Essay Undergraduate 634 words

Employment Production Standards: Employer vs. Employee Conflict

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Abstract

This paper examines the ongoing tension between employers and employees regarding workplace production standards. It outlines how employers use production standards as a tool to control costs and maintain profitability on behalf of owners and shareholders, while employees may view these standards as difficult, unfair, or inequitably applied. The paper draws on equity theory to explain employee perceptions of fairness and discusses circumstances — such as illness or injury — that can prevent workers from meeting targets. It also considers the role of labor unions, comparing the right-to-strike approach with arbitration as competing strategies for resolving production standard disputes.

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What makes this paper effective

Presents a balanced two-sided analysis, giving fair treatment to both the employer's cost-control rationale and the employee's fairness concerns without taking a one-sided position.
Grounds the argument in a recognized theoretical framework — equity theory — to explain why employees may perceive production standards as unjust, adding academic credibility to the employee perspective.
Moves logically from the macro-level business rationale to individual-level fairness concerns and then to collective labor responses, creating a coherent escalation of scope.

Key academic technique demonstrated

The paper demonstrates the use of competing stakeholder perspectives as an organizational structure. Rather than arguing for one side, the author systematically contrasts employer and employee interests, then introduces a theoretical lens (equity theory) and practical resolution mechanisms (arbitration vs. strike action) to show how the conflict plays out institutionally. This approach is common in organizational behavior and labor relations writing.

Structure breakdown

The paper opens with a framing introduction, then devotes a paragraph each to the employer and employee perspectives, followed by a discussion of extenuating circumstances (illness, injury) that complicate enforcement. It closes by examining union strategies for managing production standard disputes. The structure is compact and thematic, appropriate for a short analytical essay at the undergraduate level.

Introduction

Production standards have been a point of contention between employers and employees for many years, as both parties have legitimate but potentially conflicting interests. Examining both perspectives demonstrates the complexity of this ongoing workplace tension.

The Employer Perspective on Production Standards

The primary role of a business is to generate profit for its owners, including shareholders. Employers may be the owners themselves or agents acting on behalf of the owners, so they bear a responsibility to ensure the efficient use of resources. One mechanism for achieving this is the use of production standards: if employee output can be increased, staff are used more efficiently and the cost of production per unit decreases, since the same employees are producing more (Sloane & Witney, 2010). Conversely, if employees do less work or achieve lower levels of output, the effective cost of production increases.

Employers are motivated to reduce costs, particularly when owners and shareholders apply pressure to maintain or grow profits. If production levels fall far enough, the firm may cease to be profitable altogether. Production standards are therefore seen as a necessary control mechanism for sustaining profitability (Sloane & Witney, 2010).

The Employee Perspective and Equity Theory

From the perspective of employees, production standards may be genuinely difficult to meet. While some common interests do exist — for instance, if the company fails and closes, employees lose their jobs — the main points of dispute concern how production standards are set, how they are monitored, and how they are enforced (Sloane & Witney, 2010). Employers may seek the maximum possible return, which employees can perceive as unfair, especially when targets are hard to reach and not all workers are equally capable of meeting them.

The manner in which standards are created and implemented is often a source of grievance. Expecting more from employees without accompanying changes — such as increased remuneration or additional resource support — is seen as inequitable. This perception is supported by equity theory, which holds that employees assess the fairness of their situation by comparing their inputs and outputs to those of others (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2010). When that comparison appears unfavorable, motivation and morale suffer.

2 Locked Sections · 195 words remaining

Circumstances That Prevent Meeting Standards · 90 words

"Illness, injury, and enforcement fairness issues"

Union Strategies: Strike Rights vs. Arbitration · 105 words

"Union approaches to resolving production standard disputes"

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Key Concepts in This Paper

Production Standards Employer Interests Employee Fairness Equity Theory Labor Relations Union Rights Arbitration Right to Strike Disciplinary Action Profitability