PR business, industry & government

1. PR business, industry & government • INTRODUCTION • The times of socio-political change, no company can afford to exclude themselves from industrial relations problems. Skinner et al (2007:298) states that companies that are able to cope with labour unrest and strike action are those that are prepared for it. It is essential to ensure that each situation is handled with flexibility, taking into account of personalities, and to deal with circumstances as they arise. Action should only be engaged when you have consulted with all stakeholders and careful reflection on all possible consequences. • New Legislation The enactment of Labour Relations Act in 1995 signified the beginning of major changes within labour relations. The Basic Conditions of Employment Act of 1997 and Employment Equity Act of 1998 and skills Development Act of 1999 followed the Labour Relations Act of 1995. The Act created the Commission for Consultation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA). This body is and independent body that is financed by the State, the CCMA has the right to administer mediation and arbitration.

2. Industrial Relations Industrial relations practice aims to establish formalised structures for the regulation of relationships between management and employees. It is essential for formalised upward and downward communication structures to be in place. Typically there are employee communities and grievance procedures for upward communication and disciplinary procedure and briefing for formal downward communication. In a unionized environment, management and the union enter into a negotiated recognition agreement which lays down the rules and procedures for handling the relationship, that is, election and appointment of shop stewards and management; disciplinary, grievance, and retrenchment procedures (Skinner et al 2007:298). PR practitioner should attempt to inform the company‘s customers and other publics who may be affected, of impending disruptions. Managing the media is an important part of maintaining the moral high ground. Unions have generally been proactive using the media to support their case

3. Workplace forums The objectives of both voluntary and statutory workplace forums are: • To promote the efficiency of the enterprise; • To meet the needs of all the people in the enterprise; • To shift away from adversarial industrial action indulged in each year in the past during protracted negotiating. The operating principles of workplace forums are: • Representatives from all levels of employees have equal votes. • Meetings must be on a regular basis. There should be a general meeting with senior management at least once a year for company disclosure on the financial state and future prospects of the enterprise. • Facilities are to be provided for representatives to be able to hold report back and feedback sessions for employees after forum meetings. • Union officials can be invited to attend forum meetings. • Disputes on forum procedures or issues are to be referred to the commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration for advisory awards or statutory decisions.

4. PR and Labour unrest Objectives: in dealing with potential labour unrest or a strike the following are some suggestions. • To ensure that employees remain at work or return to work at the earliest possible opportunity. • To ensure that management retains the initiative in dealing with labour unrest; • To prevent injury to persons and damage to property; • To get to the root of the problems causing dissatisfaction and to gain a full picture of the situation;

5. FINANCIAL AND CORPORATE RELATIONS Business and Industry The public relation function has had its most extensive development in business and industry. The client lists of counselling firms are dominated by business and industrial corporations. Because of this dominance, both employment opportunities and public perceptions of the calling depend heavily on the practice in business and industry. Newspapers and TV coverage headline the sins of corporate America, while its accomplishments get attention primarily in the specialized media serving business and industry. Most business leaders are portrayed as greedy, foolish or criminal and almost half of all business activities are portrayed as illegal. Social issues often become government mandates and regulations directed to business and industry. It is this turbulent environment that the function has achieved increased status and influence and attracted talent and resources. • Distinguishing features (refer to guide)

6. PR AND GOVERNMENT • Governments were among the first organizations to need, and to practice, public relations as a way of maintaining appropriate relationships with their citizens. They still need to maintain such relationships but, in the United States today, they rarely call it "public relations." • Public relations was seen as a great and growing activity when practiced by businesses and was also considered acceptable for non-profit organizations. • But, any public relations activity by government became immediately suspect. • A variety of state and local laws and regulations were enacted to limit or prohibit public relations efforts by government, and many of them are "strictly enforced" today. • There are very few people or agencies at any level of government who have the words "public relations" in their titles or their job responsibilities, but there are thousands of public information officers and public information specialists throughout state and local governments. Refer to guide

7. Government communicators link government and the people. It may sound overly dramatic, but government communicators can and do make life or death differences in people's lives. Consider, for instance, • needy people who learn they're eligible for free food or medical care by reading government produced and distributed brochures for Food Stamps, the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Supplementary Food Program, the Surplus Commodity Distribution Program, Medicare, or Medicaid; • victims saved from further abuse, or even death, because television public service announcements about child abuse, spouse abuse, and elder abuse publicized toll-free hotlines and encouraged people to use them for reporting abuse; • people saved from using defective products -- whether a bean bag inadvertently filled with toxic beans or a car whose fuel line is likely to rupture and start an engine fire -- because of news releases or press conferences by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the National Transportation Safety Board, or their counterparts at the state or local levels.

8. Working in government is different than working in business. Regardless of a government employees' duties, the level or agency of government for which they work, there are four characteristics that make working for government very different than working for a profit-motivated business or even a private, non-profit organization. These differences affect government communicators at least as much as, if not more than, they affect other government employees. The unique characteristics of government employment include: • the direct and powerful impact the work has on large numbers of people, • the diverse and multiple levels of accountability that extend all the way to the general public and often involve a civil service commission or similar agency, • the fish bowl environment in which government employees work, and • the fiscal constraints placed on government spending.

9. Lobbying • Lobbying is a concerted effort designed to achieve some result, typically from government authorities and elected officials. • It can consist of the outreach of legislative members, public actions (e.g. mass demonstrations), or combinations of both public and private actions. • As a professional occupation it is also known as "government affairs" or "public affairs". Practitioners may work in specialist organisations or as part of government relations or as public relations consultancies. • Lobbying is used in influencing legislation and all kinds of government decisions.

10. Business plan • WHAT IS A BUSINESS PLAN? The primary value of your business plan will be to create a written outline that evaluates all aspects of the economic viability of your business venture including a description and analysis of your business prospects. • Why prepare a business plan • What to avoid in a business plan • Business plan format • Steps to a great business plan • DO’s & DONT’s Refer to guide