UET Online Magazine

Labor-management teams have been created to make State of Ohio agencies function better. Unfortunately, because of other influences including politics and personalities, some do not achieve that goal. The Union Education Trust’s Labor-Management Committee Effectiveness Training program works to fill that gap and give the labor-management committees (LMCs) the tools they need to be effective.

All statewide and district LMCs, including health and safety committees, are eligible to participate in this training program. The Ohio Department of Development’s LMC has completed the training several times as members on the team change, most recently going through the UET training in fall 2023.

“The purpose of the committee is to make things better for all, not just the union,” said Cheryl Bass, president of the OCSEA SOT Chapter 2545 chapter and a long-time member of the committee.

“My purpose is to get management to understand that we’re not against you. This committee is about working together for the betterment of all,” said Bass, a Customer Service Assistant 3.

Why the training is needed

All LMCs can benefit from the UET training, no matter how efficiently – or not – they are working. The DOD team wasn’t working the best way it could, according to Natalie Qualls,  a senior financial analyst at the DOD, the union chair of the DOD LMC, a member of the OCSEA Board of Directors, and a chief steward for the local chapter.

“We weren’t being productive. At one point, we completely shut down,” Qualls said, adding that there was infighting and no progress on topics under discussion. “We were a non-functioning labor-management team. We weren’t even a team; we were a committee. We just sat across from each other and didn’t communicate effectively.”

In addition, the LMC’s agenda was set by the co-chairs over e-mails without input from the other team members. Several team members said that the LMC wasn’t a priority to upper management. However, everyone on the team agreed to take the training in September 2023 and all of these concerns were addressed in the training.

“It was definitely needed,” said LMC member Steve Morris, also a Senior Financial Analyst at the DOD. “The LMC has a vital role when it comes to the fairness and equality of every agency.”

Morris said the training is so valuable that he thinks it should be conducted regularly, especially when there is turnover on the committee. New members bring new dynamics.

UET offers a three-day initial “L-M Committee Effectiveness Training” as well as a one-day refresher/follow-up course. Both labor and management members of the LMC need to agree to take the training, signing off on it in the application which is available on the UET website.

What the training looks like

The goal of the training is to help management and labor find common ground so they can move forward on joint workplace initiatives. The training focuses on building skills that enable the LMCs to work together productively and collaboratively. One of the best parts of the training is that it is fun in addition to being useful!

“What I really enjoyed was we got a chance to be away from the work environment and we left our titles at the door. We got to know each other on a personal basis with no interruptions,” Qualls said. “We’re all employees and we’re all on the same page.”

“We found a lot of stuff we had in common. When you build on those common things, it is easier to build relationships and tackle problems,” Qualls added. “I know that management is human. I know they are under pressure too.”

During the three days of training, the participants are moved into different groups for each exercise so that by the end, everyone has worked with and gotten to know all of their co-workers. Everyone is given scenarios to work out together as a group, Bass explained, adding that it is the same way you’re supposed to be working together as a committee.

“You got to laugh and talk with people who you had sometimes passed in the hall and didn’t even talk to,” Bass said. “The training makes you forget about labels.”

The UET benefit includes the actual three-day workshop with the trainers as well as pre- and post-training assessments and up to two facilitated committee meetings afterwards. The agency covers travel expenses and wages. All of the participants praised the trainers and the way the program was managed.

“I enjoyed the exercise where you had to decide what resource was our top priority in a survival situation,” Morris said. “That one in particular was good because you get different perspectives.”

“For instance, the group I was in, we had a person who used to be a part-time fireman. This exercise was about a forest fire,” he said. “My background is military. We had different people with different backgrounds. It brings out different perspectives on situations and makes you communicate, which enhances your whole overall committee.”

Practicing communication skills and learning to work as a team were important tools, Bass said.

“We learned to work as a team, no matter what the team is comprised of,” Bass said. “You don’t always agree on things but you’re able to come up with a consensus. You get to put it into practice and see what the end result is.”

Seeing change and results

There were indeed several immediate results from the training, the LMC members agree. Everyone who participated saw the value in the training as well as what an effective LMC could achieve. The team members were committed to the LMC and wanted to stay on the team, although several have left and been replaced. Both Bass and Qualls noticed that the team members now interact outside of committee meetings – often talking about how exhilarating the training experience was.

While the DOD LMC has not met for a while during the contract negotiation process, immediately after the training the team set up several new procedures.

“The training gave us goals. We did start with getting an agenda and communicating it with everybody,” Qualls said. “Also, everyone has been communicated to about why we haven’t been meeting.”

As a result of the training, the agenda is now developed by everyone on the team and shared five days before the LMC meeting. Afterwards, minutes will be sent out within a week so team members can review the information while it is fresh in their memories.

There has been another change since the training: Now both management and union employees want to be on the team, Qualls said.

“Before the training, we couldn’t get employees to join the committee,” she said. “After the training and seeing how effective we have been with communicating the purpose of the committee and working together to resolve concerns, we actually have several employees asking to get on the committee.”

Should your agency’s LMCs take this training?

The members of the DOD LMC recommend the training to other agency LMCs, explaining that all of the participants liked learning the techniques that they can use every day at work.

“It's a teaching that kind of sneaks up on you. At first, people are apprehensive that it will be a stiff lecture, but it’s nothing like that at all,” Bass said. “I definitely recommend it. It can teach managers how to better communicate with each other and employees.”

“We learn how to not jump to conclusions without getting all the facts,” Bass added. “The training teaches a lot. I’d take it every time!”

Qualls agreed that the training made the DOD LMC a team, not just a committee.

“It’ll give your team the ability to focus. Now we all are on the same page with clearer goals,” she said. “From this training, you’ll understand that it’s not just about problem solving. It’s about making your agency great. We’re working on stopping problems before they happen and increasing morale.”

 Morris has taken the training three times now over the years and has learned something each time, even when he knew what the exercise was from doing it before.

“I personally believe all of the training was useful, hopeful, and meaningful,” Morris said. “I believe it builds trust; it builds communication; it builds a better overall quality of the agency. I think that when there’s people who operate off fairness and equality, it helps.”