Kenneth M. Jennings

Measuring and Correcting Inversion in Faculty Salaries at Public Universities

Compression/Inversion is becoming an increasingly important part of some compensation plans for university faculty. This article derives a measure of salary inversion. It uses it to evaluate the effectiveness of several inversion models. Results are presented and policy implications are discussed.

Implications of Salary Structure and Merit Pay in the Fifty American States

The burgeoning literature concerning merit pay in the public sector primarily focuses on themes such as its ability to improve performance, implementation problems in merit pay system maintenance, and a much more limited review of how merit pay should be integrated with salary structure. There are no studies of merit pay and salary structure, however, that compare experiences across local, state and federal government. Compensation specialists from all 50 states were surveyed to determine current practices in the area of pay structure and merit pay systems. Results indicate that many states are having difficulty in effectively integrating structure and merit pay.

LABOR-MANAGEMENT COOPERATION IN A PUBLIC SERVICE INDUSTRY

Labor-Management Cooperation in a Public Service Industry outlines the historical aspects of labor-management cooperation and the characteristics of the transit industry which made it conducive to this cooperation. The second chapter discusses different cooperative programs such as employee input programs, safety programs, performance incentive programs, and training programs. Administrative considerations are examined in chapter three, along with the potential difficulties and calculating cost benefits. The two appendices offer a case study analysis format and quantitative assessment of four quality circles. This book contains extensive interviews with nearly seventy mass transit practitioners.

Limitations in “Realistic Recruiting” and Subsequent Socialization Efforts: The Case of Riddick Bowe and the United States Marine Corps

There can be no doubt that matching the needs of the organization to the expectations of new employees is a critical factor influencing the quality and effectiveness of the long-term employment relationship. Riddick Bowes failed entry into an organization that has prided itself on its ability to communicate expectations, and the nature of the socialization process that the recruit will encounter, demonstrates what can happen when an organization varies from a successful recruitment/selection process. This paper begins by summarizing some of the important facets of organizational recruitment/selection and subsequent socialization tactics. Bowes early departure from recruit training is detailed, identifying specific errors made by the Marine Corps relating to their established approach to realistic recruiting and socialization. Finally, implications for action by other organizations are discussed in the form of lessons to be learned.

Compensation Control Mechanisms in the American States

There are few studies which report on the personnel practices in the American states. A survey of state compensation analysts in the Summer of 1987 elicited information concerning the use of compensation controls in state government. Results indicate that with the exception of wage and salary surveys, data concerning compensation controls is rarely collected. Initial analysis indicates that the role of the legislature and the existence of collective bargaining may have an impact on the number of controls used.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Florida's Impasse Resolution Procedures: A Survey of Public Sector Practitioners

Public employees in Florida have been permitted by law since 1974 to engage in collective bargaining with their employers. Along with the right to engage in collective bargaining, the law established a dispute resolution process for resolving bargaining impasses in lieu of the strike, which was strictly prohibited. This law also established the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC), which was created to oversee the process. The present study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the present impasse procedure as perceived by the concerned parties. This study was exploratory in nature and designed to provide PERC and thus the Florida Legislature with the documentation required for review of the present law. A total of 1,150 questionnaires were mailed to union representatives and public employers. A 45 percent return rate was achieved. The return was approximately equally divided between the unions and the employers. Frequency distributions of these responses and regression analyses are presented and conclusions are drawn as to the perceived effectiveness of the process.

Labor Relations in a Public Service Industry: Unions, Management, and the Public Interest in Mass Transit.

Reviewed Work(s): Collective Bargaining by Objectives by Reed C. Richardson Labor Relations in a Public Service Industry: Unions, Management, and the Public Interest in Mass Transit by Kenneth M. Jennings, Jr.; Jay A. Smith, Jr.; Earle C. Traynham, Jr. Organized Civil Servants: Public Employer-Employee Relations in California by Winston W. Crouch The Public Interest in Government Labor Relations by Richard P. Schick; Jean J. Couturier Collective Bargaining in Public Employment: The TVA Experience by Michael L. Brookshire; Michael D. Rogers Scope of Public-Sector Bargaining by Walter Gershenfeld; J. Joseph Lowenberg; Bernard Ingster James L. Perry

Municipal Management's Split Endorsements of Labor Organizations

“…both labor and management representatives have to recognize each other as being legitimate to the goals of their respective organizations; without this mutual endorsement, hostility, confusion and uncertainty may occur and continue.”