Our fast paced one-day training course is packed full of useful advice and guidance. It explores the role of staff reps and employee representatives. It explains their duties and the skills needed to be highly effective in post.

This training helps representatives understand their role, better, embeds a positive and productive culture and provides a raft of hints, tips and guidance to help employee representatives carry out their duties more effectively.   It is important to remember that the representation role often presents a different set of challenges, duties and responsibilities to the representatives’ “day job”.  Representatives at all levels benefit from this training and its associated team building benefits and the additional transferable skills provided

Effective employee representation plays a critical link between staff and management, helping both to understand the others’ views and perspectives.  This, especially in times of turbulence, growth or change, enables a far higher quality of planning and decision-making; helps keep staff informed, on-board and committed to the latest business development and efficiency strategies.  The role of is seldom an easy one. Individuals, the workforce as a whole and the business itself often have very different needs and priorities.  Employee’s representatives need to remain enthusiastic, show loyalty to all and always presenting the differing positions in a positive way.

For Whom
The workshop is for new, potential or recently elected employee representatives from all business types and sectors. It also acts as a refresher for existing employee representatives or a way to re-energise a waning staff forum

CONTENT

1    The Role of the Employee Representative

• Objectives of Employee Representation and associated Forums
• Role and duties of Employee Representatives
  • Role description
  • The duties and activities representatives are not usually involved in

2     Context and Structures

• The drivers behind the growth of Employee Representation
• Structures for effective Employee Representation
• The benefits on offer for both employers & employees
• The role of ACAS
• Consultation V Negotiation – which, when and why
• When Consolation is required by Law – Collective Consultation, H&S, Contracts, Redundancy, TUPE

3      Employee Representation Schemes and Structures
This session explores the workings of typical employee representation schemes in more detail including, where appropriate, the prevailing situation within the client’s organisation.

• The four typical models
• The general model or where appropriate client specific model
• Operating protocols
• Procedures – the “constitution” or “rule book”
  • Management responsibilities
  • Representation arrangements
  • Terms of Office and Eligibility
  • Time allocated to employee representatives – meetings and preparation
  • Topics for discussion and what is not usually up for discussion
  • Confidentiality

4      Attending and Participating in Meetings

• Preparation
• 16 Points to remember
• 9 key planning steps
• 10 Things to avoid
• Meeting Structures and process – a step-by-step guide

5   Personal Awareness and Development
Session 5 encourages participants to think more about the duties they will be involved in and the skills they will need for success in role.   This session acts as an introduction for session 6 “Skills for Success” it does not provide any hints, tips or advice on skills development but the provides a useful break point when should the course be delivered in two separate sessions

6   Skills for Success
This final session lasts about 3 hours, it explores the personal skills and behaviours that help employee representatives be more successful in role.  It includes a raft of hints tips and guidance on good practice, which are fully transferable to other situations

• Excellent communication skills and listening skills
• Confident in public speaking (speaking in front of groups of people including managers)
• Ability to motivate and influence

In exploring the above the session includes a focus on:

In exploring the above the session includes a focus on:

• Communication
  • active listening
  • observational skills
  • body language: posture, gestures, tone, voice, use of words
    
    
• Questioning techniques
  • closed, open, supplementary, probing, hypothetical
    
    
• Influencing others
  • Assertive – Aggressive – Passive – Passive/Aggressive Behaviour
  • Six techniques to deal with difficult situations
    
    
• Negotiation
  with a reminder that much of the role is consultation not negotiation
  • The five key stages in any negotiation situation
  • planning your approach in meetings
  • knowing how and when to intervene
    
    
• Reporting Back and Public Speaking

• Planning and Organisational Skills
  • Being Proactive – able to seek out the views of all staff represented
  • Organised – able to ensure the views of most of the service area group are sought prior to and after meetings