Chapter 12, Problem 19AA

To determine

To evaluate: The response of management to strikes.

Explanation of Solution

Management can respond to strikes in the following ways:

1. Industries that manufacture goods for sale would always raise inventories before attack. Wage-earning workers may be asked to take the place of strikers, which may include additional training. When the company has several sites, workers can be redeployed to meet the needs of reduced employees.
2. Organizations may also take out strike insurance before an imminent strike, which would help mitigate the damage that the strike will incur.
3. One of the tools that already formed unions usually use is strike action. Some businesses could fully refuse to negotiate with the union, and by recruiting replacement employees to respond to the strike. Organizations employing strikebreakers usually capitalize on these concerns when attempting to convince union leaders to give up the strike and cross the picket line for the union.
4. A lockout, the type of work stoppage in which an employer refuses to allow workers to work, is another response to a strike.

Economics Concept Introduction

Introduction: A strike is a temporary work stoppage to impose a claim or preserve a right. A strike is also caused by the refusal of the employees to work.