Conflict arises when the interests, needs, goals or values of involved parties deviate. Bargaining and negotiation are techniques commonly use in conflict management to determine the degree to which each party’s interest will be satisfied.

Bargaining between conflicting parties consist of offers, counteroffers, and concessions exchanged in an effort to find a mutually acceptable resolution.

Negotiation between conflicting parties consist of dialogue in which parties decide what each will give and take in order to find a mutually acceptable resolution.

The level of adversity prevalent within the bargaining and negotiation processes is predicated by two separate and independent dimensions, assertiveness and cooperativeness.

Assertiveness refers to the level to which a person attempts to satisfy his / her own concerns and needs.

Cooperativeness refers to the level to which a person attempts to satisfy others’ concerns and needs.

The TKI conflict-handling model developed by Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Kilmann utilizes five behavior modes that vary in degrees of cooperativeness and assertiveness

Competing: promoting one’s own concerns at the expense of other parties involved. Often accomplished by asserting authority to override other parties involved. Competing demonstrates behavior that is assertive and uncooperative.

Accommodating: Allows other parties to satisfy their needs and concerns at one’s own expense. Often accomplished by supporting and doing favors for other parties involved and apologizing when necessary. Accommodating demonstrates behavior that is both assertive and cooperative.

Avoiding: neither pursuing one’s own concerns nor those of other parties involved. Often accomplished by staying neutral or refusing to take an active role. Avoiding demonstrates behavior that is unassertive and uncooperative.

Compromising :to achieve partial satisfaction for all parties involved. Often accomplished through dialogue and sacrifice. Most often accomplished through sacrifice by all parties involved for the purpose of achieving acceptable rather than optional resolution. Compromising demonstrates a medium range of both assertive and cooperative behavior.

Collaborating: working with other parties involved to find a solution that will completely satisfy all parties concerns and needs. Often accomplished by fully analyzing an issue to identify the underlying desires of all parties involved. Collaborating demonstrates behavior that is both assertive and cooperative.

The five behavior conflict handling modes provide a means of examining the ongoing conflict currently taking place over Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s proposed Budget Repair Bill. Parties involved in the conflict include: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and the Republican members of the Wisconsin state legislature, 14 Wisconsin state Democratic Senators, and Wisconsin public employee union members.

The conflict centers around Governor Walker’s Budget repair bill which would: (1) increase by approximately 8% the amount most state and local government workers contribute to their health care and pensions (2) permanently strip most state and local workers of their collecting bargaining rights.

The Democratic state senators and public union members have agreed to the financial concessions outlined in the bill but are resisting the measure that would permanently relinquish employee collective barging rights.

In an effort to slow down the legislative process and pave the way for a compromise measure that would keep state workers’ collective bargaining rights intacked the 14 Democratic state senators departed Wisconsin leaving the Senate one member short of the 20 senators required to vote on the bill.

Measures taken at this point in time by the Governor Walker and the Republican legislators to get Democratic senators to return to the capitol include:

• Holding their paychecks
• Taking away their staff, budgets, offices and parking privileges
• Fines of $100 per day
• Arrest warrants for Senators.

Measures taken at this point in time by union members include:

• Demonstrations at the capitol
• Attempts to meet with Governor Walker to discuss collective bargaining issue
• Recall of Republican senators who are eligible for recall
• Letters and petitions plaguing to recall Governor Walker when he becomes eligible for recall

Measures taken by Democratic Senators include:

• Attempts to get Governor Walker and Republican legislators to remove the collective bargaining measure from the bill
• Attempts to make collect bargaining measure temporary rather than permanent.
• Attempts to get Republican senators to vote against the bill

Conflict-handling behavior modes exhibited by Governor Walker’s and Republican legislators are Competing and Avoiding.

Conflict-handling behavior modes exhibited by Democratic Senators include
Avoiding and Collaborating.

Conflict-handling behavior modes exhibited by Union members include
Competing and Compromising.