MHR214 Industrial Relations

Section A
Answer both questions
Industrial Relations Law
Beach and Bush party Ltd is a camping equipment wholesaler with 48 full-time staff members.
Currently the employees are covered by a modern award which sets out working conditions.
These include the provision of 4 weeks paid annual leave, a pay rate of $15.60 per hour, and a
standard working week of 35 hours.
Beach and Bush party Ltd seeks to enter into a single-enterprise agreement with its employees,
and has proposed a number of terms for the agreement. These include;
No requests for flexible working arrangement;
5 weeks paid annual leave;
3 months paid long service leave after 10 years of employment;
7 weeks unpaid parental leave,
Saul contacted his union, Blitza, and subsequently met with a union official in the loading clocks
of Beach and Bush party Ltd. A few hours later Peter heard from another employee that Saul was
talking to a woman in a business suit with the logo Blitza-protecting your rights printed on her
briefcase.
Q.1.
a) Distinguish between Time rate and piece rate methods of paying workers. (4 marks)
b) Give the merits and demerits of paying skilled and unskilled employees using the two methods.
(8 marks)
c) How does monetary and non monetary rewards useful in increasing workers efficiency and
productivity? (8 marks)
d) Explain why working conditions have an impact on job productivity and job inefficiency.
(5 marks)
Total 25 marks
Q.2.
a) Define industrial relations law. (3marks)
b) Why is it important to set standard industrial relation law. (6 marks)
c) Give the advantages of entering a single enterprise agreement between employees and
employers. (8marks)
d) Examine the likely negative consequences of violating industrial relations laws. (8marks)
Total 25 marks

Section B
Answer two questions only
Q.3.
a) Define labor market conflict. (3 marks)
b) Describe and explain the industrial dispute act of 1947 and analyze its significance in the labor
market. (6 marks)
c) Discuss what you understand by industrial relations and show the relevance of studying
industrial and labour relations. (8 marks)
d) Show how government can improve on labor and industrial relations between employees and
employers. (8 marks)
Total 25 marks
Q.4.
a) What are workers unions? (4marks)
b) The international labor organization (ILO) (1919-1920), serves as a new field of industrial
relations. Comment on the validity of this statement. (6marks)
c) Why may you support the government to institute a minimum wage? (7marks)
d) Explain how employee efficiency can be improved especially in private organization (8marks)
Total 25 marks.
Q.5.
a) Define a strike? (4 marks)
b) Under what circumstances would you support or advocate for striking? (6 marks)
c) Explain some of the tools which workers unions may adopt to achieve their grievances. (7
marks)
d) Account for the wide and Sharp decline in trade union membership in developing countries
today. (8 marks)
Total 25 marks.

Q.6.
a) Explain how the Marginal Productivity theory of Labour can motivate employee efficiency.
(4 marks)
b) Critically evaluate the following concepts.
i) Backward bending supply curve of labour. (4 marks)
ii) The labor demand curve in the short run. (4 marks)
iii) Negative Income Tax (NIT). (4 marks)
c) Consider a garment shop, whose daily production as a function of a labour (employment) is
Q= 20L 0.05L2, workers are paid a daily wage W=$80, and garment is sold whole sale for
P=$20. Calculate the optimal employment level. (9 marks)
Total 25 marks.