In these last decades, Malta made enormous progress in liberal democracy; however, we still lack in industrial democracy. Democracy must be available for everyone and everywhere and the workplace is not an exception.
Liberal democracy facilitates the island’s socio-economic achievements and its inclusion at the workplace should mark similar results.
Workers’ participation is the prime mover in industrial democracy and it manifests itself in the form of participate management, joint decision making, job enrichment and improved communication.
The degree in which workers participate in the enterprise is dependent on various factors, for instance the laws and values of the particular society. Malta is a paradox in such regards.
We have the absolute legal right of property designed on the British model and, on the other hand, we supposedly have Christian values in a way in which property is to be considered as lent and managed with responsibility.
The latter scenario promotes workers’ participation. One thus has to assimilate employee participation with managerial
values.
In northern European countries such as Germany or Scandinavia, one encounters the sophisticated integrated style of management; where workers (at least in the heavy industries), enjoy the right of co-determination.
German industrial legislation allow employees to elect a certain percentage of seats on the board of directors, especially in large enterprises.
A substantial cultural difference regarding industrial democracy is evident between European Union member states. For such reasons the European Union enacted what is coined as the Workers’ Involvement directive, in order to reduce such differences as much as possible.
These regulations give employees the right to consultation, information and active involvement in decision-making.
The directive takes into account the aforementioned cultural diversity of management in member states.
Effective workers’ participation is essential in today’s harsh competitive environment. Globalisation realities demand organisational flexibility and constant change in working practices. Change normally brings about employee resistance – thus, achieving employee consent by industrial democracy is an added value.
Employees who are regularly informed and are given a certain degree of control at the shop-floor, are far more productive and more likely to support management plans.
As in every form of democracy, the secret of succeeding in introducing employee involvement lies in trust and inclusion.
The latter concepts must form an integral part of the organisational culture, if the enterprise is to survive.
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