First Round Projects (The Partnership At Work Fund)
THE PARTNERSHIP AT WORK FUND
Announcement of successful projects in the first round of the partnership at work fund
The successful bidders in the first round of the Partnership at Work Fund were announced by the Trade and Industry Secretary, Stephen Byers, on 13 March 2000. Thirty-three projects will benefit from the investment of £2.5m in the first round of the Partnership Fund, including £1.2m of Government support. The successful projects come from the private, public and voluntary sectors and from unionised and non-unionised organisations. Some of the money is going to smaller firms looking to set up new partnership arrangements, while other funds are going to larger organisations undergoing major changes.
The 33 successful bids recommended for funding in this round are:
Working Together to Achieve Productivity Improvements
House of Hardy, a fishing tackle manufacturer in Alnwick, plans a project designed to achieve productivity improvements in their manufacturing department. Both management and the union at this SME see Partnership at Work as an ideal vehicle to complement the 'new management approach' which is central to the achievement of their main business objectives.
Establishment of Employee Forum
Pizza Express, the UK pizza chain, plans to establish an Employee Forum which will help the management consult all staff before decisions are made. The project co-ordinator is a waiter who has been seconded to oversee the development of the project.
The Partnership Website
The Involvement and Participation Association (IPA) plan to develop a partnership website to promote the benefits of partnership within the workplace to human resource managers, trade unions and journalists. The aim is to achieve a wider understanding of the advantages of partnership and to provide practical steps to help organisations develop their own partnership approach.
Quality in Pre-Press
Sans Serif Ltd, an SME in Birmingham employing 25, offers a range of advertising, graphic design and print buying services. The company sees partnership as a way forward to ensure future success and overcome current problems. The project develops co-operation between management, employees and the Graphical Paper and Media Union (GPMU), and also develops communications, participation and continuous improvement.
Building the Partnership Union
The Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union (AEEU), which has 720,000 members, aims to build the capacity of the union through its partnership project in order to convince members and companies of the practical value of partnership. The project will build competencies within the union itself, publish training materials and Partnership Standards and organise regional partnership conferences.
Doing It Together
Employee Ownership Scotland, a Glasgow charity employing three staff, is seeking funding to support their partnership project to promote the benefits of allowing people to become equity partners and share in tangible benefits of real partnership. The project aims to combine the benefits of Investors with People and stakeholding within SMEs.
Best Practice Guide to Developing Partnerships at Work
The Humberside Training and Enterprise Council has developed a project to capture, share and promote existing best practice from a range of Humberside companies in the form of a best practice guide to developing partnerships at work. The guide will include case studies of local businesses and material produced will feature business benefits of partnership.
Branlow Ltd
Branlow Ltd, an SME employing 28 people in Warrington aims to formalise ad hoc methods of achieving teamwork. The company is currently working on a Developing World Class project with Business Link Warrington and they see the Partnership at Work project as the basis for the company's ongoing development.
Partners in Progress - British Bakeries
British Bakeries in partnership with the Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU), ACAS and the TUC wants to create and launch a UK-wide partnership Forum. The aim is to develop a best practice model and assist the exchange of good practice between different sites within the group. The project will be piloted at the Birmingham site.
Enterprise Employee Relations
East of Scotland Water based in Edinburgh is seeking funding for a project which seeks to develop a way of working where the management and the trade unions share common goals and contribute to the success of the company on the basis of mutual trust and extensive employee participation.
The Establishment of Local Communication/Consultation Forums
Northern Foods plc, based in Hull, intend to establish communication and consultation forums for each of their operating companies. In the face of increasing competition the company, in partnership with its unions, who want to increase staff involvement and the proposed local forums are designed to build on the recently developed European Works Council.
Beyond 2000 - Employee Relations in the New Millennium
The proposal from the BNFL Fuel Group in Preston is designed to improve business performance by improving employee relations. Behavioural skills training will be provided to line managers and employees, and a programme of "understanding change" workshops will be carried out. Wide dissemination is planned.
Working Together - Involving Staff
This proposal from Unison, the public sector union, will develop a new management style and increase staff involvement initially within the Wolverhampton Health Trust. It is planned to extend and disseminate best practice across the NHS with the support of the NHS and other unions. The project demonstrates the role and commitment of all partners.
Partnership at Work in Youth Services
The Community and Youth Workers Union (CYWU), together with partners from the voluntary sector, Sefton Borough Council, and the Red Cross have submitted a bid which seeks to improve employment practice and partnership in the voluntary youth work sector. It is intended to disseminate the results and experience acquired during the project via the internet and through articles produced by the participating organisations.
Working Together to Achieve Excellence
Kears Group Ltd, is a private company with 1,200 staff in the food manufacturing and distribution sector in Lydney. The project focuses on the management and the unions working together to achieve excellence and involving all staff in the development of this culture and rewarding employees for their contribution to the firm's success.
The Best Way Forward
Lawson Mardon Star Limited achieved Investors in People (IIP) in 1996 and partnership has continued to be developed with the union since that date. Their project is designed to develop skills, increase the take up of NVQs, and improve communication and empowerment across the workforce in Bridgnorth.
Much Ado About Something
Nottingham County Council takes the lead in this imaginative project to utilise theatre as a way to stimulate employee involvement. The process involves performance of a play based on a workplace scenario which is 'directed' by the audience - in this case the employees - and following discussion of its issues they are encouraged to 'write' the ending of the play.
Unison / Mediclean: Partnership and Workforce Development
Unison and ISS Mediclean, a private company, are seeking to develop partnership practices and encourage workforce development at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth. The main aim is to promote an increase in the quantity and quality of participation by employees of ISS Mediclean in the areas of industrial relations, human resources and workforce development.
Vertex / Unison - Learning to Work in Partnership
Vertex Data Science is a company of 3,200 employees (part of United Utilities plc) involved in business process outsourcing. It has developed a partnership agreement with Unison to deal with future changes. The training and education focus of the project aims to support the development and application of the agreement.
Driving Change through Shared Learning
English, Welsh and Scottish Railways (EWS) have put together their project in conjunction with a number of trade unions. They intend to build on their 1999 partnership agreement by facilitating shared learning and reducing conflict through a joint approach to problem resolution. The project is being co-ordinated by the London based Head Office.
Positive Partnership
McVitie's, the Glasgow-based food manufacturer, is keen to develop and implement a set of interfaces for management and the workforce to improve involvement and participation. Three unions will work together with the management to jointly develop and agree a 'Positive Partnership' at the Tollcross site.
Partners for Progress - Building Best Practice:
A Programme of Regional Conferences
The TUC is intending to hold four regional conferences showing how partnership has improved organisational performance. This will lay the foundations for further collaborative work to be carried out in the future. The project will also involve the Engineering Employers Federation (EEF) and Bristol Chamber of Commerce and will lead to regional conferences to disseminate best practice.
Analysis of Training Needs for Partnership
The project, to be run by the TUC National Education Centre, is designed to undertake training needs analysis to establish what skills are needed by Trade Union officials and lay representatives in order to be able to successfully implement partnership in the workplace.
Building Social Partnerships in the Workplace - A Quality Based Approach
The charities body, NCVO, aims to build partnership in the workplace within the voluntary sector. The project is designed to help voluntary organisations overcome barriers to adopting partnership and new legislation. They will develop a range of tools in collaboration with unions to enable voluntary sectors to change employment relations culture.
Steel Learning Partnership Project
This is a joint proposal between Corus (formerly British Steel) and the Iron & Steel Trades Confederation to carry out four workshops aimed at developing lifelong learning strategies. The project is learning focused but adopts a partnership approach in that the seminar audiences will include managers, union representatives and employees.
Working Together Project - One Voice against Bullying and Harassment
The South Tees Acute Hospitals Trust and Unison has put together a project to provide "confidential advisers" for staff experiencing bullying or harassment at work and wants to develop an infrastructure of support. This will be a centrepiece and platform for the development of a wider partnership culture.
Further Education Partnership at Work
The Scottish Trades Union Congress is seeking to establish a partnership working arrangement between five West of Scotland Further Education colleges and the Scottish TUC acting on behalf of its Further Education Trade Union affiliates, to produce four employment policy frameworks based on best practice. The aim is to improve employment relations and deliver common terms and conditions.
Building Partnership in Axa
The trade unions MSF and UNIFI have developed a project with the insurance company Axa to promote a partnership approach and improve business performance. The project is intended help promote and disseminate good practice both within Axa itself and more generally across the financial sector.
Healthy Workplace 2000
The Family Welfare Association is a London based charity. In partnership with Unison it intends to develop joint Health and Safety issues and so consolidate working relationships. Dissemination will be within the voluntary sector and any resources produced will be shared with other voluntary organisations.
Manufacturing the Learning link
HJ Heinz Co Ltd, in conjunction with the North West office of the TUC and Wigan Borough Partnership intend to develop a partnership approach within the company, and in the process drawing in other local bodies including trade unions, colleges and the Enterprise Council. The proposal includes the establishment of an Open Learning Centre.
Balancing Work and Home - A Partnership Approach
The Daycare Trust in partnership with the Maternity Alliance and New Ways to Work is developing a programme of training and consultancy to promote a partnership approach to identifying policies and practice to support employees and employers in balancing priorities at work and home.
TUC and CBI: Health and Safety Partnership Case Studies
The TUC and CBI are together bidding for support to help develop 10 case studies showing how partnerships at work achieve better standards of health and safety and have lower injury/illness rates. A conference will be held which will promote the case studies more widely and a brochure will be developed to accompany this activity.
Women's Technology and Education Centre (WTEC)
The Women's Technology and Education Centre (WTEC) aims to develop a shared vision and culture across the organisation which, until recently, was divided into two separate divisions. The bid focuses on utilising the principles set out in the joint DTI/DfEE publication Partnerships with People in order to develop the systems and structure to create a partnership amongst the 43 management and full and part-time employees in Wigan.