Factors Influencing an Employer’s Bargaining Strength
- An employer will be stronger:
- The greater the financial reserves it has with which it can last out any dispute
- The lower the proportion of its workers who are in a union or professional body
- The greater the degree of substitution between capital and labour
- The higher the rate of unemployment, since this will mean it can substitute existing workers with unemployed workers
- The lower the support workers have from the public
- The lower the disruption any industrial action would cause to the productive process
- The more branches the firm has which employ non-union labour or labour in different unions, so that production can be moved in the case of a dispute
- The more legislation favours employers