2024/25 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

LUBS5334M Employment Relations

30 creditsClass Size: 30

Module manager: Gerard Looker
Email: G.Looker@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

The module provides comprehensive coverage to the field of UK employment relations. It will provide you with the theoretical resources with which to interrogate current developments within the subject.

Objectives

The module is designed to provide a comprehensive guide to recent developments in the field of employment relations (ER). It aims to bring an integrated approach to the subject, drawing on the disciplines of economics, politics and sociology. The course also seeks to explore the character of UK employment relations.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module, students will be able to critically evaluate:
- change and continuity in changing management strategies and structures;
- key factors in the contemporary prospects for trade union membership;
- the impact of the economic crisis on employment relations
- the role of key social agencies (employers, trade unions and the state) and labour market institutions in shaping comparative economic performance in the UK
- different theoretical frameworks and their usefulness in explaining the current state of employment relations

Skills outcomes
On completion of this module, students will be able to:
Transferable
- conduct analysis and provide relevant evidence and examples to support an argument
- write coherently and concisely to an advance level
- plan, organise and deliver work within time constraints

Syllabus

Indicative content:
- Differing theoretical perspectives on Employment Relations (values, ideology and frames of reference, context of employee relations)
- Key actors: managers and employers regulating employee relations
- Key actors: trade unions and the collective regulation of employment relations
- Key actors: the state and its intervention in employment relations
- Employee voice
- Trade unions in contemporary employment relations (decline, activity and "other actors")
- Negotiation and collective bargaining
- Industrial relations, productivity and performance (national and international contexts)
-Future perspectives on industrial/employee relations
-Review session

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Workshop	10	3.00	30.00
Independent online learning hours			30.00
Private study hours			240.00
Total Contact hours			30.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			300.00

Private study

Preparation for the workshop will involve reviewing the lecture slides prior to the session. Additionally, each student will be expected to spend time preparing for the seminar element of the workshop. Preparation for the assignment and examination are both expected to take around 140 hours study time

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Written feedback will be provided on the coursework assignments to help students assess their progress and prepare for future assignments. Participation in the workshops also provides the opportunity for students to assess their progress and receive feedback from tutors on an ongoing basis.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Assignment	4,000 words	75.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		75.00

For the assessed essay you will have a choice of questions relating to the lectures. For the exam you will be given a case study to read in advance of the examination and then you will have a number of questions to answer relating to the case study.

Exams

Exam type	Exam duration	% of formal assessment
Unseen exam	2 hr	25.00
Total percentage (Assessment Exams)		25.00

For the assessed essay you will have a choice of questions relating to the lectures. For the exam you will be given a case study to read in advance of the examination and then you will have a number of questions to answer relating to the case study. The resit for this module will be 100% by 4,000 word coursework.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 12/11/2024

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