The Legal Environment Of Human Resource Management

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Project background

A business is a legal entity that is set up or designed to make goods, sell goods or provide a service. Many businesses are for profit organizations as opposed to a nonprofit organization or hobby job.

Tuscan’s tool is now a new subsidiary in Jamaica which sells variety of tools for motor vehicles, hardware supplies and lots more. At Tuscan’s we aim to meet the needs of all our customers by supplying them with all the tools they need and in variety and sizes. In opening a business one must ensure that the product that is offered to customers is one that is wanted in great demand that is what Tuscans tool aim to do in providing customers with the right tools they want and in great variety.

Literature review

Human resource management includes all activities used to attracted and retained employees and to ensure they work or perform at a high level to meet the goals of the organization. Resources refer to the people, machine, capital, finances and raw material.

Human resource management is a new way of thinking about how people should be managed as employee in the workplace (Pinnington & Edwards, 2000).

According to (Boxall, et al., 2013) Human Resource Management aims to provide an authoritative account of current trends and development in human resource management (HRM). HRM is central to management teaching and research, and has emerged in the last decade as a significant field from its earlier roots in personnel management industrial relations and industrial psychology. (Anon., 2013) Human resource management is the process of hiring and developing employees so that they become more valuable to the organization. It includes conducting job analysis, planning personnel needs, recruiting the right people for the job, orienting and training, managing wages and salaries, providing benefits and incentives, evaluating performance, resolving disputes an communicating with all employees at all levels.

Human resource management is viewed as strategic; it involves all managerial personnel (and especially general managers); it regards people as the most important single asset organization; it is proactive in its relationship with people; and it seeks to enhance company performance, employee ‘needs’ and societal well-being (Blyton & Turnbull, 1992). According to (Armstrong, 2008) strategic human resource management is an approach to the development and implementation of HR strategies and enables the organization to achieve its goals.

In order for human resource to be effective laws have to be put into place to be as a guidance for the organization. It is said that human resource management is not done in isolation it has to work with the laws that governed the country. Of the laws that HRM must adhere to are the workers compensation act, employment act, termination act, woman’s act and equal pay act just to name a few.

Objectives

To build a lasting relationship with the people of the country by providing the highest in quality service.

To earn disposable income to build a sustainable business in the country.

To provide products that will satisfy the needs of the customers.

Limitations

Due to lack of resources in typing the research it took a while for the project to be completed.

The research was very expensive.

Methodology

Secondary data collection was the method the researcher chooses to collect information. It is a very reliable and credible source that the researcher uses to collect information to complete this project. The use of text books and the internet is a form of secondary data collection method that the researcher uses to collect information.

Task 1

The intercultural and global challenges of human resource management.

Intercultural is a form of global communication. It is used to describe a wide range of communication. It is used to describe a wide range of communication problem that naturally appear within an organization made up of individuals from different religions, social, ethic and educational background.

Language can be an intercultural challenge that may affect human resource management in the country. Tuscan tool is a French company that operates and sell tool in different varieties. Language may be a barrier that can affect the company because not everyone in the new location will understand the language, because Jamaica’s official language is English and this can cause a problem because the customer won’t understand what is been offered.

Another problem is that if the people of Jamaica will accept the product that is offered. The business may have a problem because the people of Jamaica would want value for their money and wouldn’t want to buy because of fear that the product offered is not lasting, thus they would refrain from purchasing it.

In today’s global marketplace companies face a host of human resource management challenges, including selection of personnel, training of employees, dealing with culture shocks, ethics and personal behavior.

Selection of personnel- one of the current global human relations challenges facing organizations is that of choosing the appropriate personnel for international assignment.

Training of employees- in many cases, those who are selected for overseas assignments are given special types of training prior to their departure. The two most common are, cultural training and language training.

Dealing with cultural stocks- leaving your home country to work in a new country can be a stressful experience, even though the person has planned and prepare for the move. "People usually experience many emotions while adapting to a foreign culture, changing from excitement and interest in the new culture to depression and fear of the unknown."

Ethics and proper behaviour- it is scary that most companies appear to be unaware of their obligation to provide ethics and compliance training to all their employees. Out of 2,000 legal, ethics, and human resources professionals surveyed more than seventy were unaware that such training is mandated by federal law.

Task 2

The methods used to forecast and determine human resource management.

Forecasting is the process by which companies ponder and prepare for the future. It involves predicting the future outcome of various business decisions. This includes the future of the business as a whole, the future of an existing or proposed product or product line, and the future of the industry in which the business operates, to name a few (n.d, 2013).

Some of the techniques that will be used to forecast and determining human resource at Tuscans tools are;

Managerial judgement- this is a very simple way of forecasting. In this managers sit together, discuss and arrive at a figure which would be the future demand for labour. The technique may involve a bottom to top or a top to bottom approach.

Trend analysis- the method which forecast employment requirements on the basis of some organizational index and is one of the most commonly used approaches for projecting HR demand.

Business factors annual volume of sales.

Total number of employees.

Compare the productivity ration.

Calculate human resources demand.

Forecasted human resource requirements.

Computerize forecast – the determination of future staff needs by projecting a firm’s sale, volume of production, and personal required volume output, using computer software packages. Employers also used computerized system to personnel requirements.

Work study technique – work study technique is based on the volume operation and work efficiency of personnel. Volume of operation is derived from the organizational plan documents and increase/decrease in operation can be measured.

HR budget and planning analysis- there are several other ways by which planners can estimate the future demand for human resources. Once approach is through budget and planning analysis. When a new venture complicate employment planning, planners can use new venture analysis.

The legal environment of human resource management.

The field of human resource management is greatly influenced and shaped by the state and federal laws governing employment issues. Indeed regulations and laws govern all aspects of human resource management, recruitment, replacement, development and compensation. (encyclopedia, 2013).

There are many laws which govern an organization’s employer and employees. One of the most important pieces of HRM legislation, which affects all the functional areas are;

Civil Rights act of 1964- these act made illegal the discrimination against employees or potential recruits for reason of race, colour, religion, sex, and national origin. It forces employers to follow and often document fairness practices related to hiring, training, pay, benefits and virtually all other activities and responsibilities related to HRM.The 1964 act established the equal employment opportunity commission to enforce the act, and provides for civil penalties in the event of discrimination. The net result of the compassing civil rights act is that businesses must carefully design and document numerous procedures to ensure compliance or face potentially significant penalties.

The equal pay act of 1963 - This act forbids wage or salary discrimination based on sex, and mandates equal pay for equal work with a few exceptions. Subsequent count rulings augmented the act by promotion, the concept of comparable worth, or equal pay for unequal jobs or equal value or worth.

Woman’s act- women cannot work at night unless their work carry on into the night.

The workers compensation act- is that if a worker get injured on the job the worker should get compensated or if you die your dependents will get the money.

Strategies use in the recruitment and selection process.

Recruiting is the first in the hiring process. The goal is to attract qualified people whose skills and experience meet the demands of the job you want to fill. Once you have an initial pool of qualified people, you can use interviewing and references to screen for other desirable qualities. Later still, you can zero in on candidates who show the qualities to the highest degree.

Recruiting includes all the activities managers engage in to develop a pool of qualified candidates for open positions. Selection is the process by which managers determine the relative qualifications of job applicants and their potential for performing will in a particular job. (Jones & George, 2007).

Some recruitment strategies are;

Newspaper ads- the printed media is still a respectable source use by the organization in order to recruit employees to work in an organization. In this way ads are put in the newspaper advertising the vacancy in the organization.

Internet- e- recruitment or electronic recruitment is the recruitment of applicant using the internet. The organization application is sent out using the internet/ e-mail. This is a reliable way of using the internet because it lessens paperwork; it’s less time consuming and also relatively cheap.

Referrals – this is a word of mouth method that can be recommended from a colleague at work.

Job fair- at a job fair you will be able to meet with the employers at different companies waiting for on the spot interview which can be an overwhelming experience.

Head hunting- head hunting are recruitment agents who provide a more specialized approach to the recruitment of key employees and/ senior management.

The selection strategies include;

Interviews- virtually all organizations use interview during the selection process. Interviews can be structured and unstructured.

Paper to pencil test- the two main kind of paper and pencil tests used for selection processes are ability test and personality test. Ability test assess the extent to which applicant possess the skills necessary for job performance. Personality test measure personality, traits and characteristics relevant to job performance.

References – applicants for many jobs are acquired to provide references from former employers or other knowledgeable sources (such as a college instructor or adviser) who know the applicants skills, abilities and other personal characteristics. References are often used at the end of the selection process to confirm a decision to hire.

Background information- to aid the selection process, managers obtain background information from job applications and from resumes. Such information might include the highest levels of education obtained college majors and minors, types of college or university attended, years and type of work experience, and mastery of foreign languages.

The training and development process HR use for new staffs.

After the recruit, selection and induction of an employee, the next human resource management function is to provide the employee training and development facilities. No person is fully fit at the time of procurement some training is always essential. In today’s era of competition organizations view training development (T&D) programs as an investment in the employ not as an expense. Organizations want their people to have the best skills and full knowledge. In fact, no organization has a choice whether to give training or not, the only choice is that of method of imparting training. (Randhawa, 2007).

The types of training and development methods include:

On the job- this refers to the methods of training in which a person learns a job by actually doing/ performing it, a person works on a job and learns and develops expertise at the same time. Some on the job method includes:

Understudy- in this the employee is trained by his/ her senior and called understudy or assistant

Job rotation- this refers to shifting/ movement of an employee from one job to another on a regular interval.

Special projects- the trainees may ask to work on a special project related with departmental objectives. By this, the trainees will acquire the knowledge of the assigned work and also learn how to work with others.

Off the job methods- this is where trainees leave their work place and concentrate their entire time towards the training objectives. These days off the job training methods have become popular due to limitations of the on the job training methods such as facilities and environments lack of group discussion and fill participation among the trainees from different disciplines. (Randhawa, 2007).

Employment contract

A contract is a legally enforceable agreement giving use to the obligations for the parties involved. The law of a contract determines which agreements are enforceable and regulates those agreement, providing remedies if contractual obligations (undertakings or promises) are broken. (Koffman & Macdonald, 2007). An employment contract is a written agreement. It outlines the conditions of your employment and helps protect your rights as an employee. If there is a misunderstanding between you and your employer over your job and duties, refer to the contract when you talk to your employer. (canada, 2013).

By signing an employment contract, you are agreeing to be legally bound by its provisions. The employment contract you are offered surely has been carefully crafted by the employers attorney in a way that fully protects the interest of the employer while giving less attention to your objectives. (Todd, 2011).

A contract maybe expressed or implied depending on how it is created. In an expressed contract cohabitation agreement or contract, the parties expressly tell each other what is being ‘bargained’ for example household services in exchange for a one half interest in a home to be purchased, or companion services (non-sexual) in exchange for support during the time they live together. There must be an offer, acceptance, and consideration. Although this is the cleanest theory of recovery, it is often difficult to prove; rarely will the parties have the foresight. To commit their agreement to writing, and it is equally rare for witnesses to be present when the parties make their express agreement. Ultimately the case will turn on which party the court believes.

Implied contract is another remedy use to sue under a theory of implied contract, also called an implied in fact contract. This kind of contract exists when a reasonable person would conclude that the parties had a tacit understanding that they had a contractual relationship even though its terms were never expressly discussed. (Statsky, 2004).

Methods of compensation and reward system

A clear, well thought through policy on compensation is needed in any organization. The objective of any compensation function is to create a system of rewards that meets the needs of the employer and the employee alike. The desired outcome is an employee who is attracted to work and motivated to do a good job. (Amos, et al., 2008).

Compensation of employees are ways that enhance motivation and growth, while at the same time aligning their efforts with the objectives of the organization (Snell & Bohlander, 2012). Compensation benefits affect the productivity and happiness of employees as well as the ability of the organization to effectively realize its objectives.

At Tuscans tool every worker will receive equitable wages and salaries. They will also receive insurance plans such as life insurance, supplementary health benefits, dental care, disability coverage. They will also receive social security benefits; retirement plans, employment insurance etc. Members of the organization will also have a good working environment so that staff will be comfortable and have all the resources they need to achieve the goals of the organization and also individual goals.

They will also be provided with flexible work schedule so that the employees working in the organization that has a family can spend more time with them and balance their work and family time. Other workers will also benefit from this as well because they will have some time to catch up on things they have to do.

Tuscans choice for this compensation system is that it will allow the worker to perform better and also create a company brand.

Methods use to evaluate staff performance

Performance appraisal is the on-going process of evaluating employee’s performance (Lussier, 2008). Performance appraisal is not an event. It is a process. Even the isolated incident we normally refer to as ‘giving somebody his performance appraisal’ actually involves a large number of events. These events happen in a predictable and sequential fashion, with one completed before the next begins. (Grote, 1996).

The methods used to evaluate performance are;

Objective production- under this method, direct data is used to evaluate the performance of an employee, such as sales figures, production numbers; the electronic performance monitoring of data entry workers etc. however, one drawback of this process is that the variability in performance can be due to factors outside the employee’s control. Also, the quality of production does not necessarily indicate the quality of the products; still, this data reflects performance to some extent.

Personnel- this is the method of recording the withdrawal behavior of employees, such as being absent, being in an accident at work etc. this personnel data usually is not a comprehensive reflection of an employee’s performance.

Management by objective- MBO is more than just an evaluation program and process. It is viewed as a philosophy of managerial practice, a method by which managers and subordinated plan, organize, control, communicate and debate. By setting objective through participation or by assignment from a superior the subordinate is provided with a course to follow and a target to shoot while performing the job.

Essay method- in this method the rater writes down the employee description in detail within a number of broad categories like, overall impressions of performance, promote ability of employee existing capabilities and qualifications of performing jobs, strengths and weakness and training needs of the employee. Advantage – it is extremely useful in fitting information gaps about the employees that often occur in a better structured check list. Disadvantages- it is highly dependent upon the writing skills of rater and most are not good writers. They may get confuse success depends on the memory power of raters.

Cost account method- year performance is evaluated from the monetary returns yields to his or her organization. Cost to keep employee and benefit the organization derives is as certain. Hence it is a more dependent upon cost and benefit analysis.

Recommendation/ discussion

Conclusion