Every CBA I have had led and negotiated in the past did not come on a silver platter. A battle is won not so much because you have a great team but because you have prepared your team to win. Preparation is key, but it may not be enough to make a breakthrough in negotiating a Collective Bargaining Agreement.

I have participated and/or negotiated more than 10 CBAs in my career, both successful and not so successful. Last February 8, 2018, we concluded one in another great record of only 2 meetings! How did it happen when the company could not yield as much due to business conditions and the economic needs of the workers increased due to the rising cost of living? What makes this CBA negotiation different from the past?

Let me share with you the POWER behind our successful negotiation with the Union.

Prayer. Both negotiating parties are simply human beings and are driven by their individual moods and priorities. Higher wisdom and guidance from Above can make the seemingly impossible come true. We were supported by committed company employees who prayed hard and offered personal sacrifices for a successful CBA negotiation. I have also prayed harder this time because I have my own personal battles to conquer, both personal and work demands.

Frankness. We are open to understanding the interests of others and are patient enough to listen to the needs of others. Some discussions were difficult, some proposals were difficult to accept, but in the end, due to openness and free exchange of ideas, we came to a common basis of agreement.

Win win. Most of the union and management bargaining panel members have taken the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and this helped a lot in understanding each other’s paradigms and perspectives. We try to negotiate for interests and not for positions.

Energy. There is so much energy from both sides and all of us love our company and are committed to sustaining and making the business successful.

I respect. We have reached maturity and professionalism in our mutual treatment. We do not have to use vulgar words to emphasize our disagreement on certain issues.

It took some time to generate such POWER as it did not come overnight. We have come a long way in nurturing our relationships with our employees and I am proud to be part of a company whose core values ​​are not only written on the walls, but are well lived by their employees.