In a context in which enterprises seek to augment their productivity, the rigidities associated with collective agreements are identified by many specialists as the key problem. The authors argue that such an analysis is not well founded. Instead, they suggest the need to shift the analysis of both the economics and the management of labour and thus to go beyond an institutionalist approach. First, the study of economic forces should not be limited to the logic of the market but should also consider wider institutional and social choices. This is the objective of the first section, which discusses the regulation of work in the context of the decline of Fordism and the globalization of economic relations. Secondly, the analysis should not be limited to collective bargaining and related institutions but should also consider shopfloor relations, particularly the bargaining effort. The second section shows how the model of organizating work associated with the Fordist compromise requires significant modifications, and that this is really the main issue with respect to efficiency in the workplace. A third section, based on a case study of a large Quebec engineering factory, illustrates the possibility of managing labour efficiently while maintaining the essential elements of the collective bargaining regime.