Recruitment, selection
and training of employees
Section 2.3 (Chapter 8)
Objectives
01 recruitment and selecting employees
02 the importance of training
03 methods of training
04 reasons for reducing the size of the workforce
05 legal controls over employment
Recruitment
and selecting
employees
The success of any business
depends on a number of factors.
One of the key factors to business
success is having the best
possible workforce.
internal recruitment external recruitment
When a business has a search outside the
job vacancy to fill it can business
look for someone in its
existing workforce
Internal recruitment
advantages disadvantages
The vacancy can be filled more quickly A better candidate may have been
and more cheaply. available from outside the business.
Applicants already know how the It could cause conflict within the
business works. workplace if other internal candidates
The business already knows the strengths feel they should have got the job.
and weaknesses of applicants. It does not bring in any new ideas.
Employees can become more motivated There will still be a vacancy to fill,
when they see that there is a chance of unless the employee's previous job has
promotion. become redundant.
External recruitment
advantages disadvantages
External applicants might bring new
It takes longer to fill the vacancy.
ideas and this can improve the
It is more expensive than internal
effectiveness and efficiency of the
recruitment because of advertising
business.
costs and the time spent interviewing
There will be a wider choice of applicants
candidates.
with different skills and experience.
External applicants will need
It avoids the risk of upsetting employees
induction training, which increases
when someone who is internal is
their expenses.
promoted.
Main stages in recruitment
and selection of employees
Job analysis
When a vacancy occurs, the human resource
department carries out a job analysis along
with the manager of the department where
the vacancy is. This is a process that
identifies the content of a job in terms of the
activities involved and the skills, experience
and other qualities needed to perform the
work. It also identifies the main job
requirements.
Job description
A job description is a written
document that provides all the
details about what a job involves.
A job description needs to include:
Job title - for example Sales and
Marketing Executive.
The main duties of the post - for
example plan and carry out
marketing activities to agreed
budgets and timescales.
Responsibilities -who the job holder
is responsible for
supervising/managing.
Accountability -who the job holder
reports to.
Person specification
A person specification is a
written document that is
usually produced by the
human resource department
with input from the relevant
manager. It is an analysis of
the type of qualifications,
skills, experience and personal
qualities the business is
looking for in applicants.
Advertising a job
Once the job description and
person specification have been
produced, the business needs to
advertise the vacancy.
If the job is to be filled using internal
recruitment, then the advertisement
could be placed on the staff
noticeboard, emailed to all staff, or
included in a workplace newsletter.
If external recruitment is being used,
then the advertisement could be
placed in local or national
newspapers and specialist magazines.
Sending out application
forms and job details
Once the job has been advertised then the
business will need to send out further details and
application forms to people who have shown an
interest in applying. Those who decide to apply
will complete and return an application form or
send a curriculum vitae - known as a CV -
whichever the employer requests.
A CV contains the person's name, address and other
contact details; the education and qualifications
obtained; a history of their employment; other skills and
experiences they have that might be relevant to the job;
hobbies and interests; and the name and contact details
of people who will provide references.
Receiving
applications and
shortlisting
applicants
The human resource department and
the manager of the department
where the vacancy exists will look
through all the applications. They will
compare the information on the
application forms and CVs with the
job description and the person
specification to produce a shortlist of
applicants for interview.
Interviewing
shortlisted candidates
Shortlisted candidates will be
invited to attend for interview. The
interview may just be a question and
answer session with one or two
people interviewing each candidate,
or there may be a panel of
interviewers. Usually the more senior
the position, the more people are
likely to be involved in the interview
process. Candidates may be asked to
complete tests.
Selecting the
right candidate
Following the interviews and the results of any
test, the interview panel will select who they
think is the best applicant for the job. They could
base their selection not only on the candidate's
performance in the interview and any tests they
have taken, but also on other factors such as
educational qualifications, the number of years
of relevant experience and skills gained, and
references from previous and current employers.
The applicant will receive a formal job offer in
writing, although they might first receive a
phone call offering them the job. Once they start
work, they will be given a contract of
employment and induction training
Benefits of part-time Limitations of part-time
A business can often attract well-qualified There will be an increase in induction and
employees - mainly women - who want to return training costs.
to work but need to have flexible working hours. There could be communication problems.
Offering a full-time employee the opportunity to The quality of service offered to customers may
work part-time can help a business to keep not be as good with part-time staff as it is with
experienced staff. full-time staff.
Part-time work provides greater flexibility.
The contract hours of part-time employees may
be flexible to allow for changes in demand.
There is some evidence to suggest that part-time
employees are more productive than full-time
employees. The disadvantages of employing part-
Employing two part-time employees instead of time employees are removed if full-time
one full-time employee often increases the skills employees are employed. In addition,
and experiences of the workforce. full-time employees are often more
Part-time employees do not need to take time off committed to the business and doing a
work for medical and dental appointments. good job because they are perhaps more
keen on gaining promotion than
parttime employees.
Why
employees
need training
The main benefits
of training
Trained production workers are more
efficient.
Management training improves the
quality of business decisions and reduces
the risk of costly mistakes.
Training helps employees to develop their
abilities and reach their potential. This
improves their motivation and morale.
It is easier to recruit new employees and
to keep existing employees.
Training can improve customer service.
Health and safety training helps to reduce
accidents.
A well-trained workforce improves a
business's competitiveness.
Methods of
training
01 induction
02 on-the-job
03 off-the-job
Induction training
Induction training is a training when they start a new job.
Induction training introduces the new employee to:
their work colleagues
the organisation structure and their role and responsibilities
within the structure
the health and safety procedures in the workplace
the facilities available to employees,
The main benefit of induction training for the The main limitation of induction training is that it
employee is that they quickly feel part of the increases business costs and, during the period of
business. This brings a benefit to the business induction training, employees are not adding to
because employees who are settled are more output but are receiving their wage or salary.
likely to perform their tasks more effectively from
the start of their employment.
On-the-job training involves the employee learning the skills they need to
complete tasks in the workplace. They will often sit with an experienced
employee and watch how they perform the task. They will then complete the
task under the guidance of the experienced employee.
Advantages Disadvantages
It is relatively cheap. Employees might pick up any of the experienced
Employees learn the way that the business wants employee's bad habits.
the job done. Employees might not learn the most up-to-date
Employees are producing output while training. methods.
Employees make more mistakes when learning
and this increases waste.
It slows down the production of the experienced
employee.
Off-the-job training
Off-the-job training takes place away from
the workplace. This might be at the
company's own training facility, or attending
courses offered by specialist training
companies, or at local colleges and
universities.
Advantages Disadvantages
Employees learn the latest It can be expensive, especially
methods and techniques. when the training is provided
It does not disrupt the by a private training provider.
production of other employees. The employee does not
produce any output during
training.
Resignation
Resignation means that an
employee may decide to leave
their job voluntarily; for example
they leave to go and work for
another employer. There may be
several reasons for this such as
promotion, better pay, shorter
working hours or the new
workplace is closer to home so
easier to get to.
Retirement
In some countries, employees
must leave their job when
they reach retirement age.
Other countries do not have a
compulsory retirement age.
In these countries employees
can work to any age.
Redundancy Dismissal
Redundancy describes a situation An employer may dismiss an employee from
where the job that an employee their job for one of two reasons:
does is no longer needed. Incompetence -the employee does not
perform their task to the required standard.
Poor conduct -the employee breaks the
Redundancy and dismissal are both rules; for example they are often late for
decisions that are made by the work, or put themselves and other
employer. They both result in an employees in danger by ignoring health
employee no longer having a job. and safety procedures.
However, with redundancy the job loss
is not the employee's fault, but if they
are dismissed then it is their fault.
Reasons for downsizing
the workforce
There may be a fall in demand for the
product the employee produces.
The business may introduce new
technology which automates tasks that
employees currently do.
The business may no longer need these
employees. The business may relocate
some distance from its current site,
perhaps to another country.
Deciding which
employees to recruit
or make redundant
How productive
employees are.
How often employees have
been late or absent from
work in the past year.
How old an employee is.
Legal controls over
employment issues
Contract of employment
In most countries it is a legal requirement that employees are given a
written contract of employment. This is a legally binding agreement
between the employer and the employee and will include details such as: A contract of employment has
the name of the employer benefits to both the employer
the name of the employee and the employee. It removes
the date of commencement of employment any misunderstanding that
the amount the employee will be paid could arise over issues such as
the number of hours the employee is expected to work hours of work, rate of pay and
the job title and main responsibilities of the employee holidays.
the number of days of holiday they will receive
the period of time the employee has to give the employer if they wish
to leave their employment -this is known as the 'period of notice'
the grievance and disciplinary procedures and where employees can
find information about these.
Discrimination
Many countries also have laws that prevent
employers from discrimination when recruiting
new employees, or in how they treat
employees who are in their employment. Laws
to prevent discrimination on the grounds of
gender, race, colour, religion, disability and age
are the most common.
Unfair dismissal
In most countries the law will protect
employees and ensure that they are treated
fairly by their employer. This includes the
legal right not to be dismissed from their
job without good reason. If they are, then
this would be unfair dismissal.
Legal minimum wage
Some countries have introduced minimum wage laws
to prevent employers from exploiting employees by
paying very low wages. Minimum wage laws state that
an employee cannot be paid less than a certain rate
per hour. Minimum wage laws often increase business
costs. However, if employees receive a fair wage then
this could motivate them to work harder and increase
their productivity.
Health and safety
. Health and safety laws aim
to protect employees from
injury or physical discomfort.
Thank You!
"Recruitment is not just about
hiring skills, but about finding
people who share your values and
will fit into your company culture."
Richard Branson
