LERA 2014 Interview: Todd Dickey, Ph.D. Student, ILR School

Q: What is the focus of the panel on which you are speaking?

A: The panel on which I am speaking is centered on the wide variation in worker access to justice on the job across the United States today. The topic is also a primary focus of the Scheinman Institute's work.

Q: How does your current work or research connect to this panel?

A: I will be presenting preliminary findings from my dissertation research, which examines the influence of an Integra ted Conflict Management System on a federal government agency and its stakeholders. The ICMS model is arguably the 'gold standard' in our field when it comes to workplace conflict management. Its design theoretically provides a high level of access to pr ocedural justice, but do employees and key partners experience the system in this way? I am interested in seeking answers to this question in my research.

Q: What is significant about this work; how is it relevant to today’s issues in the workplace?

A: My dissertation research is the first academic study of a fully - functioning ICMS and will provide us detailed empirical evidence on the value and influence of such a system on an organization, which is thought of in our field as a best practice.

Q:How will attending LERA help move your work forward?

A: LERA is the premier conference of the industrial relations discipline and every year I look forward to attending it to learn the latest in research and trends in our field. The conversations I have with fellow researchers and practitioners are extremely helpful and inspiring and I always leave wishing the next conference would be just a month or two away, rather than another year!