changes in working practices.

Question 1

why do working practices change overtime?

Answer 1

-social trends
-technology
-business objectives
-increased competition
-employees expectations
-legislation

Question 2

what is flexible hours?

Answer 2

gives flexibility to the employer who does not offer employees a fixed number of hours per week but has the option to vary these to match demand.
e.g. working 10-3

Question 3

what is homeworking?

Answer 3

the ability to work from home rather than travelling into the workplace.
made easier by advances in technology.

Question 4

how are employees benefited?

Answer 4

-save money on travel
-cut down the commute
-closer to home
-better work life balance
-better morale/motivation/mental health

Question 5

drawbacks for employees?

Answer 5

-might impact productivity
-own environment=distracted
-social interaction is minimised with face to face contact less.

Question 6

benefits for owners?

Answer 6

-motivated workers
-pushes up that productivity
-profit
-reduced costs
-reduction in office equipment

Question 7

drawbacks for owners?

Answer 7

-harder to measure productivity
-communication is harder
-impacted by distance

Question 8

benefits for customers?

Answer 8

-customer service might be better
-may prefer online interaction
-better tech enables customers to have an instant access to employees

Question 9

drawbacks for customers?

Answer 9

-cost and cutbacks businesses have had from WFH
-removal of tangible items.

Question 10

benefits for the govenment?

Answer 10

-reduced pollution
-impact on CO2 emissions
-less people travelling to work
-less traffic/congestion
-higher employment.d

Question 11

drawbacks for the government?

Answer 11

-tax reduction
-property tax
-unemployment rate impacted
-productivity of workers

Question 12

what is part-time employment?

Answer 12

contracted less hours than full time (3 days etc)
offer greater flexibility to a business and more affordable option

Question 13

benefits of part time employment and temporary staff?

Answer 13

-flexible workforce
-better able to match supply to demand
-not tied into paying workers when they aren’t being used to their full potential

Question 14

drawbacks of temporary or part time staff?

Answer 14

-may be more transient
-may lack commitment
-recruitment and training costs may be high and not seen as value for money when employees are only with the business for a short period

Question 15

what are temporary employees?

Answer 15

a person who is contracted to work for a business for a specifies period of time e.g. over Christmas
can be on full-time or part-time to help meet the short term needs of a business.

Question 16

what is job sharing?

Answer 16

one position that would normally be filled by one person on a full time basis is shared between two people who each work part time.

Question 17

benefits of jo sharing

Answer 17

-flexibility
-better work life balance
-equal between the 2 people
-more skills between them both

Question 18

drawbacks of job sharing?

Answer 18

-must be managed effectively
-conflict between them if not organised properly
-if one leaves, the other is left to do both roles until another person is found

Question 19

what is a zero hour contract?

Answer 19

employees are not given any fixed or guaranteed hours, they are called in, and paid, only as and when needed.
Mcdonalds.

Question 20

what is hot desking?

Answer 20

desks or workspaces are not allocated to individuals on a permanent basis but just allocated as and when needed.

Question 21

define workforce planning?

Answer 21

the process of assessing current and future staffing needs.
allowing management to be proactive and plan for any changed in the future size or nature of the workforce.

Question 22

what are some strategies of workforce planning?

Answer 22

-training
-redeployment
-internal promotion
-external recruitment
-relocation
-restructuring.