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1 Emp. Resp. & Rts. J. 1 (1988)

handle is hein.journals/emprrj1 and id is 1 raw text is: Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1988 Introductory Statement One of the most evolutionary relationships in our society has been that between the employer and employee. The relationship has adapted to each sociopolitical stage in American history, influenced by both public and private forces. Each stage has been represented by a change in the balance of rights and responsibilities between the employer and employee. While at one time an employee could be discharged at the whim of an employer, today there is greater likelihood of government and state statutes constraining that former inherent right of the employer. The pendulum has swung from a period in which the employer owed no responsibility to an em- ployee, other than salary, to an era in which employers are considerably more respon- sible for the safety and welfare of their employees. This swing of the pendulum reflected by the shift in rights and responsibilities between the employer and employee has occurred over a period of years, and yet few have paused to reflect on or analyze the impact such changes have had on the employer-employee relationship. What ef- fect have such shifts had on employee productivity, on industrial justice, on job satis- faction levels, on the total work environment? While regulations and expectations over the last several decades have mandated that employers, more and more, accord employees rights, benefits, and privileges not previously enjoyed, do employees reciprocate with more productivity and more loyalty? As workers enjoy more benefits, questions are raised concerning output- has it increased commensurate with increased rights? Should increased rights be de- pendent on increased output? Examples of areas in which employee responsibilities and rights have shifted dramatically over the last half century include occupational safety and health, equal employment opportunity, erosion of the employment-at-will doctrine, labor- management cooperation, workers' compensation, unemployment compensation, so- cial security, pension benefits, and the right to organize collectively. The emphatic shift in American labor policy from employer autonomy to employee rights suggests major changes in the employer-employee relationship. Clearly, such a shift implies sociopolitical support for such changes not necessarily dictated by economic condi- tions, or despite them. Ethical as well as economic, political, and social issues may be raised in connection with the shift in employee rights. Furthermore, changes in the relationship between employers and employees raise questions concerning the em- ployees' responsibilities as well as their rights. The new rights imply or have been accompanied by new -or at least changed --responsibilities. This leads to the ques- tion of the linkage between employee responsibilities and rights. Rights and respon- sibilities interact, and, presumably, there are optimum combinations of them for individuals, organizations, and society. 0892-7545/88/0300-0001$06.00/0 © 1988 Plenum Publishing Corporation

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