British Airways’ recent tussles with its unions have dented its
corporate reputation
Tina Fotherby
Nexus Public Relations
’The most credible of public images are those experienced face-to-face
Service organisations where employees have a direct interface with the
public undoubtedly find industrial relations influencing public image and
vice versa. Generally speaking, workers favoured by the public have the
media sympathy too, so tough-talking managers have to win the media
relations battle as well as the industry relations war.’
Antony Snow
Hill and Knowlton
’Certainly customers and probably the investors feel much better about a
company if it is known to have a clear industrial relations policy.
It doesn’t just affect the employees, it is an integral part of an
organisation’s public image strategy.’
Graham Goodkind
Lynne Franks
’Industrial relations not only influences public image, it is an intrinsic
part of it. Employees are the public faces of a company and are a
practical (and tangible) manifestation of their company’s attitudes,
values and what it stands for. It is why people prefer one shop to
another, one hotel to another, one airline to another, even one PR agency
to another.
And why do some companies get it right? The better they treat their staff,
the more likely their staff will pass on this sense of goodwill to the
consumer/client. IR is not merely an internal issue, and it should not be
treated as such.’
Jan Stannard
Marbles
’No matter how carefully a company crafts its public image, that image can
be knocked sideways when an industrial relations strategy has not been
fully integrated with overall communications strategy.’
Richard Houghton
Shandwick Public Relations
’Companies such as Volvo and Toyota have consistently promoted their
industrial relations strategy in relation to their product quality and as
part of an integrated communications programme and it has reaped great in
terms of positive public image.Once industrial relations becomes
confrontational, and use of media coverage part of negotiations, the
influence on public image becomes negative and impacts on other
communications activities.’
