HRM 3201 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT CASE STUDY 1 (10%)

CHEAH WYEWEN I08001600 BBIBI 5I1

LECTURER: JAGDEEP SINGH JASSEL A/L SATWANT SINGH

Discussion
1. Describe five HRM related issues or problems in the above case. (20marks) According to the above case, the human resources management related issues or problems are such as high turnover, salaries appear unfair, communicating problems, unfair labor practices and high absenteeism. The first issues is high turnover, turnover in the company have been high. Turnover rates have been increase from 20.4% to 27.5% in February to March. High turnover happened because of the number of workers in each SMT varies between 12 to 50. The employees in each SMT varies, the employees keep exchanging, not permanently. This will make employees unhappy. High turnover happened also because of the relation problems. Relationship between personnel manager and employees are bad. Personnel manager, George Wyke does not get to know his employees understand their concerns and listen to their complaints. According to the case, it said where somebody wants disciplining, they don t say to the personnel manager, the only time they will go find manager is to seek advice on whether they are doing the work right or wrong. Besides, shop stewards and workers have expressed considerable discontent over the bonus scheme and the way in which SMTs were designed has resulted in operatives performing narrow, repetitive tasks, closely supervised. This had caused high turnover happened. The standard time allowed to complete a particular task is not considered adequate to earn decent bonus. It makes employees feel unfair and unhappy because of can t earn their decent bonus. It may caused the company can t improve their retention levels, even the good employees. Because of SMTs were designed, employees faced operatives performing narrow, repetitive tasks and closely supervised. Employees keep repetitive tasks, no new tasks to learn. All this will caused low level of commitment among employees. Second issues are salaries appear unfair. Based on the case above, below the supervisory grades come a hierarchy of manual grades reflecting different levels of training, experience and pay. In total, the firm employs 442 people just over half the workforces

belong to the trade union. The hierarchy of manual grades reflecting different levels of pay, this appears salaries unfair. Shop stewards and workers have expressed considerable discontent over the bonus scheme, the standard time allowed to complete particular tasks is not considered adequate to earn decent bonus, and salaries appear unfair. Employees cannot earn their decent bonus. Employees will think their salaries are unfair and unhappy about it. Third issues are absenteeism have been high. Absenteeism rates had increase from 5.3% (January) to 5.7% (February) then 8.0% for March. Absenteeism rates keep increasing. It happened because the number of workers in each SMT varies between 12 to 50, employees cannot earn their decent bonus and employees faced operative performing narrow, repetitive tasks. The reason employee absentee rates are high is because of failures of the company to keep their employees in the workplace. Employees keep repeating the same tasks and operative performing narrow, no opportunity to learn new tasks or new responsibilities. This will make employees unhappy and low level of commitment. To avoid absenteeism happen, company should keep employees learning and thinking by creating a challenging environment. People want to feel trusted with new responsibilities and tasks. Fourth issues are communicating between employers and employees. To quote George Wyke: what the SMT system has done as far as management is concerned, it has pushed that responsibility further down the chain, into the SMTs. So where somebody wants disciplining, they don t say to the personnel manager: I want to sack this idiot. What can I do to get rid of him? they know what they have got to do. The only time they will come to me is to seek advice on whether they are doing it right or wrong. According to this, lack of communication between employer and employees and cannot build the good relation between employer and employees. Employer must keep the good relationship with employees, and then only employees will feel happy and confident. Employer has to get to know their employees, understand their concerns and listen to their complaints. Be accessible anytime an employee has a problem for them to solve. Accept suggestions even from low-level employees.

Last issues in the above case are unfair labor practices. Employees in this company operative performing narrow and repetitive tasks since the SMTs were designed. And the hierarchy of manual grades reflecting different training, experience and pay. In total, the firm employs 442 people. Just over half the workforces belong to the trade union. This also is useless interview. Employees dint get their decent tasks, practices and pay. The company used manual grades and the result come out is bad. Total the firm employs 422 people but only half the workforce belongs to the trade union. Besides, the plant manager, Elizabeth Bell, has been concerned for some time about employee relations in the factory and the management style of George Wyke and some of the SMT leaders. Elizabeth Bell has decided to seek an external candidate to replace the incumbent personnel manager. Elizabeth Bell should not seek an external candidate. She should seek an internal candidate to replace incumbent personnel manager. The current personnel manager, George Wyke, who was a union steward prior to becoming the personnel manager and he had no formal personnel management qualifications. His management style had caused many issues and problems happened. the plant manager should seek an internal candidate.

2. What strategies can be adopted to control and further reduce the turnover and absenteeism rates? (20 marks) Strategies to control and further reduce the turnover and absenteeism rates. Reducing employee turnover is critical to sustaining the growth and success of an organization. Understanding that employees don t live to work but work to live will help companies improve their retention levels. When employers recognize employees regularly, keep them learning new tasks and reward them both financially and mentally, all parties win and employees will remain loyal. Firstly, employers must recognize employees. All employees have a desire to be needed and to feel valuable. Consistent praise from a manager boosts an employee s confidence and makes him happy about his place inside the organization. Employees perform at a much higher level when they feel happy and confident. When they don t feel important, employees become withdrawn and complacent and start look for other places to work. Employer must continuously provide security and make your employees feel wanted and needed. Second strategies are keeping them thinking. Want to keep employees learning and thinking by creating a challenging environment. Employees want to feel trusted with new responsibilities and tasks. Start shifting different assignments around the group. Allow employees to learn new information and insight by completing tasks that are normally assigned to another person. Performing the same tasks over and over promotes a stagnant, boring and lazy atmosphere and contributes to an employee becoming disgruntled. What you gain from this is a team of employees working closer together with a better understanding of the organization as a whole. Your team members will gain respect for one another, because they will perform one another's jobs, which will lead to better performance. Third, the strategies are rewards. Offer a competitive package of pay and benefits, but don't stop there. A raise is not the only way to reward an employee's performance. Award more time off for outstanding attendance and production. Distribute gift cards for great service and loyalty. When your organization is filled with happy employees, compensation becomes slightly less of a factor in retention. A happy employee will typically

stay with a company that also rewards him mentally and emotionally. Empower your employees with a larger decision-making role and minimal micromanaging once they display sound judgment. There are many forms of value-based compensation, so use them all. You will have more loyal employees if you first show loyalty and appreciation for them. Besides, Offer fair working conditions and above-average pay. Check on the pay and benefits offered to your competitor's employees and raise your employees' pay when necessary. Think of incentives that will decrease the turnover. Offer bonuses or prizes for specific levels of productivity. Give money incentives regularly when warranted and you can be assured every employee will be interested in staying for the next round of incentives. Allow promotional opportunities. Listen to employees who want to cross train for other skills or to be considered for promotions. Remember that employees will be more willing to stay if they have a future with the company. Next is communication. Communication is very important. Get to know your employees. Understand their concerns and listen to their complaints. Be accessible anytime an employee has a problem for you to solve. Accept suggestions even from low-level employees. Stay in communication with your employees. Stay ahead of any problems that might be brewing among the employees and try to keep the workplace pleasant. Make each employee feel like an important and irreplaceable part of the company. All the strategy above not only reduces turnover rates, it also reduces absenteeism rates. There are others many strategies that we can initiate that will help us to reduce absenteeism in business. Promote a high performance work culture and emphasize the importance of the employee fitting into this culture. Provide flexible work practices which meet the needs of the business and employees. Promote the use of carer s or domestic leave. Try to eliminate or decrease boring or repetitive jobs, widen job responsibilities and increase promotional opportunities. Recognize and reward your employees contribution. Improve the skills of supervisors, provide training and development and work with employees to develop strategies to reduce absenteeism. Implement preventative occupational health and safety strategies in order to minimize worker s compensation absences and monitor annual leave and long service leave data to ensure employees are

talking adequate recreational breaks. Let your employees know what level attendance is expected of them and what the consequences are if they meet the expectations and the consequences if they fail to meet the expectations. Measure and track absenteeism and record the performance in graph form which is posted in a public area. Give feedback on attendance by discussing absenteeism with the employee on a regular basis. Train supervisors to support the absentee program and contribute to it. Make sure that there is a clear objective that is shared among all employees and that they agree it is achievable. Finetune the absentee program to meet operational needs so that it will evolve into a more valuable program that gives you watch you want.