Tracing a Transformation in Industrial Relations. The Case of Xerox Corporation and the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union.

A combination of crises and innovative attempts to manage them that began in 1980 transformed the relationship between Xerox Corporation and the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union, which represents most of Xerox's manufacturing employees. Eight pivotal episodes were largely responsible for the transformation. The first was a joint decision to establish a program of employee involvement in corporate decision making. The second event was the hard bargaining and joint decision making that began two years later in response to Xerox's decision to subcontract about 180 jobs. Next came the institutionalization of joint decision making, which was in turn followed by the plateauing of volunteers for the formal employee involvement process. The fifth critical episode was the gradual emergence of pockets of worker autonomy on the shop floor and the consequent accommodation on the part of the formal system of contractual rules and managerial procedures. After this came changing patterns of strategic decision making, resource allocation, and information sharing. A corporate-wide effort to transform the managerial culture was the seventh pivotal event. Finally, there were the 1986 negotiations that continued the corporation's no-layoff policy and the exploration of new forms of rewards and recognition. (MN)