Chapter 5 Flashcards
3 stages of the employment cycle
Establishment
Maintenance
Termination
The employment cycle involves an organisation determining it’s employment needs in line with it’s business strategy
Once employment needs are satisfied > hire staff
Once staff are employed > ensure staff are productive and satisfied
Finally manage what happens when employees leave an organisation
Explain the establishment stage
Planning: identifying staffing needs, conducting job analysis (determining the exact nature of the position to be filled) and job design (determining how the job is to be performed and the material and the equipment required to do so)
Recruitment: attracting people to apply for the position in the business, undertaking internal and external recruitment
Selection: choosing and hiring the most qualified; involves testing and interviewing
Employment arrangements + remuneration: deciding on the type of employment contract (arrangements) and ways of paying employees
Explain the maintenance phase
“Induction: Acquiring new employees with the organisation and the jobs they will perform
Training and development: teaching employees new skills, helping employees to learn new tasks associated with their job, improving their skills
Recognition and reward: monetary benefits (financial compensation) and non monetary benefits (better conditions)
Performance management – methods to improve both Organisational and individual employee performance “
Explain the termination phase
“Termination management: voluntary termination (dealing with employees leaving out of their own accord; retirement, resignation) and involuntary termination dealing with employees being asked to leave (retrenchment/dismissal)
Entitlement and transition issues: payment of any outstanding benefits such a sick or annual leave and providing support such as counseling for dismissed employees “
Define human resource planning
is the development of strategies to meet the organisations future human resource needs
Define strategies
The actions that organisations take to achieve specific objectives
Organisations have to “plan” for positions that will inevitably become vacant through; retirement, resining or promotion – therefore for most organisations satisfying staffing needs is an ongoing process
Explain how hr planning can be linked to business strategies
ensuring the correct number of suitably qualified staff are employed by the organisation when necessary
e.g strategy to achieve the objective of increase profits may be to reduce business costs – HR must forecast future demand for employees and estimate the supply available to meet that demand in order to avoid having too many employees on the pay roll
Due to pace of technology and global economy organisation must respond to change quickly – if an organisation does not plan their HR needs in line with their business strategy it is unlikely they will succeed
HR planning is in the ‘establishment phase’ of the employment cycle requiring an organisation to constantly plan and monitor:
The number of employees required
Their qualifications, including skills, previous experience and knowledge
When and where these employees will be needed
»Therefore involves forecasting the number of employees available and the number of qualified employees demanded in the future
Define job analysis
is the study of an employee’s job in order to determine the duties performed, the time involved with each of those duties, the responsibilities involved and the equipment required
What does a job analysis entail
The actual job activities The equipment used in the job Working conditions The degree of supervision necessary Specific job behaviors required
Job analysis is broken into 2 parts
Job description
Job specification
Define job description
is a summary of what the worker will be doing – the role theu will have in the organisation in terms of duties and responsibilities
Define job specification
Will indicate the sort of person an organisation is seeking in terms of personal qualities, skills, education and work experience
Define job design
Details the number, kind and variety of tasks that individual employees perform in their jobs. Jobs may be designed so they include a variety of tasks to keep employees interested and motivated
Effective job designs include
Include a variety of tasks to keep empoyees interested and motivated
Take into account the satisfaction of employees needs
Group compatible tasks and match them with skills and experience profile of most suitable candidates
Provide variety, challenges and responsibility in duties to improve motivation and performance whilst reducing absenteeism and staff turnover
Intrinsic motivation may be improved through following 3 approaches – job enlargement, job enrichment and job rotation
Define recruitment
is the process of attracting qualified applicants from which to select the most appropriate person for a specific job
Main sources of recruitment of employees for an organisation
Advertising in the media Tempoary/casual services Schools/colleges/Tafe Internal searches Public employment agencies Private employment agencies
Explain internal recruitment
Internal recruitment involves considering present employees as applicants for available positions.
Often occurs when someone is promoted – provides strong motivation for current employees
Internal searches is only effective if an organisation is substantial in size
Internal searches for a candidate allows an organisation to use it’s own employees skills
Advantageous as low in costs (hiring + training)
Referral schemes can be used where employees nominate their peers for a promotion and if their nominee is promoted they receive a referral bonus
Benefits of internal recruitment
Allows organisations to use it’s own employees skills
Lower costs (hiring + training)
Enables selection of replacement to be
Familiar with Organisational operations
Organisation is already aware of each candidates strengths and weaknesses
Provides strong motivation for employees seeking promotion
Explain the limitations of internal recruitment
Only effective in large scale organisations
Not appropriate when organisation needs people with new or different ideas
Employees without correct skills and qualifications may be promoted
May cause dissatisfaction for employees who are not promoted.
Explain external recruitment
External recruitment is when an organisation selects a suitable applicant for a position outside the organisation
A business will use external recruitment method to bring in people with new or different ideas and attitudes
External methods of recruitment include:
Online (seek) or in newspaper
Cyber recruiting (through the organisations website)
Experts – employment agencies/ management recruitment consultants
University recruitment drives
Recommendations of current employees
Applications from potential employees (kept on file)
Professional association contacts or networking (LinkedIn)
Headhunters – fill senior + executive roles
Common external recruitment methods include
External recruitment is when an organisation selects a suitable applicant for a position outside the organisation
A business will use external recruitment method to bring in people with new or different ideas and attitudes
External methods of recruitment include:
Online (seek) or in newspaper
Cyber recruiting (through the organisations website)
Experts – employment agencies/ management recruitment consultants
University recruitment drives
Recommendations of current employees
Applications from potential employees (kept on file)
Professional association contacts or networking (LinkedIn)
Headhunters – fill senior + executive roles
Benefits of external recruitment
“Wider choice of candidates
New employees bring new insights as well as more business contacts “
Explain the limitations of external recruitment
“New employees require more time to adjust to the environment
New employees might not have required skills or fir into the workplace culture
Increased costs associated with recruiting, selection and induction “
Define employee selection
involves choosing the candidate who best matches the organisations requirements
Explain employee selection
Screening and sifting through applicants to find the most suitable
Choosing the most appropriate person for the position with qualification
Expensive due to the costs of screening and the cost of inappropriate selection
Poor selection process leads to increased costs and lower productivity by increasing:
training costs if poorly qualified staff are selected
Job dissatisfaction and labour turnover, if the organisation or the job does not meet expectations of candidates selected
Absenteeism rate, if staff fell inadequate on the job or feel under excessive work pressure
Accident or defects rates, and fines or claims, if untrained staff are selected
Explain the selection process
Interview panned selected - possibly made up of human resource management, function manager, staff representatives or head of department
Screen applicants - panel will select applicants by comparing selection criteria with details sub,tired in application forms and letters
Short list applicants - applicants who meet selection criteria are invited to an interview
Interview options - group interview, panned interview, stress interview // interviews should be well structured and consistent questions asked, provides candidate with an opportunity to find out more about the job
Testing - skills testing, intelligence test, personal profile and written or practical testing, Type of test depends on recruitment of job, may be written or practical and designed to access the aptitude, intelligence or ability - though not used by all industries and not always useful as a sole indicator for suitability of a position
Referees - referee checks previous employers or others able to verify candidates infomation are contacted to discuss candidates strengths and weaknesses and check accuracy of resume or work history
Successful applicant notified - the organisation will hire the person best meets the job specification in terms of skills, qualifications and experience
Unsuccessful applicants notified - the organisation will wait for the successful applicants
Explain selection options
Selection options
developing a short list of suitable applicants helps to limit the number of interviews to be conducted or tests and checks to be carried out
the following devices are used in the selection process:
Application forms: candidates outline information about themselves-e.g name, address, contact number or may require information about an applicants history, skills and experience
Tests – these may be written or practical – and are designed to acess the aptitude, intelligence or ability. They are not used by all industries, and they are not always reliable as a sole indicator of applicants suitability for a position
Interviews – This is the most common device used in the selection process. The interview must be well organized and structured and common questions must be asked in each interview to ensure a consistent basis for selection
Background checks – the employer verifies the information on the application form by contacting referees or agencies for information about an applicants previous experience, performance or record
Medical examinations – some jobs require physical attributes e.g police
Define discrimination
occurs when a policy or practice disadvantages a person or group based on a persona characteristic that is irrelevant to the performance of the work
Explain discrimination
Unfortunately discrimination sometimes occurs in the interview process
After the interview Is completed and the checks and testing have been completed the most suitable applicant will be offered the position – That person is the applicant that best matches the job specification, in terms of experience, skills and qualifications
Once an applicant has accepted an organisation is expected to inform and provide feedback to failed candidates
Explain a typical recruitment process
Hr planning Job description Job specification Advertise job Screen applicants Short list candidates Referee checks Offer job to candidate
Explain discrimination
Discrimination occurs when a person is disadvantaged because of a personal charactersitc such as their age or sex. Discrimination sometimes occurs in the recruitement process where a potential employee is not employed because of personal characteristics that have no relevance about whether they can do the job or not.
To prevent discrimination and avoid large fines, employers need to:
Comply with legislation such as ‘the equal opportunity act 2010 vic’
Commit to workplace free from discrimination
Write and communicate policies to prevent discrimination
Train managers and staff in cultural diversity issues, and about ways to prevent or deal with discrimination
Appoint an officer employees can see regarding discrimination in the workplace
How to prevent discrimination
To prevent discrimination and avoid large fines, employers need to:
Comply with legislation such as ‘the equal opportunity act 2010 vic’
Commit to workplace free from discrimination
Write and communicate policies to prevent discrimination
Train managers and staff in cultural diversity issues, and about ways to prevent or deal with discrimination
Appoint an officer employees can see regarding discrimination in the workplace
Difference between direct and indirect discrimination
Direct discrimination – treating a person or a group less favorably than another person or group in similar circumstances
Indirect discrimination – Treatment that seems unfair but that has an unequal impact on one person or group compared with others
What are employee conditions
All the conditions of employment other than remuneration
Define enterprise bargaining
is the process of directly negotiating wages and employment conditions between employees and employers at enterprise level
Define part time employment
Involves working fewer ordinary weekly or monthly hours compared with full time employees
Get ‘pro-rata’ benefits of full time employees (proportionate to hours workerd)
Individuals benefit due to continuity of work and job security
Organisations benefit from greater motivation compared to full time employees, and ability to schedule people specifically for peak periods
Define casual employment
Are employed on an hourly basis
Do not receive entitlements such as long service or sick leave
Paid a loading – this is extra pay on top of normal full time rate, and have the flexibility to accept and reject work at any particular time – however there is no sense of job security
Employees are increasingly providing employees with greater flexibility in terms of hours and other conditions which attracts many employees such as offering:
Take time off or receive extra pay for overtime
Flexibility with regard to when work takes place (start – finish *flextime)
Career breaks allowing time off without pay
Work from home arrangements on full-time or part-time basis
Part year employment
Job sharing
Family leave (in addition to maternity, paternity and parental leave)
Define and explain remuneration
is monetary payment in return for the work an employee performs
Includes other rewards an employee receives such as superannuation bonuses, commissions, allowances, healthcare, childcare and gym memberships
‘National Employment Standards’ contain the 10 minimum workplace condition an organisation must offer (rate of pay, hours worked, annual leave)
Organisations must offer more than the minimum to attract potential employees; such as greater wages or bonuses conditions such as childcare (employer of choice)
Define a wage
Is an hourly rate of pay
Define salary
employees who earn a salary are paid a fixed amount each year, which is then divided in to 26 to give fortnightly salary or by 12 to give monthly salary.
Define salary sacrifice
(salary packaging)– foregoing salary in order to receive another non-cash benefit of equivalent value e.g. car
This item is often purchased out of their pre-tax salary, making the salary sacrifice more attractive for employees
Explain a remuneration package
Remuneration package – a combination of monetary and non-monetary benefits an employee receives in exchange for their labour - the combination of base wage and other extras such as the potential to earn a bonus
Remuneration is one factor in retaining productive and efficient employees who are loyal and display a high degree of commitment to their work
Paying employees appropriately is important because it affects productivity by increasing employee motivation and lowering rates of absenteeism and staff turnover
An organisation will only employ someone if the return is greater than the cost – through the total cost of an employee is the single wage or salary paid – the employer is responsible for other employee expenses. These expenses are referred to as ‘on costs’ or ‘non-wage benefits’ which account for 30-40% of the remuneration package
The main on-costs include: Superannuation Occupational health and safety Holiday pay Study leave Parental leave Workers compensation Leave holiday
Main types of on costs
An organisation will only employ someone if the return is greater than the cost – through the total cost of an employee is the single wage or salary paid – the employer is responsible for other employee expenses. These expenses are referred to as ‘on costs’ or ‘non-wage benefits’ which account for 30-40% of the remuneration package The main on-costs include: Superannuation Occupational health and safety Holiday pay Study leave Parental leave Workers compensation Leave holiday
Define on costs (non wage benefits)
are additional costs involved in hiring an employee, above the cost of their wages, and include superannuation, long service and workers compensation
