ORG Blog

There is no question. If we look carefully enough at the labor/management conflict currently underway at Hostess Brands between the company and the Bakers’ Union we will see that this fight is clearly a full-blown intractable conflict.

For those of us who study these types of disputes, there are several signs that signal the presence of an intractable conflict -- i.e., humiliating dignity violations from both sides, hostile stereotyping by each side, and a merciless effort by each party to blame the other for everything that’s wrong.

All of these dynamics are now clearly at play in the conflict at Hostess Brands. Given this, there’s no doubt this dispute, at one point or another, is going to become a textbook example of an Intractable Conflict.

Tuesday’s NHL negotiation news created a momentary burst of optimism among hockey fans everywhere, and the flurry of bargaining table and backroom caucusing Wednesday only added to the excitement. Ah, perhaps Santa was planning a pre-Christmas delivery for avid hockey fans. After a frustrating loss of the first half of the season would we soon hear the sweet sounds of skates digging deep into the ice and players being hard checked into the boards?

In Michigan this week a Lame Duck set of state officials have now added their state to the 23 other states that are “Right to Work” states.  This was accomplished without a popular vote by attaching the act to an appropriations bill that does not require a popular vote to be decided.  Naturally, organized labor sees that as a dirty trick and will no doubt find legal mechanisms for seeking to reverse it.

After 3 ½ months the NFL League’s lockout of the NFLRA represented referees appears to be over.  In retrospect you have to ask yourself, “Was that trip really necessary?”  Did the solutions that the new contract contains represent nearly 17 weeks of concentrated problem solving?  Does the result represent a significant benefit to the League, the Referees, the owners, the fans and the players?

Do you hear that great sigh?  It’s one of relief that this epic presidential campaign is finally behind us.  But that doesn’t mean an end to the power struggles and strife between and among the Executive and Legislative branches.  After such a close and rancorous race, our country is more divided than ever.  This does not bode well for the impending financial crisis that the December 31 “fiscal cliff” and the January 2 sequestration are predicted to ignite.

A few years ago we began to incorporate into our practice an increasingly researched concept commonly referred to as “Intractable Conflict.” In the simplest terms , an Intractable Conflict is one in which the parties have become so incensed with one another that they choose to get even rather than to seek resolution to their disagreement, even though it will very likely result in their own demise.

Let's Limit the Competition to the Playing Field

The following originally appeared in the Boston Globe on August 20, 2012

As the Con Edison lockout enters its 20^th day, stories are emerging of workers who are struggling without healthcare coverage and supervisors who are exhausted from suddenly being thrust into 12 hour days covering the very physical jobs they held years ago.  To make matters worse, temperatures are hitting record highs, and the utility is being forced to lower wattages being supplied to segments of their customer base.

As the political season heats up, so too does the rhetoric about who’s right and wrong in headline-making labor-management disputes. Recent among those was coverage of the Machinists strike at a Caterpillar hydraulic parts factory in Joliet, Illinois.