5 Main Types of Participative Forums | Management

Following type of participative forums are common: 1. Works Committee 2. Joint Management Council 3. Joint Council 4. Plant Council 5. Shop Council.

Participative Forum: Type # 1. Works Committees:

These consist of representatives of employers and workmen in equal number. The representation is for all groups and classes of workmen. The committee has a chairman, a vice chairman, a secretary, and a joint secretary.

These committees are only consultative bodies, and their recommendations are suggestive and not finding. These commit­tees try to remove the cause of friction in day to day work, suggest measures for promoting good relationship, and to strengthen spirit of voluntary settlement, participation and cooperation.

Participative Forum: Type # 2. Joint Management Councils:

These councils are constituted similar to works commit­tees. The scope of the council is matters related to administration, retrenchment, closure, production, sales, welfare, safety, training etc.

Participative Forum: Type # 3. Joint Councils:

These are constituted under the chairmanship of the chief executive. Decisions of these councils are binding on the management and workers. The matters which are not settled in the unit level councils are decided in these councils.

Participative Forum: Type # 4. Plant Councils:

In this, representatives of employers and employees from plant are included. These councils work under the chairmanship of the chief executive of the plant. These councils determine productive schemes, production schedules, and welfare schemes.

The plant council deal with the following matters related to the plant/unit:

(i) Matters pertaining to production programmes, targets and productivity.

(ii) The problems emanating from shop council which remain unsolved.

(iii) Matters concerning with work process, work organisation, work planning, work load and manning.

(iv) Development of skills and abilities of employees.

(v) Problems affecting more than one department or shop.

(vi) Matters related to the:

(a) Payment of rewards for valuable suggestions;

(b) Raw mate­rial planning;

(c) General health welfare and safety measures, etc.

Participative Forum: Type # 5. Shop Councils:

These are formed for increasing production, productivity, and efficiency of shop or department.

Shop councils attend to the following matters related to their shops:

(i) Production programmes and targets, productivity issues, raw materials planning, work allocation, job redesign, on the-job training etc.

(ii) Improvement of production, productivity and efficiency including elimination of wast­age and optimum utilisation of machine capacity and manpower.

(iii) Identification of specific areas of low productivity and suggestion of necessary correc­tive steps.

(iv) Safety measures, physical environment and working conditions.

(v) Assistance

(a) in maintenance and improvement in general discipline; and

(b) in re­duction in the absenteeism.