Question 2 (10 Marks)

Discuss employment relations at Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises from the perspective of the pluralist framework and the radical framework.

Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises is a medium-size business operating from premises near the Coega Refinery in Gqeberha. The business is doing well currently and is steadily building a name for itself amongst the business community in the area. In terms of its business cycle it is still at a delicate stage as it is not as strong as some of its competitors who have been operating for a relatively longer time. Fortunately, one of the business's competitive advantages is the cosy and cooperative relationship that the top managerial staff has enjoyed with the trade union, Warehouse and Allied Workers' Union (WAWU). The trade union has represented a majority of Mzansi Warehouse Enterprise's employees ever since the business started operating. The trade union has been moderate in its wage demands as it took into account the relative newness of the business in its operations when compared with its competitors. Recently a new trade union called the Services Workers and Allied Trade Union (SWATU) has been established, which has been recruiting employees in the area. SWATU is deemed, unofficially, to have a representation of more than 60% of Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises' employees and is bound to demand recognition rights as the majority trade union at Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises soon. Jabu, the CEO of Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises, is conflicted because he is a pluralist employer at heart and he believes in the value of stability that an effective trade union may bring to his operations, but he is also acutely aware of the destruction and polarisation amongst the workers that may result from the activities of a highly politicised trade union. Jabu has been talking to his HR business partners recently and it looks like more and more of Mzansi Warehouse Enterprises' employees are joining the new and militant trade union and deserting WAWU. Last year one of Jabu's major competitors was forced to retrench workers as it could not afford the wage increases being demanded by the new trade union. Today as Jabu looks out of his office window, he sees down below a group of workers singing and holding placards. He knows that his time has come