The unique thought patterns, behaviors and feelings that make an individual different from the other can be termed as Personality. The personality of every individual originates out of genetic heritage as well as his immediate surroundings, and remains constant all through their lives. This results in individual differences. Due to complexity in human nature arising out of the wide variety of experiences in life, the different personality types affect individual relation ships in an organization, and affect the organizational climate. However, though it is assumed that the personality of an individual is more or less constant, it does not happen so. It has been observed that though individual differences occur as a result of various styles of parenting and the amount of attention that one received in childhood grooming, individual successes and failures experienced in life, changes in individual personality do occur in the long run. Individuals are likely to Continue reading
Modern HRM
Reward System – Meaning, Objectives and Requirements
Reward is an objective way to describe the positive value an individual ascribes to an object, behavioral act or an internal physical state. Primary rewards include those that are necessary for the survival of species, such as food and successful aggression. Secondary rewards can be derived from primary rewards. Money is a common type of reward. Most of the times, organization rewards its staffs by pay increment or higher bonus. Money is the most direct and easiest way to reward the staff and create a sense of satisfaction. Nowadays, companies are making many modifications on their rewards system to adopt internal and external changes. Reward system is used as a critical tool for driving business growth and boosting staff morale. It is important to align the right measures and reward systems with firm’s structure and culture. However, the reward system is not emphasized when the operational system is designed. Finical Continue reading
Influence of Work-Life Balance Practices on Employees Retention
Before examining how work-life balance programs contribute to increased retention of employees, its better to examine some of the key reasons for employee turnover. It is widely acknowledged that conditions at the workplace affect job turnover. There are many reasons why employees quit because of conditions at the workplace such as long hours, conflict with colleagues and superiors, lack of appreciation shown by employers and unclear job descriptions. For example, long hours at work and increased work intensity both contribute to adverse physical and psychological conditions and lead to negative family functioning. Workplace stress can be caused by long working hours, excessive workloads, weekend duties, inadequate physical activity and an unhealthy lifestyle. All these lead to a reduction in the quality of health. When employees are severely overworked and excessively strained, they experience symptoms of fatigue, depression, musculo-skeletal pains, sleeping disorders and an increase in chronic diseases. When the situation Continue reading
Work-Life Balance – Definition, Significance and Importance
Work-life balance is a very broader term in Human Resource Management and often referred to finding the right equilibrium between the different aspects and roles in a life of a person. Although there are different views and concepts about work-life balance but it is generally coupled with maintaining an overall balance in different aspects of life. During the last decade technological revolution has stormed all aspects of life and there were different debates about the future of work. Different scenarios predicted a rising trend in un-employment and economic insecurity. Industrial restructuring and emergence of latest technology no only affected the importance of workforce but it was also felt that employees will be treated as superfluous overheads. History of Work-Life Balance In 1986, the term “Work-Life Balance” was first identified, but it’s usage in everyday language was still sporadic for a certain number of years. Although, interestingly work-life programs existed in Continue reading
Gender Wage Discrimination
The term wage discrimination can be explained as a difference in the wage levels offered to male workers and female workers for the same level of work they do. It occurs when an individual in a labor market suffers from a decreased wage level for the same job and performance. Gender wage differences seem to exist in many countries to some extent. Studies on wage differences shows that female/male earnings ratios are usually less than one, indicating that women usually earn less than men do. Depending upon the characteristics of their labor markets, factors producing wage differentials in those studies varied from race, gender, education, job status occupation, type of sector (public vs. private) to type of industry, among the others. Two major trends in the world have worked to widen the gender gap: increases in the pay premium associated with higher “skills” (i.e., higher levels of education and labor Continue reading
Work-Life Balance Programs – Cost or Investment?
Work-life balance programs are fast gaining popularity in developed countries. Work-life balance programs can be defined as any benefits, policies or programs that help employees find ways to manage the demands of the workplace and life outside work. In other words, work-life balance programs are designed as a two pronged approach to achieve meaningful achievement and enjoyment in everyday life. There are many forms of work-life balance programs such as flex-time, child-care facilities at work, gyms and concierge services and paid vacations. Many reasons are cited for the introduction of work-life balance programs at the workplace, the most common being that it increases productivity as well as employee loyalty. While these are all valid justifications, the costs of having work-life balance programs should not be ignored. Therefore, do the benefits of work-life balance programs outweigh the costs? Going further, should these programs be considered a cost or an investment to Continue reading