Employer Strategies Towards Non-Union Collective Voice

Non-union collective voice (NCV) has tended to play a minimal role in many Anglo industrial relations systems, with few formal processes or legal requirements. However, the lack of representative structures covering increasing numbers of non-union employees due to declining levels of trade union density and legislative changes banning closed shop or compulsory union arrangements have prompted the current interest in NCV arrangements. This article explores management strategies towards, and the development of, NCV arrangements and union responses to such arrangements in predominately English-speaking countries. It also tracks the development of dual-channel NCV and union voice arrangements, and examines the interplay between channels of NCV and trade unions. Overall, the article reviews this theory and raises debates around management strategies and issues involved in the process of transition from NCV to unionism.