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CHAPTER 8
MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES
AND LABOUR RELATIONS
CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
This chapter describes the importance of effective human resource management. Specific
human resource management activities that are discussed include planning activities (job
analysis, job description, job specifications), forecasting, staffing (recruitment, selection,
promotions), developing the workforce (orientation, training, performance appraisal),
compensation (wages and salaries, incentive programs, comparable worth), providing
human resource services (benefit programs, employee safety and health, retirement), the
legal context of HRM, and challenges in the changing workplace. The chapter concludes
with a discussion of the role of labour unions in business organizations. Topics that are
covered include unionism today, the legal environment for unions in Canada, union
organizing strategies, the collective bargaining process, and the use of independent third
parties to help labour and management resolve their differences.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I. FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (HRM)
HRM is the set of activities that are directed at attracting, developing, and
maintaining an effective workforce. HRM operates in a dynamic environment and
is increasingly being recognized for its strategic importance.
A. The Strategic Importance of HRM—Effective organizational functioning
requires human resources. The importance of HRM has grown dramatically in the
last two decades. This is a direct result from the increased legal complexities, the
recognition of the workforce as a valuable resource and the recognition of the
costs associated with poor HRM.
B. Human Resource Planning—This is the starting point for effective HRM
and involves job analysis and forecasting the demand for the supply of labour.
1. Job analysis—This detailed study of the specific duties in a
particular job and the human qualities required for that job forms the basis
of the job description and job specification. These, in turn, are the basis for
further personnel activities.
2. Forecasting HR demand and supply—Managers need to forecast
the demand for employees of different types and the likely supply in the
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short-, intermediate-, and long-term. Factors to be considered in doing so
are discussed.
a. Replacement charts—These list each important managerial
position, who occupies it, how long the person will probably stay
in it before moving on, and who is now qualified or soon will be
qualified to move into it.
b. Skills inventories—These contain information on each
employee’s education, skills, work experience, and career
aspirations.
3. Matching HR supply and demand—After comparing future
demand and internal supply, managers can develop contingency plans to
minimize the negative effects of a shortage of HR.
II. RECRUITING HUMAN RESOURCES
The process of attracting qualified persons to apply for jobs that are open is the
focus of this section. Internal recruiting means considering present employees as
candidates for openings, while external recruiting means attracting people from
outside the organization to apply for jobs.
A. Selecting Human Resources—Once the recruiting process has attracted a
pool of applicants the next step is select someone to hire. This involves gathering
information from the applicants that will predict their job success and then hire
the candidate that is most likely to be successful. To reduce the element of
uncertainty, managers use a variety of techniques (see Figure 8.1). Each
organization develops its own mix of selection techniques and may use them in
almost any order:
1. Applications forms—An efficient method of gathering information
that is needed.
2. Tests—Tests of ability, aptitude, or knowledge that is relevant to a
particular job are usually the best predictors of future job performance.
3. Interviews—A popular selection device, but due to biases this
method is sometimes a poor predictor of job success.
4. Other techniques—Company or industry specific techniques are
used (e.g., physical exams, polygraph tests, etc.)
III. DEVELOPING HUMAN RESOURCES
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Employees must receive an orientation to their new job. They may also need
additional training and development after being selected.
A. New Employee Orientation—Orientation is the process of introducing new
employees to the company’s policies and programs, the co-workers and
supervisors they will interact with, and the nature of their job. Orientation allows
new employees to feel like part of a team and to become effective contributors to
the organization more rapidly.
B. Training and Development—Most organizations find it effective to
conduct training and development on a regular basis. This continuous training and
development can improve the quality of the contributions the employee makes to
the organization. On-the-job training, vestibule training, systematic job rotation,
and management development programs are discussed. Management
development programs, networking, and mentoring all help in training employees.
C. Team Building and Group-Based Training—More and more organizations
are using teams as a basis for doing work. Outdoor training exercises like Outward
Bound are popular training initiatives.
D. Evaluating Employee Performance—Performance appraisals are formal
evaluations of how effectively employees are performing their jobs. They provide
a benchmark to assess the extent that the recruiting and selection process is
adequate, help in determining training and development requirements, and
compensation issues. Most likely the immediate supervisor will conduct the
appraisal.
1. Providing performance feedback—Many managers are not
effective when providing performance feedback, partly because they don’t
understand how to do it properly and partly because they don’t enjoy it. As
a result, managers may have a tendency to avoid giving negative feedback.
But if employees are not told about their shortcomings, they will have no
concrete reason to try to improve and will receive no guidance as to how to
improve.
2. Methods for appraising performance—The nature of jobs today is
such that we rely on judgements and ratings to appraise employee
performance. In simple ranking, employees are ranked according to where
they place compared to others (or groups of others). The forced
distribution method involves grouping employees into predefined
frequencies of performance ratings (e.g., top 20%, next 30%, etc.). The
graphic rating scale asks appraisers to rate the individual’s job
performance by answering specific questions with answers that best suit
the employee. The critical incident method involves the rater recalling
examples of especially good or poor performance by an employee and then
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describing what the employee did (or did not do) that led to success or
failure.
IV. COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Compensation refers to the set of rewards that an organization provides to
employees in exchange for their willingness to perform various jobs and tasks.
A. Determining Basic Compensation—Wages generally refers to an hourly
compensation paid to operating employees while salaries usually refers to
compensation stated in a monthly or yearly figure. Pay surveys (survey of
compensation that others are paying), job evaluation (a job’s value added to the
organization), and pay structure (compensation based on the organization’s
assessment of the relative value to the organization of reach job class) are three
methods for determining basic compensation.
B. Incentive Programs—To encourage employees to work harder, many
organizations offer rewards that are directly tied to higher levels of performance.
1. Individual incentives—With a piece-rate system, an employee is
paid a certain amount of money for every unit produced. With pay-for-
performance, managers are rewarded for especially productive output.
2. Team and group incentives—These apply to all employees in the
firm. These include profit-sharing plans, gainsharing plans, and pay-for-
knowledge plans.
C. Benefits—Besides financial compensation, most organizations provide
employees with an array of benefits. Some of these are mandated by law and
others are optional for the organization.
1. Mandated protection plans—These include employment insurance
(which provides subsistence for workers who are unemployed), the Canada
Pension Plan (which provides income to retired workers), and workers’
compensation (which covers individuals who suffer a job-related injury).
2. Optional protection plans—These include health coverage such as
vision care, mental health services, dental care, and prescription drugs.
3. Paid time off—This includes vacations and sick leave.
4. Other types of benefits—Organizations may also offer other types
of benefits including wellness programs (which concentrate on preventing
illness), childcare benefits, eldercare, and cafeteria benefit plans (which
allow employees to choose the benefits they really want).
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V. THE LEGAL CONTEXT OF HRM
The important areas of HR regulation are discussed in this section.
A. Equal Employment Opportunity—Protects people from unfair or
inappropriate discrimination in the workplace.
1. Anti-discrimination laws—The goal of the Canadian Human
Rights Act of 1977 is to ensure that any individual who wishes to obtain a
job has an equal opportunity to compete for it. The Employment Equity
Act of 1986 designates four groups as employment-disadvantaged:
women, visible minorities, Aboriginal people, and people with disabilities.
B. Comparable Worth—This is the idea of paying equal wages for work of
equal value.
C. Sexual Harassment—This includes requests for sexual favours,
unwelcome sexual advances, or verbal/physical conduct of a sexual nature that
creates an intimidating or hostile environment for a given employee.
D. Employee Health and Safety—These programs are intended to reduce
absenteeism and turnover, raise productivity, and boost morale by making jobs
safer and more healthful.
E. Retirement—Most Canadian provinces have now abolished mandatory
retirement.
VI. NEW CHALLENGES IN THE CHANGING WORKPLACE
A. Managing Workforce Diversity—Opportunities and challenges are evident
due to the wide range of workers attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviours.
B. Managing Knowledge Workers—As the importance of information-driven
jobs (versus experience-driven jobs) increases, management approaches must
change.
1. The nature of knowledge work—Knowledge workers include
occupations like computer scientists, engineers, and physical scientists.
These workers prefer to work independently.
2. Knowledge worker management and labour markets—
Organizations must pay knowledge workers enough to keep them from
moving to another company.
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C. Managing Contingent Workers—Contingent employees are those who
work on something other than a permanent or full-time basis. This section
discusses various aspects of management that must be considered when managing
these unique employees.
1. Trends in contingent employment—This type of employment is on
the rise in Canada. This is true even for top management positions. Each
year there are over 150,000 guest workers in Canada.
2. Management of contingent workers—Careful planning must be
done so that contingent workers are brought in only when they are really
needed. The costs and benefits of using contingent workers must be clearly
understood. Contingent workers should be integrated as much as possible
into the mainstream activities of an organization.
VII. DEALING WITH ORGANIZED LABOUR
A labour union is a group of individuals working together to achieve share job-
related goals such as higher pay and better working conditions. Collective
bargaining is the process by which union leader and company management
negotiate terms and condition of employment for workers who are represented by
the union.
A. The Development of Canadian Labour Unions— The labour movement
was born with the Industrial Revolution, which also gave birth to the factory-
based production system that carried with it enormous economic benefits. But
there was also a dark side, as some owners treated their workers as simply
resources to be deployed, with little or no regard for the well-being of workers.
B. Unionism Today—Union membership as a proportion of the total
Canadian workforce has stagnated during the last few decades. Slightly less than
one-third of workers belong to unions.
1. Trends in union-management relations—Union-management
relations have historically been very adversarial, but recently unions have
been faced with many environmental threats and they have therefore often
focused on maintaining what they have rather than trying to get more from
management. Some unions are even cooperating with management to
make the organizations they work for more competitive.
C. The Future of Unions—The big question is whether unions will be able to
cope with the many challenges that are facing them. These include the decline of
the so-called “smokestack industries” (where unions have traditionally been
strong), employment growth in service industries (where unions have not
traditionally been strong), the globalization of business (which means many jobs
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are outsourced to other countries), and technological change (which reduces the
number of workers that are needed).
VIII. THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT FOR UNIONS IN CANADA
Political and legal barriers to unions existed well into the 20th
century, but now
various laws have been passed which protect unions and give workers the right to
collectively bargain with their employers. The relevance of several pieces of
legislation for unions is discussed (Conciliation Act, Industrial Disputes
Investigation Act, Privy Council Order 1003, and the Constitution Act).
A. Federal Legislation: The Canada Labour Code—This legislation applies to
the labour practices of firms operating under the legislative authority of
parliament.
1. Fair employment practices—This section of the Canada Labour
Code prohibits an employer from refusing employment on the basis of a
person’s race or religion.
2. Standard hours, wages, vacations, and holidays—This section deals
with a variety of issues such as standard hours of work, maximum hours of
work per week, overtime pay, minimum wages, equal wages for men and
women doing the same jobs, vacations, general holidays, and parental
leave.
3. Safety of employees—This section requires that every person
running a federal work project do so in a way that will not endanger the
health or safety of any employees.
4. Canada industrial relations regulations—This sections deals with
all matters related to collective bargaining.
B. Provincial Labour Legislation—Each province has also enacted legislation
dealing with the personnel practices covered in the Canada Labour Code.
C. Union Organizing Strategy—A union might try to organize workers when
some workers in a firm are members and the union wants to represent other
workers, or when it is attempting to outdo a rival union, or when it wants to
increase the number of workers who belong to the union.
D. Union Security—The differences between the various levels of union
security (closed shop, open shop, and agency shop) are discussed.
E. Types of Unions— There are two basic types of unions: craft unions
(which are organized by crafts or trades, like plumbers, barbers, airline pilots, and
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so forth), and industrial unions (which are organized according to industries, for
example, steel, auto, and clothing). A national union has members across Canada,
while an international union has members in more than one country.
X. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
A. Reaching Agreement on the Contract’s Terms—The collective bargaining
process begins when the union is recognized as the bargaining agent for
employees. Union leaders then meet with management to begin working on a new
contract.
B. Contract Issues—Various issues are discussed during collective
bargaining.
1. Compensation—This is the most common issue during collective
bargaining.
2. Benefits—Common issues here are insurance, retirement benefits,
paid holidays, working conditions, and supplementary health care.
3. Job security—Unions are increasingly concerned about this issue.
4. Other union issues—Unions may also bargain about overtime
policies, rest periods, differential pay plans for shift employees, and the
use of temporary workers.
5. Management rights—Management wants a much control as
possible over hiring policies, work assignments, and so forth. Unions often
try to limit management rights.
C. When Bargaining Fails—An impasse occurs when labour and management
fail to reach an agreement on a new contract.
1. Union tactics—The union’s major weapon is the strike, although
unions are not permitted to strike in certain situations.
2. Management tactics—Management can lock workers out of the
business or it can hire strike-breakers to replace the striking workers. The
can also appeal to workers to decertify the union that represents them.
D. Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration—In conciliation, the neutral third
party helps the disputing parties to clarify the issues that are separating them. In
mediation, a neutral third party tries to help the disputing parties reach agreement,
while in arbitration a neutral third party imposes a settlement on the disputing
parties.
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QUICK QUESTIONS
1. Why has the role of human resource management increased in importance over
time?
2. How can an HR manager benefit from the use of a replacement chart?
3. How can an HR manager benefit from the use of an employee information
system?
4. When do you think tests are useful in the selection process?
5. Why are interviews sometimes a poor predictor of job success? In what way(s)
might an interview be an accurate predictor of job success? An inaccurate predictor?
6. What types of training are offered at your place of work?
7. What do you think would be the biggest challenge when doing an employee
performance appraisal?
8. How can an organization benefit from offering incentive programs to its
employees?
9. What is the purpose of an affirmative action plan?
10. How can an organization benefit from welcoming a diverse workforce?
11. How do knowledge workers add value to an organization?
12. What are some advantages and disadvantages of hiring contingent workers?
13. What trends are evident in union membership?
14. What trends are evident in union-management relations?
15. What trends are evident in bargaining perspectives?
16. What factors will affect the future of labour unions?
17. What is the significance of Privy Council Order 1003?
18. What is the Canada Labour Code designed to do?
19. What is the difference between a closed shop, an agency shop, and an open shop?
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20. How is mediation different from conciliation and arbitration?
21. What issues are typically most important to union negotiators when collective
bargaining with management?
22. When bargaining fails between labor and management, what are some union
tactics that can be brought to the bargaining table? Management tactics?
IN-CLASS EXERCISES
Exercise #1: Writing a Job Description
Activity Overview:
This activity asks students to write a job description for an instructor and for a student.
Time Limit: 50 minutes
What to Do:
1. Review what is included in a job description, then ask students to think about
what variables should be included in their instructor’s job description and what should be
included in a student’s job description. (10 minutes)
2. Divide the class into small groups, asking members of each group to share what
they came up with in Step 1. (10 minutes)
3. Ask each group to further discuss what should be included in their instructor’s job
description and in a student’s job description, considering any other factors that might
come to mind that have not already been discussed, and to write a final job description for
both instructor and student. (15 minutes)
4. Reassemble the class and discuss each group’s suggestions. (15 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
There are many roles that instructors play in a college or university other than what
students see in the classroom.
Wrap-Up:
Review the purpose of a job description, highlighting some of the major elements
included in most college or university instructors’ job descriptions.
Exercise #2: What Motivates Employees?
Activity Overview:
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This activity asks students to consider what companywide incentives might motivate
workers who work in specific jobs.
Time Limit: 30 minutes
What to Do:
1. Divide the class into small groups and assign each group to one of the jobs below.
(5 minutes)
• A cook at a fast-food restaurant
• A waitress at a local diner
• A groundskeeper
• A computer technician at a small firm
• A janitor
• A college professor
2. Ask each group to brainstorm what incentives would be especially motivating for
a worker performing the assigned job; remind students to consider both tangible and
intangible incentives. (10 minutes)
3. Reassemble the class and ask each group to share their results, allowing all
students to share input. (15 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
This activity can be completed using any type of job as the basis for discussion. Remind
students to consider “reasonable” costs to the company as they brainstorm for ideas.
Wrap-Up:
Bring the activity to a close by recapping each group’s conclusion, reminding students
that tangible incentives, such as various benefits packages, can be motivating but that
intangible incentives, such as employee recognition programs, can also be motivating.
Exercise #3: Tallying Up the Costs of Discrimination
Activity Overview:
This activity highlights the high costs of employee discrimination in a national
organization.
Time Limit: 30 minutes
What to Do:
1. Make copies of the following article and distribute to students in advance of the
class where the exercise is to be conducted.
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Just how important is an understanding of the legal context of HR management?
Recent experiences at Rent-A-Center clearly show what can happen when a firm
minimizes the importance of the HR function. Thorn Americas, a unit of London-based
Thorn EMI, had prospered as a large player in the rent-to-own industry. The firm had a
large professionally staffed HR department and was known for its progressive hiring and
employment development practices.
Thorn recently merged with another large rent-to-own business, Renters Choice.
The new firm was renamed Rent-A-Center, and an outsider—J. Ernest Talley—was
brought in to run the combined business. But Talley had some unusual views of the HR
function. Specifically, he saw HR as an expense, bristled at the notion of government
regulation, and allegedly had a strong bias against women. For example, he was quoted
by one employee as saying “Get rid of women any way you can.” Another indicated that
he said “Women should be home taking care of their husbands and children, chained to a
stove, not working in my stores.”
Even though Rent-A-Center had 2,300 locations and 13,000 employees, Talley
essentially eliminated the firm’s HR function. For example, he fired the firm’s top HR
executive and dropped all training and employee relations activities. He kept only enough
clerical support to handle payroll and benefits activities. But his stance on women and
the culture he created proved to be costly. Thousands of talented women left the
company, and thousands of potentially valuable new employees were systematically
blackballed. Talented males also left in droves, at least in part because they wanted no
part of what Talley was trying to do.
Talley’s stance soon prompted legal action. Several women charged that they had
been demoted or forced to resign because of their gender. Others charged that he had
created a hostile work environment, a key form of sexual harassment. For instance, at
one national sales meeting in Las Vegas, Talley hired scantily clad dancers for
entertainment. Many of the men in attendance got drunk, while the women felt humiliated.
The lawsuit against Rent-A-Center represented 5,300 current and former
employees, as well as approximately 10,000 rejected job applicants. One attorney
involved in the case said, “I’ve never seen a case in which so many women and men tell
the same kind of story all across the country. It’s remarkable.” Faced with overwhelming
evidence, Rent-A-Center forced Talley to retire and settled the suit for $47 million in
payments. The firm also agreed to reestablish an HR department, hire an HR vice
president, and take numerous other steps to change its employment practices and culture.
Questions for Discussion
1. How is hostile work environment sexual harassment evident in this scenario?
2. Is workforce diversity necessary in an organization like this one? In what ways
can such organizations benefit from workforce diversity?
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2. Divide the class into small groups and ask them to answer the questions for
discussion in their groups. (15 minutes):
3. Regroup as a class and discuss each group’s responses. (15 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
Remind students of the two types of sexual harassment: hostile environment and quid pro
quo.
Wrap-Up:
Briefly discuss how attracting a more diverse workforce and customer base can place an
organization in a better market position than those organizations that do not make
welcoming diversity a part of the strategic focus.
Exercise #4: Interview Practice
Activity Overview:
This activity is designed to help students experience a selection interview.
Time: 50 minutes
What To Do:
1. Arrange students in groups of three: a store manager, an applicant, and an
observer.
2. One student should assume the role of a shoe store manager who wants to hire a
management trainee. The second student is applying for the job. The third student will
observe whether the interviewer stayed with a plan and asked questions related to the job
skills needed and if the applicant provided good information in a mature manner.
(Another job may be substituted if it is more familiar.)
3. Interviewers should develop a list of criteria and questions to ask.
4. Applicants should develop brief descriptions of their education and experience,
strengths, and weaknesses.
5. The students role-play the interview.
6. The observer should report findings to the two role players.
Don’t Forget:
You can vary the above process by having students exchange roles, videotaping the role
play, and playing it back for discussion.
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Wrap-Up:
Ask the following questions: Were the situations realistic? Why or why not? Based on
the role-play and your personal experience, what are the toughest questions you have ever
been asked in an interview? How did you respond to them?
Exercise #5: Top-Down Sensitivity
Activity Overview:
This activity asks students to think about the employee issues toward which employers
should be most sensitive.
Time Limit: 30 minutes
What to Do:
1. Make copies of the material below and hand it out to students in advance of the
class where the exercise is to be conducted.
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By definition, global companies must communicate with employees in many
different countries and cultures, and a firm’s success in communicating with local
workers can mean success or failure in an overseas operation. The most successful
global companies know how to talk to the people who work for them.
In some countries, the gap between managers and workers is quite wide, and
managers are used to bridging it with orders that are simply to be followed. In many
Asian cultures, for example, you simply don’t question the boss’s decisions or the policies
of the company. In Canada, on the other hand, people are often encouraged to provide
feedback and to say what they think. The gap is relatively narrow, and communication
channels tend to be informal and wide open.
The same arrangements usually apply when it comes to dealing with workplace
disputes. In some countries, such as Germany and Sweden, there’s a formal system for
ensuring that everyone involved gets a say in resolving workplace disputes. In these
countries, although communication channels are always open, they’re also highly
structured.
But being culturally sensitive to local employees means much more than just
knowing how to settle workplace disputes. As a rule, companies also need to convey a
sense of good “citizenship” in the host country. This means respecting the social and
cultural values of the employees and communicating to them the fact that it cares about
these things.
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2. Divide the class into small groups and ask them to consider what they perceive to
be the top two employee issues about which employers should be especially sensitive. (15
minutes)
3. Reassemble as a class and discuss each group’s conclusions. Is it possible for the
class as a whole to come up with the “top two” issues from among the groups’
conclusions? (15 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
Groups will come up with many different responses; it will be difficult for the group to
prioritize responses. Student answers will depend on the types of jobs being considered.
Wrap-Up:
Bring the activity to a close by briefly discussing some of the top issues facing HR
managers today, including pay gaps between males and females and discrimination of
various sorts.
Exercise #6: What Are You Looking for in a Job?
Activity Overview:
This activity asks students to express their opinions about important job criteria and
compare these with other students.
Time Limit: 40 minutes
What to Do:
1. Ask students to think about what is important to them in a job, ranking the
following items, with 1 being the most important and 10 being the least important. (10
minutes)
• Working Conditions
• Quality of Coworkers/Mentors
• Salary
• Benefits
• Location of Job
• Level of Challenge/Responsibility
• Training Programs Offered
• Advancement Opportunities
• Job Security
• Job Title
2. Divide the class into four-person teams.
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3. Ask each team to compare their rankings. What conclusions can they draw? While
they are doing this, students can go to the board or an overhead and mark their rankings
on a table you create; this will give the class an overview of the data. (10 minutes)
4. Reassemble the class as a whole and have each group share their findings with the
class. (10 minutes)
5. Look at the list of items that people ranked highest in general. Talk about how
companies can actually satisfy these important items. For example, how would a company
provide good working conditions for its employees? (10 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
Remind students that there are no right or wrong answers to this exercise.
Wrap-Up:
Wrap up the discussion by noting that providing employees with what they want in a job
can be very challenging for organization. But business owners and managers must find
ways to address issues that are important to employees or they will have problems with
employee motivation and satisfaction.
Exercise #7: The Pros and Cons of Unions
Activity Overview:
This activity is designed to help students see two sharply different perspectives with the
regard to the issue of unions.
Time Limit: 25 minutes
What to Do:
1. Several days prior to class session in which this exercise is to be conducted, ask
for two student volunteers. One of them will play the role of Jack Callahan (the CEO of
Arco Manufacturing), who vigorously opposes the idea of unions. The other student will
play the role of Bernie Pearson (the president of the union at Arco), who thinks that
unions are very valuable. The two men have run into each other at a social gathering and
have gotten in a spirited debate about unions.
2. Give them the following script as the basis for a role play in front of the class. (5
minutes)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Callahan: The whole idea of unions really bothers me. Is it fair that workers in a
unionized plant should be forced to belong to the union even if they don’t want to?
Workers should not be forced to join your union in order to hold a job in my company.
I’ll accept the argument that employees have a right to form a union, but an employee
should have a right not to join, too. But now that your union is certified as the exclusive
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bargain agent for my production workers, even though not all of them voted to unionized,
all of them have to join your union or be fired. They don’t have freedom of choice.
Pearson: Well, it is true that a worker in a union plant must belong to the union.
The majority rules, and the majority of your workers who voted wanted to join the union.
It would be unfair for a person who doesn’t pay union dues to enjoy the benefits won by a
union supported by members’ dues. Freeloaders should have to pay their fair share.
Callahan: I’m against freeloaders as much as you are. But unions get all sorts of
unfair advantages from the government. For example, I have to deduct union dues from
my workers’ wages and then give that money to your union. That’s outrageous. The least
you could do is collect your own dues. After all, it’s your union and you should look after
it.
Pearson: If we had to chase after all the workers for union dues every month, we
wouldn’t have time for anything else. This province has passed legislation requiring you
to deduct union dues. Your responsibility is to obey the law.
Callahan: But why should unions get a break like that? They’ve got too much
power already. You can bring my whole operation to a halt just by calling a strike.
Pearson: That’s an oversimplification of reality. Look what’s happened recently.
Unions are having a lot of trouble getting wage increases for their members. In fact,
companies like yours are laying off a lot of workers and sending jobs overseas. If unions
are so strong, why aren’t they able to just demand (and get) higher wages and benefits
for their workers? I’ll tell you why—we aren’t that strong.
Callahan: Well, for being so weak, you can sure cause me a lot of grief. You
know, I really don’t think that unions are necessary any more. I agree that unions did a
lot for workers early in the last century when management treated workers badly, but in
this enlightened era, they are no longer necessary. Social insurance, worker’s
compensation, minimum wage laws, employment insurance, and job safety laws have
eliminated the need for unions.
Pearson: To say that unions are unnecessary is hogwash. Do away with the union
and you’ll see how employee-oriented most companies will be. Business firms exist to
make a profit. The less they have to pay their workers, the more profit they make. Keep in
mind also that there is no law that requires workers to form a union. They get involved in
unions because they think the union will help them get a better deal from management.
Callahan: But what if, after joining a union, the workers find that the union isn’t
doing anything for them? If customers don’t like Arco’s products, they can simply stop
buying from us, but a dissatisfied union member has to keep paying union dues, even if
the union isn’t doing the job the worker expects.
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Pearson: That’s simply not true. If the employees don’t think their union is
benefiting them, they can decertify the union.
Callahan: I’m tired of arguing with you. You have a glib answer for every point I
make. You’re totally one-sided in your view. You think everything about unions is
positive!
Pearson: You’re not exactly open-minded yourself. You think everything about
unions is negative!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. At the end of the debate, ask the students to vote for the individual who had the
stronger arguments. (10 minutes)
Don’t Forget:
Ask students who listened to the debate if they wish to make other points that were not
raised during the debate.
Wrap-Up:
Remind students the current rules and regulations regarding union and management rights
are the result of a democratic process where elected officials develop legislation which
governs how unions and management relate to each other.
TEACHING TIPS
1. Students often confuse a job description with a job specification. One way to
separate the two is through a simple set of statements similar to the following. A job
description is a list of the activities required of the person who will fill that work position.
On the other hand, a job specification describes the kind of person the firm is looking for
to fill the position.
2. Remind students that HRM is the set of organizational activities directed at
attracting, developing, and maintaining an effective workforce.
3. Remind students that forecasting the supply of labor includes both an internal and
external forecast.
4. Remind students that new employees are found both internally and externally in
the recruitment process.
5. Interview a human resources manager regarding the recruitment and selection
process while the class listens. Determine the manager's views on how to increase
the chance of choosing the right person for the job.
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6. Your students may have been talking with friends who have recently graduated
from college or university and have begun looking for work. The report back from the
graduates may be that jobs are hard to find, and that good jobs are almost non-existent. In
such a mood and with such knowledge that there is an overabundance of job applicants, it
becomes hard to believe that some firms must aggressively go out and actively recruit
workers. However, at some point these recent graduates will locate jobs and someday
may be faced with a recruitment task. When this occurs, the graduates will understand
that finding just the right person for the job can be very, very difficult and frustrating for
human resource recruiters. As a result, too many times, a firm must seek the "least worst"
worker rather than the best worker in filling a particular slot.
7. The item above emphasizes the fact that from the point of view of a recruiter,
often there are too few qualified applicants. This would say to students: To be a more
successful job seeker, provide yourself with as many skills as possible--degrees, work
experience, computer packages mastered, foreign languages learned, etc.
8. In a closed promotion system, managers decide (perhaps in a very closed and
secret fashion) which employees will be promoted. In an open system, available jobs are
"posted." That is, notice of an opening is posted on numerous bulletin boards and
published in various other ways. So far, so good. However, you should introduce your
students to the real world by indicating that there may be instances in which a human
resources office of a firm indicates that it is pursuing an open promotion procedure when
it is actually pursuing by previously-determined design a CLOSED system. Here is an
actual case, with anonymity protected, illustrating how the charade is played. The
unveiling of the lie occurred because a clerk was not sufficiently in on the caper. A job
applicant noticed a position announcement properly publicized. Upon applying to the
appropriate office prior to the stated deadline, the applicant was told by a clerk: "Oh, we
filled that job two weeks ago." The applicant countered with: "But the announcement
says that the deadline hasn't even come yet." The clerk responded: "Oh, we just post these
positions because that's what the law requires." Students who go into human-resources
positions should be cautioned ahead of time that such an approach is totally inappropriate.
9. Remind students that all applicant information gathered in the selection process
can be used to predict job success.
10. Since so much could be riding on it, the performance appraisal is a very important
procedure in any firm. Although we all want to avoid subjective evaluations—judgments
reflecting the personal bias of the rater—subjectivity can creep into almost all
performance appraisals. Ask the students to identify some jobs in which thoroughly
objective appraisals are possible.
11. Some possibilities as answers to the question posed in the previous item can be
found in the world of sales. Travelling salesman Edgar Philpkin could be told by the sales
manager: "Edgar, ol' boy, we don't care what you do with your spare time or how you
conduct yourself on the road. Company image is not your problem. We shall rate you on
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how many turbines you sell this year. That will be our only criterion." This is absolutely
objective. The sales manager does not have to make judgements concerning Edgar's sense
of ambition, his ability to efficiently make out sales orders, his speed at getting to a sales
destination, his manner of dress, or the friends he makes for the firm. No, the sales
manager very objectively counts the number of turbines sold by Edgar in a year's time.
Ask students if they think there are very many situations like this.
12. Thanks to the previous item, it can be seen that lacking a perfectly objective
measure of a person's contribution to the firm, any performance appraisal device must
lean on a supervisor's judgment. Because of this, any such appraisal procedure will be
open to criticism by those persons who do not score well.
13. The textbook says that the appraisal process is completed when the manager and
employee meet to discuss the appraisal. And this is a very important part of the procedure,
for it is in this conference that the employee picks up the best hints for improving his or
her performance. However, some employees have reported that although they worked
with firms—or in the military—where the follow-up conference was supposed to be
required, in actual practice there were many supervisors who did not accomplish the step
of having supervisor and subordinate meet to discuss the appraisal.
14. Point out to students that disciplinary action by a firm will often involve
participation in the procedure by a union that has been elected to represent the workers of
the firm. In such a case, the company's management may lose flexibility and freedom in
disciplining employees. Union participation can be very helpful and may well reinforce a
company's efforts to discipline in a fair and consistent manner. However, the atmosphere
at a firm might be such that union interference in disciplinary matters can greatly weaken
the effective implementation of company disciplinary policies.
15. There is still much debate about the most important factor that motivates workers
to do a better job. Ask students what they think moves a pro football player in the Grey
Cup to perform beyond his usual peak: being victorious for the sake of his football club
and its loyal fans or earning the extra money that goes to members of the winning team?
When an employer can answer that question, the employer will know better how to
administer compensation and benefits in such a way that each worker performs at his or
her peak capacity.
16. Here is an opportunity for students to make a "where-do-we-stand-today"
judgment after necessary discussion. The media have provided plenty of coverage of the
phenomenon of sexual harassment. It has been clearly designated by firms, governmental
bodies, and courts as not to be tolerated. And yet, can it be said that we have eliminated
sexual harassment from the workplace? Here are some sub-questions on the subject that
might get discussion started. Do most managers really take seriously allegations of sexual
harassment raised by subordinates? How difficult is it to prove that sexual harassment has
taken place? Do most employees take the matter seriously? What chance does a person
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have of making a false harassment claim and seriously damaging the reputation of an
innocent person?
17. Reinforce that sexual harassment includes (a) quid pro quo, in which the harasser
offers something of value for sexual favors, and (b) hostile work environment, in which
lewd behavior displayed by another employee is offensive.
18. Ask students or student teams to react to the following statement that might be
made by a CEO of a large manufacturing concern: "I have full respect for family life. I
place my family very high on my scale of priorities. I am aware, however, that my value
to this company does not come from my family loyalty but rather from what I can do for
this firm. Accordingly, if I want to remain effective for this firm, I must make sure that I
devote sufficient time, energy and interest to this firm. Accordingly, I expect my workers
to display this same kind of devotion. When their family life gets in the way of what we
are trying to do here, I am tempted to ask such employees to make a choice: your family
or your job!"
19. Ask students to describe a job orientation they have gone through in jobs they
have had. Most will indicate orientation has been poor or non-existent. Ask what they
would have done to make the orientation better.
20. Moderate a class discussion on the issue of the compensation of top managers.
Bring actual figures to class (and direct the students to those in the text) to show just how
much some top managers earn. Is the large difference between the top managers in the
firm and the production workers warranted?
21. Point out that a compensation system includes more than just wages and salaries;
it includes incentives and employee benefit programs.
22. Students often confuse the types of incentive plans: Profit-sharing plans distribute
profits earned above a certain level to employees; gainsharing plans distribute bonuses to
employees who achieve greater work efficiency; and pay-for-knowledge plans encourage
workers to learn new skills.
23. Invite a human resources expert to class to describe the legal environment that
currently exists in Canada regarding anti-discrimination legislation. Ask the person to
describe several specific incidents so that students can see how the legislation works in
practice. Leave time for student questions.
24. Make sure that students understand the implications of the equal employment
opportunity regulation.
25. Reiterate that protected classes consist of individuals who share characteristics—
such as race, color, religion, gender, age, disability status, and national origin—as
indicated by a given law.
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26. Remind students that workforce diversity is the range of workers’ attitudes,
values, beliefs, and behaviors that differ by gender, race, age, ethnicity, physical ability,
and so on.
27. Describe a case to the class of a manager using electronic capabilities to "spy" on
an employee (e.g., a manager reading an employee's e-mail). Then ask students how many
of them have been spied on during working hours. Moderate a class discussion on the
reasonableness of such behaviour by management.
28. Ask how many of the students have had a formal performance appraisal. Then ask
those that said yes, if they knew prior to the appraisal if they knew the criteria the
rater was going to use. For those that say no, ask what they should do in the future to
avoid this situation.
29. Ask the students, what benefits they will expect when they graduate and start a
career.
30. Ask students to expand on the concept of comparable worth.
31. Relate the legal issues (e.g., minimum wages) and ask the student if sole
proprietors should be held to the same standards as larger corporations (e.g.,
McDonald’s).
32. Have a discussion about how diversity is both an opportunity (especially in a
dynamic environment) and a challenge at the same time.
33. Labour unions have sometimes resorted to tactics that have been perceived in a
negative light by the general public. When you ask people for their impression of labour
unions, their impression may largely be determined by a remembrance of "harsh" union
actions. However, students should be led to see that the formation of unions was in
response to centuries of harsh treatment of workers by employers. And in the days when
labour unions were just getting started, government officials and the courts were pretty
much always on the side of management. Regardless of how ugly a strike can become, it
must be kept in mind that prior to unions coming on the scene, grossly unfair treatment of
workers was common.
34. At least in the relatively early days of Canadian labour history, there was a
difference between a craft union and an industrial union. Drawing a line between the two
types is not quite so easy today. A member of a craft union is skilled and trained (e.g., a
carpenter, brick mason, or electrician). On the other hand, a member of an industrial
union was not recognized to be skilled and would typically work at a repetitive task
within a large factory. Members of craft unions saw themselves as a breed apart from
these industrial types.
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35. Although the textbook points out that overall union membership is stagnant (as a
percent of the total work force), unions seem to be gaining in two areas: white collar
employees and government workers. In time, can this surge compensate for losses in
other areas?
36. Develop some interesting narratives about what unions in other nations are doing.
In France, for example, key unions may strike for a few hours or just a day in order to
make a point. French farmers have also been known to use strikers' tactics. On one
occasion, a group of them assembled numerous units of farm machinery in a very busy
metropolitan intersection, stopping traffic for a long period of time. French unions like to
have management come to speak to them. When this happens, union members hoot and
holler. German autoworkers recently went through a traumatic experience at Volkswagen.
The firm announced it would have to cut many thousands of workers. The two sides
relieved the situation a bit by cutting all workers back to limited workweeks. Such a move
cost each worker quite a bit of money, but jobs were saved in the process.
37. People not familiar with unions and their leadership may see union leaders as
strike-prone, ready to walk out at the drop of a hat. Such a picture may not be accurate. A
union boss with many years of experience once told one of the authors that "no one gains
from a strike." He went on to say, out of his vast experience, that if there must be a strike,
it must be a short strike. Both sides become big losers after a long strike. He also claimed
to be able to feel, through some highly developed sixth sense, when the management
negotiators were getting mad enough to say at the bargaining table: "If that's the way you
union guys feel about it, then take your workers out on strike!" When he had that feeling,
the old union warrior would jump in quickly and say: "Fellows, we've been here at this
bargaining table for a long time today. Let's break for lunch. We can meet again in a
couple of hours." During the two-hour break, emotions could be defused. Something else
about this old union boss: he was a basically friendly person who did his best to keep a
pleasant relationship with the managers at the various firms where his union members
were employed. This doesn't mean that he was soft or wishy-washy. The managers,
however, respected him to such an extent that when he came in with a union "demand,"
the managers usually tended to treat it as legitimate. As a result, this old hand was able to
be of tremendous service to the members of his union.
38. Contrast the economic, social, and cultural conditions at the time that early labour
unions were being established with the conditions in modern-day Canada. Ask the
students to consider what the work environment might be like today if union organizers
had not persevered until the political and legal barriers that existed were removed.
39. Some years ago, the employees of Canada Safeway went on strike. During the
next round of negotiations, employees were not keen on a strike, but the head of the
national union was. Conflict developed between members of various locals and the union
representatives, as the employees felt the union was not representing the employees’
interests and preferences. Union leaders, however, seemed to feel that the employees did
not understand what was in their best interests. Ask the students to consider the role of
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the union. Is it simply to take the employees’ demands to management, or is it to get the
most possible for the employees?
40. Invite a union organizer as a guest speaker. If the person has many years of
experience as an organizer, ask how (or if) things have changed over the years in terms of
the difficulty of organizing a union, and who the targets of organizing drives are now
compared to in the past.
41. Ask the class what they think the future holds for the union movement. Note that
in the U.S. unions have been steadily declining for the past 20 years or so and now make
up less than 15 percent of the work force. In Canada, the proportion of the work force that
is unionized leveled off at about 30 percent in the 1980s. Why are these things
happening? What is the future of unions? Is it different for the two countries?
42. Invite an arbitrator or mediator to come to class and tell students how the process
works. Ask the person whether an arbitrated settlement is better than, or worse than, a
settlement reached by labour and management on their own.
43. Moderate a class debate on the issue of whether or not individuals should be
forced to join a union if the majority of their co-workers choose that option.
44. Ask members of the class if they have ever been part of a union. What were the
advantages of union membership? The disadvantages? Overall, do the people who have
been members of unions think it was a positive experience?
45. Remind students that the official term describing the process of dealing with
employees represented by a labour union is labor relations.
46. In most sectors, unions are in a weakened position compared with many decades
ago. How has this affected the way in which labor works with management?
47. Remind students that collective bargaining is much like the negotiation process.
When involved with collective bargaining, both labour and management present demands
and then focus on identifying the bargaining zone.
48. Distinguish between the types of strikes: (a) the economic strike, which is
triggered by stalemates in the bargaining process and (b) the sympathy strike, occurring
when one union strikes in sympathy with another.
49. Students may not be clear on the difference between mediation and arbitration.
Mediation involves a third party who makes recommendations to solve a dispute, while
arbitration involves a third party who makes a legally binding decision to solve a dispute.
USING THE BOXED INSERTS
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Opening Case: Can Different Generations Work Together?
Questions for Discussion
1. Which category do you fit into? Do the characteristics that are normally described
for your age group fit you? How useful do you think the categories are?
Students who enter university or community college during the period 2015-2017
(and come directly from high school) are the youngest of the Millenials, so their
responses should address the characteristics that Millenials are thought to possess. As
noted in the opening case, Millenials have sometimes been portrayed as disloyal, lazy,
disinterested in their work, and too interested in pay and perks. They also want to work
differently (perhaps remotely) and they want more flexibility than workers have
traditionally had. They also expect employers to accommodate to their lives, and when
employers don’t do that, they may well look for an employer who will.
Some of these attributions are obviously very negative (e.g., “disloyal,”
“disinterested in their work,” and “lazy”), and most students will reject the claim that
those attributions accurately describe them. Some of the attributions seem plausible (e.g.,
Millenials want to work remotely and they want to have more flexibility), but some
students will question those attributions. For example, students who are very “people
oriented” may say that working remotely doesn’t interest them because it prevents the
human interaction that is so desirable to them. Others may want to work remotely because
they don’t feel comfortable in social groups. The instructor should note the degree of
agreement or disagreement about the attributions, and should also ask students to list the
characteristics that they think are really descriptive of them. This list can be compared
with the attributions noted above to determine the level of consonance. This list can also
be compared to the attributions that are typically made about Baby Boomers and
GenXers. A discussion can then take place about the differences (or lack of differences)
that exist between the generations. Finally, the actual differences that exist between the
generations and how those might affect the workplace can be addressed. For example, if
Baby Boomers perceive that Millenials are given more flexibility on the job, they may
resent the relatively inflexibility that they (the Boomers) are stuck with. This is only one
of many workplace impacts that generational differences may cause.
If there are students in the class who are somewhat older and did not enter
university or community college directly from high school, they will still likely be
Millenials, so there is an opportunity to determine whether the views of older Millenials
(those born, say, in the 1980’s are different than the views of Millenials born in the
1990’s.
2. Consider the following statement: “All the hype about the differences between
Millenials, Baby Boomers and GenXers is meaningless. The fact is that every generation
has a mixture of both hard-working individuals and slackers. Human resource managers
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ANECDOTAL
RECOLLECTIONS OF THE CONGRESS OF VIENNA ***
ANECDOTAL RECOLLECTIONS
OF THE
CONGRESS OF VIENNA
Francis I, Emperor of Austria.
ANECDOTAL RECOLLECTIONS
OF THE
CONGRESS OF VIENNA
BY THE
COMTE A. DE LA GARDE-CHAMBONAS
WITH
INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY THE
COMTE FLEURY
Translated
BY THE AUTHOR OF
‘AN ENGLISHMAN IN PARIS’
WITH PORTRAITS
L O N D O N
C H A P M A N & H A L L , L I M I T E D
1 9 0 2
Edinburgh: T. and A. Constable, (late) Printers to Her Majesty
CONTENTS
PAGE
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OF THE COMTE
AUGUSTE DE LA GARDE-CHAMBONAS xiii
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER
Introduction—A Glance at the Congress—Arrival
of the Sovereigns—The First Night in Vienna, 1
CHAPTER I
The Prince de Ligne—His Wit and his Urbanity—
Robinson Crusoe—The Masked Ball and Rout
—Sovereigns in Dominos—The Emperor of
Russia and Prince Eugène—Kings and
Princes—Zibin—General Tettenborn—A
Glance at his Military Career—Grand Military
Fête in Honour of Peace—The Footing of
Intimacy of the Sovereigns at the Congress
—The Imperial Palace—Death of Queen
Maria Carolina of Naples—Emperor
Alexander—Anecdotes—Sovereign Gifts—
Politics and Diplomacy—The Grand Rout—
The Waltz, 11
CHAPTER II
The Drawing-Rooms of the Comtesse de Fuchs
—The Prince Philip of Hesse-Homburg—
George Sinclair—The Announcement of a
Military Tournament—The Comtesse Edmond
de Périgord General Comte de Witt—Letters
of Recommendation—The Princesse Pauline
—The Poet-Functionary and Fouché, 41
CHAPTER III
Reception at M. de Talleyrand’s—His Attitude at
the Congress—The Duc de Dalberg—The
Duc de Richelieu—Mme. Edmond de
Périgord—M. Pozzo di Borgo—Parallel
between the Prince de Ligne and M. de
Talleyrand—A Monster Concert, 55
CHAPTER IV
The Prince de Ligne’s Study—A Swimming
Exploit—Travelling by Post—A Reminiscence
of Madame de Staël—Schönbrunn—The Son
of Napoleon—His Portrait—Mme. de
Montesquiou—Anecdotes—Isabey—The
Manœuvring-Ground—The People’s Fête at
Augarten, 70
CHAPTER V
The Prater—The Carriages—The Crowd and the
Sovereigns—The Sovereigns’ Incognito—
Alexander Ypsilanti—The Vienna Drawing-
Rooms—Princesse Bagration—The
Narischkine Family—A Lottery, 87
CHAPTER VI
The Castle of Laxemburg—Heron-Hawking—The
Empress of Austria—A Royal Hunt—Fête at
the Ritterburg—A Recollection of Christina of
Sweden—Constance and Theodore, or the
Blind Husband—Poland—Scheme for her
Independence—The Comte Arthur Potocki—
The Prince de Ligne and Isabey—The Prince
de Ligne’s House on the Kalemberg—
Confidential Chats and Recollections—The
Empress Catherine II.—Queen Marie-
Antoinette—Mme. de Staël—Casanova, 105
CHAPTER VII
A Court Function—The Empress of Austria—The
Troubadours—Amateur Theatricals—The
Empress of Russia—The Prince Leopold of
Saxe-Cobourg—Tableaux-Vivants—Queen
Hortense’s Songs—The Moustaches of the
Comte de Wurbna—Songs in Action—The
Orphan of the Prisons—Diplomacy and
Dancing—A Ball and a Supper at Court, 137
CHAPTER VIII
Prince Eugène de Beauharnais—Recollections of
the Prince de Ligne—The Theatre of the
‘Ermitage’ and of Trianon—The Baron
Ompteda—Some Portraits—The Imperial
Carrousel—The Four-and-Twenty Paladins—
Reminiscences of Mediæval Tournaments—
The Prowess of the Champion—Fête and
Supper at the Imperial Palace—The Table of
the Sovereigns, 152
CHAPTER IX
Recollections of the Military Tournament of
Stockholm in 1800—The Comte de Fersen—
King Gustavus IV.—The Challenge of the
Unknown Knight—The Games on the Bridge
at Pisa, 174
CHAPTER X
The Prince de Ligne’s Song of the Congress—
Life on the Graben—The Chronicle of the
Congress—Echoes of the Congress—A
Companion Story to the Death of Vatel—
Brie, the King of Cheese—Fête at Arnstein
the Banker’s—The Prince Royal of
Würtemberg—Russian Dances—The Poet
Carpani and the Prince de Ligne, 193
CHAPTER XI
The Last Love-Tryst of the Prince de Ligne—A
Glance at the Past—Z—— or the
Consequences of Gaming—Gambling in
Poland and in Russia—The Biter Bit—Masked
Ball—The Prince de Ligne and a Domino—
More Living Pictures—The Pasha of Surêne—
Two Masked Ladies—A Recollection of the
Prince de Talleyrand, 218
CHAPTER XII
Illness of the Prince de Ligne—The Comte de
Witt—Ambassador Golowkin—Doctor Malfati
—The Prince gets worse—Last Sallies of the
Moribund—General Grief—Portrait of the
Prince de Ligne—His Funeral, 244
CHAPTER XIII
The Fire at the Razumowski Palace—The
Prince’s Great Wealth—The Vicissitudes of
Court Favour in Russia—Prince Koslowski—A
Reminiscence of the Duc d’Orléans—A Re-
mark of Talleyrand—Fête at the Comtesse
Zichy’s—Emperor Alexander and his Ardent
Wishes for Peace—New Year’s Day, 1815—
Grand Ball and Rout—Sir Sidney Smith’s
Dinner-Party at the Augarten—His
Chequered Life, his Missions and his Projects
at the Congress—The King of Bavaria
without Money—Departure and Anger of the
256
King of Würtemberg—The Queen of
Westphalia—The Announcement of a
Sleighing-Party—A Ball at Lord Castlereagh’s,
CHAPTER XIV
Some Original Types at the Congress—M. Aïdé—
A Witticism of the Prince de Ligne—Mme.
Pratazoff—Mr. Foneron—The Old Jew—His
Noblesse and his Moral Code—Mr. Raily—His
Dinners and his Companions—The Two
Dukes—The End of a Gambler—The
Sovereigns’ Incognito—Mr. O’Bearn—Ball at
the Apollo—Zibin and the King of Prussia—
Charles de Rechberg and the King of Bavaria
—The Minuet—The King of Denmark—Story
of the Bombardment of Copenhagen—The
German Lesson, 282
CHAPTER XV
Religious Ceremony for the Anniversary of the
Death of Louis XVI.—Reception at
Talleyrand’s—Discussion on the Subject of
Saxony and Poland—The Order of the Day of
the Grand-Duke Constantine—A Factum of
Pozzo di Borgo—A Sleighing-Party—
Entertainment and Fête at Schönbrunn—
Prince Eugène—Recollections of Queen
Hortense—The Empress Marie-Louise at the
Valley of St. Helena—Second Sleighing-Party
—A Funeral, 309
CHAPTER XVI
Reception at Madame de Fuchs’s—Prince
Philippe d’Hesse-Hombourg—The Journalists
and Newsmongers of Vienna—The French
Village in Germany—Prince Eugène—
Recollection of the Consulate—Tribulations of
M. Denville—Mme. Récamier—The Return of
the Émigré—Childhood’s Friend, or the Magic
of a Name—Ball at Lord Stewart’s—
Alexander proclaimed King of Poland—The
Prince Czartoryski—Confidence of the Poles
—Count Arthur Potocki—The Revolutions of
Poland—Slavery—Vandar—Ivan, or the Polish
Serf, 328
CHAPTER XVII
The Emperor Alexander, the King of Prussia,
and the Naval Officer—Surprise to the
Empress of Russia—More Fêtes—A Ball at M.
de Stackelberg’s—Paul Kisseleff—Brozin—
Fête offered by M. de Metternich—The Ball-
Room catches Fire—Fêtes and Banquet at
the Court—Ompteda—Chronicle of the
Congress—The Tell-tale Perfume—
Recollection of Empress Josephine and
Madame Tallien—A Romantic Court Story, 346
CHAPTER XVIII
The Comte de Rechberg’s Work on the
Governments of the Russian Empire—The
364
King of Bavaria—Polish Poem of Sophiowka
—Madame Potocka, or the Handsome
Fanariote—Her Infancy—Particulars of Her
Life—A Glance at the Park of Sophiowka—
Subscription of the Sovereigns—Actual State
of Sophiowka,
CHAPTER XIX
A Luncheon at M. de Talleyrand’s on his
Birthday—M. de Talleyrand and the MS.—The
Princesse-Maréchale Lubomirska—New
Arrivals—Chaos of Claims—The Indemnities
of the King of Denmark—Rumours of the
Congress—Arrival of Wellington at Vienna—
The Carnival—Fête of the Emperor of Austria
—A Masked Rout—The Diadem, or Vanity
Punished—A Million—Gambling and Slavery:
a Russian Anecdote, 375
CHAPTER XX
Isabey’s Study—His Drawing of the
Plenipotentiaries at the Congress of Vienna
—The Imperial Sepulchre at the Capuchins—
Recollections of the Tombs of Cracow—
Preacher Werner—St. Stephen’s Cathedral—
Children’s Ball at Princesse Marie Esterhazy’s
—The Empress Elizabeth of Russia—The
Picture-Gallery of the Duc de Saxe-Teschen
—Emperor Alexander and Prince Eugène—
The Pictures of the Belvedere—The King of
Bavaria—Anecdotes, 394
CHAPTER XXI
Ypsilanti—Promenade on the Prater—First
Rumour of the Escape of Napoleon—Projects
for the Deliverance of Greece—Comte Capo
d’Istria—The Hétairites—Meeting with
Ypsilanti in 1820—His Projects and Reverses, 406
CONCLUSION
Napoleon has left Elba—Aspect of Vienna—
Theatricals at the Court—Mme. Edmond de
Périgord and the Rehearsal—Napoleon’s
Landing at Cannes—The Interrupted Dance
—Able Conduct of M. de Talleyrand—
Declaration of the 13th March—Fauche Borel
—The Congress is Dissolved, 410
Index, 421
PORTRAITS
FRANCIS I., EMPEROR OF AUSTRIA, Frontispiece.
at page
COUNT NESSELRODE, 36
MARIE-LOUISE, ARCHDUCHESS OF
AUSTRIA, 76
ALEXANDER I., 142
MARIE, DOWAGER-EMPRESS OF
RUSSIA, 211
ROBERT, VISCOUNT CASTLEREAGH,
MARQUESS OF LONDONDERRY, 281
PRINCE DE METTERNICH, 353
M. MAURICE DE TALLEYRAND, 376
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OF THE
COMTE AUGUSTE DE LA GARDE-
CHAMBONAS
Auguste-Louis-Charles de La Garde,
1
a man of letters and a poet
of some repute in his time, was born in Paris in 1783. The following
is a copy of his certificate of baptism:—
The Old Parish of
Saint-Eustache,
Anno 1783.
(Registry of Paris.)
On Wednesday, the fifth day of
March of the year seventeen
hundred and eighty-three, there
was baptized Auguste-Louis-
Charles, born on the previous day
but one, the son of Messire le
Comte Scipion-Auguste de La
Garde, chevalier, captain of
Dragoons, and of Dame Catherine-
Françoise Voudu, his wife,
domiciled in the Rue de Richelieu.
Godfather—Messire Jean de la
Croix, captain of Dragoons;
Godmother—Dame Elisabeth
Vingtrinien, wife of M. Etienne-
Antoine Barryals, Bourgeois of
Paris.
2
The child’s mother died in giving it birth. The father only
survived the beloved young wife for a little while, and feeling his end
to be near, confided the orphan to the head of his family, the
Marquis de Chambonas (Scipion-Charles-Victor Auguste de La
Garde), camp-marshal (equivalent to the present grade of general of
brigade), and subsequently a minister of Louis XVI.
3
M. de Chambonas took charge of the infant, looking upon it as a
second son, and treating it with the most constant affection.
Consequently in all his works, and in his Unpublished Notes, Auguste
de La Garde always refers by the name of ‘father’ to the relative who
had replaced his dead parents.
4
During his early childhood, he was often entrusted to his
godmother, Mme. de Villers.
5
She was the friend of Mme. Bernard,
the wife of the Lyons banker, whose daughter was to attain such
great celebrity under the name of Mme. Récamier. Brought up
together, as it were, these two children conceived for each other a
sincere affection, which neither time nor distance ever cooled.
When, on his return from foreign parts, Auguste de La Garde came
to Paris in 1801, he at once took up his abode at Mme. Récamier’s,
who, moreover, gave him the support so necessary to the youthful
wanderer who possessed no resources of his own. Hence, it will
cause no surprise to meet in the Recollections of the Congress of
Vienna with pages breathing a profound sense of gratitude to Mme.
Récamier.
Young La Garde began his studies under the guidance of the
Abbé B——, after which he was sent to the College of Sens. (His
‘father’ had been governor of the town in 1789, and its mayor in
1791.) M. de Chambonas, after having commanded the 17th division
of the army of Paris for a very short time, was called to the ministry
of Foreign Affairs, the 17th June 1792, to replace Dumouriez, who
had resigned. His stay there was also very short. Having been
denounced publicly in the Legislative Assembly for having withheld
information with regard to the movements of the Prussian troops,
and becoming more and more suspect every day, he quickly
abandoned the post.
On the 10th August he was among those who endeavoured to
defend the Tuileries, and was even left for dead on the spot. It was
only towards the end of 1792 that M. de Chambonas made up his
mind to quit Paris. He did not cross the frontier, but managed to
reach Sens; where, in safe hiding, he succeeded in spending
unmolested the years of the Reign of Terror. He had taken with him
his son, who subsequently married Mlle. de la Vernade, at Sens (and
who was the grandfather of the present Marquis de Chambonas),
and also his adopted son.
How did the erewhile minister of Louis XVI. succeed in passing
unmolested through the Terror? It seems almost incredible. This was
one of the exceptions the particulars of which have been traced by
memoirs that have recently come to light.
6
During the Directory, in fact, M. de Chambonas floated
absolutely to the top, and at one time there was talk of sending him
to Spain as ambassador. The plan fell through, and after the coup
d’état on the 18th Fructidor (4th September 1797), M. de
Chambonas, considering himself no longer safe, hurriedly left Paris
to avoid arrest.
Behold our wanderers at Hamburg, and afterwards in Sweden
and Denmark. Auguste de La Garde in his somewhat florid style will
tell us many amusing anecdotes; on the other hand, the
bombardment of Copenhagen by the English fleet in 1801 affected
him sadly.
A few months later, the lad of eighteen is sent to France by M.
de Chambonas in order to obtain the removal of the sender’s name
from the list of émigrés—he had been considered as such while he
was in hiding at Sens—and to claim the estates the nation had
confiscated. Auguste de La Garde is hospitably received by Mme.
Récamier, who, while bestirring herself in behalf of the ‘father,’ takes
the son in hand with regard to his education. Through her influence,
La Harpe assists him with his counsels, and the best professors
direct his further studies. As for the property the restitution of which
is claimed by his ‘father,’ by that time established in England, all idea
of it had to be abandoned; and young La Garde himself, his mind
precociously ripened by his exile, was compelled to look to his own
independent future.
7
His personal charm, his natural gifts, and, in short, the useful
connections he rapidly made for himself, soon procured him
employment and a start in life. At the outset, he obtained through
the goodwill of Prince Eugène missions to Italy, to Marmont in
Dalmatia, to the Court of King Joseph at Naples, and finally to Rome,
where he was cordially received by Lucien Bonaparte and his family.
The pages, whether in his Recollections of the Congress of Vienna or
in his Unpublished Notes, referring to his primary benefactors, go far
to exonerate him from the charge of ingratitude, for he lavishes
upon those benefactors all the ornaments of his rhetoric; at any
rate, nearly all, for the greater part of the acknowledgment of his
indebtedness goes mainly to Field-Marshal Prince de Ligne, who was
his protector, his beneficent and ... very useful relative, a member of
the Chambonas family, having, as we already stated, married a
Princesse de Ligne.
La Garde first met with the Prince de Ligne in the Eternal City.
He soon became a familiar visitor to the octogenarian prince, who,
like the generous Mæcenas that he was, gave him a pressing
invitation to come and settle near him in Vienna. The young fellow
was too sensible to make light of an offer insuring material welfare
and a regular existence after years of uncertainty. He, therefore,
settled in Vienna near to his benefactor, yielding for the matter of
that to the spell exercised over every one by that very superior
specimen of manhood, and requiting his kindness with an
affectionate veneration increasing as time went on. The whole of the
first part of the Recollections attests a boundless gratitude; and if on
the one hand that work constitutes the brightest ornament of our
author’s literary crown, it constitutes on the other the most complete
panegyric of the prince who had become ‘his idol.’
From Vienna, the Comte de La Garde passed into Russia, where
he met with a cordial welcome from the elegant society of St.
Petersburg. In 1810 he published there a volume of poems, which
obtained a most signal success. Subsequently invited to Poland by
the Comte Félix Potocki, and treated with the most generous
hospitality, he was enabled to devote himself to numerous literary
works; and as a mark of gratitude to his hosts, he translated into
French Trembecki’s poem dedicated to the cherished wife of Comte
Félix, the celebrated Sophie Potocka.
The Recollections of the Congress of Vienna contains frequent
references to the ‘superb Sophie,’ who was born in the Fanariote
quarter in Constantinople, and whose singular career was solely
owing to her beauty. She married in the first place the Comte de
Witt (of the family of the Dutch Great State-Councillor, whose
descendants had entered the service of Russia). The Comte de Witt
enticed her away from a secretary of the French Embassy in
Constantinople; Comte Félix Potocki, in his turn, eloped with her
while she was Comtesse de Witt, and married her, thanks to an
amicable arrangement nullifying the first marriage. Comtesse Sophie,
celebrated throughout Europe—her loveliness had even compelled
admiration from the Court circle at Versailles—lived on a regal
footing on her estate of Tulczim, and dispensed her hospitality to the
French émigrés in a manner calculated to dazzle many of them. The
Mémoires of General Comte de Rochechouart and the present
Recollections are specially interesting on the subject. The success of
the poem, ‘Sophiowka,’ was such as to gain for its adapter the
honorary membership respectively of the Academies of Warsaw,
Cracow, Munich, London, and Naples.
The Comte de La Garde was to receive another flattering
testimonial in Poland, many years later, on the occasion of the
appearance of his poem on the ‘Funérailles de Kosciusko’ (Treuttel &
Wurtz: Paris, 1830). Its several editions by no means exhausted its
success; the senate of the republic of Cracow conferred upon him
the Polish citizenship, while the kings of Bavaria, Prussia, and Saxony
complimented him by autograph letters.
La Garde was the author of a great number of songs; and the
most renowned composers of the period competed for the honour of
setting them to music. Many of these romances were dedicated to
Queen Hortense, whose acquaintance he made at Augsburg in 1819.
This led to his collaboration in ‘Loi d’Exil,’ and ‘Partant pour la
Syrie’—the latter of which became the national hymn during the
Second Empire. In 1853, there appeared L’Album artistique de la
Reine Hortense, a much prized collection of the then unpublished
songs of the Comte de La Garde, with their music by the queen, and
charming reproductions of tiny paintings, which were also her work.
8
This was the last time the name of the Comte de La Garde
appeared in print. A short time afterwards his wandering life came to
an end in Paris, which during the latter years of his life he inhabited
alternately with Angers. He had adopted as his motto: ‘My life is a
battle’; he could have added, ‘and a never-ending journey’; for his
constitutional restlessness prevented him from settling permanently,
no matter where. He never married. The few documents he left
behind, including some momentoes, represented the whole of his
property, and went to his cousin, M. de La Garde, Marquis de
Chambonas.
In addition to the afore-mentioned works and the present one,
Recollections of the Congress of Vienna, which originally appeared in
Paris in 1820 (?), M. de la Garde was the author of the following:
Une traduction de Dmitry Donskoy (Moscow, 1811); Coup d’œil sur
le Royaume de Pologne (Varsovie, 1818); Coup d’œil sur Alexander-
Bad (Bavière, 1819); Laure Bourg: roman dédié au Roi de Bavière
(Munich, 1820); Les Monuments grecs de la Sicile (Munich, 1820);
Traduction des Mélodies de Thomas Moore (Londres, 1826); Voyage
dans quelques parties de l’Europe (Londres, 1828); Brighton, Voyage
en Angleterre, (1830); Tableau de Bruxelles (prose et vers), dédié à
la Reine; Projet pour la formation d’une Colonie belge à la Nouvelle
Zélande, etc.
In all those works, and notably in the most important, namely:
Brighton, and Souvenirs du Congrès de Vienne, M. de La Garde
shows himself to be endowed with the faculty of observation and
with tact. Unfortunately his matchless kindliness prevents his
criticisms from departing from the laudatory gamut.
We must not look in these Recollections for important revelations
concerning the diplomatic conferences which engaged the attention
of the whole of Europe in 1815; we shall only meet with delightful
anecdotes and portraits of grandes dames and illustrious
personages. There will be many silhouettes of figures that have been
forgotten since, but which, while they belonged to this world, were
worthy of notice. To appreciate them we should bring to the perusal
of this volume the quality which presided at its composition: namely,
the kindliness of an observant man of the world.
Since their appearance in 1820, these Recollections had been
absolutely forgotten. It seemed to us and to M. le Marquis de
Chambonas La Garde, to whom we owe the principal facts of this
notice, that the chapters were worthy of being resuscitated. Though
we have omitted from these Recollections some dissertations more
or less obsolete, which would be of no interest to-day, we have
throughout respected the style and the ideas of the author; only
adding to his narrative the necessary notes on the principal
personages of the action.
FLEURY.
ANECDOTAL RECOLLECTIONS
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER
Introduction—A Glance at the Congress—Arrival of the
Sovereigns—The First Night in Vienna.
The Congress of Vienna, considered as a political gathering, has
not lacked historians, but they were so intent upon recording its
phases of high diplomacy as to have bestowed no thought upon its
piquant and lighter social features.
No doubt they feared that triviality of detail might impair the
general effect of so imposing a picture, and they were satisfied with
reproducing and judging results, without caring to retrace the
diverse and animated scenes where these results were obtained.
Nevertheless, it would have been curious to go more or less deeply
into the personal lives of the actors called upon to settle the future
interests of Europe. At the Vienna Congress, hearts hitherto closed,
nay, wholly inaccessible, to the observation of the outer world, were
often laid open. Amidst the confusion of all ranks, their most
transient movements revealed themselves, and lent themselves to
being watched, as if taken off their guard in the irresistible whirl of
uninterrupted pleasures.
Doubtless, at no time of the world’s history had more grave and
complex interests been discussed amidst so many fêtes. A kingdom
was cut into bits or enlarged at a ball: an indemnity was granted in
the course of a dinner; a constitution was planned during a hunt;
now and again a cleverly-placed word or a happy and pertinent
remark cemented a treaty the conclusion of which, under different
circumstances, would probably have been achieved only with
difficulty, and by dint of many conferences and much
correspondence. Acrimonious discussions and ‘dry-as-dust’
statements were replaced for the time being, as if by magic, by the
most polite forms in any and every transaction; and also by the
promptitude which is a still more important form of politeness,
unfortunately too neglected.
The Congress had assumed the character of a grand fête in
honour of the general pacification. Ostensibly it was a feast of rest
after the storm, but, curiously enough, it offered a programme
providing for life in its most varied movements. Doubtless, the
forgathering of those sovereigns, ministers, and generals who for
nearly a quarter of a century had been the actors in a grand drama
supposed to have run its course, besides the pomp and circumstance
of the unique scene itself, showed plainly enough that they were
there to decide the destinies of nations. The mind, dominated by the
gravity of the questions at issue, could not altogether escape from
the serious thoughts now and again obtruding themselves: but
immediately afterwards the sounds of universal rejoicing brought a
welcome diversion. Everyone was engrossed with pleasure. The
love-passion also hovered over this assembly of kings, and had the
effect of prolonging a state of abandonment and a neglect of affairs,
both really inconceivable when taken in conjunction with upheavals
the shock of which was still felt, and immediately before a
thunderbolt which was soon to produce a singular awakening. The
people themselves, apparently forgetting that when their rulers are
at play, the subjects are doomed to pay in a short time the bills of
such royal follies, seemed to be grateful for foibles that drew their
masters down to their level.
Meanwhile, the man of Titanic catastrophes is not far distant.
Napoleon steps forth to spread fire and flame once more; to make
an end of all those dreams, and to invest with a wholly different
aspect those voluptuous scenes, the diversity of which could not
even save their participants from the weariness of satiety.
9
I arrived in Vienna towards the end of September 1814, when
the Congress, though it had been announced for several months,
was not yet officially opened. The fêtes had, however, already
commenced. In the abstract of the proceedings, it had been said
that the conferences would be of very short duration. Business
according to some, pleasure according to others, and probably both
these causes combined, decided things otherwise. Several weeks,
several months, went by without the question of dissolution being
broached. Negotiating as from brother to brother, in a manner that
would have rejoiced the heart of Catherine the Great, the sovereigns
amicably and without the least hurry arranged ‘their little affairs’;
they gave one the impression of wishing to realise the philosophic
dream of the Abbé de Saint-Pierre.
10
The number of strangers attracted to Vienna by the Congress
was estimated at close upon a hundred thousand. It ought to be
said that for this memorable gathering no other city would have
answered so well. Vienna is in reality the centre of Europe; at that
time it was its capital. A Viennese who had happened to leave the
city a few months before would have had some difficulty in
identifying himself and his familiar surroundings amidst that new,
gilded, and titled population which crowded the place at the time of
the Congress. All the sovereigns of the North had come thither; the
West and the East had sent their most notable representatives. The
Emperor Alexander, still young and brilliant; the Empress Elizabeth,
with her winning though somewhat melancholy grace, and the
Grand-Duke Constantine represented Russia. Behind these were
grouped a mass of ministers, princes, and generals, especially
conspicuous among them the Comtes de Nesselrode, Capo d’Istria,
Pozzo di Borgo, and Stackelberg, all of whom were marked out from
that hour to play important parts in the political debates of Europe.
These statesmen must be passed over in silence. I must not be
equally silent with regard to the friends whom I met once more, and
who during my wanderings in Germany, Poland, and Russia, had
entertained me with such cordial affection. There was Tettenborn, as
devoted and warm-hearted after many years of separation as if we
had never parted; the Comte de Witt, the Prince Koslowski, both of
whom were to die prematurely; and Alexander Ypsilanti, fervent and
generous as of old, and fated to meet with such a cruel end in the
prisons of Montgatz and of Theresienstadt.
The King of Prussia was accompanied by the Princes Guillaume
and Auguste. Baron de Humboldt
11
and the Prince d’Hardemberg
presided at his councils. The beautiful queen who in the negotiations
of 1807 employed in vain all her seductive grace and resources of
mind against the will of Napoleon, was no more.
The King of Denmark, Frédéric VI., the son of the ill-fated
Caroline Mathilde,
12
also repaired to the Congress, which, luckily for
him, he was enabled to leave without his modest possessions having
aroused the cupidity of this or that ambitious neighbour.
The Kings of Bavaria and Würtemberg, the Dukes of Saxe-
Coburg, Hesse-Darmstadt, and Hesse-Cassel—in short, all the heads
and princes of the reigning houses of Germany—were there. They
also wished to take part in the political festival, and were anxious to
know how the supreme tribunal would trim and shape the borders of
their small States.
The King of Saxony, so ardently worshipped by his subjects, had
at that time retired into Prussia, while the Allied Armies occupied his
kingdom. That excellent prince, whom Napoleon called ‘le plus
honnête homme qui ait occupé le trône,’
13
was only represented at
the Congress by his plenipotentiaries.
The representatives of France were the Duc de Dalberg, the
Comte Alexis de Noailles, M. de la Tour-du-Pin, and the Prince de
Talleyrand. The last-named maintained his high reputation with great
dignity under difficult circumstances, and perhaps conspicuous
justice has never been done to him. The English plenipotentiaries
were Lords Clancarty and Stewart, and Viscount Castlereagh.
Among these notable men it would be ingratitude on my part not
to name the Prince de Ligne, of whom frequent mention will be
made in these Recollections; and the reigning Landgrave of Hesse-
Homburg [1814]. A brave soldier, the latter prince earned his grade

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  • 5.
    Copyright © 2017Pearson Canada Inc. 246 CHAPTER 8 MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES AND LABOUR RELATIONS CHAPTER SYNOPSIS This chapter describes the importance of effective human resource management. Specific human resource management activities that are discussed include planning activities (job analysis, job description, job specifications), forecasting, staffing (recruitment, selection, promotions), developing the workforce (orientation, training, performance appraisal), compensation (wages and salaries, incentive programs, comparable worth), providing human resource services (benefit programs, employee safety and health, retirement), the legal context of HRM, and challenges in the changing workplace. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the role of labour unions in business organizations. Topics that are covered include unionism today, the legal environment for unions in Canada, union organizing strategies, the collective bargaining process, and the use of independent third parties to help labour and management resolve their differences. CHAPTER OUTLINE I. FOUNDATIONS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (HRM) HRM is the set of activities that are directed at attracting, developing, and maintaining an effective workforce. HRM operates in a dynamic environment and is increasingly being recognized for its strategic importance. A. The Strategic Importance of HRM—Effective organizational functioning requires human resources. The importance of HRM has grown dramatically in the last two decades. This is a direct result from the increased legal complexities, the recognition of the workforce as a valuable resource and the recognition of the costs associated with poor HRM. B. Human Resource Planning—This is the starting point for effective HRM and involves job analysis and forecasting the demand for the supply of labour. 1. Job analysis—This detailed study of the specific duties in a particular job and the human qualities required for that job forms the basis of the job description and job specification. These, in turn, are the basis for further personnel activities. 2. Forecasting HR demand and supply—Managers need to forecast the demand for employees of different types and the likely supply in the
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    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 247 short-, intermediate-, and long-term. Factors to be considered in doing so are discussed. a. Replacement charts—These list each important managerial position, who occupies it, how long the person will probably stay in it before moving on, and who is now qualified or soon will be qualified to move into it. b. Skills inventories—These contain information on each employee’s education, skills, work experience, and career aspirations. 3. Matching HR supply and demand—After comparing future demand and internal supply, managers can develop contingency plans to minimize the negative effects of a shortage of HR. II. RECRUITING HUMAN RESOURCES The process of attracting qualified persons to apply for jobs that are open is the focus of this section. Internal recruiting means considering present employees as candidates for openings, while external recruiting means attracting people from outside the organization to apply for jobs. A. Selecting Human Resources—Once the recruiting process has attracted a pool of applicants the next step is select someone to hire. This involves gathering information from the applicants that will predict their job success and then hire the candidate that is most likely to be successful. To reduce the element of uncertainty, managers use a variety of techniques (see Figure 8.1). Each organization develops its own mix of selection techniques and may use them in almost any order: 1. Applications forms—An efficient method of gathering information that is needed. 2. Tests—Tests of ability, aptitude, or knowledge that is relevant to a particular job are usually the best predictors of future job performance. 3. Interviews—A popular selection device, but due to biases this method is sometimes a poor predictor of job success. 4. Other techniques—Company or industry specific techniques are used (e.g., physical exams, polygraph tests, etc.) III. DEVELOPING HUMAN RESOURCES
  • 7.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 248 Employees must receive an orientation to their new job. They may also need additional training and development after being selected. A. New Employee Orientation—Orientation is the process of introducing new employees to the company’s policies and programs, the co-workers and supervisors they will interact with, and the nature of their job. Orientation allows new employees to feel like part of a team and to become effective contributors to the organization more rapidly. B. Training and Development—Most organizations find it effective to conduct training and development on a regular basis. This continuous training and development can improve the quality of the contributions the employee makes to the organization. On-the-job training, vestibule training, systematic job rotation, and management development programs are discussed. Management development programs, networking, and mentoring all help in training employees. C. Team Building and Group-Based Training—More and more organizations are using teams as a basis for doing work. Outdoor training exercises like Outward Bound are popular training initiatives. D. Evaluating Employee Performance—Performance appraisals are formal evaluations of how effectively employees are performing their jobs. They provide a benchmark to assess the extent that the recruiting and selection process is adequate, help in determining training and development requirements, and compensation issues. Most likely the immediate supervisor will conduct the appraisal. 1. Providing performance feedback—Many managers are not effective when providing performance feedback, partly because they don’t understand how to do it properly and partly because they don’t enjoy it. As a result, managers may have a tendency to avoid giving negative feedback. But if employees are not told about their shortcomings, they will have no concrete reason to try to improve and will receive no guidance as to how to improve. 2. Methods for appraising performance—The nature of jobs today is such that we rely on judgements and ratings to appraise employee performance. In simple ranking, employees are ranked according to where they place compared to others (or groups of others). The forced distribution method involves grouping employees into predefined frequencies of performance ratings (e.g., top 20%, next 30%, etc.). The graphic rating scale asks appraisers to rate the individual’s job performance by answering specific questions with answers that best suit the employee. The critical incident method involves the rater recalling examples of especially good or poor performance by an employee and then
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    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 249 describing what the employee did (or did not do) that led to success or failure. IV. COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS Compensation refers to the set of rewards that an organization provides to employees in exchange for their willingness to perform various jobs and tasks. A. Determining Basic Compensation—Wages generally refers to an hourly compensation paid to operating employees while salaries usually refers to compensation stated in a monthly or yearly figure. Pay surveys (survey of compensation that others are paying), job evaluation (a job’s value added to the organization), and pay structure (compensation based on the organization’s assessment of the relative value to the organization of reach job class) are three methods for determining basic compensation. B. Incentive Programs—To encourage employees to work harder, many organizations offer rewards that are directly tied to higher levels of performance. 1. Individual incentives—With a piece-rate system, an employee is paid a certain amount of money for every unit produced. With pay-for- performance, managers are rewarded for especially productive output. 2. Team and group incentives—These apply to all employees in the firm. These include profit-sharing plans, gainsharing plans, and pay-for- knowledge plans. C. Benefits—Besides financial compensation, most organizations provide employees with an array of benefits. Some of these are mandated by law and others are optional for the organization. 1. Mandated protection plans—These include employment insurance (which provides subsistence for workers who are unemployed), the Canada Pension Plan (which provides income to retired workers), and workers’ compensation (which covers individuals who suffer a job-related injury). 2. Optional protection plans—These include health coverage such as vision care, mental health services, dental care, and prescription drugs. 3. Paid time off—This includes vacations and sick leave. 4. Other types of benefits—Organizations may also offer other types of benefits including wellness programs (which concentrate on preventing illness), childcare benefits, eldercare, and cafeteria benefit plans (which allow employees to choose the benefits they really want).
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    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 250 V. THE LEGAL CONTEXT OF HRM The important areas of HR regulation are discussed in this section. A. Equal Employment Opportunity—Protects people from unfair or inappropriate discrimination in the workplace. 1. Anti-discrimination laws—The goal of the Canadian Human Rights Act of 1977 is to ensure that any individual who wishes to obtain a job has an equal opportunity to compete for it. The Employment Equity Act of 1986 designates four groups as employment-disadvantaged: women, visible minorities, Aboriginal people, and people with disabilities. B. Comparable Worth—This is the idea of paying equal wages for work of equal value. C. Sexual Harassment—This includes requests for sexual favours, unwelcome sexual advances, or verbal/physical conduct of a sexual nature that creates an intimidating or hostile environment for a given employee. D. Employee Health and Safety—These programs are intended to reduce absenteeism and turnover, raise productivity, and boost morale by making jobs safer and more healthful. E. Retirement—Most Canadian provinces have now abolished mandatory retirement. VI. NEW CHALLENGES IN THE CHANGING WORKPLACE A. Managing Workforce Diversity—Opportunities and challenges are evident due to the wide range of workers attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviours. B. Managing Knowledge Workers—As the importance of information-driven jobs (versus experience-driven jobs) increases, management approaches must change. 1. The nature of knowledge work—Knowledge workers include occupations like computer scientists, engineers, and physical scientists. These workers prefer to work independently. 2. Knowledge worker management and labour markets— Organizations must pay knowledge workers enough to keep them from moving to another company.
  • 10.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 251 C. Managing Contingent Workers—Contingent employees are those who work on something other than a permanent or full-time basis. This section discusses various aspects of management that must be considered when managing these unique employees. 1. Trends in contingent employment—This type of employment is on the rise in Canada. This is true even for top management positions. Each year there are over 150,000 guest workers in Canada. 2. Management of contingent workers—Careful planning must be done so that contingent workers are brought in only when they are really needed. The costs and benefits of using contingent workers must be clearly understood. Contingent workers should be integrated as much as possible into the mainstream activities of an organization. VII. DEALING WITH ORGANIZED LABOUR A labour union is a group of individuals working together to achieve share job- related goals such as higher pay and better working conditions. Collective bargaining is the process by which union leader and company management negotiate terms and condition of employment for workers who are represented by the union. A. The Development of Canadian Labour Unions— The labour movement was born with the Industrial Revolution, which also gave birth to the factory- based production system that carried with it enormous economic benefits. But there was also a dark side, as some owners treated their workers as simply resources to be deployed, with little or no regard for the well-being of workers. B. Unionism Today—Union membership as a proportion of the total Canadian workforce has stagnated during the last few decades. Slightly less than one-third of workers belong to unions. 1. Trends in union-management relations—Union-management relations have historically been very adversarial, but recently unions have been faced with many environmental threats and they have therefore often focused on maintaining what they have rather than trying to get more from management. Some unions are even cooperating with management to make the organizations they work for more competitive. C. The Future of Unions—The big question is whether unions will be able to cope with the many challenges that are facing them. These include the decline of the so-called “smokestack industries” (where unions have traditionally been strong), employment growth in service industries (where unions have not traditionally been strong), the globalization of business (which means many jobs
  • 11.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 252 are outsourced to other countries), and technological change (which reduces the number of workers that are needed). VIII. THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT FOR UNIONS IN CANADA Political and legal barriers to unions existed well into the 20th century, but now various laws have been passed which protect unions and give workers the right to collectively bargain with their employers. The relevance of several pieces of legislation for unions is discussed (Conciliation Act, Industrial Disputes Investigation Act, Privy Council Order 1003, and the Constitution Act). A. Federal Legislation: The Canada Labour Code—This legislation applies to the labour practices of firms operating under the legislative authority of parliament. 1. Fair employment practices—This section of the Canada Labour Code prohibits an employer from refusing employment on the basis of a person’s race or religion. 2. Standard hours, wages, vacations, and holidays—This section deals with a variety of issues such as standard hours of work, maximum hours of work per week, overtime pay, minimum wages, equal wages for men and women doing the same jobs, vacations, general holidays, and parental leave. 3. Safety of employees—This section requires that every person running a federal work project do so in a way that will not endanger the health or safety of any employees. 4. Canada industrial relations regulations—This sections deals with all matters related to collective bargaining. B. Provincial Labour Legislation—Each province has also enacted legislation dealing with the personnel practices covered in the Canada Labour Code. C. Union Organizing Strategy—A union might try to organize workers when some workers in a firm are members and the union wants to represent other workers, or when it is attempting to outdo a rival union, or when it wants to increase the number of workers who belong to the union. D. Union Security—The differences between the various levels of union security (closed shop, open shop, and agency shop) are discussed. E. Types of Unions— There are two basic types of unions: craft unions (which are organized by crafts or trades, like plumbers, barbers, airline pilots, and
  • 12.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 253 so forth), and industrial unions (which are organized according to industries, for example, steel, auto, and clothing). A national union has members across Canada, while an international union has members in more than one country. X. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING A. Reaching Agreement on the Contract’s Terms—The collective bargaining process begins when the union is recognized as the bargaining agent for employees. Union leaders then meet with management to begin working on a new contract. B. Contract Issues—Various issues are discussed during collective bargaining. 1. Compensation—This is the most common issue during collective bargaining. 2. Benefits—Common issues here are insurance, retirement benefits, paid holidays, working conditions, and supplementary health care. 3. Job security—Unions are increasingly concerned about this issue. 4. Other union issues—Unions may also bargain about overtime policies, rest periods, differential pay plans for shift employees, and the use of temporary workers. 5. Management rights—Management wants a much control as possible over hiring policies, work assignments, and so forth. Unions often try to limit management rights. C. When Bargaining Fails—An impasse occurs when labour and management fail to reach an agreement on a new contract. 1. Union tactics—The union’s major weapon is the strike, although unions are not permitted to strike in certain situations. 2. Management tactics—Management can lock workers out of the business or it can hire strike-breakers to replace the striking workers. The can also appeal to workers to decertify the union that represents them. D. Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration—In conciliation, the neutral third party helps the disputing parties to clarify the issues that are separating them. In mediation, a neutral third party tries to help the disputing parties reach agreement, while in arbitration a neutral third party imposes a settlement on the disputing parties.
  • 13.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 254 QUICK QUESTIONS 1. Why has the role of human resource management increased in importance over time? 2. How can an HR manager benefit from the use of a replacement chart? 3. How can an HR manager benefit from the use of an employee information system? 4. When do you think tests are useful in the selection process? 5. Why are interviews sometimes a poor predictor of job success? In what way(s) might an interview be an accurate predictor of job success? An inaccurate predictor? 6. What types of training are offered at your place of work? 7. What do you think would be the biggest challenge when doing an employee performance appraisal? 8. How can an organization benefit from offering incentive programs to its employees? 9. What is the purpose of an affirmative action plan? 10. How can an organization benefit from welcoming a diverse workforce? 11. How do knowledge workers add value to an organization? 12. What are some advantages and disadvantages of hiring contingent workers? 13. What trends are evident in union membership? 14. What trends are evident in union-management relations? 15. What trends are evident in bargaining perspectives? 16. What factors will affect the future of labour unions? 17. What is the significance of Privy Council Order 1003? 18. What is the Canada Labour Code designed to do? 19. What is the difference between a closed shop, an agency shop, and an open shop?
  • 14.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 255 20. How is mediation different from conciliation and arbitration? 21. What issues are typically most important to union negotiators when collective bargaining with management? 22. When bargaining fails between labor and management, what are some union tactics that can be brought to the bargaining table? Management tactics? IN-CLASS EXERCISES Exercise #1: Writing a Job Description Activity Overview: This activity asks students to write a job description for an instructor and for a student. Time Limit: 50 minutes What to Do: 1. Review what is included in a job description, then ask students to think about what variables should be included in their instructor’s job description and what should be included in a student’s job description. (10 minutes) 2. Divide the class into small groups, asking members of each group to share what they came up with in Step 1. (10 minutes) 3. Ask each group to further discuss what should be included in their instructor’s job description and in a student’s job description, considering any other factors that might come to mind that have not already been discussed, and to write a final job description for both instructor and student. (15 minutes) 4. Reassemble the class and discuss each group’s suggestions. (15 minutes) Don’t Forget: There are many roles that instructors play in a college or university other than what students see in the classroom. Wrap-Up: Review the purpose of a job description, highlighting some of the major elements included in most college or university instructors’ job descriptions. Exercise #2: What Motivates Employees? Activity Overview:
  • 15.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 256 This activity asks students to consider what companywide incentives might motivate workers who work in specific jobs. Time Limit: 30 minutes What to Do: 1. Divide the class into small groups and assign each group to one of the jobs below. (5 minutes) • A cook at a fast-food restaurant • A waitress at a local diner • A groundskeeper • A computer technician at a small firm • A janitor • A college professor 2. Ask each group to brainstorm what incentives would be especially motivating for a worker performing the assigned job; remind students to consider both tangible and intangible incentives. (10 minutes) 3. Reassemble the class and ask each group to share their results, allowing all students to share input. (15 minutes) Don’t Forget: This activity can be completed using any type of job as the basis for discussion. Remind students to consider “reasonable” costs to the company as they brainstorm for ideas. Wrap-Up: Bring the activity to a close by recapping each group’s conclusion, reminding students that tangible incentives, such as various benefits packages, can be motivating but that intangible incentives, such as employee recognition programs, can also be motivating. Exercise #3: Tallying Up the Costs of Discrimination Activity Overview: This activity highlights the high costs of employee discrimination in a national organization. Time Limit: 30 minutes What to Do: 1. Make copies of the following article and distribute to students in advance of the class where the exercise is to be conducted. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  • 16.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 257 Just how important is an understanding of the legal context of HR management? Recent experiences at Rent-A-Center clearly show what can happen when a firm minimizes the importance of the HR function. Thorn Americas, a unit of London-based Thorn EMI, had prospered as a large player in the rent-to-own industry. The firm had a large professionally staffed HR department and was known for its progressive hiring and employment development practices. Thorn recently merged with another large rent-to-own business, Renters Choice. The new firm was renamed Rent-A-Center, and an outsider—J. Ernest Talley—was brought in to run the combined business. But Talley had some unusual views of the HR function. Specifically, he saw HR as an expense, bristled at the notion of government regulation, and allegedly had a strong bias against women. For example, he was quoted by one employee as saying “Get rid of women any way you can.” Another indicated that he said “Women should be home taking care of their husbands and children, chained to a stove, not working in my stores.” Even though Rent-A-Center had 2,300 locations and 13,000 employees, Talley essentially eliminated the firm’s HR function. For example, he fired the firm’s top HR executive and dropped all training and employee relations activities. He kept only enough clerical support to handle payroll and benefits activities. But his stance on women and the culture he created proved to be costly. Thousands of talented women left the company, and thousands of potentially valuable new employees were systematically blackballed. Talented males also left in droves, at least in part because they wanted no part of what Talley was trying to do. Talley’s stance soon prompted legal action. Several women charged that they had been demoted or forced to resign because of their gender. Others charged that he had created a hostile work environment, a key form of sexual harassment. For instance, at one national sales meeting in Las Vegas, Talley hired scantily clad dancers for entertainment. Many of the men in attendance got drunk, while the women felt humiliated. The lawsuit against Rent-A-Center represented 5,300 current and former employees, as well as approximately 10,000 rejected job applicants. One attorney involved in the case said, “I’ve never seen a case in which so many women and men tell the same kind of story all across the country. It’s remarkable.” Faced with overwhelming evidence, Rent-A-Center forced Talley to retire and settled the suit for $47 million in payments. The firm also agreed to reestablish an HR department, hire an HR vice president, and take numerous other steps to change its employment practices and culture. Questions for Discussion 1. How is hostile work environment sexual harassment evident in this scenario? 2. Is workforce diversity necessary in an organization like this one? In what ways can such organizations benefit from workforce diversity?
  • 17.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 258 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Divide the class into small groups and ask them to answer the questions for discussion in their groups. (15 minutes): 3. Regroup as a class and discuss each group’s responses. (15 minutes) Don’t Forget: Remind students of the two types of sexual harassment: hostile environment and quid pro quo. Wrap-Up: Briefly discuss how attracting a more diverse workforce and customer base can place an organization in a better market position than those organizations that do not make welcoming diversity a part of the strategic focus. Exercise #4: Interview Practice Activity Overview: This activity is designed to help students experience a selection interview. Time: 50 minutes What To Do: 1. Arrange students in groups of three: a store manager, an applicant, and an observer. 2. One student should assume the role of a shoe store manager who wants to hire a management trainee. The second student is applying for the job. The third student will observe whether the interviewer stayed with a plan and asked questions related to the job skills needed and if the applicant provided good information in a mature manner. (Another job may be substituted if it is more familiar.) 3. Interviewers should develop a list of criteria and questions to ask. 4. Applicants should develop brief descriptions of their education and experience, strengths, and weaknesses. 5. The students role-play the interview. 6. The observer should report findings to the two role players. Don’t Forget: You can vary the above process by having students exchange roles, videotaping the role play, and playing it back for discussion.
  • 18.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 259 Wrap-Up: Ask the following questions: Were the situations realistic? Why or why not? Based on the role-play and your personal experience, what are the toughest questions you have ever been asked in an interview? How did you respond to them? Exercise #5: Top-Down Sensitivity Activity Overview: This activity asks students to think about the employee issues toward which employers should be most sensitive. Time Limit: 30 minutes What to Do: 1. Make copies of the material below and hand it out to students in advance of the class where the exercise is to be conducted. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By definition, global companies must communicate with employees in many different countries and cultures, and a firm’s success in communicating with local workers can mean success or failure in an overseas operation. The most successful global companies know how to talk to the people who work for them. In some countries, the gap between managers and workers is quite wide, and managers are used to bridging it with orders that are simply to be followed. In many Asian cultures, for example, you simply don’t question the boss’s decisions or the policies of the company. In Canada, on the other hand, people are often encouraged to provide feedback and to say what they think. The gap is relatively narrow, and communication channels tend to be informal and wide open. The same arrangements usually apply when it comes to dealing with workplace disputes. In some countries, such as Germany and Sweden, there’s a formal system for ensuring that everyone involved gets a say in resolving workplace disputes. In these countries, although communication channels are always open, they’re also highly structured. But being culturally sensitive to local employees means much more than just knowing how to settle workplace disputes. As a rule, companies also need to convey a sense of good “citizenship” in the host country. This means respecting the social and cultural values of the employees and communicating to them the fact that it cares about these things. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  • 19.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 260 2. Divide the class into small groups and ask them to consider what they perceive to be the top two employee issues about which employers should be especially sensitive. (15 minutes) 3. Reassemble as a class and discuss each group’s conclusions. Is it possible for the class as a whole to come up with the “top two” issues from among the groups’ conclusions? (15 minutes) Don’t Forget: Groups will come up with many different responses; it will be difficult for the group to prioritize responses. Student answers will depend on the types of jobs being considered. Wrap-Up: Bring the activity to a close by briefly discussing some of the top issues facing HR managers today, including pay gaps between males and females and discrimination of various sorts. Exercise #6: What Are You Looking for in a Job? Activity Overview: This activity asks students to express their opinions about important job criteria and compare these with other students. Time Limit: 40 minutes What to Do: 1. Ask students to think about what is important to them in a job, ranking the following items, with 1 being the most important and 10 being the least important. (10 minutes) • Working Conditions • Quality of Coworkers/Mentors • Salary • Benefits • Location of Job • Level of Challenge/Responsibility • Training Programs Offered • Advancement Opportunities • Job Security • Job Title 2. Divide the class into four-person teams.
  • 20.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 261 3. Ask each team to compare their rankings. What conclusions can they draw? While they are doing this, students can go to the board or an overhead and mark their rankings on a table you create; this will give the class an overview of the data. (10 minutes) 4. Reassemble the class as a whole and have each group share their findings with the class. (10 minutes) 5. Look at the list of items that people ranked highest in general. Talk about how companies can actually satisfy these important items. For example, how would a company provide good working conditions for its employees? (10 minutes) Don’t Forget: Remind students that there are no right or wrong answers to this exercise. Wrap-Up: Wrap up the discussion by noting that providing employees with what they want in a job can be very challenging for organization. But business owners and managers must find ways to address issues that are important to employees or they will have problems with employee motivation and satisfaction. Exercise #7: The Pros and Cons of Unions Activity Overview: This activity is designed to help students see two sharply different perspectives with the regard to the issue of unions. Time Limit: 25 minutes What to Do: 1. Several days prior to class session in which this exercise is to be conducted, ask for two student volunteers. One of them will play the role of Jack Callahan (the CEO of Arco Manufacturing), who vigorously opposes the idea of unions. The other student will play the role of Bernie Pearson (the president of the union at Arco), who thinks that unions are very valuable. The two men have run into each other at a social gathering and have gotten in a spirited debate about unions. 2. Give them the following script as the basis for a role play in front of the class. (5 minutes) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Callahan: The whole idea of unions really bothers me. Is it fair that workers in a unionized plant should be forced to belong to the union even if they don’t want to? Workers should not be forced to join your union in order to hold a job in my company. I’ll accept the argument that employees have a right to form a union, but an employee should have a right not to join, too. But now that your union is certified as the exclusive
  • 21.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 262 bargain agent for my production workers, even though not all of them voted to unionized, all of them have to join your union or be fired. They don’t have freedom of choice. Pearson: Well, it is true that a worker in a union plant must belong to the union. The majority rules, and the majority of your workers who voted wanted to join the union. It would be unfair for a person who doesn’t pay union dues to enjoy the benefits won by a union supported by members’ dues. Freeloaders should have to pay their fair share. Callahan: I’m against freeloaders as much as you are. But unions get all sorts of unfair advantages from the government. For example, I have to deduct union dues from my workers’ wages and then give that money to your union. That’s outrageous. The least you could do is collect your own dues. After all, it’s your union and you should look after it. Pearson: If we had to chase after all the workers for union dues every month, we wouldn’t have time for anything else. This province has passed legislation requiring you to deduct union dues. Your responsibility is to obey the law. Callahan: But why should unions get a break like that? They’ve got too much power already. You can bring my whole operation to a halt just by calling a strike. Pearson: That’s an oversimplification of reality. Look what’s happened recently. Unions are having a lot of trouble getting wage increases for their members. In fact, companies like yours are laying off a lot of workers and sending jobs overseas. If unions are so strong, why aren’t they able to just demand (and get) higher wages and benefits for their workers? I’ll tell you why—we aren’t that strong. Callahan: Well, for being so weak, you can sure cause me a lot of grief. You know, I really don’t think that unions are necessary any more. I agree that unions did a lot for workers early in the last century when management treated workers badly, but in this enlightened era, they are no longer necessary. Social insurance, worker’s compensation, minimum wage laws, employment insurance, and job safety laws have eliminated the need for unions. Pearson: To say that unions are unnecessary is hogwash. Do away with the union and you’ll see how employee-oriented most companies will be. Business firms exist to make a profit. The less they have to pay their workers, the more profit they make. Keep in mind also that there is no law that requires workers to form a union. They get involved in unions because they think the union will help them get a better deal from management. Callahan: But what if, after joining a union, the workers find that the union isn’t doing anything for them? If customers don’t like Arco’s products, they can simply stop buying from us, but a dissatisfied union member has to keep paying union dues, even if the union isn’t doing the job the worker expects.
  • 22.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 263 Pearson: That’s simply not true. If the employees don’t think their union is benefiting them, they can decertify the union. Callahan: I’m tired of arguing with you. You have a glib answer for every point I make. You’re totally one-sided in your view. You think everything about unions is positive! Pearson: You’re not exactly open-minded yourself. You think everything about unions is negative! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2. At the end of the debate, ask the students to vote for the individual who had the stronger arguments. (10 minutes) Don’t Forget: Ask students who listened to the debate if they wish to make other points that were not raised during the debate. Wrap-Up: Remind students the current rules and regulations regarding union and management rights are the result of a democratic process where elected officials develop legislation which governs how unions and management relate to each other. TEACHING TIPS 1. Students often confuse a job description with a job specification. One way to separate the two is through a simple set of statements similar to the following. A job description is a list of the activities required of the person who will fill that work position. On the other hand, a job specification describes the kind of person the firm is looking for to fill the position. 2. Remind students that HRM is the set of organizational activities directed at attracting, developing, and maintaining an effective workforce. 3. Remind students that forecasting the supply of labor includes both an internal and external forecast. 4. Remind students that new employees are found both internally and externally in the recruitment process. 5. Interview a human resources manager regarding the recruitment and selection process while the class listens. Determine the manager's views on how to increase the chance of choosing the right person for the job.
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    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 264 6. Your students may have been talking with friends who have recently graduated from college or university and have begun looking for work. The report back from the graduates may be that jobs are hard to find, and that good jobs are almost non-existent. In such a mood and with such knowledge that there is an overabundance of job applicants, it becomes hard to believe that some firms must aggressively go out and actively recruit workers. However, at some point these recent graduates will locate jobs and someday may be faced with a recruitment task. When this occurs, the graduates will understand that finding just the right person for the job can be very, very difficult and frustrating for human resource recruiters. As a result, too many times, a firm must seek the "least worst" worker rather than the best worker in filling a particular slot. 7. The item above emphasizes the fact that from the point of view of a recruiter, often there are too few qualified applicants. This would say to students: To be a more successful job seeker, provide yourself with as many skills as possible--degrees, work experience, computer packages mastered, foreign languages learned, etc. 8. In a closed promotion system, managers decide (perhaps in a very closed and secret fashion) which employees will be promoted. In an open system, available jobs are "posted." That is, notice of an opening is posted on numerous bulletin boards and published in various other ways. So far, so good. However, you should introduce your students to the real world by indicating that there may be instances in which a human resources office of a firm indicates that it is pursuing an open promotion procedure when it is actually pursuing by previously-determined design a CLOSED system. Here is an actual case, with anonymity protected, illustrating how the charade is played. The unveiling of the lie occurred because a clerk was not sufficiently in on the caper. A job applicant noticed a position announcement properly publicized. Upon applying to the appropriate office prior to the stated deadline, the applicant was told by a clerk: "Oh, we filled that job two weeks ago." The applicant countered with: "But the announcement says that the deadline hasn't even come yet." The clerk responded: "Oh, we just post these positions because that's what the law requires." Students who go into human-resources positions should be cautioned ahead of time that such an approach is totally inappropriate. 9. Remind students that all applicant information gathered in the selection process can be used to predict job success. 10. Since so much could be riding on it, the performance appraisal is a very important procedure in any firm. Although we all want to avoid subjective evaluations—judgments reflecting the personal bias of the rater—subjectivity can creep into almost all performance appraisals. Ask the students to identify some jobs in which thoroughly objective appraisals are possible. 11. Some possibilities as answers to the question posed in the previous item can be found in the world of sales. Travelling salesman Edgar Philpkin could be told by the sales manager: "Edgar, ol' boy, we don't care what you do with your spare time or how you conduct yourself on the road. Company image is not your problem. We shall rate you on
  • 24.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 265 how many turbines you sell this year. That will be our only criterion." This is absolutely objective. The sales manager does not have to make judgements concerning Edgar's sense of ambition, his ability to efficiently make out sales orders, his speed at getting to a sales destination, his manner of dress, or the friends he makes for the firm. No, the sales manager very objectively counts the number of turbines sold by Edgar in a year's time. Ask students if they think there are very many situations like this. 12. Thanks to the previous item, it can be seen that lacking a perfectly objective measure of a person's contribution to the firm, any performance appraisal device must lean on a supervisor's judgment. Because of this, any such appraisal procedure will be open to criticism by those persons who do not score well. 13. The textbook says that the appraisal process is completed when the manager and employee meet to discuss the appraisal. And this is a very important part of the procedure, for it is in this conference that the employee picks up the best hints for improving his or her performance. However, some employees have reported that although they worked with firms—or in the military—where the follow-up conference was supposed to be required, in actual practice there were many supervisors who did not accomplish the step of having supervisor and subordinate meet to discuss the appraisal. 14. Point out to students that disciplinary action by a firm will often involve participation in the procedure by a union that has been elected to represent the workers of the firm. In such a case, the company's management may lose flexibility and freedom in disciplining employees. Union participation can be very helpful and may well reinforce a company's efforts to discipline in a fair and consistent manner. However, the atmosphere at a firm might be such that union interference in disciplinary matters can greatly weaken the effective implementation of company disciplinary policies. 15. There is still much debate about the most important factor that motivates workers to do a better job. Ask students what they think moves a pro football player in the Grey Cup to perform beyond his usual peak: being victorious for the sake of his football club and its loyal fans or earning the extra money that goes to members of the winning team? When an employer can answer that question, the employer will know better how to administer compensation and benefits in such a way that each worker performs at his or her peak capacity. 16. Here is an opportunity for students to make a "where-do-we-stand-today" judgment after necessary discussion. The media have provided plenty of coverage of the phenomenon of sexual harassment. It has been clearly designated by firms, governmental bodies, and courts as not to be tolerated. And yet, can it be said that we have eliminated sexual harassment from the workplace? Here are some sub-questions on the subject that might get discussion started. Do most managers really take seriously allegations of sexual harassment raised by subordinates? How difficult is it to prove that sexual harassment has taken place? Do most employees take the matter seriously? What chance does a person
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    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 266 have of making a false harassment claim and seriously damaging the reputation of an innocent person? 17. Reinforce that sexual harassment includes (a) quid pro quo, in which the harasser offers something of value for sexual favors, and (b) hostile work environment, in which lewd behavior displayed by another employee is offensive. 18. Ask students or student teams to react to the following statement that might be made by a CEO of a large manufacturing concern: "I have full respect for family life. I place my family very high on my scale of priorities. I am aware, however, that my value to this company does not come from my family loyalty but rather from what I can do for this firm. Accordingly, if I want to remain effective for this firm, I must make sure that I devote sufficient time, energy and interest to this firm. Accordingly, I expect my workers to display this same kind of devotion. When their family life gets in the way of what we are trying to do here, I am tempted to ask such employees to make a choice: your family or your job!" 19. Ask students to describe a job orientation they have gone through in jobs they have had. Most will indicate orientation has been poor or non-existent. Ask what they would have done to make the orientation better. 20. Moderate a class discussion on the issue of the compensation of top managers. Bring actual figures to class (and direct the students to those in the text) to show just how much some top managers earn. Is the large difference between the top managers in the firm and the production workers warranted? 21. Point out that a compensation system includes more than just wages and salaries; it includes incentives and employee benefit programs. 22. Students often confuse the types of incentive plans: Profit-sharing plans distribute profits earned above a certain level to employees; gainsharing plans distribute bonuses to employees who achieve greater work efficiency; and pay-for-knowledge plans encourage workers to learn new skills. 23. Invite a human resources expert to class to describe the legal environment that currently exists in Canada regarding anti-discrimination legislation. Ask the person to describe several specific incidents so that students can see how the legislation works in practice. Leave time for student questions. 24. Make sure that students understand the implications of the equal employment opportunity regulation. 25. Reiterate that protected classes consist of individuals who share characteristics— such as race, color, religion, gender, age, disability status, and national origin—as indicated by a given law.
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    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 267 26. Remind students that workforce diversity is the range of workers’ attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors that differ by gender, race, age, ethnicity, physical ability, and so on. 27. Describe a case to the class of a manager using electronic capabilities to "spy" on an employee (e.g., a manager reading an employee's e-mail). Then ask students how many of them have been spied on during working hours. Moderate a class discussion on the reasonableness of such behaviour by management. 28. Ask how many of the students have had a formal performance appraisal. Then ask those that said yes, if they knew prior to the appraisal if they knew the criteria the rater was going to use. For those that say no, ask what they should do in the future to avoid this situation. 29. Ask the students, what benefits they will expect when they graduate and start a career. 30. Ask students to expand on the concept of comparable worth. 31. Relate the legal issues (e.g., minimum wages) and ask the student if sole proprietors should be held to the same standards as larger corporations (e.g., McDonald’s). 32. Have a discussion about how diversity is both an opportunity (especially in a dynamic environment) and a challenge at the same time. 33. Labour unions have sometimes resorted to tactics that have been perceived in a negative light by the general public. When you ask people for their impression of labour unions, their impression may largely be determined by a remembrance of "harsh" union actions. However, students should be led to see that the formation of unions was in response to centuries of harsh treatment of workers by employers. And in the days when labour unions were just getting started, government officials and the courts were pretty much always on the side of management. Regardless of how ugly a strike can become, it must be kept in mind that prior to unions coming on the scene, grossly unfair treatment of workers was common. 34. At least in the relatively early days of Canadian labour history, there was a difference between a craft union and an industrial union. Drawing a line between the two types is not quite so easy today. A member of a craft union is skilled and trained (e.g., a carpenter, brick mason, or electrician). On the other hand, a member of an industrial union was not recognized to be skilled and would typically work at a repetitive task within a large factory. Members of craft unions saw themselves as a breed apart from these industrial types.
  • 27.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 268 35. Although the textbook points out that overall union membership is stagnant (as a percent of the total work force), unions seem to be gaining in two areas: white collar employees and government workers. In time, can this surge compensate for losses in other areas? 36. Develop some interesting narratives about what unions in other nations are doing. In France, for example, key unions may strike for a few hours or just a day in order to make a point. French farmers have also been known to use strikers' tactics. On one occasion, a group of them assembled numerous units of farm machinery in a very busy metropolitan intersection, stopping traffic for a long period of time. French unions like to have management come to speak to them. When this happens, union members hoot and holler. German autoworkers recently went through a traumatic experience at Volkswagen. The firm announced it would have to cut many thousands of workers. The two sides relieved the situation a bit by cutting all workers back to limited workweeks. Such a move cost each worker quite a bit of money, but jobs were saved in the process. 37. People not familiar with unions and their leadership may see union leaders as strike-prone, ready to walk out at the drop of a hat. Such a picture may not be accurate. A union boss with many years of experience once told one of the authors that "no one gains from a strike." He went on to say, out of his vast experience, that if there must be a strike, it must be a short strike. Both sides become big losers after a long strike. He also claimed to be able to feel, through some highly developed sixth sense, when the management negotiators were getting mad enough to say at the bargaining table: "If that's the way you union guys feel about it, then take your workers out on strike!" When he had that feeling, the old union warrior would jump in quickly and say: "Fellows, we've been here at this bargaining table for a long time today. Let's break for lunch. We can meet again in a couple of hours." During the two-hour break, emotions could be defused. Something else about this old union boss: he was a basically friendly person who did his best to keep a pleasant relationship with the managers at the various firms where his union members were employed. This doesn't mean that he was soft or wishy-washy. The managers, however, respected him to such an extent that when he came in with a union "demand," the managers usually tended to treat it as legitimate. As a result, this old hand was able to be of tremendous service to the members of his union. 38. Contrast the economic, social, and cultural conditions at the time that early labour unions were being established with the conditions in modern-day Canada. Ask the students to consider what the work environment might be like today if union organizers had not persevered until the political and legal barriers that existed were removed. 39. Some years ago, the employees of Canada Safeway went on strike. During the next round of negotiations, employees were not keen on a strike, but the head of the national union was. Conflict developed between members of various locals and the union representatives, as the employees felt the union was not representing the employees’ interests and preferences. Union leaders, however, seemed to feel that the employees did not understand what was in their best interests. Ask the students to consider the role of
  • 28.
    Chapter 8—Managing HumanResources and Labour Relations Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 269 the union. Is it simply to take the employees’ demands to management, or is it to get the most possible for the employees? 40. Invite a union organizer as a guest speaker. If the person has many years of experience as an organizer, ask how (or if) things have changed over the years in terms of the difficulty of organizing a union, and who the targets of organizing drives are now compared to in the past. 41. Ask the class what they think the future holds for the union movement. Note that in the U.S. unions have been steadily declining for the past 20 years or so and now make up less than 15 percent of the work force. In Canada, the proportion of the work force that is unionized leveled off at about 30 percent in the 1980s. Why are these things happening? What is the future of unions? Is it different for the two countries? 42. Invite an arbitrator or mediator to come to class and tell students how the process works. Ask the person whether an arbitrated settlement is better than, or worse than, a settlement reached by labour and management on their own. 43. Moderate a class debate on the issue of whether or not individuals should be forced to join a union if the majority of their co-workers choose that option. 44. Ask members of the class if they have ever been part of a union. What were the advantages of union membership? The disadvantages? Overall, do the people who have been members of unions think it was a positive experience? 45. Remind students that the official term describing the process of dealing with employees represented by a labour union is labor relations. 46. In most sectors, unions are in a weakened position compared with many decades ago. How has this affected the way in which labor works with management? 47. Remind students that collective bargaining is much like the negotiation process. When involved with collective bargaining, both labour and management present demands and then focus on identifying the bargaining zone. 48. Distinguish between the types of strikes: (a) the economic strike, which is triggered by stalemates in the bargaining process and (b) the sympathy strike, occurring when one union strikes in sympathy with another. 49. Students may not be clear on the difference between mediation and arbitration. Mediation involves a third party who makes recommendations to solve a dispute, while arbitration involves a third party who makes a legally binding decision to solve a dispute. USING THE BOXED INSERTS
  • 29.
    Part 2—The Businessof Managing Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc. 270 Opening Case: Can Different Generations Work Together? Questions for Discussion 1. Which category do you fit into? Do the characteristics that are normally described for your age group fit you? How useful do you think the categories are? Students who enter university or community college during the period 2015-2017 (and come directly from high school) are the youngest of the Millenials, so their responses should address the characteristics that Millenials are thought to possess. As noted in the opening case, Millenials have sometimes been portrayed as disloyal, lazy, disinterested in their work, and too interested in pay and perks. They also want to work differently (perhaps remotely) and they want more flexibility than workers have traditionally had. They also expect employers to accommodate to their lives, and when employers don’t do that, they may well look for an employer who will. Some of these attributions are obviously very negative (e.g., “disloyal,” “disinterested in their work,” and “lazy”), and most students will reject the claim that those attributions accurately describe them. Some of the attributions seem plausible (e.g., Millenials want to work remotely and they want to have more flexibility), but some students will question those attributions. For example, students who are very “people oriented” may say that working remotely doesn’t interest them because it prevents the human interaction that is so desirable to them. Others may want to work remotely because they don’t feel comfortable in social groups. The instructor should note the degree of agreement or disagreement about the attributions, and should also ask students to list the characteristics that they think are really descriptive of them. This list can be compared with the attributions noted above to determine the level of consonance. This list can also be compared to the attributions that are typically made about Baby Boomers and GenXers. A discussion can then take place about the differences (or lack of differences) that exist between the generations. Finally, the actual differences that exist between the generations and how those might affect the workplace can be addressed. For example, if Baby Boomers perceive that Millenials are given more flexibility on the job, they may resent the relatively inflexibility that they (the Boomers) are stuck with. This is only one of many workplace impacts that generational differences may cause. If there are students in the class who are somewhat older and did not enter university or community college directly from high school, they will still likely be Millenials, so there is an opportunity to determine whether the views of older Millenials (those born, say, in the 1980’s are different than the views of Millenials born in the 1990’s. 2. Consider the following statement: “All the hype about the differences between Millenials, Baby Boomers and GenXers is meaningless. The fact is that every generation has a mixture of both hard-working individuals and slackers. Human resource managers
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    The Project GutenbergeBook of Anecdotal Recollections of the Congress of Vienna
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    This ebook isfor the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Anecdotal Recollections of the Congress of Vienna Author: Comte de Auguste Louis Charles La Garde- Chambonas Editor: comte Maurice Fleury Translator: Albert D. Vandam Release date: January 27, 2017 [eBook #54061] Most recently updated: October 23, 2024 Language: English Credits: Produced by Josep Cols Canals, Charlie Howard, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ANECDOTAL RECOLLECTIONS OF THE CONGRESS OF VIENNA ***
  • 36.
  • 37.
    Francis I, Emperorof Austria.
  • 38.
    ANECDOTAL RECOLLECTIONS OF THE CONGRESSOF VIENNA BY THE COMTE A. DE LA GARDE-CHAMBONAS WITH INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY THE COMTE FLEURY Translated BY THE AUTHOR OF ‘AN ENGLISHMAN IN PARIS’ WITH PORTRAITS L O N D O N C H A P M A N & H A L L , L I M I T E D 1 9 0 2
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    Edinburgh: T. andA. Constable, (late) Printers to Her Majesty
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    CONTENTS PAGE BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OFTHE COMTE AUGUSTE DE LA GARDE-CHAMBONAS xiii INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER Introduction—A Glance at the Congress—Arrival of the Sovereigns—The First Night in Vienna, 1 CHAPTER I The Prince de Ligne—His Wit and his Urbanity— Robinson Crusoe—The Masked Ball and Rout —Sovereigns in Dominos—The Emperor of Russia and Prince Eugène—Kings and Princes—Zibin—General Tettenborn—A Glance at his Military Career—Grand Military Fête in Honour of Peace—The Footing of Intimacy of the Sovereigns at the Congress —The Imperial Palace—Death of Queen Maria Carolina of Naples—Emperor Alexander—Anecdotes—Sovereign Gifts— Politics and Diplomacy—The Grand Rout— The Waltz, 11
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    CHAPTER II The Drawing-Roomsof the Comtesse de Fuchs —The Prince Philip of Hesse-Homburg— George Sinclair—The Announcement of a Military Tournament—The Comtesse Edmond de Périgord General Comte de Witt—Letters of Recommendation—The Princesse Pauline —The Poet-Functionary and Fouché, 41 CHAPTER III Reception at M. de Talleyrand’s—His Attitude at the Congress—The Duc de Dalberg—The Duc de Richelieu—Mme. Edmond de Périgord—M. Pozzo di Borgo—Parallel between the Prince de Ligne and M. de Talleyrand—A Monster Concert, 55 CHAPTER IV The Prince de Ligne’s Study—A Swimming Exploit—Travelling by Post—A Reminiscence of Madame de Staël—Schönbrunn—The Son of Napoleon—His Portrait—Mme. de Montesquiou—Anecdotes—Isabey—The Manœuvring-Ground—The People’s Fête at Augarten, 70
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    CHAPTER V The Prater—TheCarriages—The Crowd and the Sovereigns—The Sovereigns’ Incognito— Alexander Ypsilanti—The Vienna Drawing- Rooms—Princesse Bagration—The Narischkine Family—A Lottery, 87 CHAPTER VI The Castle of Laxemburg—Heron-Hawking—The Empress of Austria—A Royal Hunt—Fête at the Ritterburg—A Recollection of Christina of Sweden—Constance and Theodore, or the Blind Husband—Poland—Scheme for her Independence—The Comte Arthur Potocki— The Prince de Ligne and Isabey—The Prince de Ligne’s House on the Kalemberg— Confidential Chats and Recollections—The Empress Catherine II.—Queen Marie- Antoinette—Mme. de Staël—Casanova, 105 CHAPTER VII A Court Function—The Empress of Austria—The Troubadours—Amateur Theatricals—The Empress of Russia—The Prince Leopold of Saxe-Cobourg—Tableaux-Vivants—Queen Hortense’s Songs—The Moustaches of the Comte de Wurbna—Songs in Action—The Orphan of the Prisons—Diplomacy and Dancing—A Ball and a Supper at Court, 137
  • 43.
    CHAPTER VIII Prince Eugènede Beauharnais—Recollections of the Prince de Ligne—The Theatre of the ‘Ermitage’ and of Trianon—The Baron Ompteda—Some Portraits—The Imperial Carrousel—The Four-and-Twenty Paladins— Reminiscences of Mediæval Tournaments— The Prowess of the Champion—Fête and Supper at the Imperial Palace—The Table of the Sovereigns, 152 CHAPTER IX Recollections of the Military Tournament of Stockholm in 1800—The Comte de Fersen— King Gustavus IV.—The Challenge of the Unknown Knight—The Games on the Bridge at Pisa, 174 CHAPTER X The Prince de Ligne’s Song of the Congress— Life on the Graben—The Chronicle of the Congress—Echoes of the Congress—A Companion Story to the Death of Vatel— Brie, the King of Cheese—Fête at Arnstein the Banker’s—The Prince Royal of Würtemberg—Russian Dances—The Poet Carpani and the Prince de Ligne, 193
  • 44.
    CHAPTER XI The LastLove-Tryst of the Prince de Ligne—A Glance at the Past—Z—— or the Consequences of Gaming—Gambling in Poland and in Russia—The Biter Bit—Masked Ball—The Prince de Ligne and a Domino— More Living Pictures—The Pasha of Surêne— Two Masked Ladies—A Recollection of the Prince de Talleyrand, 218 CHAPTER XII Illness of the Prince de Ligne—The Comte de Witt—Ambassador Golowkin—Doctor Malfati —The Prince gets worse—Last Sallies of the Moribund—General Grief—Portrait of the Prince de Ligne—His Funeral, 244 CHAPTER XIII The Fire at the Razumowski Palace—The Prince’s Great Wealth—The Vicissitudes of Court Favour in Russia—Prince Koslowski—A Reminiscence of the Duc d’Orléans—A Re- mark of Talleyrand—Fête at the Comtesse Zichy’s—Emperor Alexander and his Ardent Wishes for Peace—New Year’s Day, 1815— Grand Ball and Rout—Sir Sidney Smith’s Dinner-Party at the Augarten—His Chequered Life, his Missions and his Projects at the Congress—The King of Bavaria without Money—Departure and Anger of the 256
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    King of Würtemberg—TheQueen of Westphalia—The Announcement of a Sleighing-Party—A Ball at Lord Castlereagh’s, CHAPTER XIV Some Original Types at the Congress—M. Aïdé— A Witticism of the Prince de Ligne—Mme. Pratazoff—Mr. Foneron—The Old Jew—His Noblesse and his Moral Code—Mr. Raily—His Dinners and his Companions—The Two Dukes—The End of a Gambler—The Sovereigns’ Incognito—Mr. O’Bearn—Ball at the Apollo—Zibin and the King of Prussia— Charles de Rechberg and the King of Bavaria —The Minuet—The King of Denmark—Story of the Bombardment of Copenhagen—The German Lesson, 282 CHAPTER XV Religious Ceremony for the Anniversary of the Death of Louis XVI.—Reception at Talleyrand’s—Discussion on the Subject of Saxony and Poland—The Order of the Day of the Grand-Duke Constantine—A Factum of Pozzo di Borgo—A Sleighing-Party— Entertainment and Fête at Schönbrunn— Prince Eugène—Recollections of Queen Hortense—The Empress Marie-Louise at the Valley of St. Helena—Second Sleighing-Party —A Funeral, 309
  • 46.
    CHAPTER XVI Reception atMadame de Fuchs’s—Prince Philippe d’Hesse-Hombourg—The Journalists and Newsmongers of Vienna—The French Village in Germany—Prince Eugène— Recollection of the Consulate—Tribulations of M. Denville—Mme. Récamier—The Return of the Émigré—Childhood’s Friend, or the Magic of a Name—Ball at Lord Stewart’s— Alexander proclaimed King of Poland—The Prince Czartoryski—Confidence of the Poles —Count Arthur Potocki—The Revolutions of Poland—Slavery—Vandar—Ivan, or the Polish Serf, 328 CHAPTER XVII The Emperor Alexander, the King of Prussia, and the Naval Officer—Surprise to the Empress of Russia—More Fêtes—A Ball at M. de Stackelberg’s—Paul Kisseleff—Brozin— Fête offered by M. de Metternich—The Ball- Room catches Fire—Fêtes and Banquet at the Court—Ompteda—Chronicle of the Congress—The Tell-tale Perfume— Recollection of Empress Josephine and Madame Tallien—A Romantic Court Story, 346 CHAPTER XVIII The Comte de Rechberg’s Work on the Governments of the Russian Empire—The 364
  • 47.
    King of Bavaria—PolishPoem of Sophiowka —Madame Potocka, or the Handsome Fanariote—Her Infancy—Particulars of Her Life—A Glance at the Park of Sophiowka— Subscription of the Sovereigns—Actual State of Sophiowka, CHAPTER XIX A Luncheon at M. de Talleyrand’s on his Birthday—M. de Talleyrand and the MS.—The Princesse-Maréchale Lubomirska—New Arrivals—Chaos of Claims—The Indemnities of the King of Denmark—Rumours of the Congress—Arrival of Wellington at Vienna— The Carnival—Fête of the Emperor of Austria —A Masked Rout—The Diadem, or Vanity Punished—A Million—Gambling and Slavery: a Russian Anecdote, 375 CHAPTER XX Isabey’s Study—His Drawing of the Plenipotentiaries at the Congress of Vienna —The Imperial Sepulchre at the Capuchins— Recollections of the Tombs of Cracow— Preacher Werner—St. Stephen’s Cathedral— Children’s Ball at Princesse Marie Esterhazy’s —The Empress Elizabeth of Russia—The Picture-Gallery of the Duc de Saxe-Teschen —Emperor Alexander and Prince Eugène— The Pictures of the Belvedere—The King of Bavaria—Anecdotes, 394
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    CHAPTER XXI Ypsilanti—Promenade onthe Prater—First Rumour of the Escape of Napoleon—Projects for the Deliverance of Greece—Comte Capo d’Istria—The Hétairites—Meeting with Ypsilanti in 1820—His Projects and Reverses, 406 CONCLUSION Napoleon has left Elba—Aspect of Vienna— Theatricals at the Court—Mme. Edmond de Périgord and the Rehearsal—Napoleon’s Landing at Cannes—The Interrupted Dance —Able Conduct of M. de Talleyrand— Declaration of the 13th March—Fauche Borel —The Congress is Dissolved, 410 Index, 421
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    PORTRAITS FRANCIS I., EMPEROROF AUSTRIA, Frontispiece. at page COUNT NESSELRODE, 36 MARIE-LOUISE, ARCHDUCHESS OF AUSTRIA, 76 ALEXANDER I., 142 MARIE, DOWAGER-EMPRESS OF RUSSIA, 211 ROBERT, VISCOUNT CASTLEREAGH, MARQUESS OF LONDONDERRY, 281 PRINCE DE METTERNICH, 353 M. MAURICE DE TALLEYRAND, 376
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    BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICE OFTHE COMTE AUGUSTE DE LA GARDE- CHAMBONAS Auguste-Louis-Charles de La Garde, 1 a man of letters and a poet of some repute in his time, was born in Paris in 1783. The following is a copy of his certificate of baptism:— The Old Parish of Saint-Eustache, Anno 1783. (Registry of Paris.) On Wednesday, the fifth day of March of the year seventeen hundred and eighty-three, there was baptized Auguste-Louis- Charles, born on the previous day but one, the son of Messire le Comte Scipion-Auguste de La Garde, chevalier, captain of Dragoons, and of Dame Catherine- Françoise Voudu, his wife, domiciled in the Rue de Richelieu. Godfather—Messire Jean de la Croix, captain of Dragoons; Godmother—Dame Elisabeth Vingtrinien, wife of M. Etienne- Antoine Barryals, Bourgeois of Paris. 2 The child’s mother died in giving it birth. The father only survived the beloved young wife for a little while, and feeling his end
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    to be near,confided the orphan to the head of his family, the Marquis de Chambonas (Scipion-Charles-Victor Auguste de La Garde), camp-marshal (equivalent to the present grade of general of brigade), and subsequently a minister of Louis XVI. 3 M. de Chambonas took charge of the infant, looking upon it as a second son, and treating it with the most constant affection. Consequently in all his works, and in his Unpublished Notes, Auguste de La Garde always refers by the name of ‘father’ to the relative who had replaced his dead parents. 4 During his early childhood, he was often entrusted to his godmother, Mme. de Villers. 5 She was the friend of Mme. Bernard, the wife of the Lyons banker, whose daughter was to attain such great celebrity under the name of Mme. Récamier. Brought up together, as it were, these two children conceived for each other a sincere affection, which neither time nor distance ever cooled. When, on his return from foreign parts, Auguste de La Garde came to Paris in 1801, he at once took up his abode at Mme. Récamier’s, who, moreover, gave him the support so necessary to the youthful wanderer who possessed no resources of his own. Hence, it will cause no surprise to meet in the Recollections of the Congress of Vienna with pages breathing a profound sense of gratitude to Mme. Récamier. Young La Garde began his studies under the guidance of the Abbé B——, after which he was sent to the College of Sens. (His ‘father’ had been governor of the town in 1789, and its mayor in 1791.) M. de Chambonas, after having commanded the 17th division of the army of Paris for a very short time, was called to the ministry of Foreign Affairs, the 17th June 1792, to replace Dumouriez, who had resigned. His stay there was also very short. Having been denounced publicly in the Legislative Assembly for having withheld information with regard to the movements of the Prussian troops, and becoming more and more suspect every day, he quickly abandoned the post.
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    On the 10thAugust he was among those who endeavoured to defend the Tuileries, and was even left for dead on the spot. It was only towards the end of 1792 that M. de Chambonas made up his mind to quit Paris. He did not cross the frontier, but managed to reach Sens; where, in safe hiding, he succeeded in spending unmolested the years of the Reign of Terror. He had taken with him his son, who subsequently married Mlle. de la Vernade, at Sens (and who was the grandfather of the present Marquis de Chambonas), and also his adopted son. How did the erewhile minister of Louis XVI. succeed in passing unmolested through the Terror? It seems almost incredible. This was one of the exceptions the particulars of which have been traced by memoirs that have recently come to light. 6 During the Directory, in fact, M. de Chambonas floated absolutely to the top, and at one time there was talk of sending him to Spain as ambassador. The plan fell through, and after the coup d’état on the 18th Fructidor (4th September 1797), M. de Chambonas, considering himself no longer safe, hurriedly left Paris to avoid arrest. Behold our wanderers at Hamburg, and afterwards in Sweden and Denmark. Auguste de La Garde in his somewhat florid style will tell us many amusing anecdotes; on the other hand, the bombardment of Copenhagen by the English fleet in 1801 affected him sadly. A few months later, the lad of eighteen is sent to France by M. de Chambonas in order to obtain the removal of the sender’s name from the list of émigrés—he had been considered as such while he was in hiding at Sens—and to claim the estates the nation had confiscated. Auguste de La Garde is hospitably received by Mme. Récamier, who, while bestirring herself in behalf of the ‘father,’ takes the son in hand with regard to his education. Through her influence, La Harpe assists him with his counsels, and the best professors direct his further studies. As for the property the restitution of which
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    is claimed byhis ‘father,’ by that time established in England, all idea of it had to be abandoned; and young La Garde himself, his mind precociously ripened by his exile, was compelled to look to his own independent future. 7 His personal charm, his natural gifts, and, in short, the useful connections he rapidly made for himself, soon procured him employment and a start in life. At the outset, he obtained through the goodwill of Prince Eugène missions to Italy, to Marmont in Dalmatia, to the Court of King Joseph at Naples, and finally to Rome, where he was cordially received by Lucien Bonaparte and his family. The pages, whether in his Recollections of the Congress of Vienna or in his Unpublished Notes, referring to his primary benefactors, go far to exonerate him from the charge of ingratitude, for he lavishes upon those benefactors all the ornaments of his rhetoric; at any rate, nearly all, for the greater part of the acknowledgment of his indebtedness goes mainly to Field-Marshal Prince de Ligne, who was his protector, his beneficent and ... very useful relative, a member of the Chambonas family, having, as we already stated, married a Princesse de Ligne. La Garde first met with the Prince de Ligne in the Eternal City. He soon became a familiar visitor to the octogenarian prince, who, like the generous Mæcenas that he was, gave him a pressing invitation to come and settle near him in Vienna. The young fellow was too sensible to make light of an offer insuring material welfare and a regular existence after years of uncertainty. He, therefore, settled in Vienna near to his benefactor, yielding for the matter of that to the spell exercised over every one by that very superior specimen of manhood, and requiting his kindness with an affectionate veneration increasing as time went on. The whole of the first part of the Recollections attests a boundless gratitude; and if on the one hand that work constitutes the brightest ornament of our author’s literary crown, it constitutes on the other the most complete panegyric of the prince who had become ‘his idol.’
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    From Vienna, theComte de La Garde passed into Russia, where he met with a cordial welcome from the elegant society of St. Petersburg. In 1810 he published there a volume of poems, which obtained a most signal success. Subsequently invited to Poland by the Comte Félix Potocki, and treated with the most generous hospitality, he was enabled to devote himself to numerous literary works; and as a mark of gratitude to his hosts, he translated into French Trembecki’s poem dedicated to the cherished wife of Comte Félix, the celebrated Sophie Potocka. The Recollections of the Congress of Vienna contains frequent references to the ‘superb Sophie,’ who was born in the Fanariote quarter in Constantinople, and whose singular career was solely owing to her beauty. She married in the first place the Comte de Witt (of the family of the Dutch Great State-Councillor, whose descendants had entered the service of Russia). The Comte de Witt enticed her away from a secretary of the French Embassy in Constantinople; Comte Félix Potocki, in his turn, eloped with her while she was Comtesse de Witt, and married her, thanks to an amicable arrangement nullifying the first marriage. Comtesse Sophie, celebrated throughout Europe—her loveliness had even compelled admiration from the Court circle at Versailles—lived on a regal footing on her estate of Tulczim, and dispensed her hospitality to the French émigrés in a manner calculated to dazzle many of them. The Mémoires of General Comte de Rochechouart and the present Recollections are specially interesting on the subject. The success of the poem, ‘Sophiowka,’ was such as to gain for its adapter the honorary membership respectively of the Academies of Warsaw, Cracow, Munich, London, and Naples. The Comte de La Garde was to receive another flattering testimonial in Poland, many years later, on the occasion of the appearance of his poem on the ‘Funérailles de Kosciusko’ (Treuttel & Wurtz: Paris, 1830). Its several editions by no means exhausted its success; the senate of the republic of Cracow conferred upon him the Polish citizenship, while the kings of Bavaria, Prussia, and Saxony complimented him by autograph letters.
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    La Garde wasthe author of a great number of songs; and the most renowned composers of the period competed for the honour of setting them to music. Many of these romances were dedicated to Queen Hortense, whose acquaintance he made at Augsburg in 1819. This led to his collaboration in ‘Loi d’Exil,’ and ‘Partant pour la Syrie’—the latter of which became the national hymn during the Second Empire. In 1853, there appeared L’Album artistique de la Reine Hortense, a much prized collection of the then unpublished songs of the Comte de La Garde, with their music by the queen, and charming reproductions of tiny paintings, which were also her work. 8 This was the last time the name of the Comte de La Garde appeared in print. A short time afterwards his wandering life came to an end in Paris, which during the latter years of his life he inhabited alternately with Angers. He had adopted as his motto: ‘My life is a battle’; he could have added, ‘and a never-ending journey’; for his constitutional restlessness prevented him from settling permanently, no matter where. He never married. The few documents he left behind, including some momentoes, represented the whole of his property, and went to his cousin, M. de La Garde, Marquis de Chambonas. In addition to the afore-mentioned works and the present one, Recollections of the Congress of Vienna, which originally appeared in Paris in 1820 (?), M. de la Garde was the author of the following: Une traduction de Dmitry Donskoy (Moscow, 1811); Coup d’œil sur le Royaume de Pologne (Varsovie, 1818); Coup d’œil sur Alexander- Bad (Bavière, 1819); Laure Bourg: roman dédié au Roi de Bavière (Munich, 1820); Les Monuments grecs de la Sicile (Munich, 1820); Traduction des Mélodies de Thomas Moore (Londres, 1826); Voyage dans quelques parties de l’Europe (Londres, 1828); Brighton, Voyage en Angleterre, (1830); Tableau de Bruxelles (prose et vers), dédié à la Reine; Projet pour la formation d’une Colonie belge à la Nouvelle Zélande, etc. In all those works, and notably in the most important, namely: Brighton, and Souvenirs du Congrès de Vienne, M. de La Garde
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    shows himself tobe endowed with the faculty of observation and with tact. Unfortunately his matchless kindliness prevents his criticisms from departing from the laudatory gamut. We must not look in these Recollections for important revelations concerning the diplomatic conferences which engaged the attention of the whole of Europe in 1815; we shall only meet with delightful anecdotes and portraits of grandes dames and illustrious personages. There will be many silhouettes of figures that have been forgotten since, but which, while they belonged to this world, were worthy of notice. To appreciate them we should bring to the perusal of this volume the quality which presided at its composition: namely, the kindliness of an observant man of the world. Since their appearance in 1820, these Recollections had been absolutely forgotten. It seemed to us and to M. le Marquis de Chambonas La Garde, to whom we owe the principal facts of this notice, that the chapters were worthy of being resuscitated. Though we have omitted from these Recollections some dissertations more or less obsolete, which would be of no interest to-day, we have throughout respected the style and the ideas of the author; only adding to his narrative the necessary notes on the principal personages of the action. FLEURY.
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  • 58.
    INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER Introduction—A Glanceat the Congress—Arrival of the Sovereigns—The First Night in Vienna. The Congress of Vienna, considered as a political gathering, has not lacked historians, but they were so intent upon recording its phases of high diplomacy as to have bestowed no thought upon its piquant and lighter social features. No doubt they feared that triviality of detail might impair the general effect of so imposing a picture, and they were satisfied with reproducing and judging results, without caring to retrace the diverse and animated scenes where these results were obtained. Nevertheless, it would have been curious to go more or less deeply into the personal lives of the actors called upon to settle the future interests of Europe. At the Vienna Congress, hearts hitherto closed, nay, wholly inaccessible, to the observation of the outer world, were often laid open. Amidst the confusion of all ranks, their most transient movements revealed themselves, and lent themselves to being watched, as if taken off their guard in the irresistible whirl of uninterrupted pleasures. Doubtless, at no time of the world’s history had more grave and complex interests been discussed amidst so many fêtes. A kingdom was cut into bits or enlarged at a ball: an indemnity was granted in the course of a dinner; a constitution was planned during a hunt; now and again a cleverly-placed word or a happy and pertinent remark cemented a treaty the conclusion of which, under different circumstances, would probably have been achieved only with difficulty, and by dint of many conferences and much
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    correspondence. Acrimonious discussionsand ‘dry-as-dust’ statements were replaced for the time being, as if by magic, by the most polite forms in any and every transaction; and also by the promptitude which is a still more important form of politeness, unfortunately too neglected. The Congress had assumed the character of a grand fête in honour of the general pacification. Ostensibly it was a feast of rest after the storm, but, curiously enough, it offered a programme providing for life in its most varied movements. Doubtless, the forgathering of those sovereigns, ministers, and generals who for nearly a quarter of a century had been the actors in a grand drama supposed to have run its course, besides the pomp and circumstance of the unique scene itself, showed plainly enough that they were there to decide the destinies of nations. The mind, dominated by the gravity of the questions at issue, could not altogether escape from the serious thoughts now and again obtruding themselves: but immediately afterwards the sounds of universal rejoicing brought a welcome diversion. Everyone was engrossed with pleasure. The love-passion also hovered over this assembly of kings, and had the effect of prolonging a state of abandonment and a neglect of affairs, both really inconceivable when taken in conjunction with upheavals the shock of which was still felt, and immediately before a thunderbolt which was soon to produce a singular awakening. The people themselves, apparently forgetting that when their rulers are at play, the subjects are doomed to pay in a short time the bills of such royal follies, seemed to be grateful for foibles that drew their masters down to their level. Meanwhile, the man of Titanic catastrophes is not far distant. Napoleon steps forth to spread fire and flame once more; to make an end of all those dreams, and to invest with a wholly different aspect those voluptuous scenes, the diversity of which could not even save their participants from the weariness of satiety. 9 I arrived in Vienna towards the end of September 1814, when the Congress, though it had been announced for several months,
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    was not yetofficially opened. The fêtes had, however, already commenced. In the abstract of the proceedings, it had been said that the conferences would be of very short duration. Business according to some, pleasure according to others, and probably both these causes combined, decided things otherwise. Several weeks, several months, went by without the question of dissolution being broached. Negotiating as from brother to brother, in a manner that would have rejoiced the heart of Catherine the Great, the sovereigns amicably and without the least hurry arranged ‘their little affairs’; they gave one the impression of wishing to realise the philosophic dream of the Abbé de Saint-Pierre. 10 The number of strangers attracted to Vienna by the Congress was estimated at close upon a hundred thousand. It ought to be said that for this memorable gathering no other city would have answered so well. Vienna is in reality the centre of Europe; at that time it was its capital. A Viennese who had happened to leave the city a few months before would have had some difficulty in identifying himself and his familiar surroundings amidst that new, gilded, and titled population which crowded the place at the time of the Congress. All the sovereigns of the North had come thither; the West and the East had sent their most notable representatives. The Emperor Alexander, still young and brilliant; the Empress Elizabeth, with her winning though somewhat melancholy grace, and the Grand-Duke Constantine represented Russia. Behind these were grouped a mass of ministers, princes, and generals, especially conspicuous among them the Comtes de Nesselrode, Capo d’Istria, Pozzo di Borgo, and Stackelberg, all of whom were marked out from that hour to play important parts in the political debates of Europe. These statesmen must be passed over in silence. I must not be equally silent with regard to the friends whom I met once more, and who during my wanderings in Germany, Poland, and Russia, had entertained me with such cordial affection. There was Tettenborn, as devoted and warm-hearted after many years of separation as if we had never parted; the Comte de Witt, the Prince Koslowski, both of whom were to die prematurely; and Alexander Ypsilanti, fervent and
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    generous as ofold, and fated to meet with such a cruel end in the prisons of Montgatz and of Theresienstadt. The King of Prussia was accompanied by the Princes Guillaume and Auguste. Baron de Humboldt 11 and the Prince d’Hardemberg presided at his councils. The beautiful queen who in the negotiations of 1807 employed in vain all her seductive grace and resources of mind against the will of Napoleon, was no more. The King of Denmark, Frédéric VI., the son of the ill-fated Caroline Mathilde, 12 also repaired to the Congress, which, luckily for him, he was enabled to leave without his modest possessions having aroused the cupidity of this or that ambitious neighbour. The Kings of Bavaria and Würtemberg, the Dukes of Saxe- Coburg, Hesse-Darmstadt, and Hesse-Cassel—in short, all the heads and princes of the reigning houses of Germany—were there. They also wished to take part in the political festival, and were anxious to know how the supreme tribunal would trim and shape the borders of their small States. The King of Saxony, so ardently worshipped by his subjects, had at that time retired into Prussia, while the Allied Armies occupied his kingdom. That excellent prince, whom Napoleon called ‘le plus honnête homme qui ait occupé le trône,’ 13 was only represented at the Congress by his plenipotentiaries. The representatives of France were the Duc de Dalberg, the Comte Alexis de Noailles, M. de la Tour-du-Pin, and the Prince de Talleyrand. The last-named maintained his high reputation with great dignity under difficult circumstances, and perhaps conspicuous justice has never been done to him. The English plenipotentiaries were Lords Clancarty and Stewart, and Viscount Castlereagh. Among these notable men it would be ingratitude on my part not to name the Prince de Ligne, of whom frequent mention will be made in these Recollections; and the reigning Landgrave of Hesse- Homburg [1814]. A brave soldier, the latter prince earned his grade