Developing Employee Handbooks An employee handbook is a document that communicates organizational history, mission, values, policies, procedures, and benefits. It should contain information about all the “way we do things around here” and why we do them that way. The…
“A policy is a broad statement that reflects an organization’s philosophy, objectives, or standards concerning a particular set of management or employee activities. Policies reflect the employer’s employee relations strategy. They are general in nature and are expressed through more…
The following are the proficiency indicators that SHRM has identified as key concepts for mid-level HR Professionals: • Supports interactions with unions and other employee representatives • Supports the organization’s interests in union-management activities • Assists and supports the organization…
The FMLA’s anti-interference provision bars conduct that “`tends to chill’ an employee’s willingness to exercise” rights under the statute. See, Brown v. City of Tucson, 336 F.3d 1181 (9th Cir. 2003) (Holding that close temporal proximity between the protected activity…
Contract Negotiation Process Negotiating a contract requires identifying the subjects to be addressed by the agreement. Then, each party prepares its preferred position on each subject. Then the process of comparing those positions begins. Often, dollars are attached to contract…
Conflict-Resolution Techniques. Some amount of conflict will always be present in the workplace. The fact that it exists is not necessarily an unhealthy thing. When it is resolved quickly and effectively, it can lead to personal and professional growth. In…
Either management or union can initiate retaliatory action in the workplace as a response to the other party’s failure to agree at the bargaining table. Industrial actions are designed to get the attention of the opposite party. Unfair labor practices…
The progressive discipline model is one that has been used in American workplaces for more than a century. It is written into many, if not most, union contracts as a requirement to assure management treats its members appropriately when problems…
Investigations are appropriate in several circumstances within an employer’s organization. They can be helpful in a grievance-handling effort and are essential in determining the validity of discrimination complaints. Whenever there is a need to determine facts surrounding a complaint, an…
HR needs to develop a strategy that is aligned with the capabilities needed to implement the organization’s overall strategy. Becker, Huselid, and Beatty wrote in The Differentiated Workforce that HR must shift its focus from employees to one strategy, and…
Metrics There are many different metrics to select from, and the formulas can vary. It’s important to use a consistent formula when benchmarking HR practices. Here are the typical metrics used for measuring the HR value: • Absence rate •…
There are seven types of organizational structures. • Departmental • Chain of command • Span of control • Work specialization • Formalized • Centralized or decentralized • Matrix Departmental. This is where tasks are divided into separate duties, grouping people…
The future for HR includes increased accountability for workforce productivity, performance, collaboration, innovation, and culture. In the future, new core HR competencies would emerge requiring strong technical, analytical, and creative skills. • HR would replace its one-size-fits-all policy focus with…
The strategic role of HR professionals is to strengthen the relationship between the employees and the employer. The Evolving Role of HR Professionals The role of human resources has evolved over the years, probably more so than any other department…
There are several definitions of perquisites; perhaps the most common is “Any monetary or other incidental benefit beyond salary; a gratuity; a privilege or possession held or claimed exclusively by a certain person, group or class.” These are some of…
Pay Structure After an organization has determined its relative internal job values (i.e., job evaluation and collected appropriate market survey data through pay surveys, work begins on developing the organization’s pay structure, including creating pay grades and establishing pay ranges.…
Market-Based (External) Job Evaluation. A market-rate system is not a true job evaluation system; however, in certain cases, market value can be used to price jobs— particularly when the organization is sensitive to competition. These prevailing rates are used to…
The compensation system design process includes four key activities: job analysis, job documentation, job evaluation, and pay structure. Job Analysis Before we address the process of job analysis, we should first address what is a job. A job may be…
The Challenges of Transparency How much to communicate about pay is a continual debate, one for which there is no clear answer. Those in favor of open communication feel that unless employees understand their organization’s pay system and how their…
A typical total rewards package can include compensation, benefits, work-life balance, performance and recognition, personal development, and career opportunities. Recent strong global competition for talent and shortages of critical-skill workers, particularly in the fast-growing economies of Asia and Latin America,…