The way the relationship between and employer is structured you will find that at every one particular time there will be conflict. These conflicts arise from the fact that the employers will want some work done as a consideration of the pay he/ she is offering. On the other hand the employee wants some benefit for the work that he has done and at every particular time he / she will be requesting for more pay (Fair Work Online, 2010). Several laws have come to be passed to enhance mutual relationship between the two parties for example in Australia there is standard called National Employment Standard ( Howard et al, 1995). According to the standard there is a statement called the Fair work Information Statement which came in to effect on the 1st of January 2010 (Australian Government, 2009).The statement explains explicitly what kind of environment should be provided to all employees. The laws are used in the agreements, negotiations and setting of the benchmarks that ought to be achieved by the parties to an employment agreement. Of late there have been several disputes that have been arising within Australia in reference to the pay of employees. One of the latest is a protest by Cemetery workers mostly laborers and gardeners who include gravediggers and crematorium workers. These workers were protesting for a seventeen percent increase which would put them at par with those workers at Fawner Cemetery (Schneiders, 2010). On the other side Tasmania’s police are asking for a six percent increase in their salaries (ABC News, 2010). The increase will bring them at par with the National average. If this deal is not honoured then the police department will be the lowest paid. These police claim that they have registered great results in terms of reduced crime rates and there is need to have a pay that indicates so (ABC News, 2010).
Looking at the police case we find that standardization of their salary is the main issue where they feel that being given lower than what everyone else is being given is an insult to their efforts. The president of their union indicates that failure to honor the deal would place the police at the bottom of the pay in the whole country something that the police feel is acting against their effort (ABC News,2010).
However a look at the argument reveals a lot about the psychological contract between the employee and employer. While the government offers details of employment the police on engagement of their contracts there is an expectation that the government should provide them with a pay that is meant to maintain their service and not necessarily agree to the details. The nature of work of police is one that may be stressful and for that purpose the police feel is should be dully compensated. Even the Greens spokesman backed the quest for increase stating that the increase would be important for staffing as it would attract the best people to the job (ABC News, 2010).
Psychological contract refers to an understanding between the employer and employee on how each party should handle their responsibilities but it’s not usually indicated in writing or in the contract of employment (Makin et al, 1996). The psychological contract is very important as it is a major function of the culture within the organization. One of the issues of concern in the conflict is the value and respect accorded to the police(Wellin, 2007). By giving them the lowest pay indicates they are the least contributors to the economy which is not the case. While the terms of contract between the police and government may have not provided for the harmonization of wages with normal wage the government is expected to act accordingly. This will be a factor of interest to motivation of police who are referred to as Australia’s finest.
List of references
ABC News (2010) Greens support police union’s pay push. Web.
ABC News (2010) Police consider strike over pay deal.
Australian Government (2009). National Employment Standards.
Fair Work Online(2010) National Employment Standards.
Howard A, Fox B and Pittard M (1995). Industrial relations in Australia: development, law and operation: Studies in Australian industrial relations. California: Longman Publishers
Makin P, Cooper C and Cox C (1996). Organizations and the psychological contract: managing people at work. London: Blackwell Publishers
Schneiders B (2010) Cemetery workers dig in for pay rise.
Wellin M (2007). Managing the psychological contract: using the personal deal to increase Business Performance. Hampshire: Gower Publishing Limited.