Relationships between various measurements of workplace performance

Considers the relationship between various measurements of workplace performance. Examines data collected from 2,004 workplaces in the Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey. Identifies three groups, the first of which, just over half of the sample, was named the “successful internal group” because it had the lowest rate of return and the lowest industrial activity. The second group, approximately one‐third of the sample, had the highest rate of return and a similar level of industrial activity to that of the first group and was called the “successful both internal and external” group. The third group, approximately one‐sixth of the sample, had the highest level of industrial action, the second highest rate of return but the worst relationships between management and employees, and was designated the “successful external group”. The “successful internal” and the “successful internal and external” groups tended to occupy smaller, white‐collar workplaces and to employ a greater percentage of women.