1.4.1 Approaches to Staffing

Flexible working

Where a business offers any type of contract which is outside of the normal full-time working contract.

Flexible workforce

A workforce that can respond, in quantity and type, to changes in market demand.

Multis-skilling

🔗 Multis-skilling – Enhancing the skills of employees

• Quicker response to demand spikes or issues -> Employees trained in multiple aspects to help react quicker to changes in demand -> Higher customer satisfaction with immediacy -> Increased retention and brand loyalty -> Able to charge higher prices due to price inelastic demand -> Higher profits to reinvest into worker training
• Requirement for less employees -> Existing employees more versatile and skilled to carry out multiple job roles -> Higher productivity with lower costs -> HR economies of scale -> More cost competitive -> Increased market share and customer loyalty
• Cost of training workers -> Requires large investment -> Financial strain puts upward pressure on prices -> Reduced number of sales -> Fall in customer retention and market share
• Workers may not be adequately trained in roles (quantity over quality of skills) -> More jobs carried out at lower quality standard/less productive -> Lower customer satisfaction reducing brand loyalty or lower productivity reduces cost competitiveness

Part-time/temporary workers

Part-time

🔗 Where an employee works for limited hours.

• Likely to be minimum wage and a large supply of labour -> Many people willing to work part-time due to commitments (E.G Students) -> No requirement to pay higher wages to attract workers
• Employed during peak times to respond to demand spikes -> Quicker response to customer demands -> Higher customer satisfaction and improved product quality with workload distributed among more workers
• May not be available when required at peak times -> Other commitments of worker clash with working hours -> Uncertainty regarding employee's availability -> Customer satisfaction may fall with staff shortage

Temporary

🔗 Where the employee is not a permanent member of the workforce.

• Hired when required by the business (E.G Peak times) -> Funds and resources not wasted on idle workers -> All workers have a positive contribution to output and the workforce is responsive to changes in demand
• Don't require incentives or motivation as they are not a permanent member of the workforce -> Money can be spent elsewhere (E.G Worker training to improve skillsets)
• Dependence on temporary workers can result in an opportunity cost -> Workers constantly need teaching procedures -> Costs outweigh benefits -> Employing permanent workers cheaper and more productive

Flexible working hours and home working

Zero-hour contracts

🔗 When a business employs a person to work only when they are required.

• Hired by the business when required -> Able to respond to changes in product demand quickly -> Higher customer satisfaction and increased customer retention due to quality of service/product -> Increased brand loyalty -> Able to charge higher prices with price inelastic demand -> Higher profits to reinvest in workforce
• Lack of financial security for worker -> Uncertainty regarding working hours and inconsistent incomes -> Demotivation -> Bad PR for the business and fall in productivity from workers -> Fall in customer satisfaction, loyalty and retention -> Weaker brand with lower market share

Home worker

🔗 When an employee does not need to physically go to a business facility to work.

• Lower costs for business (E.G Less office space, heating and equipment required) -> Able to use the money saved elsewhere (E.G Product development, workforce training)
• Less absenteeism from transport delays (E.G bad weather) -> Ensures working hours are utilised effectively and output is maximised
• Difficult to monitor and supervise -> Worker may be making mistakes or working too slowly towards target -> Product quality lower and difficult to correct afterwards -> Increased costs in correction or fall in customer satisfaction if the product is sold without checking

Flexible hours

🔗 When an employee is allowed to work when they want as long as it is a certain amount of hours.

• Works around the convenience of staff -> more motivated to work with the personal choice of hours that suit them -> Higher productivity and quality of product/service -> Increased customer satisfaction and brand loyalty -> Able to raise prices from price inelastic demand -> Higher profits to reinvest
• Staff may work hours that suit them, but do not suit the business -> Business less responsiveness to demand spikes -> Lower customer satisfaction -> Fall in brand loyalty and market share -> Opportunity cost

Job sharing

🔗 Where multiple employees share the same job role

• Ensures productivity/customer service quality is maintained -> Worker rotation ensures business can respond to customer demands quicker-> Standards consistently met for customers -> Higher customer retention and brand loyalty -> Able to charge higher prices to price inelastic demand -> Higher profits to reinvest
• Lower staff retention -> Workers may be able to work more hours elsewhere and earn higher wages -> Less staff loyalty -> Cost of employing another working outweighs benefit from job sharing -> Opportunity cost

Outsourcing

🔗 Employing a third party to carry out a business job

• The business given the job is likely to be a specialist in the field required to complete the job - Higher quality and potentially more efficient job carried out -> Increased customer satisfaction -> Improved brand loyalty and market share from retention sales
• Loss of control -> Business is very reliant on third-party -> Delays or poor quality job disrupt entire process -> Costs incurred (E.G Machines left on, wages per hour) without any output in return -> Financial strain on business potentially burdened on the consumer with higher prices -> Fall in sales and customer loyalty -> Opportunity cost

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Dismissals and grievances

Reasons for dismissing staff

• Poor conduct.
• Lack of ability/competence.
• Legal issues.
• Competitive factor (E.G Business losing market share).
• Cutting costs.

3 methods of dismissing staff

Redundancy

🔗 Where an employee is given a statutory redundancy payment as they are no longer required by the business (E.G Idle worker)

Dismissals

🔗 Can be fair or unfair.

• Fair when an employee is sacked for a legitimate reason.
• Unfair when the dismissal is either constructive or wrongful

Constructive

🔗 When an employee resigns due to a breach of their contract.

Wrongful

🔗 When the correct dismissal procedure is not followed.

Termination by notice

🔗 Occurs when the short-term contract of an employee ends or when notice by either party is given to end the contract. The length of notice given is stated in the contract.

Grievances

🔗 An issue with the business, normally due to unfair treatment.

Grievance procedures are legal requirements for businesses set out for all employees. They cover:

• Who an employee can contact and how.
• Who to contact if the first person is involved.
• Explain the process including timings.
• Explain how to appeal a decision.

Examples of grievances

• Harassment.
• Slander (accusations).
• Bias.
• Discrimination.
• Too much work.

Collective bargaining

🔗 Where a group of employees get together to make sure they are being treated fairly in the workplace.

• Negotiation between union and employer to come to an agreement over improved working conditions. Can threaten industrial action with trade union in the form of strikes -> Disrupt production and force a response