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Impact Of Technology On Employee Relations

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THE DYNAMICS OF EMPLOYEE RELATIONS IN 21st CENTURY
Introduction
Technology is ingrained in our daily lives. As technology is being infused in every aspect of business, it has started to affect workers owing to their labour saving benefits. A complex relationship has been established between technology and employee relations. The impact of technology on employee relations is observable at a macro perspective which includes employment opportunities, wage determination etc. and also at micro level i.e. on the behavior and performance of the employee.
Understanding the effect of automation in employee relations in an organization needs to be carried out upon answering two basic questions. First, does technological change creates employment opportunities or does it shrinks it? The second, Are machines and technology in general alleviating the work and increasing job satisfaction or in some caveat way, they are reducing the interdependence and thereby the communication amongst employees.
The employment opportunities perspective: Reduction vs. Creation
The great economist, Karl Marx, outlook on technology’s impact on labour market can be understood by his famous statement “The production of too many useful things results in too many useless people”. The probability of technological improvement leading to reduction in per unit of labour requirement is quite high. This in turn establishes the proposition that the requirement of labour diminishes. Simultaneously improvement in
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