1.3 Employee Relations- Human Resources

Question 1

Employee relations policies

Answer 1

Trade union recognition- stating which trade unions are recognised for purposes of negotiating pay and conditions of. service.
Collective bargaining- how and when discussions between employer and employee representatives.
Employees relations procedures- such as disciplinary, grievance, redundancy.
Terms and conditions off employment- which could be with individual, all or specific groups of employees.
Participation and involvement- if and how the workforce will have opportunities to take part in decisions which may affect them.

Question 2

Impact of positive employee relations

Answer 2

Creates opportunities for the generation of ideas.
Improves worker motivation, output and quality of work.
Leads to more skilled workers.
Reduces staff absenteeism.
Reduces the likelihood of industrial action.
Good for quality management as more people are involved(TQM).
Creates a favourable image for the organisation- good PR, attract good workers.

Question 3

Industrial action by employers

Answer 3

Suspension of individual staff- preventing them from coming into work.
Withdrawal of over time- reducing earning potential for employees.
Lockouts- preventing all staff to enter the workplace.
Tighter supervision of workers.
Closing the business on a permanent basis.

Question 4

Industrial action by employees

Answer 4

Work to rule- workers work to the letter of their contract.
Go slow- working within contracts but at the slowest possible rate.
Overtime bans- refusing to work beyond contractual minimum hours.
Sit-ins.
Strike action- workers refusing to enter the workplace to carry out work.
Picketing- striking emptiness may try to persuade other employers or service providers not to enter the workplace.

Question 5

Costs of industrial action to the employer

Answer 5

Lost output leading to lost sales and therefore sales income.
Missed deadlines leading to customer dissatisfaction and penalties in contracts.
Poor future relationships with workers.
Damaging to the company’s image with its customers or future employees.
Resources lying idle if workers are not doing overtime.

Question 6

Costs of industrial action to the employee

Answer 6

Loss of earnings due to being on strike or in an overtime ban.
Loss of employment on a temporary or permanent basis.
Stress and friction between management and with colleagues who may not have taken part in the industrial action.

Question 7

Benefits of industrial action for both employers and employees

Answer 7

It may clear the air between management and employees and focus everyone on gaining a solution.
It may facilitate the introduction of changes in conditions of employment.
May result in the management revising goals to something more realistic.

Question 8

Appraisals

Answer 8

These involves monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of an employee. It’s purpose is to support staff, recognise strengths, ad if necessary, highlight areas for development. Usually conducted once a year. Employees should be given plenty notice for these and given time to conduct a self evaluation.

Question 9

Benefits of appraisals

Answer 9

To agree the award of a financial/ non-financial rewards in relation to targets set.
To formally recognise and praise achievements.
To identify areas of improvement.
To allow workers to air concerns.
To improve communication between employees and their managers.

Question 10

Problems with appraisals

Answer 10

Staff may mistrust their line manager and try to play down difficulties in order to avoid being identified as performing poorly.
Business may lack sufficient finances to implement the training needs identified.
Successful employees may expect financial rewards in return for a good appraisal and may seek alternative employment if not offered.

Question 11

Company policies

Answer 11

Policies and procedures establish the rues of conduct within a organisation, outlining the responsibilities of both employees and employers.

Question 12

Company policies- grievance procedures

Answer 12

Sets out what employees should do if the are aggrieved at something that is happening at work e.g they fell that their employer is not complying within the employment protection laws relating to harassment or bullying. Employees usually seek the support of their union representative when taking out grievance against their employer.

Question 13

Company policies- disciplinary procedures

Answer 13

There are the steps that must be followed if an employee has broken the organisations rules. Several stages are required before an employee can be dismissed. Firstly, the issuing of a verbal warning direct to the employee. Secondly- an initial written warning and a final written warning.

Question 14

Company policies- absenteeism

Answer 14

Attendance policies set rues and guidelines surrounding employee adherence to work schedules. It defines how employees may schedule time off or notify superiors of the absence or late arrival. The attendance policy discusses the disciplinary action employees face if they miss more days than the company allows.

Question 15

Company policies- delayering

Answer 15

The involves cutting out layers of management to flattery the internal structure. De-layering involves making redundancy payments which involves a short term cost increase (though longer term lower costs for salaries). It can lead to uncertainty among staff resulting in stress and low morale.

Question 16

Company policies- downsizing

Answer 16

Can involve s scaling down within existing departments of the closing down of entire departments, branches or divisions. It leads to job losses. Downsizing causes tension between management and workers and may result in short term industrial action and poor employee relations in the longer term.

Question 17

Part time work

Answer 17

Growth in male part time work and a women part time work remaining constant.
Employers’ increasing preference for flexible part-time contracts in order to maximise efficiency and reduce the costs of employing full time workers.
HR planners have been able to keep businesses open by offering a combination of full and part contracts.

Question 18

Fixed- term (temporary) contracts.

Answer 18

Usually casual contracts using agency staff.
Employers preference to take on and release workers more frequently, to respond to changes in demand without having to go through formal redundancy procedures.
Some firms choose to take on previously permanent employees on a contract only basis, offering them work on a fixed-term or project-by-project basis, thus reducing some of the costs of maintaining a permanent.

Question 19

Self-employment

Answer 19

It has increased with more people starting up as sole traders, partnerships eg taking on a franchise business opportunity or setting up as a self-employed contractor.
Due to individual employees’ desire to be more flexible in their working arrangements and have more control over working conditions.

Question 20

The role trade unions

Answer 20

Negotiation of pay and general conditions of service on behalf of members.
Promotions job security.
Negotiate and advise on procedures in situations.
Represent members in grievance or disciplinary proceedings.
Support employees who are taking their employer to an employment tribunal.
Defining job descriptions.
Negotiating changes in contracts.

Question 21

Trade unions agreements

Answer 21

Single union recognition- one union recognise for negotiating purposes.
Single job status- grouping together different types of workers whose job is similar for negotiating purposes.
Flexible working practices- securing union support for changes.
Training/retraining- securing union support fro the retraining and redevelopment of workers.
Arbitration- a willingness to accept arbitration- the involvement of an objective third party.

Question 22

Professional associations

Answer 22

These are concerned with maintaining professional standards within an industry or profession. They may define qualifications and standards to be met by those seeking registration.

Question 23

Employers’ associations

Answer 23

These are organisations that represents employers’ interests within an industry.
Lobby government on taxation.
Conduct product and market research.
Serve as the public relations voice of the industry as a whole.
Take part in negotiations along with employees’ representatives.

Question 24

Advisory, conciliation and arbitration service- ACAS

Answer 24

Is an independent body in place to support employer and employees in the employee relations process.

Question 25

ACAS- preventing or resolving employment disputes

Answer 25

Helping employers and employees (or their reps) to solve problems before they develop into full-blown disputes and confrontation. They achieve this through workshops and joint working parties.

Question 26

ACAS- Conciliating

Answer 26

Helping keeps discussions going in complaints before employment tribunals.

Question 27

ACAS- Arbitration

Answer 27

Where conciliation fails, ACAS may be asked to arbitrate. An independent arbitrator will examine the case and make a recommendation which both sides must agree to comply with.

Question 28

ACAS- Information and advice

Answer 28

ACAS operates a network of public enquiry points to deal with queries on employment matters such as rights and obligations under employment law.

Question 29

ACAS- Promoting good practice

Answer 29

ACAS runs conferences and seminars on employment and industrial relations issues.

Question 30

Some of the effects of poor employee relations

Answer 30

Increase staff absenteeism.
Reduced productivity.
Poorer quality output.
Less cooperative.
Increased chances of industrial action.
Damage to reputation with future employees.
Legal costs if disputes are unresolved.
Hostile working environments.