Unit 21 MHR UK labour Market Assignment

Introduction

This Unit 21 MHR UK labour Market assignment is based on managing Human Resources in the organisations in the current world of HR. various theoretical perspectives will be discussed and the labour market of UK will be studied which impact the HR practices of the organisations. The legislative framework of UK will be examined to know about the nature and scope of human resource practices in UK. The importance of equal opportunities of workers and discrimination at the workplace will be discussed with the help of many recent cases in the practical world.

Task 1

1.1 Guest’s model of HRM

Guest model of HRM was introduced in 1987 by David Guest. This model of HRM is based the assumption that HRM is different from traditional approach of personnel management. This model is one of the famous models of HRM which sees employees of the organization as a human resource and is based on theory of achieving overall objectives of the organization through the integration of their individual efforts with the group efforts. Guest has identified the strategies of personnel management and HRM and how these factors affect the success of the organization (Maatman, et. al, 2010). HRM model of Guest has six dimensions of analysis which are as follows.

• HRM strategy
• HRM practise
• HRM outcome
• Behaviour outcomes
• Performance outcome
• Financial outcomes.

In today competitive market it is very essential for every company to adopt a suitable HRM model for the organization so that the organization can utilise the human resources in better ways same as this Tesco has also implemented Guest HRM model. Through the application of Guest HRM model Tesco focuses on hiring of resources, organizing trainings and development programs for them as well as Tesco provides appraisals to motivate its employees. Tesco provides the quality environment of working to its employees so it brings flexibility and confidence among the employees. Through the Guest HRM model Tesco has increased its productivity, innovation, quality and also this is resulting as high turnover for the company. This model has also established profits for Tesco so overall this model has enabled the company to manage in human resources in better ways.

1.2 Difference between Storey’s definitions of HRM and personnel, IR practices

Storey’s definition of HRM focuses on differentiating capability and commitment of the employees. As per Storey’s definition of HRM the HRM should be integrated into the organizational strategy of the company and HRM should also be considered as other strategies of the company. HRM should be merged with the other functions of management so that it can be helpful in encouraging goal oriented objectives of the company.

In Tesco, HRM approach is followed so the main aim of this company is to earn higher revenues, the behaviour referent of the company is its mission and vision, the nature of relation which Tesco maintains with other company is Unitarist. Tesco focuses on marinating key relations with customers. The initiatives taken by Tesco are integration of individual efforts into group efforts. The decision making speed of the management of this company is fast. There is a direct communication between the managers and the employees of the company (Lewicka & Krot, 2015).

In Sainsbury’s, Personnel and IR practises are followed the company follows the facts which are mentioned in the contracts. In this company the guide to management action is to follow the procedures properly. The relevant behaviour of the company is to follow the customs and the practise of the company. The strategy of this company is to maintain key relations is to manage the labours properly so that they work efficiently and effectively for the company. The decision making speed of this company is slow as the decisions are taking by considering the point of view of majority of the people in the organization.

1.3 Implications for line managers and employees of developing a strategic approach to HRM

Line manager are the persons who are responsible for the success of Human resource plans, policies and strategies. Line manager has the authority to delegate the work to subordinates and he is responsible for achievement of organizational objectives. Employees are the persons who are responsible for overall working of organization. Line managers and employees play a major role in the success of an organization as line managers are responsible for management decisions and employees are responsible for doing their work properly (Azmi & Mushtaq, 2015).

In Tesco, line managers plays a major role in development of Tesco strategy approach to HRM as they are recruit the right person for the right job, they provide trainings to the new employees, line managers in Tesco make efforts for improvement of job performance of each employee overall the main focus of line manager is to establish a strategic approach of HRM in Tesco.

Line managers interpret the company’s plans and policies for achievement of business goals; they are responsible for developing the abilities of the employees and creating the suitable working environment for the employees of Tesco so they work in better conditions and can work efficiently and effectively for the betterment of the company.

Employees are also like an asset to the company. Employees in Tesco are responsible for managing work at various departments of company. Employees are responsible for dealing with the customers of Tesco, for day to day working of the company, for taking part in the planning process towards achievement of goals and objectives of the company.

Task 2

2.1 Application of model of flexibility in the organization

Flexibility means bringing the necessary changes as per the requirement of the employees in their skills so that their workload can be reduced and better production methods are implemented in an organization. Flexibility model brings motivation in the employees so that they can work more efficiently and effectively and contribute more to the betterment of the organization. The best flexibility which can be provided the employees is workplace flexibility so that they can work freely in the working environment (Veksler, et. al, 2015).

In Tesco, flexibility model can be established to workplace this flexibility will result in providing satisfaction of working to the employees. Flexibility model can be applied to Tesco like employees can be provided flexibility to take leave for urgent reasons during working days; they can be provided the flexibility which is depending upon the nature of their job. Flexibility model can be applied to the working schedules of the employees they can be provided facility to schedule their work accordingly so that they work more efficient with free mind. Company can provide flexibility to the employees of paying as per their working that the employees shall be paid off as per their work so that they get a flexible chance to earn more. Company can provide functional flexibility to the employees where the employees must be given a chance to check their flexibility so that learn new work too this will increase their knowledge, skills and capabilities.

2.2 Types of flexibility which may be developed by the organization

In Tesco, there are various types of flexibilities which can be provided to the employees of the company so that they can work in free conditions and in a working environment which suits them the best, this will automatically increase their capabilities to work when they will be given flexibilities for the work (Purvis, et. al, 2014). The types of flexibilities that can be developed in Tesco are as follows.

• Tesco should provide childcare centre at the workplace so that ladies in the company can   take care of their child too during working hours.
• The working time should be normal working hour timings only.
• Old age people should be appointed for less working hours.
• Company should focus on appointment of new talent for the company.
• There should be less working hour for the female employees and they should be free early in the evening time.
• They should be provided facility of working from home if possible in urgent situations.
• Tesco should determine flexible working options through discussing with the employees; company should identify their needs and then can take possible flexibility decision for them which are also matching with the objectives of the company.

Tesco should review the existing plans of the company then it should focus on the needs of the employees and identify the areas where the company is rigid and needs to introduce new flexible solutions then through the discussion with the employees and fulfilling their needs in integration to the need of the company various types of flexibilities can be provided to the employees of Tesco.

2.3 Use of flexibility working practises for both the employer and the employee

Flexibility is a tool that is useful for both the employer and the employee of the organisation as this helps in providing the suitable working conditions to the employees so their productivity id increased which contributes to higher revenues which full fills the objectives of the employer so flexibility is important from the point of view of both employer as well as the employee.

Use of flexibility working practises for both the employer: If employers are given flexibility this can help in better decision making for them. They can reduce the time and cost involved in the work as well they can increase the productivity of the employees. Better decision making from the employers leads to integration of individual efforts into the group efforts which lead to the achievement of organizational objectives. Employers can also work freely if the employees are working freely without having any problem this will also maintain peace at the working place as well create a good working environment for all the people working in the organization (Wells,et. al, 2015) .

Use of flexibility working practises for both the employee and Employees are much more benefitted with flexibility then employers as one can work better in flexible suitable conditions so if employees are provided suitable working conditions then they can work better for the organization. Providing flexibility to them reduces their workload so they can handle their pressure and can work in suitable conditions. Flexibility also brings relief to the employees in solving their personal problems too like flexibility of opening child care centre at work place will reduces the tension of female workers of taking care of their child so this brings positive changes at the working of the employees so they work more efficiently and effectively.

2.4 Discuss the impact that changes in the labour market have had on flexible working practices.

The changes made in the labour market effect the flexible working practices at Tesco. In recent time many changes has been seen in the labour market which in turn impact the organisations and their working patterns. The rapid change and updation in technology, increase in the available workers in the industry, change in demographic factors, etc. are some of the reasons that lead to the changes in labour market. It can be said that there is positive impact of these changes because technology is increasing the work productivity of labour, availability of workers make enable the company to hire the best available candidates for the organisation from the huge available resources (Michael, 2009).

The no. of young workers is increasing which is also beneficial for the company because it has the opportunity to hire fresh blood for the organisation. Young employees can adopt the technological changes easily and this will make the organisation flexible in terms of working. These changes in labour market also make the implementation of the practices easier for the organisation. It will benefit the productivity of the company and overall growth will be achieved (Michael, 2009).

Task 3:  Topical Issue

3.1 Explain the forms of discrimination that can take place in the workplace using examples of recent discrimination cases which has made the news.

Employment discrimination can be referred to the discrimination which is made between the employees at the workplace on the basis of race, caste, colour, sex, or any other factor.

Discrimination can be made in various forms and it is seen that the cases registered for discrimination raised in 2015 which shows that the discrimination is rising and needs to be stopped for fair treatment to all the employees and to create a better workplace for the employees. This discrimination need to be controlled to motivate employees for performing better at the workplace which will ultimately benefit the organisation (Chavez, et al., 2015). Following are the types of discrimination which takes place at the workplaces:

• Gender Discrimination: This discrimination takes place when one employee is given more importance, responsibilities, payments or rewards than the other employee just because if are of different gender. The discrimination here is made on the basis of sex. Sex discrimination is an offence. It also hampers the image of the organisation and affects the performance of the employees. For e.g. Shreya Ukil was an employee of Wipro and sued the company because she faced harassment and unfair dismissal from the company because she was a female. She claimed 1.2 million pounds and sued the company and won against it (Chavez, et al., 2015).

• Discrimination due to disability: It is when an employee is mistreated in the company because of his disability. It affects the mental status of the employee and also affects its performance. Recently in 2016, a woman was suffering from Dyslexia which made difficult for her to read and write and she was working in Starbucks. The company made her feel neglected and less important. She filed a case against company and won (Hawkins, 2016).
• Racial discrimination: In this case, the discrimination is made between the employees on the basis of race and colour of the employees. For e.g.  Recently a British Asian Police officer faced racial discrimination by his own colleagues. He filed a case because he was treated differently because of the colour of his skin and he won the case (Hawkins, 2016).

3.2 Discuss the practical implications of equal opportunities legislation for an organisation.

Equal opportunity refers to that concept under which every employee working in the organisation will be treated equally in the terms of rights and payments. It ensures that every employee will get equal opportunities to grow. In the organisations of UK, say in Amazon UK, it is the sole responsibility of the organisation to provide fair and equal treatment to all the employees in the company (Jones, 2010).

The government of UK has also enacted laws to imply this rule. It made The Equality Act 2010 which protects people from the discrimination at the workplace and in the society. There are many practical implications for equal opportunities legislation. These implications are both negative and positive in Amazon UK (Jones, 2010).

Equality at Workplace

The positive implications are that the policies made in the organisation regarding  minimisation of  discrimination will control these negative practices and overall performance of the employees will be increased as they will be motivated to work more when there will be no discrimination between their efforts. Equal pay will be provided to them for the equal level of work, so they will try to perform their best to earn more rewards.

Negative implications include the situations where the company has to devote its time in the formulation of policies and it affects the business of the firm (Snell & Bohlander, 2013).

3.3 Compare the approaches to managing equal opportunities and managing diversity. You should give examples from a selected organisation and discuss the similarities and differences in their approaches to managing equal opportunities and diversity.

At the workplace, equality and diversity can be managed well together by the contribution of the organisation and the employees. Amazon is working with its employees to manage equality and diversity at the workplace. It can be cleared from the given example. Amazon adopts the recruitment methods in which the candidates from different parts of the country are invited to apply regardless of their gender, caste, colour or race. They just demand the minimum qualification which is required for the post (Snell & Bohlander, 2013). This method provides equal opportunities to all the qualified individuals to apply and appear for the post. During the selection process, the management do not discriminate that whether the candidate is male or female or on any other basis. They just test and evaluate the candidate on the basis of qualifications, talents, knowledge and abilities and like this equal opportunities are created for all (Sharma, 2013).

The company establishes open communication among the top and lower level of management and provides equal opportunities to all so that they can keep their ideas and views to the management. This also provides opportunity to all the employees to share their problems with the management and get their solutions (Sharma, 2013).

These approaches adopted by management of Amazon shows that it provides equal opportunities to the employees and thus, diversity is promoted irrespective of their age, gender, race, religion, etc.

Task 4

4.1 Select an organisation you work or have worked for, identify and compare the performance management methods used.

Performance Management is the concept which is used to promote the effectiveness of the employees at the workplace. Here, the contribution of both the managers and employees are placed for planning, monitoring and evaluating the work of the employees to achieve goals and objectives. Every organisation has to adopt some methods which are used to motivate them so that they can contribute best of their efforts to achieve the goals and objectives of the company (Rausch, 2011).

Amazon UK manages the performance of its employees by using various methods which are used to motivate the employees and to bring their best out of them. Their performance is also evaluated by using these methods that how effective it is for achieving the ultimate goals of the company (Rausch, 2011). These methods adopted by Amazon UK are discussed below:

• Management by Objectives (MBO): It is very useful method for evaluating the performance of the employees. It is the process in which the employees’ goals are identified at first and then arrange the resources which can complete those goals. Time is decided for achieving the goals and meetings are conducted between the manager and the employee during this time period.  It is discussed in these meetings that how many goals are met and what is the development (Julnes, 2008).
• 360 degree appraisal method: In this method, the employee’s performance is reviewed by all the colleagues, managers, subordinates, etc. and ratings are given. It completes the evaluation of the employees from all the sides and that is why it is named as 360 degree appraisal. It has the advantage that the reviews can be taken from all the employees and drawback is that it may be possible that people are giving poor rating just for criticising the employee.

360 degree feedback

• Rating scales: These scales usually have ratings from 1 to 5 where ratings can be given to employee on the basis of work performance and other parameters. This method is useful as it consumes lesser time but it is not possible to identify all the parameters in a single worker/ employee at the same time, which is the drawback of the method (Jones, 2010).

4.2 Assess the approaches used to managing employee welfare in your organisation

There are many approaches which are used by Amazon UK to manage employee welfare in the company. Laws made by the government ensure that the labour is paid well for the work and his safety is ensured. Labour law establishes fair relationship between both the employers and the employees. It contains many regulations which are to be followed by the company so that no employee can be cheated. These regulations are like Health and safety act, Employment right act, etc. which are made just to ensure the safety of the workers (Jones, 2010).

The Human resources Team of Amazon is committed to maintain the well-being of employees and provide them proper facilities to discuss their problems, issues or any query. Amazon UK insures all its employees so that they can be safe against any mis-happening and their families along with them can be safeguarded from health uncertainties or any other miss-happening.

The company is also providing safety at the workplace to the employees so that they can work in the safe and secure environment because keeping them secure is the responsibility of the organisation during the working hours (Snell & Bohlander, 2013).

Human Resource Tea of Amazon maintains a link between the top management and Workers. They provide support to the workers so that they can handle their problems and can be committed to the organisation by having mental peace. They also support employees so that they can plan for their own development and career.  Training and motivation is provided to them which makes them developed in terms of knowledge, skills and talent. The views of the employees are valued in the organisation which also motivates them to be more committed to the organisation. These activities by Amazon UK manage employee welfare at the workplace (Snell & Bohlander, 2013).

4.3 Discuss the implications of health and safety legislation on human resources practices

The Human Resource department of Amazon UK is responsible for maintaining welfare of employees. It includes maintaining health and safety of employees too. Health and safety at workplace has huge impact on the working of employees and it ensures the safety of employees which creates a sense of commitment in them for the organisation. The government of UK also made some rules and regulations whose main motive is to safeguard employees at the workplace (Snell & Bohlander, 2013).

The health and safety Act of 1974 made by the government ensures that the employer cannot adopt such practices because of which the health and safety of the employees are kept at stake. There are many cases in the corporates where because of the ignorance of the health and safety of employees, accidents take place. These accidents can be disastrous for the employee as well as for employer. That is why The Health and safety Act 1974 was enacted which safeguard the employees and penalise the employers in case they violate the laws. So, the employees and company both should follow these laws (Michael, 2009).

Amazon UK often provides training to employees for saving them in case of such emergency situations which increases the costs of the company but is significant for the safety of the same. Mock Fire drills are conducted in which the employees are trained how to save them in case the workplace catches fire. There are many cases in which the accidents happen because of the negligence from the either side and it harms both the parties. Amazon UK is responsible for saving its employees from such accidents and takes care of it properly (Michael, 2009).

4.4 Evaluate the impact of another topical issue on human resources practices.

Employee Retention is one such tropical issue which is faced by the companies nowadays. Many people believe that sourcing human resources is the big and challenging task but retaining them is even the biggest one. The talent with the organisation nowadays switch over to other companies because ample amount of opportunities are available to them in the market and whenever a candidate finds better opportunity he leaves existing company and joins a new one (Boxall et al. , 2008).

Employees are considered as the lifeblood of the organisation and the companies are required to keep good talents with them so that high productivity can be gained and the business can have significant return out of the costs made. The HR department is responsible to provide enough satisfaction to the employee in the organisation so that the employee does not think of leaving the organisation. Job turnover is high nowadays and it impacts the human resource practices of Amazon UK. High Job turnover increases the costs of the companies for recruiting and training the fresh staff again. It also affects the generation of revenue of the firm because of the loss of talent. Sometimes, the HRMdepartments fail to respond to therequirements of the organisations for new employees when the existing ones leave. So, this impacts a lot on the Human Resource activities of the organisations (Boxall et al., 2008).

Conclusion

It can be concluded that different aspects of contract in human resource management has been covered in the report which shows that Modern HR needs to be developed according to the changes in the industries. Human resource plays a major role in the success of the organisation. It hires employees and manages them by motivating and training them so that they can be retained in this competitive environment of global business. Different laws are discussed which shows that HR is responsible for safety and security of employees and maintain them for achieving the gals and objectives of the organisation

References

Armstrong Michael (2009) A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 11th Edition, Kogan page, London ISBN: 9780749452421
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Boxall et al editors, (2008), The Oxford Handbook of Human Resource Management, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Chavez, L.J., Ornelas, I.J., Lyles, C.R. & Williams, E.C. 2015, "Racial/Ethnic Workplace Discrimination", American Journal of Preventive Medicine, vol. 48, no. 1, pp. 42-49.
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