silence' technique, strategic decision-making during a crisis, and the importance of union representation. The reflection includes an analysis of personal strengths and weaknesses in handling conflict, the identification of key learnings from the simulation, and the impact of industry deregulation on the company's practices. The student also discusses the importance of understanding the perspectives of other parties involved in the negotiation process, and the value of analyzing the given facts to make the correct decision in a crisis and dispute situation.

MGT5ERN: ASSIGNMENT 3
NEGOTIATION ROLE PLAY & REFLECTION
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Reflection of Member 2: Role- Employee
The dispute resolution and negotiation simulation exercise were used to provide a situation
for my team members to interact with each other. The role that was assigned to me was that
of the bus driver or the employee for Bundoora Bus Company, Casey Connor. According to
the role play simulation, I have been working in the bus company for the last 8 years and has
been since then working hard as they have been a great employer as well. I have a great track
record in the company as I am very hard working, honest and loyal. However, I am also a
blue-collar Australian employee and a member of the labour union since the beginning.
During the role play, as I was about to return home after work, I was asked to take the
monthly drug test by our company's HR manager Sam Smiley. As an employee of Bundoora
Bus Company, all members had to sign the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA) that
included the drug test in its latest provision. As I support that driving while intoxicated is
wrong, I agreed to the provision and signed the agreement. As I knew I had nothing to hide, I
willingly took the test. However, the test was humiliating as I had to provide a urine sample
in a washroom in the presence of a manager. I felt it as a violation of rights to privacy, but as
I signed the EBA, I did it nonetheless. Then I was asked to wait with the other selected
drivers until the test was conducted. After some time, all the other drivers were asked to
leave, and when I asked Sam if anything was wrong, he was dismissive towards me and just
asked to wait a little longer.
After waiting for about 90 minutes, Sam introduced me with Jamie Joiner and EAP
consultant who has just arrived. I was informed that my initial drug test has resulted positive,
and it is being sent for a confirmation test. As of now, I have been suspended with pay from
the job, and if the confirmation test also turns out positive, I will be terminated from the
company. However, Jamie was here to help and support me by negotiating on my behalf
about the consequences. It was Jamie who pointed out that making me wait for 90 minutes
without briefing about the details was unreasonable and was a violation of my rights. Jamie
also came with an alternative solution to dismissal, and I had to seek a residential treatment
which Sam said I had to pay on my own. As I had recently purchased a house and a huge
mortgage is due for payment, termination from the job was not an option and also paying the
$10,000 for residential treatment was also not possible. Moreover, I knew I was innocent, and
hence, I defended myself vehemently. However, it was soon clear to me that both Sam and
Jaime had made up their mind that I am guilty and would not listen to my defence. This was
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when I chose the power of silence technique of negotiation. It was clear to me that being
aggressive in this situation would worsen it even more, and the best policy now is to keep
quiet and wait for my union representative, Lee to arrive. The power of silence is such a
useful technique in such situations as it does not allow the other people to further put pressure
on me and they are busy discussing the situation while providing me time to think for a
mitigation strategy (Craver,2012).
This simulation exercise for dispute resolution and negotiations has helped me to handle
similar conflict situation in real life in the correct way and gave valuable insights on how to
find out the reason of the problem through cross-calculation (Moffitt & Bordone, 2012).
When Jamie and Sam were talking to each other in private, I realised that the Bundoora
company was suffering heavy losses due to industry deregulation and rising costs and they
were hiring non-union labours as they can be paid less. Maybe, all this was a ploy of the
company management to get rid of me and replace me with cheaper non-union labour. This
was when I understood, instead of further arguing with Sam and Jamie, I would directly talk
with my union representative Lee, who has a strong influence over the company. The three
major things that I learned from this simulation exercise were the power of silence
negotiation technique is best in situations where it is not possible to prove innocence to
authority figures. I also learned how to make up the correct decision during a crisis and
dispute situation by analysing known facts. Moreover, I learned from Jamie about my
personal rights as being detained without charges is not reasonable, and I should have
protested it.
As a participant in the simulation exercise, I was able to self-assess my own strengths and
weaknesses as well. My weakness was I am not able to confront any violation of rights
through verbal communication. During the violation of privacy rights when providing a urine
sample and human rights when detained without charges, I kept quiet. I should have spoken
up or at least demanded the reasons for such actions. However, my strength was that I knew
how to handle a crisis situation and understood that waiting for union representative is the
best to deal with it. Although I was okay with my own performance as the employee, my
team member who played the role of the EAP consultant, Jamie Joiner surprised me with his
strong presence of mind and ability to negotiate with an authoritative figure like our HR
manager, Sam Smiley.
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Reference List
Craver, C. B. (2012). Effective legal negotiation and settlement. LexisNexis.
Moffitt, M. L., & Bordone, R. C. (Eds.). (2012). The handbook of dispute resolution. John
Wiley & Sons.
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