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The establishment and operation of national negotiating machinery in the London Clearing Banks

Morris, Timothy (1984) The establishment and operation of national negotiating machinery in the London Clearing Banks. PhD thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science.

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Abstract

The central problem around which the research is located concerns the rivalry between - the different forms of unionism in banking, and the response of the employers to this, particularly through national negotiating machinery. The thesis is divided into three parts. In the first, the attempts to develop national machinery during and after the war are examined. This is an historical account which seeks to illustrate the special nature of the inter-union rivalry between, on one side, the staff associations, committed to a co-operative relationship primarily with their own bank, and on the other the TUC union which was committed to an industry-wide basis of organisation. It also demonstrates how the associations, initially very dependent upon the employers, became more independent and operated like trade unions through bargaining while retaining their distinctive ethos. Thirdly, it demonstrates the evolution of employer strategies on this issue. Having formed national machinery, the second section considers the conflicts between the unions which, while formally co-operating together, were still opposed to each other's principles. It looks at the two employer sponsored attempts to resolve this difficulty through the promotion of a merger, and the reasons for their failure. In the third section the operation of national machinery is examined. The thesis considers the bargaining strategies of the unions, arguing that there were in fact considerable points of agreement between them despite their ideological disputes. It also considers the strategies of the employers, and relates these to their corporate objectives in order to contextualise the inter-union rivalry as part cf a broader strategy of stability and control. In the concluding chapter the developments since the demise of joint union working are examined. It is argued that employer strategies have shifted significantly under the influence of corporate developments, and that these have impacted upon the banks' policies towards the competing unions, which are currently operating separately.

Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
Additional Information: © 1984 Timothy Morris
Library of Congress subject classification: H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions
H Social Sciences > HG Finance
Sets: Departments > Employment Relations and Organisational Behaviour Group
Collections > LSE History of Thought theses
Supervisor: Marsden, David
URI: http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/77

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