A training experience in communication and negotiation for workers in the labour relations field in the Autonomous Province of Trento.
In the autumn of 2017 the course "Collective negotiation and negotiating skills" was developed, conceived and organized by Tsm LaReS with Dott. Italo Ghirigato, sociologist, trainer and communication expert and created with the involvement of Dott. Gianni Anichini, Dott. Andrea Abati and Dott.ssa. Giorgia Carocci of the Trento headquarters of the Menichetti Law Firm.
LaReS - Labour Relations and Trade Union Laboratories - has been developing and consolidating since 2012 as a place for reflection, sharing, training and socio-cultural debate on issues related to economic development, labour law, industrial relations, trade union representation and public policies, social and social security. Its main objective is to provide useful tools for the development of professional skills of all workers in the labour relations field in the Autonomous Province of Trento.
In 2017 LaReS developed the desire to create a path dedicated to collective bargaining, to allow trade union delegates to deepen their knowledge of the related issues, highlighting its characteristics and its various phases, as well as gaining greater awareness of the associated communication aspects and the ability to put into practice the functional skills of the negotiation process. To put this training into practice, it made use of the collaboration of Dott. Ghirigato and Dott. Anichini, the latter engaged, together with Dott. Abati and Dott. Carocci, in the preparation and implementation of a simulated collective negotiation with a "real counterpart", a phase that represented the central part of the entire course. The good collaboration between the various people involved allowed us to create a complete path, which brought together in one place industrial relations, collective bargaining, communication and relational skills.
Following a method that provided for group work and plenary sessions, the participants first elaborated a platform of requests for a hypothetical company. Subsequently they elected a delegation formed of four people from among them, who met three times with the counterpart, simulating three phases of a negotiation: the first approach with the presentation of requests; the central phase in which they entered into the detail of the case and in which the most effective communication techniques were applied; and the final part in which an agreement was approved.
In the end, the evaluation of the result both in terms of content and in terms of relationships and communication was very positive. Gianni Anichini’s professionalism, competence and ability to involve people were greatly appreciated, and together with the contributions of Andrea Abati and Giorgia Carocci, validated the course and provided an excellent outcome for all three moments of the simulated negotiation, making the first two editions of the course successful experiments.
In 2018 further training sessions are planned to analyse the issue further and to increase the negotiating skills of the participants involved in various capacities in labour relations and in the economic and labour policies of the Autonomous Province of Trento.
