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THE ACCOUNTANT'S ROLE IN WAGE NEGOTIATIONS.

Travis P. Goggans

Assistant Professor of Accounting, College of Business Administration, University of Oklahoma, Norman 1

The Accounting Review 1964

The article informs that accountant's role in wage negotiations arises whenever financial data are used in the negotiations. The relevance of particular financial data may vary from case to case, but in general the data that are germane relate to the firm's "ability to pay." The accountant who is engaged to participate in wage negotiations should exhibit the same degree of independence and objectivity as an independent auditor. Functions the independent accountant may perform in wage negotiations can be classified as verification, interpretation, and communication of financial data. A controversy that arises frequently in wage negotiations, when "ability to pay" is an issue, is discussed in this paper. The controversy, which deals with the relationship of depredation to reported profits, is presented as an example of the contribution the independent accountant can make to wage negotiations. Financial data may be used to obtain public, as well as employee and union support. Collective bargaining is becoming more public and less private in our con temporary society. There has been increasing government intervention in wage negotiations through the use of fact-finding boards. These boards, at times, rely heavily on the use of financial data of the firm.

DOI
10.2308/tar-7134707
Volume
39 (3)
Pages
627-630
Language
en
Export
BibTeX
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