Questions on Labour Law

MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME

Term-End Examination

June, 2005

MS-28 : LABOUR LAWS

Time : 3 hoursMaximum Marks : 100(Weightage 70%)

Note : (i) There are two Sections A and B.(ii) Attempt any four questions from Section A. Each question carries 15 marks(iii) Section B is compulsory and carries 25 marks.

SECTION A

1. What are the constitutional directives in the field of labour laws ? The labour laws have reached new dimensions with the advent of the doctrine of welfare state. Discuss.

2. Attempt any two of the following :

(a) What are the safety measures under the Factories Act, 1948 ?

(b) What are the obligations of the principal employer and contractor under the Contract labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 ?

(c) What are the occupations and processes where child labour is prohibited under Child Labour Act, 1986 ?

3. What is a "trade union" under the Trade Unions Act, 1926 ? What is the procedure for registration of a trade union under the Act ?

4. Discuss the various provisions laid down under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 for settlement of Indusirial disputes.

5. Examine the main features of the Payment ol Wages Act, 1936. What are the provisions for deduction from wages ? Are they sufficient ?

6. (a) What are the benefits payable under the ESI Act, 1948 ? Give details.

(b) What are the prdvisions regarding payment of gratuity to employees under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 ? Explain.

7. Write short notes on any three of the following :

(a) Main features of the Materniy Benefit Act, 1961(b) Salient features of the Provident Fund Scheme, 1952(c) Notice of change (Section 9-A)(d) Special features of labour laws(e) Principles of natural justice

SECTION B

8. Read the case given below and answer the questions given at the end.

CASE

On March 25, 1996 at abour 6.45 PM, the Duty Officer (Security), Kumar, at the Work gate informed Rathod, Electrical Engineer on telephone that one Namyan, supervisor of his department has been caught red-handed at the Works gate while attempting to steal one small electric motor and certain other spare parts used in the Electrical Dept. Rathod was requested to come to the Security Control Room, where a preliminary enquiry was to be held.

During the preliminary enquiry, it came to light that Narayan, Personnel No. 5824, Foreman, came to the Works gate at 6.15 PM on his Suvega autocycle bearing registration no. BRX 1421 (the number was not clearly visible). The works guard on duty, Krishna Bahadur asked Narayan to stop and open the tool-box that was hanging on the right side of the rear wheel. When it was opened, only one empty tiffin-box was found. Since the driver's seat appeared to be thicker and of unusual size, the works guard enquired about the same from Narayan, and not being satisfied with the reply, gave it a jerk. It was found that Narayan had constructed one box under the seat where a 0.50 hp motor and eight 5 amps switches belonging to the company were concealed.

On being asked, Narayan replied that he had attended a break-down after 5 PM in the Mill and replaced one 0.50 hp motor. The motor that was recovered was the defective one but he could not return it as the store-issuer had already left for home after his duty which ended at 5 PM. He thought he would return the motor next day, as he had done many times in the past. He, however, could not explain why he was carrying the 5 amps switches. Nor did he give any satisfactory reason for not keeping the materials in the tool-box that was visible from outside, rather than where these were kept. On checking up at the Security Control Room, it was found in the presence of Narayan, that the electic motor recovered was in working condition.

As per the Company's Certified Standing Order No. 23 (iii), 'theft, fraud, or dishonesty in connection with company's business or property' is a misconduct.

Questions :

(a) Does this case deserve suspension, pending enquiry?

(b) Advise the Works Manager on the steps for handling the above case.

SECTION A

(Pre-Revised)

1. "People need competencies to perform tasks. Without continuous development of competencies in people, an organisation is not likely to achieve its goals. Competent and motivated employees are essential for organisational survival, growth and excellence." Comment on this statement and discuss the underlying issues, with suitable examples.

2. Discuss developmental supervision as facilitating process to help employees improve their performance and empower them. Support your answer with suitable examples.

3. Explain the rationale for developmental approach to Indutrial Relations. Suggest a core programme for developing top management, middle management and unions for Industrial Relations Management. Also discuss the developmental mechanism for improving IR.

4. Define and describe the process of counselling and mentoring, with suitable examples.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(a) Task delineation(b) Analysis as a supervisory tool(c) Conflict Management(d) Performance Appraisal System(e) Emerging trends in HRD

SECTION B

(Revised)

1. Explain the concept of career in the context of career development perspective. Discuss various individual and organisational strategies for career development.

2. Define and describe the objectives and psychological basis of reward system. Briefly discuss various aspects which reinforce desirable behaviour, high performance, and values.

3. Define HRD Audit. How can HRD Audit be used as an OD intervention in an organisation ? Briefly describe the significance of HRD score-card of a firm.

4. Explain the concept of Knowledge Management. Briefly discuss various approaches to knowledge management, with suitable examples.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(a) Re-organisation of work(b) Value-anchored HRD processes(c) Need for competency mapping(d) Systems Theory and Human performance(e) Vertical re-skilling

SECTION C

6. Read the following case carefully and answer the questions given at the end.

Training for Whom ?

Microelectronics, a California-based electronics defense contractor, has enjoyed a smooth growth curve over the past five years, primarily because of favourable defense funding during the Reagan administration's build-up of U.S. military defenses. Microelectronics has had numerous contacts to design and develop guidance and radar systems for military weaponry.

Although the favourable funding cycle has enabled. Microelectronics to grow at a steady rate, the company is finding it increasingly difficult to keep its really good engineers, Based on extensive turnover analyses conducted by Ned Jackson, the human resources planning manager, Microelectronics problem seems to be its inability to keep engineers beyond the "critical" five year point. Apparently, the probability of turnover drops dramatically after five years of service. Ned's conclusion is that Microelectronics has been essentially serving as an industry college. Their staffing strategy has always been to hire the best and brightest engineers from the best engineering schools in the United States.

Ned believes that these engineers often get lost in the shuffle at the time they join the firm. For example, most (if not all) of the new hires must work on non-classified projects until cleared by security to join a designated major project. Security clearance usually takes anywhere from six to ten months. In the meantime the major project has started, and these young engineers frequently miss out on its design phase, considered the most creative and challenging segment of the program. Because of the nature of project work, new engineering often have difficulty learning the organizational culture - such as who to ask when you have a problem, what the general dos and don'ts are, and why the organization does things in a certain way.

After heading a task force of human resource professionals within Microelectronics, Ned has been designated to present to top management a proposal designed to reduce turnover among young engineering recruits. The essence of his plan is to create a mentor program, except that in this plan the mentors will not be the seasoned graybeards of Microelectronics, but rather those engineers in the critical three-to-five year service window, the period of highest turnover, These engineers will be paired with new engineering recruits before the recruits actually report to Microelectronics for work.

According to the task force, the programme is twofold : (1) it benefits the newcomer by easing the transition into the company, and (2) it helps the three-to-five-year service engineers by enabling them to serve an important role for the company. By performing the mentor role, these engineers will become more committed and hence less likely to leave. As Ned prepared his fifteen-minute presentation for top management, he wondered it he had adequately anticipated the possible objections to the program in order to make an intelligent defense of it. Only time would tell.

Questions :

(a) Identify the salient issues from HR point of view for this case.

(b) lf you were to study this turnover problem, how would you conduct a needs analysis or evolve a counselling programme ?

(c) What are the causes of dissatisfaction and turnover in Microelectronics ?

(d) Do you find the mentoring programme suitable to reduce turnover ? Justify your answer.

'The nature and objectives of the organisation determine the role and type of HRD processes to be chosen for developmental intervention.' Comment on this statement and discuss underlying concepts with suitable examples (20)

2. What are the salient causes of dissatisfaction and frustration ? How is frustration passed on to others ? Explain with example, how a supervisor can cope with the frustration of the employee working with him (20)

3. Identify the major areas of integration btween the development of HRD and IR in an organisation. Describe various pre-requisites for successful HRD-OD approach to IR.

4. Define and describe HRD climate. How are HRD climate and organisational climate related to each other ?

5. Write short notes on any three of the following:(a) Task Analysis(b) HRD Instruments(c) Approach and Avoidance aspects of management(d) HRD in voluntary organisations(e) Developmental Supervision

SECTION B

(Revised)

1. Define and discuss the concept and objectives of coaching and mentoring. Briefly discuss their applications in the organizational context. (20)

2. What is Action Research ? How does it differ from OD ? Discuss the important factors to be considered in the development of internal self renewal facilitators, with suitable examples.

3. Define and describe the objectives and advantages of Multisource Feedback and Assessment Feedback Systems (MAFS). Discuss what are the indicators of an organisations readinessto participate in MAFS. (20)

Discuss the means of managing technological changes in work organisation. Briefly describe the factors which facilitate developing the change mind-set. Explain with suitable examples. (20)

Write short notes on any three of the following : (20)(a) Designing Reward System(b) Operationalising HRD for workers(c) Career Transition and Choices(d) Developing Business Ethics(e) Horizontal Re-skilling

SECTION C

6. Read the following case carefully and answer the questions given at the end.

The eleven workers whose annual increments were stopped made a representation to the management of XYZ Limited that the action taken was not justified and that they wanted to know what was their fault. The management which acted upon the recommendation of the department head concerned, Mr. Rog, felt guilty because such an action was taken for the first time in the history of the company.

XYZ Limited was a large paper manufacturing company in South India. The major departrnents of the factory were :

1. Chemical processing : The raw material was mixed with certain chemicals for making pulp.

2. Pulp department : Pulp was mixed with other ingredients according to specifications for each order of paper.

3. Paper machine department : This was the heart of the factory where processed pulp was fed into the paper machines. Act first, a wet weak paper was formed which was subsequently dried and rolled.

4. Finishing department : The paper rolls were then moved to the processing department where the required coating was given.

5. Grading, winding and packing departments.

6. Quality control department.

Twenty eight workers worked in the paper machine department in four groups - each group attending one machine. The nature of the work on each machine was such that all the seven workers had to work in cooperation. Because no individual tasks could be specified, the group was made responsible for the work turned out by them. All the workers working in the paper machine department had been with the company for over ten years.

The company did not have any incentive wage system for any class of its employees. They were all given straight salaries with normal annual increments. The annual increments were sanctioned each year in a routine way. It was the policy of the company that the increments should not be stopped unless the department head concerned recommended such an action.

Mr. Rog was placed in charge of the paper machine department a year ago. Though Mr. Rog was a newcomer in the organisation, he proved himself to be a very competent man. The management noted that he was very aggressive and enthusiastic and that he know his job well. At the end of the year when increments were due to be sanctioned, he recommended to the management that the increments due to eleven men in his department should be stopped, for, in his opinion they were lazy and inefficient. The eleven men concerned belonged to all the four groups operating in the department.

The management, though puzzled about the action recommended by Mr. Rog, acted upon it and sropped the increments due to the eleven men concerned. The management were aware that such an action was the first of its kind in the history of the company. Most of the employees were with the company for a fairly long period and there was never an instance of strained relations between the management and the employees.

Soon after the action was taken, the eleven employees concerned made a representation to the management requesting them to let them know whatr was wrong with their work as to warrant stopping of their increments. The management were in a fix because they did not have specific reasons to give except Mr. Rog's report in which he simply mentioned that the eleven men concerned were "lazy and inefficient".

The management were naturally concerned about the representation and therefore, they tried to ascertain from Mr. Rog the detailed circumstances under which he recommended the stoppage of increments. When Mr. Rog could not pin-point the reasons, the management suspected that Mr. Rog's recommendation was based on his "impressions" rather than on facts. They, therefore, advised Mr. Rog to maintain a register from then on noting the details of day to day incidents of "lazy and inefficient" workers and obtain the signatures of the workers concerned. Mr. Rog was to make the final appraisal of each

worker in his department on the basis of this register and recommend each case giving specific reasons why increments should be stopped.

Mr. Rog started maintaining a register as suggested by the management; but he found it difficult to report satisfactorily any case of laziness or inefficiency for want of specific reasons.

The management were convinced that their action of stopping increments of eleven men on the strength of Mr. Rog's report was not a proper one. They realised that no similar action in future would be taken based on inadequate information. But, they were wondering whether the suggestion made to Mr. Rog was the proper course of action to prevent occurrence of similar situations.

Questions :

(a) Identify and discuss the core issue in the case.

(b) Was management of the company justified in implementing the recommendations of Mr. Rog, in the absence of proper report ?

(c) How would you view the action of Mr. Rog, if you were the M.D. of the company ?

(d) Do you think the reward system instituted by the company needs to be reviewed ? Substantiate your answer with logic.

SECTION A

1. "The selection of role and type of HRD intervention is largely affected by the nature and objectives of the organisation."Comment on the statement and discuss the underlying concepts with suitable examples.

2. What do you understand by Supervisory Control ? Discuss the process involved in supervisory control.

3. Identify the major HRD mechanisms for blue-collar workers. How do these mechanisms contribute to competency development and motivation ? Explain with examples.

4. Why is HRD important for health and family welfare workers ? How can HRD interventions help them develop for effective implementation of the programme?

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(i) Task Analysis(ii) Personal and Role Efficacy(iii) Effective Team Building(iv) Nurturing and Helping(v) HRD-OD-IR Linkage

SECTION B

1. Define HRD and discuss various value anchored HRD processes. How do they affect development of an organisation? Explain with suitable examples.

2. What is Performance Management ? How are Performance Management systems different from Appraisal systems ?Briefly outline the problems which may affect Peformance Management effectiveness.

3. Define Organisation Development and discuss its operational goals. Explain various phases of OD, with suitable examples.

4. What is HRD Audit ? Why is it important for an organisation's development ? Discuss various methodologies used for HRD audit.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(i) Basic processes of coaching and mentoring(ii) Culture with reference to OD system(iii) Cross-functional teams(iv) Objectives of 360º feedback(v) Competency mapping

SECTION C

6. Please read the case and answer the questions given at the end.

SEWA - The purposeful beginning

SEWA (Self Employed Women's Association) was started in 1972, by Ela Bhatt, in the form of a union of the unogranised sector, which was to be incorporated into the mainstream. It was observed that most of the production of goods and services in the country was, at that time, done through the informal sector, and hence the decision was taken io unionise this informal sector.

SEWA was not like a typical union i.e., unlike the usual union of workers, it (SEWA) spoke about the solidarity of the workers themselves. It's purpose was fight for the mega system which exploited the vast working force through its labour contract systems. The whole system typically involves the middlemen and money lenders and the mindsets of the urban middle class, the educated, the upper castes, their perceptions of development. Thus, through SEWA, efforts were made to question the whole system of policy making, the census (which had not recorded them as workers), the definition and purpose of a trade union and the definition of 'worker'.

After the registration of SEWA as a trade union, it was found that the union activity stopped at a certain level and the informal sector workers were hardly covered by any protective labour legislation. Added to this, profit making, handling of cash etc., even sometimes caused conflicts of interest in the union. Hence, over a period of time, a strategy of joint action by union and cooperative - a member based, democratic organisation, beneficial to the unprivileged of society with networks at the state level, national level and international level was chosen.

It was felt that through a cooperative presence, SEWA would be able to obiatn bargaining power for all those who are members as well as for those who were not a part of the co-operative. On the one hand, the producer's labour value goes up and she enjoys a better bargaining power. Alongside, the other workers in the villages also have wider choices in taking decisions related to who and how many have to go for work on the farms, whether the workers should migrate or concentrate on home-based crafts and so on. And, on the other hand, for all those who were not a part of SEWA, their wage structure (for both men and women) goes up. For instance, in case of the agricultural workers : the new jobs create a shortage of labour in the region, so they also get higher wages. Similarly, artisans also get higher wages. In this way SEWA is able to bring about economic changes in the villages through the joint action of the union and cooperative.

'SEWA Bank' - A subsidiary

Inspite of unionising the self employed workers, it was found they faced two common problems :

Shortage of capital, forcing the workers to pay a heavy interest (often paying 10% interest per day). Absence of owning their own means of productions (like handlooms, push carts etc.). They had to pay rent on these from their own meagre income.

These two reasons prompted the decision at SEWA to have their own bank. In a period of six months, the necessary share capital was collected, and SEWA tried for registration. But many objections were raised - How can SEWA have cooperatives and a bank ? How to form a bank for workers who were women, undependable, unreliable and who cannot even sign ?

Inspite of these inhibitions, the strongest point in their favour was that the workers were all economically independent and generating cash every day. Thus, it was necessary for them to save money and also be able to avail of credit, whenever necessary, rather than depending upon private money lenders. This necessity finally led to the birth of the SEWA Bank.

The SEWA Bank is about one of the 10 co-operatives in SEWA with five kinds of primary co-operatives - dairy, artisans, traders, services and labour. The SEWA Bank has a working capital of about Rs. 26 crores, while, the other co-operatives registered under SEWA together have a working capital of Rs. 20 crores. When SEWA discovered that many of its workers were unable to absorb more loans because of the many risks and outside forces which did not allow them to expand their business, it decided to offer another form of financial services like insurance schemes - against maternity risk, group insurance scheme to link all member workers with their deposits and integrated social insurance bank service covering a wide range of services.

Other Activities and Vision for the Future

SEWA has attempted to create co-operatives of various services provided by the labour community especially in the areas of domestic labour, health care, child care and video production. So as to enable these persons' to market their services, efforts are being made to provide them training on a continuous basic.

Another effort on the pari of SEWA is to build a management system which wil help the labour force to stand firm in the market. Such a system should not only help these people to have access to credit but also help them to be literate enough to have a basic understanding of accounting, the interest rates and accessibility to market infrastructure.

Another attempt of SEWA has been at coming together of women on a common platform, on the basis of work in the form of co-operatives/union/federations or as workers or producers or economic agents, cutting across barriers of caste, region and language.

SEWA's Attempt at Empowering Employees

The vision of Ela Bhatt, who started SEWA has always been to ensure that the informal sector is in the mainstream of labour movement with a leading role to be played by the rural women. SEWA'S aim has been to empower such women who are poor and illiterate to become economically active through the process of empowerment. This view is slowly becoming a reality, when, after joining SEWA and attending formal training programmes, such women have become bold, realised their sense of self through participating, facing, managing situations and other people and thus learning to become 'leaders' in the true sense. Thus process of empowerment has enabled them to develop an inbuilt strength to do liaison with the police, take up the causes of fellow workers, actively participate in the

decision making process especially while sitting on committees, travelling and meeting people for the growth of the organisation.

At SEWA, there is no formal organisation structure as such. In the words of Ela Bhatt, "SEWA is like a banyan tree, it grows and takes root, then these roots grow and take root...." i.e.. SEWA's growth is totally dependent on its mernbers who become owners, managers, beneficiaries and a truely empowered organisation in the long run.

Questions :

(a) What are the unique features of SEWA ?

(b) Discuss the worker oriented development approach of SEWA affecting the performance.

Can you suggest ways in which private corporate organisations can also be involved in developing management programmes along with SEWA for the upliftment of the rural people ?

Set I)

1. Define and differentiate between Job Analysis, Job Description and Job Evaluation. Select an appropriate job evaluation method and create a plan for evaluating jobs of scientists in different grades.

2. Discuss the role of indoctrination in organisations. How can Performance Appraisal, and Training and Development be made an integral part of Human Resource Planning ? Discuss.

3. Discuss the scope of Human Resource Audit. While auditing Reward systems for employees in a manufacturing organisation, which factors should be taken into account and why ? Explain with suitable examples.

4. Define and discuss the need for Human Resource Planning in an organisation. Briefly discuss various approaches to HRP

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(a) Training methods(b) Value determinants of HRP(c) Human Resource Accounting(d) Labour Market Behaviour(e) Promotion and Reward Policies

SECTION A

(Revised)

Set II

1. Define and discuss the objectives of Human Resource Planning at organisational level. How does it help in determining and evaluating future organisational capabilities, needs and anticipated problems ? Explain with suitable examples.

2. Define and describe Job Analysis. Briefly discuss several methods in which information about a job is collected and evaluated.

3. What is the purpose and process of recruitment function ? Discuss various methods of sourcing manpower.

4. How is monetary value assigned to different dimensions of Human Resources costs, investments, and worth of the employees ? Briefly explain Cost and Economic value approaches of measurement.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(a) MBO(b) Succession Planning(c) Competency Mapping(d) Job Evaluation(e) H.R. Inventory

SECTION C

6. Read the case given below and answer the questions given at the end.

Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali were working in a scooter manufacturing public sector industry as Senior Quality Control Engineers in 1988. One post of Deputy Chief Quality Controller has fallen vacant due to the retirement of the incumbent and the management decided to recruit a qualified, knowledgeable and experienced professional from outside so that the present quality standard may be improved thus ensuring better marketability of their scooters in the face of stiff competition. Mr. Kapil Kumar, who was a mechanical enginer with about 15 years experience in the Quality Control Department dealing with mopeds and scooters, could have been promoted to fill the post on the basis of seniority. However, the management was looking for a graduate in statistics with experience in latest Quality Control (QC) techniques like statistical quality control, quality assurance and other related areas rather than a mechanical or automobile engineer with the routine experience in quality control. As such instead of promoting Kapil Kumar, the management advertised for the post of Deputy Chtef Quality Controller - since as per company rules it was DR (Direct Recruitment) vacancy also.

Selection of Outsider

Out of the applications received in response to the advertisement, six candidates were called for interview including the two internal candidates, Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali. The person selected was an outsider, one Mr. Ratnam, who had over 12 years experience SQC, quality assurance etc., in the two-wheeler private manufacturing industry. Mr. Ratnam joined within 2 months time expeding that in his new position he would be the main controller for quality. However, after joining the organisation he came to know that he would be the second seniormost person in the hierarchy for controlling the quality and would be reporting to one, Kirpal Sing,. the Chief for Quality Controls. Mr. Kirpal Singh had come up to this post by seniority and was basically a diploma holder in automobile engineering. He had to his credit about 28 years of industrial experience, out of which 20 years were spent in Quality Control Department of two industries. He Joined the present organisation in its Quality Control Department and had 17 years experience in the organisation and was due for retirement within the next 2 or 3 years. On learning about the retirement time of Mr. Kirpal Singh, Mt. Ratnam had the consolation that he would be able to take up the position of 'Chief Controller of Quality' very soon.

Interference from Top

Ratnam could not put forth many good suggestions (for quality control) because of the interference and direct supervision of Kirpal Singh. He, however, could pick up a good deal of knowledge about the working of the company, the nature-and tendency of different production department heads particularly with regard to care for quality, organization for 'QC' in the company, the various components required for assembly of

the company's two-wheeler scooter and the expected quality standards, drawback in the present system of quality controls. etc.

Right from the time the advertisement for the selection of Deputy Chief Quality Controller appeared, the O.A. (Officers Association) of the organization had been pressing the management to consider the case of Kapil Kumar for promotion to the above post based on his seniority in the organisation.

Meanwhile, the management obtained a licence in 1989 for producing Three-Wheeler Autos. As a result of this and the pressure from O.A., Ratnam was transferred to look after the Quality Control Department at the company's new Three-Wheeler plant, whereas Kapil Kumar was promoted as Deputy Chief Quality Controller in the present two-wheeler scooter plant in 1990 (after creating one additional post of Deputy Chief Quality Controller for the new Project).

In 1991, the State Govemment, which controlled the company in question, changed the Managing Director. During the regime of this new Managing Director, Kapil Kumar was promoted as Chief (Quality Controls) next year, when Kirpal Singh retired. This decision was based on the recommendations of Kirpal Singh and partly attributed to pressure from O.A., for further promotion of Kapil Kumar based on his vast experience in the Quality Control function of this industry. Abbas Ali rose to the position held earlier by Kapil Kumar.

Allotment of Company Quarters

The Company had its own township near the factory. Its quarter allotment scheme was based on the length of service, i.e., date of joining. Ratnam had asked for a suitable quarter at the time of interview and was thus allotted a tile quarter meant for the Senior Engineer's cadre. He learnt about this, after occupying the quarter. Ratnarn asked foy a change of Quarter - preferably a RCC-roof quarter, - but his request was turned down, since he had put in only few months of service whereas many others senior to him, on the beds of their longer length of service in the Company (having over 10 years service), were staying in tiled-roof quarters and were awaiting a chance for a RCC-roof quarter. Kapil Kumar and Abbas Ali were residing in RCC-roof quarters. Soon after Kapil Kumar's promotion to the post of Chief(Quality Controls), he was allotted a bungalow.

The management's decision in this case must be viewed in the contesxt of the downtrend in the demand for scooters and three-wheeler autos during 1993 following complaints from dealers about the deteriorating quality of components as also their short life. Notably the complaints had risen ten-fold in that year as compared to that in 1988.

Questions

(a) Was the management justified in taking a decision to recruit a qualified and experienced person from outside as Deputy Chief Quality Controller ?

(b) Was it in the interest of the organisation to transfer Ratnam to the new auto-wheeler plant and promote Kapil Kumar ? What could have prompted the management to take this decision ?

(c) How do you view the role of O.A.s in supporting only the local and internal candidates and overlooking the interests of direct recruits even when they were family members of the Association, particularly at a time, when the industry needed professionally qualified persons to fill key technical posts ?

(d) How would you react to the management's scheme for quarter allotment and why ?

. There is a definite link between education and economic growth, and lack of adequate skilled manpower impedes growth. To which one of the approaches of HRP would you ascribe this statement ? Discuss the steps involved in, and limitations of this approach. (20)

2. What are the basic requisites of an effective Human Resource Information System (HRIS) ? How is computerised HRIS advantageous for an organisation at different levels ? Discuss with suitable examples. (20)

3. How would you formulate the aims and objectives of a training programme ? Explain with an example. How are training needs identified for different levels of employees in an organisation ? Discuss. (20)

4. Descnbe the basic assumptions of Job Evaluation. Explain, with example, the major areas where job evaluation can be applied successfully. (20)

5. Write short notes on any three of the following: (20)(i) Qualitative methods for demand forecasting(ii) Issues and problems of managerial selection(iii) Measurement of Human Resource Cost(iv) Dimensions of HR Planning(v) Peer group appraisal

SECTION A

Set II

(Revised)

1. Is Human Resource Planning a win-win process for employers and employees both ? Explain with reasons. Discuss the important issues in demand forecasting. (20)

2. Define and describe the concept of Role. Are role expectations changing in the modern world of work ? Explain with the help of different approaches to changing roles in the organizational context. (20)

3. Describe competency approach. Discuss how it is used by the organisation. Briefly discuss various approaches to competency mapping. (20)

4. What are the pre-requisites for introducing Human Resource Information System (HRIS) in an organisation ? How is HRIS advantageous over manual system ? Discuss how it can be made more effective and useful. (20)

5. Write short notes on any three of the following : (20)(i) Career Planning(ii) Coping with dislocation(iii) Executive Search(iv) Steps in Job Analysis Process(v) Induction Training

SECTION C

6. Read the case given below and answer the questions given at the end of the case. (40)

Pearl Engineering Company was a large heavy-engineering unit. It attached great importance to the recruitment and training of its senior supervisors. Apart from selecting

them from within the organization, the company recruited, every. alternate year, about ten young engineering graduates and offered them training for a period of two years, before they were appointed as senior supervisors. Such appointments wete made to about 40 per cent of the vacancies of senior supervisors that occurred in the organization. This was considered necessary by management as a planned programme of imparting vitality to the organization. Besides, many of the old-timers, who had risen from the ranks, did not possess the necessary academic background with the result that they could not keep pace with the technological changes. Management also believed that in the rapidly changing conditions of industry, a bank of technically competent supervisors played a pivotal role, besides serving as a pool from which to select future departmental managers.

Engineering Graduates were selected from amongst those who applied in response to an all-India advertisement. For the selection of one engineer, on an average, eight applicants were called for interview. A selection conmittee consisting of the General Manager, the Production Manager, the Personnel Manager and the Training Officer interviewed and selected the candidates. The selection interview was preceded by a written test and only those who secured 40 per cent marks qualified for interview.

The engineers thus selected had to undergo a two year intensive theoretical and practical training. A well-staffed and equipped Training Institute was directly responsible for the training of the graduate engineers, besides training trade apprentices and operatives required by the company. Lectures on theoretical subjects were given at the Training Institute and practical training was imparted in all the works departments under the guidance of qualified and experienced instructors. A few lectures by senior officers of the company were also arranged to acquaint them with the company policies on different matters. During the last quarter of their two-year training programme they were deputed to work fulltime to familiarize themselves with the conditions in departments where they were to be absorbed eventually.

On successful completion of training, the graduate engineers were offered appointments, depending on their performance and aptitude as revealed during training. On placement in the work departments, however, most of them faced some difficulty or the other.

According to management, some of the heads of departments, who were themselves not qualified engineers, did not have sufficient confidence in these younger men. They preferred the subordinates who came up from the ranks to hold positions of responsibility. A few discredited them saying that it would take years before these youngsters could pick up the job. Besides, some of the employees, whose promotional opportunities were adversely affected by the placement of graduate engineers, tried their best to run down the latter as a class, sometimes working on the group feelings of the workers. Some of the supervisors who were not graduate engineers also spoke derisively of them as "the blue-eyed boys" of the organization. Management knew that many of the graduate engineers were not utilized according to their capacity or training, nor was any attempt made to test or develop their potentialities. They also knew that many of the graduate engineers were, therefore, dissatisfied with their work life. Some of them who did not get equal promotional opportunities as their colleagues placed in other departments, were looking for better jobs elsewhere.

On the other hand, according to management, the young graduate engineers were themselves partly responsible for the hostile attitude of others in the organization. Some of them failed to appreciate that a newcomer invited hostility in the beginning and it took time before he was accepted as a member of the work-group. They did not realize that they would be fully productive only after gaining about five to seven years experience in the organization. A few thought that they belonged to a superior cadre and threw their weight around. They did not bother to understand and appreciate the problems of the rank-and-file of employees who worked under them.

In spite of these drawback, the General Manager of the company felt that these men were a set of disciplined supervisors. They had a sense of pride in their profession, and with the extensive training they had received, they would be able to take up any responsiblep osition in ihe organization in course of time.

The General Manager could not allow the situation to continue especially when it was a difficult and costly process to recruit and train young engineering graduates of the requisite type and calibre. He knew that the prosperity of the company, to a large extent, depended on these young men. In addition, a large number of lucrative employment opportunities were available to these young engineers elsewhere and there was a systematic raid on them, He, therefore, called a meeting of all heads of departments to review the situation.

Questions:

(i) Identjfy the issues related to manpower planning as evident in the case.

(ii) Discuss the strategies to tackle the percentage of internal promotion at the organizational level.

(iii)What type of additional training programmes should be imparted for direct entrants ?

(iv) Suppose you are the head of the personnel division. What would be your suggestions in the meeting. which has been called by the General Manager ?

. Define Human Resource Planning. How do quantitative and qualitative dimensions regulate the supply of human resources? Explain with suitable examples.

2. In the current business scenario, when boundaryless jobs are being conceptualised, how relevant is the concept of Job description and Job Analysis in HRM ? Critically analyse.

3. Why should personnel data be computerised? Does it help any way in decision-making process in an organisational setup ? Explain with suitable examples.

4. How can Performance Appraisal, and Training and Development be made integral parts of Human Resouce Planning. Explain with examples.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :(a) Human Resource Audit(b) Labour Force Participation(c) Job Evaluation(d) Migration of Workforce(e) Human Resource Costs

SECTION B

1. What are forecasting techniques? Discuss the role of HRP professionals in effectively implementlng various HR Programmes to address anticipated problems. Explain with examples.

2. Define Roles and discuss its types. Explain approaches and factors contributing to changing roles in organizations.

3. Discuss various objectives of Performance Appraisal. Explain methods of Performance Appraisal.

4. What are the main causes of job dislocation? Discuss the strategies to deal with dislocated employees. Explain with examples.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following:(a) H.R. Inventory(b) Transformation at the workplace(c) Design of Job Description(d) Orientation check list(e) Human Resource Accounting

SECTION C

6. Read the case given below and answer the questions given at the end.

Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali were working in a scooter manufacturing public sector industry as Senior Quality Control Engineers in 1988. One post of Deputy Chief Quality Controller has fallen vacant due to the retirement of the incumbent and the management decided to recruit a qualified, knowledgeable and experienced professional from outside so that the present quality standard may be improved thus ensuring better marketability of their scooters in the face of stiff competition. Mr. Kapil Kumar, who was a mechanical enginer with about 15 years experience in the Quality Control Department dealing with mopeds and scooters, could have been promoted to fill the post on the basis of seniority. However, the management was looking for a graduate in statistics with experience in latest Quality Control (QC) techniques like statistical quality control, quality assurance and other related areas rather than a mechanical or automobile engineer with the routine experience in quality control. As such instead of promoting Kapil Kumar, the management advertised for the post of Deputy Chtef Quality Controller - since as per company rules it was DR (Direct Recruitment) vacancy also.

Selection of Outsider

Out of the applications received in response to the advertisement, six candidates were called for interview including the two internal candidates, Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali. The person selected was an outsider, one Mr. Ratnam, who had over 12 years experience SQC, quality assurance etc., in the two-wheeler private manufacturing industry. Mr. Ratnam joined within 2 months time expeding that in his new position he would be the main controller for quality. However, after joining the organisation he came to know that he would be the second seniormost person in the hierarchy for controlling the quality and would be reporting to one, Kirpal Sing,. the Chief for Quality Controls. Mr. Kirpal Singh had come up to this post by seniority and was basically a diploma holder in automobile engineering. He had to his credit about 28 years of industrial experience, out of which 20 years were spent in Quality Control Department of two industries. He Joined the present organisation in its Quality Control Department and had 17 years experience in the organisation and was due for retirement within the next 2 or 3 years. On learning about the retirement time of Mr. Kirpal Singh, Mt. Ratnam had the consolation that he would be able to take up the position of 'Chief Controller of Quality' very soon.

Interference from Top

Ratnam could not put forth many good suggestions (for quality control) because of the interference and direct supervision of Kirpal Singh. He, however, could pick up a good deal of knowledge about the working of the company, the nature-and tendency of different production department heads particularly with regard to care for quality, organization for 'QC' in the company, the various components required for assembly of

the company's two-wheeler scooter and the expected quality standards, drawback in the present system of quality controls. etc.

Right from the time the advertisement for the selection of Deputy Chief Quality Controller appeared, the O.A. (Officers Association) of the organization had been pressing the management to consider the case of Kapil Kumar for promotion to the above post based on his seniority in the organisation.

Meanwhile, the management obtained a licence in 1989 for producing Three-Wheeler Autos. As a result of this and the pressure from O.A., Ratnam was transferred to look after the Quality Control Department at the company's new Three-Wheeler plant, whereas Kapil Kumar was promoted as Deputy Chief Quality Controller in the present two-wheeler scooter plant in 1990 (after creating one additional post of Deputy Chief Quality Controller for the new Project).

In 1991, the State Govemment, which controlled the company in question, changed the Managing Director. During the regime of this new Managing Director, Kapil Kumar was promoted as Chief (Quality Controls) next year, when Kirpal Singh retired. This decision was based on the recommendations of Kirpal Singh and partly attributed to pressure from O.A., for further promotion of Kapil Kumar based on his vast experience in the Quality Control function of this industry. Abbas Ali rose to the position held earlier by Kapil Kumar.

Allotment of Company Quarters

The Company had its own township near the factory. Its quarter allotment scheme was based on the length of service, i.e., date of joining. Ratnam had asked for a suitable quarter at the time of interview and was thus allotted a tile quarter meant for the Senior Engineer's cadre. He learnt about this, after occupying the quarter. Ratnarn asked foy a change of Quarter - preferably a RCC-roof quarter, - but his request was turned down, since he had put in only few months of service whereas many others senior to him, on the beds of their longer length of service in the Company (having over 10 years service), were staying in tiled-roof quarters and were awaiting a chance for a RCC-roof quarter. Kapil Kumar and Abbas Ali were residing in RCC-roof quarters. Soon after Kapil Kumar's promotion to the post of Chief (Quality Controls), he was allotted a bungalow.

The management's decision in this case must be viewed in the contesxt of the downtrend in the demand for scooters and three-wheeler autos during 1993 following complaints from dealers about the deteriorating quality of components as also their short life. Notably the complaints had risen ten-fold in that year as compared to that in 1988.

Questions

(a) Identify the major issues of the case.

(b) Was the management justified in taking a decision to recruit a qualified and experienced person from outside as Deputy Chief Quality Controller ?

(c) Was it in the interest of the organisation to transfer Ratnam to the new auto wheeler plant and promote Kapil Kumar ? Justify your answer.

(d) How would you react to the management's scheme for quarter allotment ?

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Job analysis is primary tool in personnel management. In this method, a personnel manager tries to gather, synthesize and implement the information available regarding the workforce in the concern. A personnel manager has to undertake job analysis so as to put right man on right job.

There are two outcomes of job analysis :

1. Job description 2. Job specification

The information collected under job analysis is :

1. Nature of jobs required in a concern. 2. Nature/ size of organizational structure. 3. Type of people required to fit that structure. 4. The relationship of the job with other jobs in the concern. 5. Kind of qualifications and academic background required for jobs. 6. Provision of physical condition to support the activities of the concern. For example- separate cabins for

managers, special cabins for the supervisors, healthy condition for workers, adequate store room for store keeper.

Advantages of Job Analysis

1. Job analysis helps the personnel manager at the time of recruitment and selection of right man on right job.

2. It helps him to understand extent and scope of training required in that field. 3. It helps in evaluating the job in which the worth of the job has to be evaluated. 4. In those instances where smooth work force is required in concern. 5. When he has to avoid overlapping of authority- responsibility relationship so that distortion in chain of

command doesn’t exist. 6. It also helps to chalk out the compensation plans for the employees. 7. It also helps the personnel manager to undertake performance appraisal effectively in a concern.

A personnel manger carries analysis in two ways :

a. Job description b. Job specification

1. JOB DESCRIPTION is an organized factual statement of job contents in the form of duties and responsibilities of a specific job. The preparation of job description is very important before a vacancy is advertised. It tells in brief the nature and type of job. This type of document is descriptive in nature and it constitutes all those facts which are related to a job such as :

1. Title/ Designation of job and location in the concern. 2. The nature of duties and operations to be performed in that job. 3. The nature of authority- responsibility relationships. 4. Necessary qualifications that are required for job. 5. Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern. 6. The provision of physical and working condition or the work environment required in

performance of that job.

Advantages of Job Description

7. It helps the supervisors in assigning work to the subordinates so that he can guide and monitor their performances.

8. It helps in recruitment and selection procedures. 9. It assists in manpower planning. 10. It is also helpful in performance appraisal. 11. It is helpful in job evaluation in order to decide about rate of remuneration for a specific job. 12. It also helps in chalking out training and development programmes.

2. JOB SPECIFICATION is a statement which tells us minimum acceptable human qualities which helps to perform a job. Job specification translates the job description into human qualifications so that a job can be performed in a better manner. Job specification helps in hiring an appropriate person for an appropriate position. The contents are :

1. Job title and designation 2. Educational qualifications for that title 3. Physical and other related attributes 4. Physique and mental health 5. Special attributes and abilities 6. Maturity and dependability 7. Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern.

Advantages of Job Specification

8. It is helpful in preliminary screening in the selection procedure. 9. It helps in giving due justification to each job. 10. It also helps in designing training and development programmes. 11. It helps the supervisors for counseling and monitoring performance of employees. 12. It helps in job evaluation. 13. It helps the management to take decisions regarding promotion, transfers and giving extra

benefits to the employees.

From the above advantages, we can justify the importance of job analysis and it’s related products. Both job description as well as job specification are important for personnel manager in personnel management function. Therefore, job analysis is considered to be the primary tool of personnel management.

Job Evaluation

Job evaluation is a process of determining the relative worth of a job. It is a process which is helpful even for framing compensation plans by the personnel manager. Job evaluation as a process is advantageous to a company in many ways:

1. Reduction in inequalities in salary structure - It is found that people and their motivation is dependent upon how well they are being paid. Therefore the main objective of job evaluation is to have external and internal consistency in salary structure so that inequalities in salaries are reduced.

2. Specialization - Because of division of labour and thereby specialization, a large number of enterprises have got hundred jobs and many employees to perform them. Therefore, an attempt should be made to define a job and thereby fix salaries for it. This is possible only through job evaluation.

3. Helps in selection of employees - The job evaluation information can be helpful at the time of selection of candidates. The factors that are determined for job evaluation can be taken into account while selecting the employees.

4. Harmonious relationship between employees and manager - Through job evaluation, harmonious and congenial relations can be maintained between employees and management, so that all kinds of salaries controversies can be minimized.

5. Standardization - The process of determining the salary differentials for different jobs become standardized through job evaluation. This helps in bringing uniformity into salary structure.

6. Relevance of new jobs - Through job evaluation, one can understand the relative value of new jobs in a concern.

According to Kimball and Kimball,“ Job evaluation represents an effort to determine the relative value of every job in a plant and to determine what the fair basic wage for such a job should be.”

Thus, job evaluation is different from performance appraisal. In job evaluation, worth of a job is calculated while in performance appraisal, the worth of employee is rated.

Elements of Personnel Management

Following are the elements of Personnel Management:

1. Organization- Organization is said to be the framework of many activities taking place in view of goals available in a concern. An organization can be called as a physical framework of various interrelated activities. Right from manpower planning to employees’ maintainance, all activities take place within this framework. The nature of the organization is dependent upon it’s goal. The business concern goal being profit- making. Clubs, hospitals, schools,etc. their goal being service. The objective of consultancy being providing sound advice. Therefore, it is organizational structure on which the achievement of goals of an enterprise depends upon. In personnel management, a manager has therefore to understand the importance of organizational structure.

2. Job- The second element, i.e., jobs tell us the activities to be performed in the organization. It is said that the goals of an enterprise can be achieved only through the functional department in it. Therefore, seeing the size of organization today, the nature of activities are changing. In addition to the three primary departments, personnel and research department are new additions. Various types of jobs available are :

a. Physical jobs b. Creative jobs c. Proficiency jobs d. Intellectual jobs e. Consultancy jobs f. Technical jobs

3. People- The last and foremost element in personnel management is people. In a organizational structure, where the main aim is to achieve the goals, the presence of manpower becomes vital. Therefore, in order to achieve departmental goals, different kinds of people with different skills are appointed. People form the most important element because :

a. The organizational structure is meaningless without it. b. It helps to achieve the goals of the enterprise. c. It helps in manning the functional areas. d. It helps in achieving the functional departmental goals. e. They make a concern operational. f. They give life to a physical organization.

The different types of people which are generally required in a concern are :

g. Physically fit people h. Creative people i. Intellectuals j. Technical people k. Proficient and skilled people

In personnel management, a personnel manager has to understand the relationship of the three elements and their importance in organization. He has to understand basically three relationships:-

i. Relationship between organization and job ii. Relationship between job and people

iii. Relationship between people and organization.

Relationship between organization and job helps making a job effective and significant. Relationship between job and people makes the job itself important. Relationship between people and organization gives due importance to organizational structure and the role of people in it.

Performance Appraisal Tools and TechniquesFollowing are the tools used by the organizations for Performance Appraisals of their employees.

1. Ranking 2. Paired Comparison 3. Forced Distribution 4. Confidential Report 5. Essay Evaluation 6. Critical Incident 7. Checklists 8. Graphic Rating Scale 9. BARS 10. Forced Choice Method 11. MBO 12. Field Review Technique 13. Performance Test

We will be discussing the important performance appraisal tools and techniques in detail.

1. Ranking Method

The ranking system requires the rater to rank his subordinates on overall performance. This consists in simply putting a man in a rank order. Under this method, the ranking of an employee in a work group is done against that of another employee. The relative position of each employee is tested in terms of his numerical rank. It may also be done by ranking a person on his job performance against another member of the competitive group.

Advantages of Ranking Method

i. Employees are ranked according to their performance levels. ii. It is easier to rank the best and the worst employee.

Limitations of Ranking Method

iii. The “whole man” is compared with another “whole man” in this method. In practice, it is very difficult to compare individuals possessing various individual traits.

iv. This method speaks only of the position where an employee stands in his group. It does not test anything about how much better or how much worse an employee is when compared to another employee.

v. When a large number of employees are working, ranking of individuals become a difficult issue.

vi. There is no systematic procedure for ranking individuals in the organization. The ranking system does not eliminate the possibility of snap judgements.

2. Forced Distribution method

This is a ranking technique where raters are required to allocate a certain percentage of rates to certain categories (eg: superior, above average, average) or percentiles (eg: top 10 percent, bottom 20 percent etc). Both the number of categories and percentage of employees to be allotted to each category are a function of performance appraisal design and format. The workers of outstanding merit may be placed at top 10 percent of the scale, the rest may be placed as 20 % good, 40 % outstanding, 20 % fair and 10 % fair.

Advantages of Forced Distribution

i. This method tends to eliminate raters bias ii. By forcing the distribution according to pre-determined percentages, the problem of making

use of different raters with different scales is avoided.

Limitations of Forced Distribution

iii. The limitation of using this method in salary administration, however, is that it may lead low morale, low productivity and high absenteeism.

Employees who feel that they are productive, but find themselves in lower grade(than expected) feel frustrated and exhibit over a period of time reluctance to work.

3. Critical Incident techniques

Under this method, the manager prepares lists of statements of very effective and ineffective behaviour of an employee. These critical incidents or events represent the outstanding or poor behaviour of employees or the job. The manager maintains logs of each employee, whereby he periodically records critical incidents of the workers behaviour. At the end of the rating period, these recorded critical incidents are used in the evaluation of the worker’s performance. Example of a good critical incident of a Customer Relations Officer is : March 12 - The Officer patiently attended to a customers complaint. He was very polite and prompt in attending the customers problem.

Advantages of Critical Incident techniques

i. This method provides an objective basis for conducting a thorough discussion of an employees performance.

ii. This method avoids recency bias (most recent incidents are too much emphasized)

Limitations of Critical Incident techniques

iii. Negative incidents may be more noticeable than positive incidents. iv. The supervisors have a tendency to unload a series of complaints about the incidents during

an annual performance review sessions. v. It results in very close supervision which may not be liked by an employee. vi. The recording of incidents may be a chore for the manager concerned, who may be too busy

or may forget to do it.

4. Checklists and Weighted Checklists

In this system, a large number of statements that describe a specific job are given. Each statement has a weight or scale value attached to it. While rating an employee the supervisor checks all those statements that most closely describe the behaviour of the individual under assessment. The rating

sheet is then scored by averaging the weights of all the statements checked by the rater. A checklist is constructed for each job by having persons who are quite familiar with the jobs. These statements are then categorized by the judges and weights are assigned to the statements in accordance with the value attached by the judges.

Advantages of Checklists and Weighted Checklists

i. Most frequently used method in evaluation of the employees performance.

Limitations of Checklists and Weighted Checklists

ii. This method is very expensive and time consuming iii. Rater may be biased in distinguishing the positive and negative questions. iv. It becomes difficult for the manager to assemble, analyze and weigh a number of statements

about the employees characteristics, contributions and behaviours.

Types of RecruitmentRecruitment is of 2 types

1. Internal Recruitment - is a recruitment which takes place within the concern or organization. Internal sources of recruitment are readily available to an organization. Internal sources are primarily three - Transfers, promotions and Re-employment of ex-employees. Re-employment of ex-employees is one of the internal sources of recruitment in which employees can be invited and appointed to fill vacancies in the concern. There are situations when ex-employees provide unsolicited applications also.

Internal recruitment may lead to increase in employee’s productivity as their motivation level increases. It also saves time, money and efforts. But a drawback of internal recruitment is that it refrains the organization from new blood. Also, not all the manpower requirements can be met through internal recruitment. Hiring from outside has to be done.

Internal sources are primarily 3

a. Transfers b. Promotions (through Internal Job Postings) and c. Re-employment of ex-employees - Re-employment of ex-employees is one of the internal sources of

recruitment in which employees can be invited and appointed to fill vacancies in the concern. There are situations when ex-employees provide unsolicited applications also.

2. External Recruitment - External sources of recruitment have to be solicited from outside the organization. External sources are external to a concern. But it involves lot of time and money. The external sources of recruitment include - Employment at factory gate, advertisements, employment exchanges, employment agencies, educational institutes, labour contractors, recommendations etc.

a. Employment at Factory Level - This a source of external recruitment in which the applications for vacancies are presented on bulletin boards outside the Factory or at the Gate. This kind of recruitment is applicable generally where factory workers are to be appointed. There are people who keep on soliciting jobs from one place to another. These applicants are called as unsolicited applicants. These types of workers apply on their own for their job. For this kind of recruitment workers have a tendency to shift from one factory to another and therefore they are called as “badli” workers.

b. Advertisement - It is an external source which has got an important place in recruitment procedure. The biggest advantage of advertisement is that it covers a wide area of market and scattered applicants can get information from advertisements. Medium used is Newspapers and Television.

c. Employment Exchanges - There are certain Employment exchanges which are run by government. Most of the government undertakings and concerns employ people through such exchanges. Now-a-days recruitment in government agencies has become compulsory through employment exchange.

d. Employment Agencies - There are certain professional organizations which look towards recruitment and employment of people, i.e. these private agencies run by private individuals supply required manpower to needy concerns.

e. Educational Institutions - There are certain professional Institutions which serves as an external source for recruiting fresh graduates from these institutes. This kind of recruitment done through such educational institutions, is called as Campus Recruitment. They have special recruitment cells which helps in providing jobs to fresh candidates.

f. Recommendations - There are certain people who have experience in a particular area. They enjoy goodwill and a stand in the company. There are certain vacancies which are filled by recommendations of such people. The biggest drawback of this source is that the company has to rely totally on such people which can later on prove to be inefficient.

g. Labour Contractors - These are the specialist people who supply manpower to the Factory or Manufacturing plants. Through these contractors, workers are appointed on contract basis, i.e. for a particular time period. Under conditions when these contractors leave the organization, such people who are appointed have to also leave the concern.

Orientation and Placement

Once the candidates are selected for the required job, they have to be fitted as per the qualifications. Placement is said to be the process of fitting the selected person at the right job or place, i.e. fitting square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. Once he is fitted into the job, he is given the activities he has to perform and also told about his duties. The freshly appointed candidates are then given orientation in order to familiarize and introduce the company to him. Generally the information given during the orientation programme includes-

Employee’s layout

Type of organizational structure

Departmental goals

Organizational layout

General rules and regulations

Standing Orders

Grievance system or procedure

In short, during Orientation employees are made aware about the mission and vision of the organization, the nature of operation of the organization, policies and programmes of the organization.

The main aim of conducting Orientation is to build up confidence, morale and trust of the employee in the new organization, so that he becomes a productive and an efficient employee of the organization and contributes to the organizational success.

The nature of Orientation program varies with the organizational size, i.e., smaller the organization the more informal is the Orientation and larger the organization more formalized is the Orientation programme.

Proper Placement of employees will lower the chances of employee’s absenteeism. The employees will be more satisfied and contended with their work.

Training of Employees - Need and Importance of TrainingTraining of employees takes place after orientation takes place. Training is the process of enhancing the skills, capabilities and knowledge of employees for doing a particular job. Training process moulds the thinking of employees and leads to quality performance of employees. It is continuous and never ending in nature.

Importance of Training

Training is crucial for organizational development and success. It is fruitful to both employers and employees of an organization. An employee will become more efficient and productive if he is trained well.

Training is given on four basic grounds:

1. New candidates who join an organization are given training. This training familiarize them with the organizational mission, vision, rules and regulations and the working conditions.

2. The existing employees are trained to refresh and enhance their knowledge. 3. If any updations and amendments take place in technology, training is given to cope up with those

changes. For instance, purchasing a new equipment, changes in technique of production, computer implantment. The employees are trained about use of new equipments and work methods.

4. When promotion and career growth becomes important. Training is given so that employees are prepared to share the responsibilities of the higher level job.

The benefits of training can be summed up as:

1. Improves morale of employees- Training helps the employee to get job security and job satisfaction. The more satisfied the employee is and the greater is his morale, the more he will contribute to organizational success and the lesser will be employee absenteeism and turnover.

2. Less supervision- A well trained employee will be well acquainted with the job and will need less of supervision. Thus, there will be less wastage of time and efforts.

3. Fewer accidents- Errors are likely to occur if the employees lack knowledge and skills required for doing a particular job. The more trained an employee is, the less are the chances of committing accidents in job and the more proficient the employee becomes.

4. Chances of promotion- Employees acquire skills and efficiency during training. They become more eligible for promotion. They become an asset for the organization.

5. Increased productivity- Training improves efficiency and productivity of employees. Well trained employees show both quantity and quality performance. There is less wastage of time, money and resources if employees are properly trained.

Ways/Methods of Training

Training is generally imparted in two ways:

1. On the job training- On the job training methods are those which are given to the employees within the everyday working of a concern. It is a simple and cost-effective training method. The inproficient as well as semi- proficient employees can be well trained by using such training method. The employees are trained in actual working scenario. The motto of such training is “learning by doing.” Instances of such on-job training methods are job-rotation, coaching, temporary promotions, etc.

2. Off the job training- Off the job training methods are those in which training is provided away from the actual working condition. It is generally used in case of new employees. Instances of off the job training methods are workshops, seminars, conferences, etc. Such method is costly and is effective if and only if large number of employees have to be trained within a short time period. Off the job training is also called as vestibule training,i.e., the employees are trained in a separate area( may be a hall, entrance, reception area,etc. known as a vestibule) where the actual working conditions are duplicated.

Staffing Function of ManagementThe managerial function of staffing involves manning the organization structure through proper and effective selection, appraisal and development of the personnels to fill the roles assigned to the employers/workforce.

According to Theo Haimann, “Staffing pertains to recruitment, selection, development and compensation of subordinates.”

Nature of Staffing Function

1. Staffing is an important managerial function- Staffing function is the most important mangerial act along with planning, organizing, directing and controlling. The operations of these four functions depend upon the manpower which is available through staffing function.

2. Staffing is a pervasive activity- As staffing function is carried out by all mangers and in all types of concerns where business activities are carried out.

3. Staffing is a continuous activity- This is because staffing function continues throughout the life of an organization due to the transfers and promotions that take place.

4. The basis of staffing function is efficient management of personnels- Human resources can be efficiently managed by a system or proper procedure, that is, recruitment, selection, placement, training and development, providing remuneration, etc.

5. Staffing helps in placing right men at the right job. It can be done effectively through proper recruitment procedures and then finally selecting the most suitable candidate as per the job requirements.

6. Staffing is performed by all managers depending upon the nature of business, size of the company, qualifications and skills of managers,etc. In small companies, the top management generally performs this function.In medium and small scale enterprise, it is performed especially by the personnel department of that concern.

Staffing Process - Steps involved in Staffing

1. Manpower requirements- The very first step in staffing is to plan the manpower inventory required by a concern in order to match them with the job requirements and demands. Therefore, it involves forecasting and determining the future manpower needs of the concern.

2.[1.] Recruitment- Once the requirements are notified, the concern invites and solicits applications according to the invitations made to the desirable candidates.

3.[2.] Selection- This is the screening step of staffing in which the solicited applications are screened out and suitable candidates are appointed as per the requirements.

4.[3.] Orientation and Placement- Once screening takes place, the appointed candidates are made familiar to the work units and work environment through the orientation programmes. placement takes place by putting right man on the right job.

5.[4.] Training and Development- Training is a part of incentives given to the workers in order to develop and grow them within the concern. Training is generally given according to the nature of activities and scope of expansion in it. Along with it, the workers are developed by providing them extra benefits of indepth knowledge of their functional areas. Development also includes giving them key and important jobsas a test or examination in order to analyse their performances.

6.[5.] Remuneration- It is a kind of compensation provided monetarily to the employees for their work performances. This is given according to the nature of job- skilled or unskilled, physical or mental, etc. Remuneration forms an important monetary incentive for the employees.

7.[6.] Performance Evaluation- In order to keep a track or record of the behaviour, attitudes as well as opinions of the workers towards their jobs. For this regular assessment is done to evaluate and supervise different work units in a concern. It is basically concerning to know the development cycle and growth patterns of the employeesin a concern.

8.[7.] Promotion and transfer- Promotion is said to be a non- monetary incentive in which the worker is shifted from a higher job demanding bigger responsibilities as well as shifting the workers and transferring them to different work units and branches of the same organization.