Personal management

The personnel department is concerned with the provision and maintenance of a workforce. There are two dimensions to the task. The first is to ensure that employees are available in the right numbers at the right time and with the necessary skills for the jobs that need to be done. This is the dimension of quantity. The second dimension relates to the quality of the workforce and is evidenced by the workers’ enthusiasm and motivation. Highly motivated workers will be more productive.

The personnel function in an organization has many faults. There will have to be contact with line and departmental managers to ascertain stuffing requirements, applicants for jobs will be interviewed and recommendations made for appointments. Procedures will need to be developed for upgradings and promotions as well as selection. After staff have been appointed induction programs will need to be organized so that the news recruits can fit in as efficient members of the team as soon as possible. Further training may be necessary, either in the firm or at college. Such programs need to be arranged to fit in with the normal work schedules.

The whole framework of pay is obviously of concern to personnel including salary scales, overtime and bonus payments where appropriate. The calculations are complicated somewhat by flexible working hours which give staff the opportunity to choose their own attendance times within certain limits. There is generally a core time during which all staff is expected to be present.

The records maintained for all employees will show the remuneration paid together with tax deduction, and will include details of training, examination success lateness and absences. There is, in effect, a personal profile for every member of staff.

In the United Kingdom there is a legal requirement that every employee must receive a written statement setting out the terms and conditions of their employment. The statement will include a job title which could be relevant if the employee is subsequently dismissed for refusing some task for which he was not employed. Modern employment law accepts that the employee’s job cannot be taken from him unfairly. Any employee who is dismissed unfairly may be entitled to compensation where an industrial tribunal considers the dismissal was wrongful or unfair. When a worker is no longer required he or she is made redundant and this entitles him or her length of service and pay. Workers cannot be discriminated against either because of their race or sex, by law.

The Personnel Department has an overall responsibility for carrying out the policies of the Board of Directors in relation to stuffing, but is also expected to help in the formulation of that policy. A vital area of involvement would be the negotiations with trade unions and the shop stewards listening to grievances and attempting to cope with them, but also attempting to anticipate them. The Department should be concerned with all matters of welfare from lighting and heating through to safety and personal hygiene.

No matter how automated production becomes, the roles of people are central in every business. The most expensive equipment is ineffective in the hands of careless workers and the Personnel Department carries the responsibility for ensuring that morale is high in the organization.