The Scottish Government, a huge supporter of the Scottish tech industry, is also a supporter of unions - in their Fair Work Framework they set out some useful advantages of Effective Voice:
Effective voice does not only benefit employees. It also benefits organisations. Effective voice encourages employees to engage with the organisation and put forward views and ideas in ways that can stimulate change and improvement. Dialogue can improve the quality of information, which in turn can improve the quality of decision making. Genuine and effective voice mechanisms can deliver commitment to decisions that are made - even from those who disagree - and contribute to a good work climate. There are many examples in Scotland and elsewhere of how collective voice through trade unions working with employers has addressed a wide range of organisational challenges and contributed to organisational improvements.
The Fair Work Framework is a series of goals that the Scottish Government has set out for people who work in Scotland. Their ambition is that by 2025, people in Scotland will have a world-leading working life where fair work drives success, wellbeing and prosperity for individuals, businesses, organisations and for society.
The Fair work Framework is very useful to us as union supporters. We believe that if the Scottish Government is supporting tech financially, then tech has a responsibility to agree to the goals as set out by the Framework:
- Effective Voice
- Opportunities
- Security
- Fulfillment
- Respect
The Fair Work Framework is also a great place to start a union conversation with your colleagues or your organisation: its legitimacy as a Nationally recognised plan, endorsed by the Scottish Government, means that it is both achievable and realistic. These conversations around Fair Work can be very useful to start Mapping and Charting your workplace.
