Topic: “Labour education and employee development schemes provide the best hope for empowerment for workers and for the democratization of work.” 

A plenty of organizations are developing and contributing in making the transition in to learning organization for the mutual interest between organization and employees. The labour education is being focused by trade unions in order to connect their representatives and members. The role of the union is huge in the labour education as the major aim of them is to show the interest of their workers in increasing education. Trade unions have responsibility to provide a voice to their members which facilitates in giving input or implications to management. There are number of opinions exist regarding the impact of labour education on worker empowerment and democratization of work (Chan, 2015). Any kind of learning can expand the knowledge of a person and make them aware about the situations in order to resolve the issues. The decision making process of the union should be made by taking consideration of opinion of workers. Unions can be referred as the process to democratize the workplace by involving various processes such as negotiation way, general consultation and grievances. The primary union is considered as CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) in the workplace of the author. The involvement of CUPE is noticed in a plenty of processes by the organization, entailing the job descriptions.

The role of CUPE has significant value in the development of the organization and in the context of providing labour education. They help in improving major tasks and qualifications on their job descriptions. The position of the author is the classification Analyst and is liable for the development and making changes in the organizational structures and job description along with the non-affiliated salary schedule. The role of CUPE is to include their members for the purpose of providing feedback and suggestions. In the context of the labour education, it has been found that it is considered as the training and education that is taken into consideration by unions to their representatives (Butcher & MacKinnon, 2015). It provides the training to help to make non-active union members for the purpose of becoming active union members in the future. The major role of it is to educate members regarding policies, amendments in the environment or labour law. The role of them is to educate the members in order to make them aware about the activities regarding the policies and changes in the environment (Goel & Vijay, 2017).

For a form of education, the role of the unions advocate is to facilitate employees for the purpose of learning in the form of completing their mandates in the workplace. There are three kinds of education offered y trade unions that is issues courses, tools courses and labour studies courses. The tool courses are made to equip unions with an effective knowledge and skills for the purpose of showing their members efficiently. It is helpful in giving better understanding regarding their policies so t hat they can perform in well efficient manner within the business. It has been analyzed that this kind of education has major focus on the collective leadership, bargaining and grievance procedures. It also facilitates in reforming the daily activities in the workplace for the purpose of making sure that work related issues will be addresses in quick manner.  On the other hand, issue course is another subject for labour education that depicts the number of concerns like racism, work reorganization and sexism in the workplace. The main motive of this training is to facilitate employees to understand the ongoing concerns that can influence in the environment of workplace. This kind of education has significant value in the organizations as it impacts the interaction of the employees in the workplace (Li, 2017). A labour study is third kind of education which is commonly considered at universities or other kind of formal places. This kind of study influences the management and the relation with the union, majorly at the time of improving the collective bargaining agreement (Shields, et. al., 2015). It has been found that the labor unions are more concerned in the context of developing skill based competencies in the workplace, along with the development and better understanding of the labor processes of the organization. The role of unions in achieving this kind of education has significant as they help for vocational training and promote technological change. Health and safety and development of labor standards are considered as union to bring change in the life of labor (Michalos, 2017).   

In the context of Employee Development Schemes (EPS), it can be stated that EPS is used for those organization that have minimum 200 employees. There are some factors which need to be considered at the time of developing ECS within the organization. These factors are sustained commitment, credibility, marketing and guidance. It is the scheme that refers to the educational opportunities which is invested by the employers that permit employees to opt to study that involve leisure and liberal considering the topics. EDS empowers employee to perform in well efficient manner so that the scope of the education can be increased. Employees’ development has important aspect in the organization to attain the objectives within time frame (Cebulla, 2018).  EDS are focused as facilitating employees improve their careers. The main focus of the company is on widening workers transferable skills that motivate employees to return to getting efficient knowledge regarding learning habit. The entailment of union in negotiating and monitoring is referred as attainment of wide goals and meeting learning needs of union member. It has been found that there is a scheme of FORD which is known as the Ford Employee Development and Assistance Programme which was set up in 1987 which is majorly focused in the form of the forerunner of private employers EDS. It provides an extent of opportunities, personal education and training and outside working hours. There are number of activities are provided onsite to fit around fit the patterns and have entailed car maintaining, keyboard skills in such case workers can also go offsite and get knowledge regarding programs of adult education that are being offered in the community. It contains different categories such as Single Schemes, Co-ordinated schemes and Multi Schemes.

EDS make difference for workers and employees in the form of understanding and benefits. In the context of employees, the policy of employee retention is involved in such concept which is helpful for the employees to remain in the company for the long time. Along with that it facilitates employees to get an effective learning for getting promotions in future (Waterman, 2016). With respect to workers, it motivated workers to work in more efficient manner. Workers often have interest in their own development. It makes differentiate by keeping focus on the need of employees and workers. EDP includes job enlargement and ob enrichment, job shadowing, job rotation and succession planning. These aspects help out to attain the objectives of the company in a minimum time.

The benefits of union actions on EDS give effectual status which increase motivation among employees. CUPE has become involved with EDS in high level, they eager to be a participant from the outset in developing workplace schemes and relate to growth as those combined handled by trade unions and employers (Capano, 2015). Unions are quite aware of the biases of education that favouring the respect and hence dispute for the whole workforce to have access to the EDS with a specific highlight on getting access for the less advantaged. The leading illustration of union action on learning is open college concept of Britain UNISON, which entails basic skills, return to learn, and non vocational training opportunities for all members of union. Along with that it can also give critical approaches to ongoing issues, it has been found that something which is missing from more homogenized adult education and training (Podnar, Kohont & Jancˇicˇ, 2017). It has been found in the context of UNISON that failure of more basic adult education to reach up to maximum number of workers in the lower start of socio-economic.

 It has been found that an empowered worker is considered as the productive worker. Hence, managerial teams must not show empowered workers in the form of threat to the company, but as an integral asset to the organization.  Thrives of empowerment in an environment motivates democratic values where every worker have tendency to feel like the partner of the organization.  There are number of organization run democratically, especially if workers have enough training in understanding their roles (White, 2015). Remarkably, an upper level of trained employee will be able to supply in making vital decisions for the company from an informed point of view.  The impact of EDS on workplace relations and empowerment has significant as it helps in developing high level of productivity of the workers. It is found that when employees feel empowerment in the workplace, it is necessary for them to be more productive. There are number of employees in this situation in which it will waste time in the form of the protest. Unions can show the minority of the workers in Canada as they do in other same kind of English speaking societies but their attendance in the public sector and large private workplaces provides an integral leverage for innovative ideas around work and learning. There are number of advantages of EDS in British higher education institutions that owe a huge deal to the advocacy of adult educators in such education institutions (Bharwani, Kline & Patterson, 2017). It has been found that Canadian unions along with the adult educators should take note from around the world.

It can be concluded from above discussion that the importance of labor education in the workplace cannot be highlighted. It is vital for the employees to come up with an effectual learning plan that amplifies continuous education for employees. The education plan is not only making in the favour of satisfaction of both the unions and the learning needs of the organization. it has been analyzed by above mentioned factors that this learning course taken by the worker in the form of trigger that please the learning and individual empowerment which help employee to make feel that they are working on effectual educational course from which they can learn how to perform in well efficient manner. The role of trade unions in the context of employee learning entails suggesting employees on effectual courses, giving proper training on issues regarding labor, and forcing for recognition of learning of employees in the workplace. On the other hand, the role of the organization in the context of providing educational course is to play in reimbursement for employee learning. Moreover, the training needs should be identified by the organization in their workplace and emphasis the education and study leaves in order to help employees’ training.

References

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Cebulla, A. (2018). Welfare-to-work: New Labour and the US Experience. Routledge.

Chan, W. K. (2015). Higher education and graduate employment in China: Challenges for sustainable development. Higher Education Policy, 28(1), 35-53.

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Michalos, A. C. (2017). Education, happiness and wellbeing. In Connecting the Quality of Life Theory to Health, Well-being and Education (pp. 277-299). Springer, Cham.

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