ABSTRACT
The research methods selected for this study stemmed from the decision to produce a multifaceted account of partnership origins, form and stakeholder outcomes within the UK life and pensions industry. This was confi ned to two partnership and two non-partnership cases selected to represent the spectrum of management-labor relations in the sector. The range of research topics implied that a variety of research methods should be used to develop a rich body of evidence with which to evaluate particular features of the partnership agreements. Thus, the wish to analyse the origins of and motives for the agreements implied the use of interviews with senior managers and trade union offi cials and analysis of secondary data. The concern to analyse the form and practice of the two partnership agreements implied the use of document analysis, semi-structured interviews and non-participant observation. Finally, the aim to evaluate the outcomes of the partnership agreements implied the use of company records and published accounts, union archives, semi-structured interviews with all stakeholders and a survey of workplace union activists to determine whether and to what extent their workplace roles had changed.
