Motivating and Retaining

Question 1

What are the 6 Financial Incentives (Payment Systems)?

Answer 1

Increased Salary
Time Rate
Piece Rate
Bonus
Commission
Overtime

Question 2

What is Increased Salary?

Answer 2

An employee is pad a fixed amount per year in 12 equal instalments (once every month).

Question 3

What is Time Rate?

Answer 3

Employee is paid per hour that is worked (eg £6.50 per hour).

Question 4

What is Piece Rate?

Answer 4

An amount of money is paid for each item that an employee produces.

Question 5

What is a Bonus?

Answer 5

Receiving an additional payment on top of a salary or time rate.

Question 6

What is Commission?

Answer 6

A percentage of money is paid based on the value of sales that an employee makes.

Question 7

What is Overtime?

Answer 7

When an employee works over the minimum required number of hours. Overtime is usually paid at a higher rate then normal (eg double time).

Question 8

What are the 7 Non-Financial Incentives?

Answer 8

Job Share (a working practice)
Flexitime (a working practice)
Teleworking/Homeworking (a working practice)
Training
Social Events
Extra Holiday Entitlement
Nine Day Fortnight (a working practice)

Question 9

What is Job Share (a working practice)?

Answer 9

Sharing one job role with another employee.

Question 10

What is Flexitime (a working practice)?

Answer 10

Employees having some flexibility in choosing how they complete their working hours. Employees may be required to attend work during core hours (eg 10am-2pm).

Question 11

What is Teleworking/Homeworking (a working practice)?

Answer 11

Working away from the office by keeping in touch using electronic communication (eg email, mobile phones).

Question 12

What is Training?

Answer 12

Offering employees the opportunity to improve their skills/knowledge.

Question 13

What is Social Events?

Answer 13

Hosting work-based social events to improve relationships in the workplace (eg work BBQs).

Question 14

What is Extra Holiday Entitlement?

Answer 14

Being offered more paid days off work than the legal minimum.

Question 15

What is a Nine Day Fortnight (a working practice)?

Answer 15

Employees get every second Friday off, Working their contacted hours over 9 days instead of 10.

Question 16

What are the benefits of Motivating Staff?

Answer 16

Increased productivity.
Reduced absenteeism.
Lowered staff turnover.
Improve the relationship between staff and management.

Question 17

What are the costs of Motivating Staff?

Answer 17

The financial costs of certain financial incentives can be high.
Uses up management time on non-core aspects of the business (eg social events).
Staff being dissatisfied by the perceived unequal issuing of incentives.

Question 18

What is Industrial Relations (Employee Relations)?

Answer 18

The relationship between employees and their employer is important for the overall morale and satisfaction in the workplace.
If employees are unhappy, aggrieved or feel they have been treated unfairly, they may speak to their trade union for support.
A trade union is an association which represents employers. Members pay fees to be part of a trade and elect members into positions to run it on their behalf.

Question 19

What is the role of Trade Unions?

Answer 19

To negotiate with management on behalf of employees (eg on issues of pay, working conditions, and pensions).
To offer legal advice/support to employees following incidents/issues in the workplace.
To influence the government to make changes to workplace legislation.
To support/organise industrial action.

Question 20

What are the 6 Industrial Actions?

Answer 20

Go Slow
Work to Rule
Overtime Ban
Strike
picketing
Boycott
Demonstration

Question 21

What is Go Slow?

Answer 21

Deliberately working at a slower pace.

Question 22

What is Work to Rule?

Answer 22

Working completely according to your contract of employment and job description. This may result in certain tasks/activities no longer being carried out.

Question 23

What is an Overtime Ban?

Answer 23

Workers refuse to work any hours over the contracted hours.

Question 24

What is a Strike?

Answer 24

Workers refuse to enter the workplace or carry out any of their normal duties.

Question 25

What is Picketing?

Answer 25

Union members stand outside their workplace and try to persuade other workers not to go to work.

Question 26

What is a Boycott?

Answer 26

Employees refuse to carry out a new task or to use a new piece of equipment.

Question 27

What is a Demonstration?

Answer 27

A gathering of people raising awareness of a particular issue.

Question 28

What are the impacts of Industrial Action?

Answer 28

Relationships between employees and employers may deteriorate.
Bad press/publicity for the organisation.
If employees are successful it may cost the organisation more money (eg campaigning to increase wages).