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Following the 2007 Gibbons review and the subsequent repeal of the statutory grievance and disciplinary procedures in April 2009, the resolution of workplace conflict through alternative dispute resolution (ADR) continues to be a topical issue in the UK. Using a qualitative case study methodology, this paper examines the approaches to dispute resolution adopted by owners and managers in small businesses and the operational realities that shape their handling of individual disputes. The findings reveal a support for early and informal conflict resolution, but also a lack of knowledge about ADR and what it can offer. The conclusion is that, whilst ADR offers real benefits to small business employers and their employees, the dominant concern of these parties appears to be their ability to defend decisions they have taken in the event of litigation.

PurposePublic sector reforms and external performance review has meant that the HR function in UK local government is not only expected to continuously review working practices but is also facing major changes in its role and its own service delivery. This paper explores how changes driven by the pursuit of efficiency and cost cutting may impact on the function's ability to fulfil the employee champion role that Ulrich identifies as essential to it making a valuable strategic contribution.Design/methodology/approachThe findings are drawn from interviews, focus groups and desk research conducted in three large local authoritiesFindingsThe emergent concerns, tensions and dilemmas across the case study organisations suggest that changes, both planned and actual, to HR's role and services will impact on the function's ability to act as an “employee champion” due to reduced employee contact and more fragmented HR roles.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings are based on three case studies, so there is an issue of their wider application – and they provided rather more insights into the views of HR staff and line managers than of other employee groups.Practical implicationsThe devolved, decentralised, outsourced and self service models of HR service provision require careful internal evaluation as this study's findings indicate they may well have hidden costs in terms of promoting employee commitment in large public sector organisations.Originality/valueA qualitative study of how changes to the HR function's role and service delivery can impact on the HR's responsibilities for employee relations rather than the more usual considerations of cost effectiveness and efficiency.

PurposeTo examine how an external performance review process introduced as part of the public sector modernisation agenda in England and Wales has impacted on HR service provision and processes in local government and the extent to which it has acted as a catalyst for the development of more integrative and innovative HR practices to support organisational performance.Design/methodology/approachA case study analysis of the Best Value Review (BVR) process of HR services at two county and two unitary authorities generated data from multiple sources including interviews, focus groups, consultative meetings as well as internal documentation. This approach was adopted to offer perspectives from different stakeholders in the employment relationship.FindingsThere was found to be a frequent lack of synergy between organisational goals, departmental plans and the performance objectives of individuals combined with an absence of shared understandings about human resourcing priorities or commitment to the processes needed to strategically integrate HR policies.Research limitations/implicationsWhilst providing insights into the Best Value (BV) approach to public sector modernisation, a wider generalisation of the findings cannot be drawn from four case studies.Practical implicationsLine management and the HR function need to share better understandings concerning the HR practices needed to support the modernisation agenda and their respective HR responsibilities.Originality/valueThis paper reveals that the BV performance regime was not encouraging, and even limiting, a corporate approach to the HR policies and practices required to develop longer term organisational capability.

This article examines how operational managers are interpreting the management of diversity in practice. It is explicitly concerned with the way in which managing diversity was understood and applied in one large, long-established British retailing company. The findings suggest that while the business benefits attributed to diversity management are appealing to employers, it is a concept that lacks clarity for line managers both in terms of what it is and how it should be implemented within the anti-discrimination legal framework. Line managers, familiar with the value of demonstrating a common approach in their decision-making as the key means of defence against claims of discriminatory treatment, regarded a diversity management agenda concerned with recognising and responding to individual differences as more likely to lead to feelings of unfairness and claims of unequal treatment. It will be argued that, in the implementation of organisational diversity initiatives, employers need to take greater account of the tensions facing line managers, their interpretation of diversity management and perceptions of fair treatment as well as the operational context.

The U.K.’s public sector modernization agenda has significant implications for human resource (HR) practices and how they contribute to organizational performance. Through 4 case studies of large, local authorities, this article considers how the externally imposed performance assessment process of best value review is affecting HR practices in local government and to what extent these are being developed to support the high-performance model reflected in central government performance interventions. It also explores whether these are helping or hindering approaches to the organizational development required to build the internal capability necessary for delivering local authorities’ future improvement plans.

The U.K. government is seeking to transform the quality of the National Health Service (NHS) through a process ofmodernization. It is generally thought by government and managers within the service that improving the job satisfaction of employees is an important mechanism for delivering modernization. On the basis of job satisfaction surveys carried out within 2 NHS hospitals, this article suggests that instead of being a driver for improvement, employee perception of job satisfactionmay be acting as a barrier tomodernization. The article then discusses the possibility that there may be structural tensions between the imperatives of modernization and the wish to improve job satisfaction.

As home‐based teleworking grows in the UK, more evidence is needed of how working from home shapes the employment relationship and the implications this may have for those line managers responsible for a home‐based workforce. The reported experiences of a sales team and their line managers at one large international drinks manufacturing company of teleworking during its first year of operation revealed the importance of developing understanding of the complex interface between the domains of work and home life. The findings suggest individual circumstances require close attention before implementing home‐based working with line managers recalibrating perceptions of the boundaries between home and work for positive employee relationships to develop within a new paradigm of “home‐work” relations.

This article explores managerial perceptions of the effectiveness and fairness of individual performance related pay schemes. It draws upon findings from a two part study of middle managers' interpretation and application of performance related pay processes in a variety of organisational contexts. The analysis reveals that middle managers all too often do not share the principles or the stated objectives of the schemes they are required to operationalise. It concludes that the importance of managerial values and beliefs about rewarding individual contribution has been an overlooked and underestimated dimension in the design and application of individual performance related pay schemes (IPRP) despite the significance of the manager 's role in their organisational effectiveness.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to show that a defining characteristic of the UK retail sector is the high number of women it employs but there remains an enduring under‐representation of women in its management positions. The majority of women in the industry work part‐time and this paper aims to explore the factors that impact upon the career progression.Design/methodology/approachIn the paper, 1,000 questionnaires were completed by store staff in three leading retailers, supported by interviews with store staff and SME retailers in the UK's East Midlands region.FindingsThe paper finds continuing barriers to career progression for women working part‐time in retailing. Despite family friendly employment policies becoming an increasingly important feature of modern work organisations, career progression was informed by a traditional concept of a career based on full‐time working.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper was limited to one sector. There is a need for further studies into women's career progression in other sectors reliant on female employment.Practical implicationsThe findings in the paper have implications for promotion policies, training and development provision and line management practices if retailers are to maximise the potential of the women they employ.Originality/valueThe paper suggests that retailing is an industry where a significant number of women are working below their potential despite organisational policies supportive of diversity and equality of opportunity.