Episode 4 – Monica Kurnatowska, Partner with Baker McKenzie

In this episode we hear from a very experienced, senior Lawyer who specialises in Employment Law and Collective Bargaining. Monica is part of the global employment team at international law firm Baker Mckenzie, based in London.

Monica advises many large domestic and multi-national employers, and we hear about some of the common themes that come up in that work, some of the common mistakes employers make and some tips on how to avoid small issues becoming larger than they need to.

We also hear how Monica has become one of the most respected Lawyers when it comes to collective bargaining, the importance of building relationships and how vital line management capability is for any employer.

This conversation is not about union avoidance in any way, but a fascinating insight into how the law plays a part in collective bargaining, but also how the non-legal aspects of relationships can be just as important, if not more so.

Monica is very happy to be contacted by anyone who has a particular question about collective bargaining or employment law by email at this address:

monica.kurnatowska@bakermckenzie.com

To get in touch with us with feedback, suggestions or questions about the podcast, please email contact@irgurupod.com

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Many people, whether working in the IR Field, HR, Business, Policy or Legal, won't have ever heard of, let alone encounter, a Global Union. But they do exist, and they have a lot of influence. And there is a very good chance that the Union you deal with or belong to, regardless of geography, will be affiliated to a Global Union.

In this Episode of the IR Guru Podcast, we talk with Ron Oswald, ex General Secretary of the International Union of Food and Farm Workers (IUF) about what a Global Union does, how it does it, and why.

Ron also talks us through his career path that started as working as a baggage handler at Heathrow Airport in London and ended as the General Secretary of the IUF.

We also hear about some of the challenges that Ron feels are ahead, detail about some of the campaigning work he has been involved in and his work with multi-national employers to improve dialogue and the positive impact for many workers in Countries less developed than others.

If you like this episode, please say so wherever you can and please share it with anyone else you feel will be interested.

Want to get in touch - please email us at contact@irgurupod.com

In this episode, we talk to Mike Clancy, General Secretary of major UK Trade Union, Prospect, which has over 157000 members.

Mike talks us through his journey from growing up in Liverpool, taking a law degree, to becoming a major force in UK Industrial and Employee Relations.

He also shares his views on what Labour’s new deal for working people should prioritise, why collective bargaining and employee relations has to be done face to face and the skills needed from all those involved, and his thoughts about the UK’s productivity challenges.

This is a great listen for anyone interested in Unions, Business and Leadership. And, what the expectations are of an incoming Labour Government when it comes to workers rights.

Look out for future episodes....

We talk to Tony McCarthy - former HR Director at British Airways, Royal Mail, BAE Systems about his career path, the IR experiences along the way and how he navigated some very complex, interesting situations in his early career, often having to rely purely on instinct and bravery. As we know, there is no "how to manual" when it comes to Industrial Relations, but Tony's experience and achievements would be a very good start.