One of the most important
factors in Human resource management is employee relations. Employee relations
can be simply identified as: The maintaining of the relationship between
employer and employee. That maintenance should have a positive effect on
certain factors as productivity, motivation & the individual’s
psychological well-being. Mainly employee relations focus in solving and
preventing concerns that could evolve or emerge through work situation that
involves individuals. (nasa.gov, 2012) (Torrington, Hall and Taylor, 2008).
Changes & trends in Employee relations
Current trends in employee relations as mentioned
in Torrington, et al. (2008) seems to show that the cultural aspects have
changed the relation in where employees and employers attitudes have developed
that forms a relation of partnership (Torrington, Hall and Taylor, 2008).
The employee relationship has emerged from being
union based where individual relations came secondary, towards non-union based,
it has been reported that in 1998 in the UK, “47% of
workplaces have no union members at all” (Gennard and
Judge, 2005: 10).
Due to the changing environment and factors such
as, labour market competition, globalization, low barriers of trade,
technologies and the trends of trying to develop and provide all customer needs
and wants as they request it have led the organizations to negotiate and focus
with “individuals rather than employees as one collective body” (Gennard
and Judge, 2005: 11) in terms of how each can add value to
one another through exchange of services.
Current employment
relations that are based on “employer and individual employee” is based on
certain factors such as:
·
The accomplishment of the organization
·
Employee trust, fairness and commitment
·
Involvement and engagement.
·
Supporting the organization in enhancing
efficiency, profits and productivity.
(Gennard and Judge, 2005)
However, there is an evidence as well that there is
an unhealthy sign of feeling insecure in organizations and that employees are
silenced by fear ‘‘at least 70% of the 260
people we interviewed said that they had hesitated to speak up because they
feared some type of repercussion.’’ (Jennifer J.
Kish-Gephart et al., 2009 cited Ryan and Oestrich 1998: ). So there seems to be a gap between that.
In such setting, it is impossible to claim if this
current trend and position of employee relations is for the benefit to the
employee or not. It depends on the direction of each single organization, and
each one is structured differently based on certain factors. Such as:
Product market: Patterns of
demand & industry competition.
Employer: Procedures
& policies, inner culture, size of the company, financial capacity &
expectations.
Employee: Experience,
efficiency, productivity & performance. Awareness of rules, regulations and
rights.
Job Characteristics: Contract,
position, pay & incentives.
External labour market: Availability of
employee replacement, availability of jobs, threats that can accrue from
unions, government rules and regulations.
We have also seen 2014 was a busy year for state
and federal legislatures in the employment law area – which means 2015 will be
a challenging year for employers from a compliance standpoint. A number
of new laws and policy initiatives go into effect in 2015 that will have a
substantial impact on your business through the significant changes in the
employment law landscape.
Have an insight on current trends and recent
developments in areas such as:
- Pregnancy Accommodation Amendments to the Illinois Human Rights Act and the EEOC Pregnancy Discrimination Guidelines
- It’s a Wellness Policy – that has to be good, right?
- Ban the Box legislation and the continuing saga of criminal background checks
- Guns, Drugs [and Rock-n-Roll?] in the workplace
- And other hot employment law topics.
