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The issue of the non‐union firm has come to the fore in Britain principally because it has been seen as an exempler of one strand of the “New Industrial Relations” (Beardwell 1992). The decline in formal union membership and the reduction in the “coverage effect” of collective bargaining in the UK economy have been seen as significant indicators of a change in the established pattern of British industrial relations: the 1990 WIRS data (WIRS 1992) suggests that we might be seeing the emergence of “three systems” of industrial relations based upon a unionised private sector, a unionised public sector and a non‐unionised private sector — each representing about a third of the UK workforce.

Following Braudel's conceptualization of capitalism and Arrighi's periodization of systemic cycles of accumulation, the authors focus on the patterns of recurrence of financial expansions enabling capitalism to revitalize itself through crisis; in this, crisis is considered in both aspects — crisis‐as‐restructuring and crisis‐as‐rupture. The ways in which finance aided by the blocks of governmental and business agencies in the present stage affects investment and business cycles result in a progressive increase of inequality between rich and poor countries, as well as inequality within the most developed countries. The authors tackle the crisis phenomenon through a genealogical analysis of the formation, consolidation and disintegration of the successive regimes of accumulation on a world scale through which the capital economy expands. They furthermore examine the crisis of capitalist accumulation through the relation of money and the state, which leads them to the field of debates on the changed relationship between the global economy and the national state. However, the crisis is also marked by a milestone which, despite dangers and pitfalls, opens up endless possibilities. They end the paper with a critique of the politics of money and advocate a socially responsible finance management, which will pave the way for a structure of society in which humanity will exist as an end in itself, rather than as a resource for the accumulation of money.

Following Braudel’s conceptualization of capitalism and Arrighi’s periodization of systemic cycles of accumulation, the authors focus on the patterns of recurrence of financial expansions enabling capitalism to revitalize itself through crisis; in this, crisis is considered in both aspects ‐ crisis‐as‐restructuring and crisis‐as‐rupture. The ways in whichfinance aided by the blocks of governmental and business agencies in the present stage affects investment and business cycles result in a progressive increase of inequality between rich and poor countries, as well as inequality within the most developed countries. The authors tackle the crisis phenomenon through a genealogical analysis of the formation, consolidation and disintegration of the successive regimes of accumulation on a world scale through which the capital economy expands. They furthermore examine the crisis of capitalist accumulation through the relation of money and the state, which leads them to the field of debates on the changed relationship between the global economy and the national state. However, the crisis is also marked by a milestone which, despite dangers and pitfalls, opens up endless possibilities. They end the paper with a critique of the politics of money and advocate a socially responsible finance management, which will pave the way for a structure of society in which humanity will exist as an end in itself, rather than as a resource for the accumulation of money.

At a macro level there is evidence of greater numbers of people involved in the working practices associated with the “flexible firm”, i.e. part‐time, temporary, agency workers and self‐employment. However, if flexibility is to provide the promised source of competitive advantage then we may expect to see, not only a rise in the numbers of people involved in these “non‐standard” forms of work, but also greater evidence of strategic approaches to flexibility within UK organizations. As average firm size continues to decline it is particularly important that we know something of the extent to which SMEs are adopting flexible working practices. In addition, as the majority of SMEs are non‐union, the commonly held assumption is that such firms have the freedom to be more flexible than their unionized counterparts. In order to investigate this area the article draws on national survey data and findings from two research projects. It concludes that, although there is greater incidence of non‐standard forms of work, the adoption of such practices in the SME sector is more a reflection of pragmatism than a radical new approach to flexibility.

This study was carried out in a major UK retail bank over a seven‐year period. The initial survey in 1993 revealed the lack of a strategic approach to career management and a negative psychological contract. The follow‐up survey was carried out in March 2000. The research findings reveal a failure by management both to provide the tools necessary for career management and successfully to change the nature of the psychological contract. The “new” contract transferred responsibility to employees for managing their own career and was considered by employees as a violation of the “old”, paternalistic psychological contract. The “new” contract in this organisation was seen to be a regressive move from a relational contract to a transactional contract. Little progress had been made by management to gain acceptance of the new contract during the period of the research.

Examines the evidence for the utilization of human resource management approaches in smaller firms to shape employee relations in the UK. The influence of global change and volatile markets on the utilization of human resource management in the UK is considered and it is argued, that as small businesses are a significant employer in the private sector, the manner in which human resource management techniques are employed in small firms is critical.

Human Resource Management in the literature has been considered a second‐ or third‐order strategy largely related to implementation. Argues that the process of strategy formulation and evaluation has not been correctly conceptualised. The evidence that HR issues are fundamental to business is compelling at the level of unit labour costs, but whether they are fundamental to the strategy process has remained highly questionable. The paper suggests that a favourable HR environment has to be established before the various strategic choices can be analysed. Empirical research in two UK oil and chemical companies provides evidence that the effect of HR issues on corporate strategy is understated. The assumption of a top‐down, linear model of strategy formulation, whether positionally‐ or resource‐based, is questioned and an alternative conception is discussed.

In the debate leading up to the publication of the proposed Government White Paper Fairness at Work, companies which have de‐recognised unions have been portrayed by the unions as looking backwards to “Victorian” employment practices. This paper traces the development of “single status” ‐ effecively the de‐recognition of trade unions ‐ at BP Chemicals. It indicates that, after an initial phase of “macho” tactics at its Baglan Bay site, management adopted an apparently more consensual approach at its two other main sites utilising ballots of workers for the “single status” package. Further, the package introduced Employee Forums on each site which formed the basis of the establishment of a European Works Council. As such it leads to a questioning of the effectiveness of measures in the White Paper to bring about a return to trade union recognition.

Focuses on recent empirical evidence on management approaches to industrial relations in greenfield companies in Ireland. Places particular emphasis on the impact of industrial relations on the location of greenfield site facilities, patterns of trade union recognition and avoidance, pay determination, and the role of employer associations. Finds that, despite a national system of “bargained consensus” and the integration of trade unions into corporatist decision‐making structures on economic and social issues, most recent greenfield site facilities are non‐union. Argues that this evidence points to extensive management opposition to conventional pluralist industrial relations, despite the existence of a State system which has consistently promoted a consensus approach over the past two decades. This apparent paradox is explained by reference to the transformation in the structure and performance of the Irish economy in parallel with related social changes since the early 1980s.

This paper examines the use of “double breasting” as a means of union avoidance among multinational companies (MNCs). Double breasting refers to the practice whereby multi-establishment organizations simultaneously operate establishments on both union and non-union bases. Using survey data from the largest and most representative empirical investigation of employment practice in MNCs in Ireland, supplemented by qualitative data gathered from case-based investigations in the subsidiary operations of American-owned MNCs, we profile the incidence and pattern of this particular form of union avoidance as well as providing insights on management's rationale for so doing. Our findings suggest that a substantial and increasing number of unionized MNCs in Ireland are engaging in double breasting. This phenomenon is most evident among U.S. MNCs. We also find that employers, at both local and global levels, have proactively initiated double breasting as a strategic ploy to increase management prerogative and better position subsidiary operations to attract new investment from corporate levels.