IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/indrel/v53y2022i5p484-500.html

The role of nurses' unions in workplace innovation in Australian and Canadian hospitals: Analysing union strategies

Author

Listed:
  • Pauline Stanton
  • Timothy Bartram
  • Greg J. Bamber

Abstract

We explore the role of nurses and their unions in workplace innovation through case study research on the introduction of Lean production (LP). We find that nurses' unions were not involved in the implementation of LP. We draw conclusions about how union power, identity and narratives help explain union strategic behaviour.

Suggested Citation

  • Pauline Stanton & Timothy Bartram & Greg J. Bamber, 2022. "The role of nurses' unions in workplace innovation in Australian and Canadian hospitals: Analysing union strategies," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(5), pages 484-500, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:indrel:v:53:y:2022:i:5:p:484-500
    DOI: 10.1111/irj.12378
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/irj.12378
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/irj.12378?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ariel C. Avgar & Julie Anna Sadler & Paul Clark & Wonjoon Chung, 2016. "Labor–Management Partnership and Employee Voice: Evidence from the Healthcare Setting," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(4), pages 576-603, October.
    2. Arindrajit Dube & Ethan Kaplan & Owen Thompson, 2016. "Nurse Unions and Patient Outcomes," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 69(4), pages 803-833, August.
    3. Richard M. Locke, 1992. "The Demise of the National Union in Italy: Lessons for Comparative Industrial Relations Theory," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 45(2), pages 229-249, January.
    4. Bradon Ellem & Caleb Goods & Patricia Todd, 2020. "Rethinking Power, Strategy and Renewal: Members and Unions in Crisis," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 58(2), pages 424-446, June.
    5. Christian Lévesque & Gregor Murray, 2013. "Renewing Union Narrative Resources: How Union Capabilities Make a Difference," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(4), pages 777-796, December.
    6. Hristos Doucouliagos & Patrice Laroche, 2013. "Unions and Innovation: New Insights From the Cross-Country Evidence," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(2), pages 467-491, April.
    7. Christina Cregan & Timothy Bartram & Pauline Stanton, 2009. "Union Organizing as a Mobilizing Strategy: The Impact of Social Identity and Transformational Leadership on the Collectivism of Union Members," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 47(4), pages 701-722, December.
    8. Andrea Signoretti, 2019. "Explaining variation in the social performance of lean production: a comparative case study of the role played by workplace unions' framing of the system and institutions," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(2), pages 126-149, March.
    9. Sandra G. Leggat & Pauline Stanton & Greg J. Bamber & Timothy Bartram & Richard Gough & Ruth Ballardie & Kathy GermAnn & Amrik Sohal, 2018. ": 4P recommendations for implementing change, from research in hospitals," Public Money & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(1), pages 45-50, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Andrea Signoretti & Adrian Wilkinson, 2025. "Frames of Reference: Dynamics of Change and Frame Misalignment Between Employers and Unions," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(3), pages 214-225, May.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Grégory Jemine, 2023. "It takes two to tango: Reconceptualizing union power and union effectiveness in a relational perspective," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(6), pages 445-470, November.
    2. Lorenzo Frangi & Anthony C Masi & Bénédicte Poirier, 2023. "From Unwoven Societal Relationships to a Broad-Based Movement? Union Power in Societal Networks in Quebec (Canada)," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 37(5), pages 1377-1394, October.
    3. Nick Krachler & Jennie Auffenberg & Luigi Wolf, 2021. "The Role of Organizational Factors in Mobilizing Professionals: Evidence from Nurse Unions in the United States and Germany," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 59(3), pages 643-668, September.
    4. Jane Holgate & Melanie Simms & Maite Tapia, 2018. "The limitations of the theory and practice of mobilization in trade union organizing," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 39(4), pages 599-616, November.
    5. Alison Rudman & Bradon Ellem, 2024. "Union purpose and power: Regulating the fissured workplace," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 45(1), pages 200-218, February.
    6. Mary Naughton, 2022. "Mobilising societal power: Understanding public support for nursing strikes," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(2), pages 93-109, March.
    7. Jessica Borg & Justine Ferrer & Timothy Bartram & Patricia Pariona Cabrera & Hannah Meacham & Peter Holland, 2026. "Enterprise Bargaining as a Lens to Understand the Relationship Between Union Leaders and Members: A Case Study of an Australian Frontline Workers' Union," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(1), pages 3-19, January.
    8. Gregor Gall, 2018. "The uses, abuses and non-uses of Rethinking Industrial Relations in understanding industrial relations and organised labour," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 39(4), pages 681-700, November.
    9. Wen Wang & Jason Heyes & Roger Seifert, 2023. "Trade union influence on innovation in the British private sector: Direct and indirect paths," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 44(2), pages 604-627, May.
    10. Paul Blyton & Jean Jenkins, 2013. "Mobilizing Protest: Insights from Two Factory Closures," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(4), pages 733-753, December.
    11. Nick Krachler, 2023. "Institutional support for new work roles: The case of care coordinators in the United States and England," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 61(4), pages 951-974, December.
    12. Adam Seth Litwin, 2017. "Collective Bargaining and Technological Investment: The Case of Nurses’ Unions and the Transition from Paper-Based to Electronic Health Records," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 55(4), pages 802-830, December.
    13. Mark Harcourt & Gregor Gall & Margaret Wilson, 2025. "The potential for a union default to convert nonunion workers into union members: The effects of beliefs about unions' consequences, free‐riding and social customs," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 97-121, January.
    14. Hrvoje Butković & Jan Czarzasty & Adam Mrozowicki, 2023. "Gains and pitfalls of coalitions: Societal resources as sources of trade union power in Croatia and Poland," European Journal of Industrial Relations, , vol. 29(1), pages 43-61, March.
    15. Ian Greer & Thorsten Schulten & Nils Böhlke, 2013. "How Does Market Making Affect Industrial Relations? Evidence from Eight German Hospitals," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(2), pages 215-239, June.
    16. Sara Maric & Elke S. Schuessler & Laura Thäter, 2025. "Neither Employment nor Self‐Employment: Avenues Towards Functional Platform‐Mediated Work Systems," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 63(2), pages 287-304, June.
    17. Giovanni Costa & Arnaldo Camuffo, 2014. "The evolution of human resource management in Italy: a historical-institutional perspective," Chapters, in: Bruce E. Kaufman (ed.), The Development of Human Resource Management Across Nations, chapter 11, pages 269-299, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    18. Andrea Signoretti & Silvia Sacchetti, 2020. "Lean HRM practices in work integration social enterprises: Moving towards social lean production. Evidence from Italian case studies," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 91(4), pages 545-563, December.
    19. Christopher Erickson & Andrea Ichino, 1995. "Wage Differentials in Italy: Market Forces, Institutions, and Inflation," NBER Chapters, in: Differences and Changes in Wage Structures, pages 265-306, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Catharine Ross, 2013. "New unions in the UK : the vanguard or the rearguard of the union movement?," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 78-94, January.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:indrel:v:53:y:2022:i:5:p:484-500. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0019-8692 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.