Workplace Democratization : Its Internal Dynamics

WORKPLACE DEMOCRATIZATION: Its Internal Dynamics WORKPLACE DEMOCRATIZATION: ITS INTERNAL DYNAMICS by Paul Bernstein School of Social Sciences University of California, Irvine The Comparative Administration Research Institute Distributed by The Kent State University Press COLLEGE OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Gail E. Mullin ....... Dean COMPARATIVE ADMINISTRATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE Anant R. Negandhi ...... Director c. I © Copyright 1 976 by Kent State University Comparative Administration Research Institute Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Bernstein. Paul. 1945Workplace democratization-its internal dynamics. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. Employees' representation in management. 2. Plywood industry-United States-Employees. I. Title. 76-26115 HD 5650.B 38 658.31 '52'0973 ISBN 0-87338-197-1 Photosetting by Thomson Press (India) Limited. New Delhi To the memory of J. Palach of Czechoslovakia, S.A. of Chile, and others unknown, whose lives were ended prematurely in the pursuit of democratization. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am deeply grateful to a large number of people who aided me during the several stages this work passed through Marjorie Young, whose friendship was strong sustenance during the period of initial investigation of case studies; the worker-owners in Oregon and Washington who allowed me to inspect their plywood mills and willingly answered my many questions; Stanford University Professors Robert C. North, Charles Drekmeier, W. Richard Scott, Yosal Rogat, John Gurley, and John Barton, who set high standards and offered many helpful clarifications when this research had developed into a doctoral dissertation form; Professor Douglas Parker of California State University at Long Beach, who lent his precise, professional guidance at crucial points; Betsy Bridgman, graduate student, colleague, and friend at the University of California (Irvine), for her detailed criticism and evaluation of several drafts; Bill Behn and his colleagues at the Center for Economic Studies (Palo Alto, California), who shared with me many important source materials. My appreciation is deep for several friends whose encouragement, advice, good sense, and warmth aided the endeavor and whose typing and proofreading labors on the manuscript were indispensable Karen Lundegaard, Peggy Tramel Popovich, Viviane Wayne, Gayle Hill, Mary Rezich, Martha Hauk, Jeff Tasher, and David Ashen. For comments that improved the style of the text and saved me from committing several errors in print I am grateful to Nancy Lyons, co-editor of Working Papers for a New Society (Cambridge, Mass.); Professors James Hunt, College of Business Administration, Southern Illinois University; George W. England, Industrial Relations Center, University of Minnesota; lchak Adizes, Graduate School of Management, UCLA; and three colleagues at my present institution, David Stodolsky, Robert Dubin, and Willi Schonfeld. Of course, I am entirely responsible for any errors that managed to pass through that sieve. A somewhat longer version of Chapter 2 was published in Working Papers for a New Society, 2:24-34. The permission to reprint sections of that article granted by the editors and publisher is gratefully acknowledged Financial support for certain portions of the research was kindly granted by the International Studies Committee of Stanford University (Bob Jones, Director) and the Graduate Council of the University of California, Irvine (Arnold Binder, Chairman). Finally, I am deeply grateful to Dr. Anant R. Negandhi, Director of the Comparative Administration Research Institute at Kent State University, for his special help and support in guiding this work to press. CONTENTS Page 1. Introduction Towards a Model of Workplace Democratization