EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

 

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Employee relations can make or break the workplace climate. In this article, we’ll take a look at the key pillars of employee relationship management, examples of employee relations gone wrong, and we’ll share some best practices.

What is Employee relations?

The term "employee relations" describes how employees engage with their employer or organisation. It covers every facet of the connection between an employer and an employee, including as communication, working conditions, compensation, and benefits, as well as performance management, workplace safety, and conflict resolution.

Successful employee relations strategies put a strong emphasis on encouraging an environment at work that supports both the objectives of the company and the requirements of its workers. This entails developing rules and practices that encourage trust, respect, and open communication between staff members and management. It also entails handling disagreements and grievances in a fair and timely manner.

A more engaged and motivated staff, higher productivity, and lower turnover rates can all be advantageous to both the individual employees and the organisation as a whole.

Vertical and Horizontal Employee Relations 

The terms "vertical and horizontal employee relations" may be bandied about like limbo dares at the most recent corporate party, but don't worry—you don't have to break your back to understand them. The two primary hierarchies in employee interactions are described by these phrases. A member of one or both of these groups will be involved in every employee relations issue and strategy.

• Vertical Employee Relations: This refers to relationships between an employee and his or her superiors (e.g.: executives, administration, and management).

• Horizontal Employee Relations: This phrase refers to any interactions between same-level coworkers, whether they are collaborating on a project or merely chit-chatting in the break room.

The relationship between an employer and their employees is referred to as employee relations. Managing and enhancing the relationship between employees and their employers is a crucial component of human resource management. Good HR practices can lower attrition rates, promote a healthy workplace culture, and boost employee engagement and productivity. We'll talk about the value of employee relations in HR and how businesses may enhance their employee relations procedures in this post.

Employee interactions are crucial to HR for a variety of reasons, one of which is that they contribute to a positive workplace culture. Employee motivation and engagement are more likely to be high when they feel appreciated and valued at work. Higher levels of productivity and increased job satisfaction may arise from this. Also, a supportive workplace environment can aid in lowering staff turnover rates, which can be expensive for businesses in terms of hiring and training costs.

Effective employee relations can also lessen friction in the workplace, which is a benefit. Workplace disagreements may have a detrimental effect on productivity and employee morale. By encouraging open communication between staff and management, establishing clear expectations and behavioral guidelines, and equipping staff with the tools and resources they need to resolve conflicts when they do arise, effective employee relations practices can help to prevent conflicts from arising in the first place.

Employee relations can also serve to guarantee adherence to rules and legislation governing the workplace. The laws and regulations that control the employment relationship, such as anti-discrimination laws, pay and hour laws, and health and safety requirements, must be thoroughly understood by HR experts. By ensuring that businesses follow these laws and regulations, effective employee relations procedures can help to avoid expensive legal conflicts and penalties.

Organisations should concentrate on creating efficient lines of communication between staff and management if they want to improve employee relations. Regular employee feedback surveys, one-on-one meetings between staff members and their managers, and open-door policies that encourage staff members to discuss their issues and suggestions with management are a few examples of how to do this.

Organisations should also spend money on training and development initiatives for their staff. Giving workers the knowledge and tools they need to do their jobs well can assist to boost employee engagement and job satisfaction. While workers are more likely to stay with an employer that invests in their professional growth, it can also help to increase employee retention rates.

Recognising and praising employee accomplishments is a crucial component of good employee relations. These can involve both formal systems of recognition, like employee of the month awards or incentives, as well as informal ones, such public commendations of a job well done. Fostering a positive workplace culture and boosting employee engagement and motivation can be accomplished through recognising and rewarding employee efforts.

In conclusion, employee relations are an important component of human resources that can have a big influence on how successful a firm is. A pleasant workplace culture, lower employee turnover rates, the prevention of workplace conflicts, compliance with employment rules and regulations, and increased employee engagement and productivity can all be achieved with the aid of effective employee relations techniques. Organisations can enhance their employee relations practices and produce a work environment that attracts and maintains top talent by investing in efficient communication channels, employee training and development programs, and recognition and incentive programs.

Employee relations examples

 

It is crucial to understand what "employee relations management gone awry" looks like as it was just explained that sustaining positive employee relations is essential to organisational effectiveness. These are some instances of the various concerns that could come up and how they ought to be handled. Employees might include:

• Take a lot of unscheduled time off from work.

• See sexually explicit content on the company's website.

• Speak to their supervisor with little to no respect.

• Engage in disputes with coworkers.

• They (always) arrive late to meetings.

• Constant gossip. 

• Personal hygiene issues that are a problem.

• Disobey safety regulations.

• Don't let management know what you are doing.

• Has inadequate problem-solving abilities.

 

• Users appear unreachable despite working from home. 

• Seems to be abusing drugs or alcohol. 

• Keep their desk or office untidy. 

• Address the workplace women using terms like "sweetie" and "darling."

These are obviously only a few examples of the many different ER challenges that businesses must deal with. But what they do show is that each problem involves one or more of the contractual, emotional, physical, or practical facets of the employee-employer relationship, or all of these components at once.

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Commonly Used Employee Relations Strategies

• Handling employee relations is a major task, especially for a department with plenty of staff and trained personnel. Here are some tried-and-true methods and suggestions for creating a happy, productive workplace.

• Promote teamwork and collaboration. There are several ways to encourage a cooperative and collaborative work atmosphere, including projects combining multiple departments, teams made up of a variety of personnel, regular team meetings, and scheduled communal lunch breaks.

• Ensure that all communications are clear, timely, and pertinent. Nobody wants to learn of a wave of layoffs via Twitter or a coworker, then have to wait a week for a corporation to issue a formal statement... promoting the new sales product. Make sure all communications are clear, concise, pertinent, and considerate of any potential employee issues. Encourage free communication amongst staff members and managers as well.

• Establish and share organisational goals. Being blind while working might be unsettling for an employee. While receiving invitations to company retreats with no clear purpose might be unpleasant, knowing what an employee is working toward can be motivating. Employees' loyalty and trust in the company's mission will increase if activities, plans, and projects are explained to them together with the motivations behind them.

• Put in place the right policies to lessen conflicts. A significant portion of employee relations is foreseeing issues and developing a plan to deal with them before they arise. Employees can benefit from anti-harassment policies that are clear and specific, including definitions, examples, and punishments. On the other side, a clear pay dispute method can aid in a swift and effective resolution of the conflict.

• React to any issue with promptness and thoroughness. Take the matter seriously whether it involves a claim of bullying, a request for a wage increase, or a complaint against corporate policy. It could be tough to win an employee's trust if you make them wait for a response or dismiss their worries. Also, it can harm the company's reputation.

• Provide employees the chance to leave comments. Employees are more likely to feel unhappy if they believe they are just another gear in the corporate machine with no control over what happens. Make an effort to schedule regular opportunities for employees to provide constructive feedback on the direction and policies of the organisation.

• Provide professional development and assistance on careers. Most employees will wish to start exploring for promotion prospects after a few years in the same role, whether at their present firm or elsewhere. The direction of employees toward internal advancements will be aided by a competent employee relations department. They will similarly regularly give all employees the chance to advance their careers.

• Honor special occasions and holidays. The list of occasions to celebrate includes birthdays, weddings, births, religious holidays, and nondenominational seasonal gatherings. Of course, there's no need to go above and beyond for every occasion, but simple gestures of appreciation, like a birthday cake or card, are lovely. Just make sure to get permission from the recipient first. Not everyone values the additional focus.

• Arrange social gatherings outside of work. You should be mindful to ask employees what they would like to do and avoid mandating any extracurricular activities because not all employees will desire to socialise with one another outside of work. Creating optional activities like kickball teams or happy hours and allowing those who are most interested to participate in the group is a solid strategy. By doing this, interest and community development can develop naturally rather than seeming like yet another company-mandated endeavor.

• Encourage all employees to maintain a good work-life balance. Workers who are routinely subjected to last-minute schedule changes, impossibly tight deadlines, workloads that necessitate overtime, or unpredictable hours won't want to stick around.

Although the aforementioned suggestions are effective ways to enhance employee relations, it's crucial to keep in mind that they are also general. Any organisation that has a successful approach to employee relations will have a plan that has been tailored to the organisation. Try out a few things to see what sticks, but don't be afraid to be flexible when it comes to changing policies and plans to remain open to employee demands and interests.

References:

Bratton, J., & Gold, J. (2017). Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.

Budhwar, P. S., & Debrah, Y. A. (Eds.). (2013). Human resource management in developing countries. Routledge.

Cooke, F. L. (2019). HRM and employee engagement: The state of the art. Routledge.

DeCenzo, D. A., & Robbins, S. P. (2016). Fundamentals of human resource management. Wiley.

Kramar, R. (2014). Beyond strategic human resource management: is sustainable human resource management the next approach?. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(8).