Abstract
We analyze how, between 1989 and 1996, four unions in a Canadian hospital responded to a two-stage quality improvement (QI) initiative comprising a total quality management effort and a reengineering campaign. Results indicate that union leaders' responses to QI were a function of the extent to which the leaders perceived QI as a threat to their vested interests in union survival and protecting members'well being. The evolution of the relationship between QI and union responses, in turn, was shaped by the extent to which the unions and management accommodated each other's vested interests and by the parties' balance of power.
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We are grateful to all those who participated in this study for making it possible. The excellent research assistance of Deanna Chevrier is highly appreciated. We are also indebted to Kay Devine, Joseph Gebran, Francis Lau, and Lloyd Steier for helpful comments on versions of this paper. The research was supported by a NOVA Fellowship, Faculty of Business, University of Alberta.
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Reshef, Y., Lam, H. Union responses to quality improvement initiatives: Factors sha** support and resistance. J Labor Res 20, 111–131 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12122-999-1028-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12122-999-1028-4