PERSPECTIVES ON COLLECTIVE BARGAINING: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Collective bargaining, established as a potent instrument for cultivating amicable labor relations, has been a subject of profound deliberation since the advent of the inaugural comprehensive international instrument in 1984. This pivotal process serves as the linchpin in regulating industrial relations. Flanders (1970) encapsulated it as a social mechanism adept at transforming discord into concord in a structured manner. Through negotiation and discourse, agreed-upon rules and determinations concerning matters of shared interest between employer and union, along with the means of overseeing employment conditions and terms, are forged. Acting as a conduit for workers' participation, bargaining empowers employees, via their union, to exert influence over wages and employment conditions. Beyond its transactional role, collective bargaining emerges as a mechanism for crafting working conditions, wages, and other facets of employment through negotiations conducted collectively by employers and employee representatives (Abercrombic et al., 1980, as cited in Nwadiro, 2011). It is wielded by workers as a means of participating in industries, extending the sphere of citizens' rights into the economic domain, and reconciling conflicts within organizations.