Labor Arbitration Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Labor Arbitration Process - Essay Example Another common way of dispute resolution is mediation. It also involves the role of one mediator, but his role is more of a compromiser than a final decision maker. An arbitrator attempts to resolve a dispute by hearing from both management and workers to arrive an amicable solution, which is binding on both parties. The role of a mediator is facilitating the communication between deputed parties to find a solution by themselves in the presence of mediator. Rarely does the mediator exert pressure to accept a solution. Conciliation is another way out for labor problems, but it is more or less same as that of mediation. Today, arbitration is used worldwide as a mechanism of resolving labor problems, and indeed in many other areas. The common forms of arbitration can be defined as below (Arbitration and Mediation): "Compulsory arbitration is a dispute resolution that is required by law. Widely accepted in Australia and New Zealand, compulsory arbitration was practiced by the National War Labor Board during World War II. It is a binding process. Expedited arbitration is a process intended to speed up the arbitration process with an informal hearing and awards generally rendered within five days. It was first used in 1971 in settling disputes in the steel industry. Expedited arbitration was als6 designed as a cost-saving method of dispute resolution. Interest arbitration is the use of an arbitrator or arbitrator board to render a binding decision in resolving a dispute over new contract terms (also called non-justifiable arbitration). Final offer selection arbitration is an interest arbitration process in which the arbitrator or arbitrator board selects either the union or management proposal to the solution. There can be no compromised decisions. This process is also termed either-or arbitration. Tripartite arbitration is a process wherein a three-member panel of arbitrators is used to reach a decision. Both labor and management select an arbitrator and the third is selected by the other two arbitrators or the parties to the dispute as a neutral participant". This essay is an attempt to review the history and future of labor arbitration in the United States, about which there have been many misconceptions. The essay attempts to clarify this much debated issue in a simple and lucid manner and to give an idea about the role of labor arbitration in labor relations. Secondary sources such as internet alone is used to justify the main arguments. History of Labor Arbitration in the U.S. This is a much debates and controversial topic in the United States. There are many misconceptions about the evolution of labor arbitration process in the country. The history of arbitration as a dispute resolving mechanism dates back to English common law and is the oldest form of dispute settlement. There were many instances of the use of arbitration in olden days. Among them the most notable are- "King Solomon was an arbitrator and arbitration was used to settle differences during the Greco-Roman period. George Washington was an advocate of arbitration and, in his will, mandated using the process if disputes arose over his estate. The use of arbitration in labor disputes was a common practice in the late 19th century but developed more rapidly after World War II as a substitute for work stoppages. During World War II, the

Mega Banks vs. Community Banks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mega Banks vs. Community Banks - Essay Example They play a crucial role in development of economy across length and breadth of the US. They remain very important in small-business sector and agricultural lending. The paper aims to explore the contrasting roles played by Community banks and large banks in the national economy and the regulatory burden that â€Å"Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010† is likely to put on them impacting their performance in the national economy. Small Business Lending Small businesses account for a huge share of total economic output and employment. Small business with fewer than 500 employees, account for more than 50 percent of private sector employment and output. Community banks are better placed in making loans to small businesses. Small bank officials can review the small business loan applications taking local perspectives and the nature of business. That is usually not possible for large banks as they do not have so much autonomy at local levels and it is n ot feasible for the large banks to review the myriads of small business applications that closely. Another advantage with community banks to deal with small business loans is that often it is required to maintain a close relationship with the borrower. It is possible for community banks to closely monitor the borrower, sitting locally, over the course of the loan; the bank needs to maintain a close knit long-term relationship with the firm. Large banks find it inefficient and unfeasible to maintain such close relationship with small businesses. Large banks will rely on phone and mail to communicate with small clients in contrast to community banks who will often have face-to-face meetings. That is to say community banks have their own niche area to cater to where large banks do not have access (Keeton, 2004 p.24) Loans on Nonresidential Real Estate by Community Banks Community banks drive advantage in extending loans backed by nonresidential real estate and they account for over 60 percent of all loans of $100,000 or less and over 40 percent of all nonresidential real estate loans of $1 million or less. Community banks earn higher rates of return on small business loans than large banks (Keeton, 2004 p.26) Farm Lending By virtue of having located at the rural areas, Community banks are important farm lenders. They account for 65 percent of all farm real estate loans; particularly, smaller the amount of loan more are the chances of that being extended by community banks. Large banks are not interested in serving such small farm loans. Community banks are more risk takers while lending to small businesses in contrast to large banks that depend upon neat credit history of the client (Keeton, 2004 p.26). Retail Deposit Services Community banks are more eager to provide personalized services to depositors of moderate to low wealth holders; the reason being that community banks are more dependent on small depositors for their funds requirement where large banks are not found to chase small depositors (Keeton, 2004 p.27). Profitability Earnings on average assets for last 7 years with reference to large and community banks have been reported in the following table. Banks 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 March-2012 Over $ 50 billion 1.41 0.92 0.18 -0.07 0.77 0.94 1.06 Under $10 billion 1.26 1.06 0.05 -0.29 0.16 0.66 0.96 Source: