University Of Sunderland- London Campus

Ugb227 (Human Resource Management)

Module Leader: Muhammad Kamran

Student Name: Gideon Yusuf

Student I.D: 129159700

Date of Submission: 25/May/ 2015

Gideon Yusuf-129159700 Page 1

Contents
INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... 3
A. Safe-Care Housing Identified Issues and Evaluated ........................................................................ 3
1. Recruitment of More Staff .......................................................................................................... 4
2. Employee Reward ....................................................................................................................... 4
3. Training and Development.......................................................................................................... 5
4. Communications problems ......................................................................................................... 6
5. Flexibility ..................................................................................................................................... 6
6. Workforce Equality ..................................................................................................................... 6
7. HRM Policies and Procedures ..................................................................................................... 7
8. Travel Difficulties to Work ...................................................................................................... 7
9. Health and Safety ........................................................................................................................ 7
B. Employee Reward ........................................................................................................................... 8
Conclusion and Recommendation ...................................................................................................... 9
References ............................................................................................................................................ 10

Gideon Yusuf-129159700 Page 2

 Strategic HR Manager
Safe - care Housing Association
Newcastle
Chief Executive Officer
Safe - care Housing Association
Newcastle

REPORT: HUMAN RESOURCES ISSUES AND RECOMMENDATIONS

INTRODUCTION
This report is about safe-care housing association managing houses spread over the North-
East of England, with Newcastle based headquarters. It provides homes for older disabled
people who have been involved in an accident and are in need of a temporary home, with to-
tal staff strength of 148, made up of 40% males and 60% females. The association recent
growth from managing two houses to a larger number with varied staffs including the ones on
contract has thrown up challenges. This report looks at those challenges and suggests solu-
tions in two parts. Part A summarises all the HR challenges the association is facing while
part B gives a detailed insight into one of the challenges discussed in part A and the various
alternatives for addressing this particular issue with suggested solutions.

Boxall and Purcell (2010: 29) defined HRM as all the management of work and people in an
organisation. Managing people in this current era is extremely challenging and many organi-
sations have often failed to effectively and efficiently manage its people.

Recruitment is one of the most crucial element in any firm as it the foundation of people
resource. Safe-care needs more staff in every department of the organisation due to the ex-
pansion over the last 5 years. The capacity of staff strength when small number of houses was
being managed is obviously not enough with the current ten houses under the association.

A. Safe-Care Housing Identified Issues and Evaluated

HRM is very important to an organisation success, be it small or big. Finding and retaining
the right people for the right position, at the right time to do the right job is crucial. Watson
(2002) stated that managing people is a constant stress, figuring who to do a particular job,

Gideon Yusuf-129159700 Page 3

getting them to do the work and finish it in the most effective and efficient way is very daunt-
ing.

Managing people can be an enormous task, but if well managed and motivated by employers,
they tend to put in the much needed effort in making sure that organisations achieve its goal
and objectives. All HRM issues that arise can be resolved by conforming to the best HR prac-
tices and policies. HR issues of Safe- care housing include:

1. Recruitment of More Staff

CIPD (2015) define recruitment as the process of having the right person, at the right time
and place to carry out a task in the most beneficial way

Recruitment is very crucial to the success of safe-care housing and this recruitment needs to
be carried out in the, right manner to make sure that the best brains are recruited. Recruiting
the best brains can be very daunting, because it deals with a wider range of people and must
be in full conformity with the best HRM recruitment and selection practices. Foot, Hook
(2008), suggest that any firm that intend to recruit the best candidates will definitely need to
first of all implement the most appropriate procedures and policies that will influence both
the recruits and the organisation. This is not a standalone matter for Safe-care as it also re-
lates to the HR policies and procedures (See policies and procedures heading).

It is also important that organisations consider available resources at their disposal before re-
cruiting. Recruitment can be internal or external. However considering the fact that safe-care
housing is a small organisation and unpaid services have been the strong element permeating
the organisation, the best recruitment method will be the internal recruitment. This is consid-
ered to be less cost effective and enables organisations to retain the most talented employees
(Kbic.com, 2014). Although there has been a lot of criticism of the internal recruitment
method, as many still believe that it is very capable of entrenching any equality problems that
has existed within organisations. However, Foot and Hook (2008) suggested that businesses
need to consider adopting the internal recruitment method where it wants employees to con-
tribute and commit to the success of an organisation.

2. Employee Reward
The impact of Reward can never be over emphasised, a good and well implemented reward
management strategy attracts and increases retention of talented staff, whereas the opposite,
reduces overall performance and productivity.

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Armstrong (2012) defined reward management as the strategies, policies and procedures nec-
essary to ensure that the value of people and the contribution they make to the success of an
organisations goals and objectives are recognised and rewarded.

It should also be noted that reward is not just about employee benefits and financial remuner-
ation, but also non- financial reward such as training and development, awards and promo-
tions. As often said whatever is rewarded gets done instantly and mostly without delays

CIPD (2007: 33) in an uncertain environment where it is becoming extremely difficult for
firms to recruit and retain the best candidates, organisations will most certainly need to de-
velop a reward package that is appealing to employees, as much as it suits the firms own
needs. Contrary to this, where there is abundance of skills needed by employers, organisa-
tions reward packages tends to be unappealing.

Maslow (1943), created a hierarchy of need, in which he stated that people are motivated in
other to achieve certain need (See fig.1). It is very important that managers/employers under-
stand and apply these needs; the needs and attitudes of employees are ever-changing and
managers who understand and continually adapt to these changes are most likely to have a
workforce that is highly motivated and productive

Figure1. Maslow Hierarchy of Needs

Source: Pateo.com

3. Training and Development

Although training and development may be costly and time consuming, the benefits can nev-
er be over emphasised. When employees are adequately trained, it will normally build on
good performance and drastically reduce poor performance of safe-care employees.

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The poor quality nursing in safe care housing is as a result of inadequate training and devel-
opment of nurses. Stuart-Kotze and Dunn (2008) asserted that, there is definitely no shortage
of skilful people, but instead there is shortage of people who understand and know how to
identify, recruit, train and develop employees. Training and development is also capable of
determining an employee stay in a firm. A business that fails to train and develop employees
plans to fail

4. Communications problems
Every organisation requires a good and reliable communication to properly function.
Leiter and Bakker (2010: 1-2) suggest it is only when firms properly engage their employees
through effective communication, then can enthusiasm and high energy be expected from
them. Safe care employees complain about the rate of unreliable communication existing
within the organisation and this has a negative impact on the organisation. Employees always
want to be kept well informed to show commitment and Safe-care therefore has to engage its
workforce at all the time about almost everything within and about the organisation so as to
earn employee commitment to the goal and objectives of the organisation. Employees that are
engaged in their day-day work are most likely to be cheerful, relaxed and calm, positive-
minded, and enthusiastic than they are to experience in- positive emotions like depression.
(Trust et al. 2006)

5. Flexibility
The maintenance department staff are worried about the working arrangement of safe care,
most staff have to cancel their holidays in other to work long hours in making sure that all
maintenance queries are dealt with. Allowing employee flexible working, is profitable and
beneficial to both the employee and employer, when employees are allowed to work flexible
hours it increases productivity, efficiency, motivation, employee retention and reduces need
for overtime and absenteeism. In a recent survey conducted by Forbes (2014), it was discov-
ered that about 43% of the 800 respondents said they prefer flexible working hours over pay
raise, and also about one third said they will hastily change their employer if offered flexible
hours elsewhere. This means that organisations that fail to adapt to these new trends is most
likely lose some its best brains.

6. Workforce Equality
Safe- care housing workforce is currently made up 40% male and 60% females. Despite this
disparity, it is interesting to know that there more males in managerial positions whereas the
female majority are concentrated in the Auxiliary positions. According to Equality Act

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(2010), both men and women should be allowed to do the same work. For Safe-care, this is
another area of inter connectivity with the HR policy and recruitment. I suggest that the poli-
cy should reflect an internal recruitment for females whenever there is an opening for mana-
gerial roles e.g. females should be of priority.

A recent survey conducted by Guardian (2013) stated that nine out of ten respondents assert
that both women and men should be equally represented in leadership roles. Especially the
women because most often their talents and skills are not well utilized. Also, more men
should be employed to balance the workforce, to bridge the already existing gap; this will
have a positive impact on employee performance.

7. HRM Policies and Procedures

While autonomy given to managers of each house is beneficial to the overall performance of
safe-care housing, it is also very capable of increasing inconsistencies among each the care
homes and more importantly does not encourage goal congruence. Having policies and pro-
cedures that is consistent and centralised is very important. In this case, it will enhance Safe
managers focus on the overall firms objectives rather than their own individual unit. Also a
well-designed policies and procedures effectively reduce conflicts among staff on who to car-
ry out a task. Although safe cares policies and procedures will- be determined by the size
and the kind of work. Please also note that policy inter-relate to other section of this report as
highlighted

8. Travel Difficulties to Work

The distance between each safe-care house is something to be worried about. When safe-care
employees have to travel a long distance and spend a lot on transportation to workplace, there
are tendencies this may cause stress and in turn trigger seeking employment elsewhere and
render the firm incapable of assuring quality systems are upheld. Although there are ways by
which this issues can be properly resolved. The organisation can either provide a bus that will
commute employees at a particular time and designated drop off points or employees be giv-
en transport allowances. However, firms need to engage employees in decision making to
ascertain what options best suites them, because of tax implication attributable to transport
allowance

9. Health and Safety

Health and Safety at work Act (1974), emphatically makes it clear that employers have to
make sure that all employees work in safe and risks free environment and where safety is

Gideon Yusuf-129159700 Page 7

well controlled. They are fears that the care home might not pass the health and safety inspec-
tion test because of its failure to adequately address the maintenance queries, failing to
properly address these issues is very much possible of prompting workplace accidents and
damage, which in turn may lead to the suspension or withdrawal of safe-cares license.

ROSPA (2014), believes about 640,000 workplace injuries occur per annum as a result of
organisations failure to prevent it. Special emphasis on health and safety is considered to be
the key for achieving an organisation goal and objectives

B. Employee Reward
The world is fast changing; as well as the needs of employees and this has led to a significant
increase in the need for businesses to develop effective and efficient reward systems that is
appealing and not just appealing but capable of motivating and retaining employees.

CIPD (2015) defined reward as anything that generally covers financial provisions that is
made to employees, including cash pay and other benefit package like pension, paid leave
and can also include other provisions for employees.

Reward is very significant to every organisation not just safe-care be it small or big, this is
one of the most important and daunting decisions an HR manager has to take. The impact of
reward can never be overemphasised. Effective and efficient reward package increases em-
ployees performance, motivation, as well as organisations competitiveness.

Researchers over the years have studied the situation and have come up with the best
employee reward strategy. Gerhart (2009: 215-16) stated there has been a debate in the litera-
ture that pay is capable of improving, increasing job satisfaction and employee retention
to a proportionate degree. However White (2009: 35-9) argued good pay rates is important,
there are other elements that will determine an employees stay in a job. Although good pay
rates is capable of increasing job satisfaction, but it is most likely to have an adverse effect
when there are other elements making an employee to quit the job. Machington and Wil-
kinson (2012: 372) suggest that the extent to which organisations use remuneration as a stra-
tegic tool is very open to doubt. Organisations like safe-care often assess and reassess only a
single part of the remuneration, while failing to examine the whole remuneration system (re-
ward systems).

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 It is of significant importance that safe care housing association considers other reward
package like non-financial remuneration due to the fact that it is not everyone tends to be mo-
tivated by money, but by recognition and appreciation; as many employees tend to prefer
recognition than pay from employers. Herzberg (1966) also agrees emphatically that pay is
not a motivator but a hygiene factor. Simply put pay is good but it cannot guarantee job
satisfaction, but what guarantee job satisfaction is how well safe care housing association,
train and develop, promote, communicate and create mentoring programmes; does create the
much needed job satisfaction which in turn increases employee performance and innovations.
As said by Zig Ziglar and I quote employees have mainly three paramount needs, these are
recognition for a job well done, interesting work and been well informed about happenings
and the progress of the organisation. Armstrong (2011: 262) suggested that an organisations
reward system is determined by the current circumstance of an organisation, the employee
needs and also the organisations needs. But any reward system selected by safe care housing
association must and needs be treated as an integrated and coherent whole. Also Duncan
Brown (2001:14-15) suggested that for an organisation to have an effective reward strategies
it has to consider three components. The organisation has to first of all define the goal and
objectives of the organisation. It also has to be a well-designed reward system aimed at satis-
fying the need of both the organisation and the employee and must be consistent with each
other. Furthermore there must be an efficient, effective and supportive HR and reward system
in place.

Conclusion and Recommendation

While attracting the best and most suitable candidates is important for safe-care, there are
several other areas that need to be considered if efficiency and effectiveness is so desired by
safe-care. Having a well-designed and structured policies and procedures to guide employees
on what employers expect from employees is paramount.

There has to be a constant change in the HR department, due to the often changes in the
public, political and service level which continue to rise.

As also mentioned in the report employee engagement increases service, quality and business
delivery and this is only possible when employees are well engaged in the daily activities of
the organisations. This can be through organisational developmental events and senior man-
agers forum which allows employees not just to communicate their opinions and but also get
assurance that their contributions would be listened to and relevant changes are be made as
Gideon Yusuf-129159700 Page 9
deemed necessary in line with the overall organisational strategy to sustain employee perfor-
mance.

Safe care housing needs to have a strategic reward system that encapsulates employee
benefits, compensation, appreciation and recognition. Having this type of reward system will
definitely ensure that safe care retains the best talents within the organisation and also have a
workforce that is energised and motivated to archiving set goals. I suggest that this should be
part of the associations pre-requirement for recruiting new staff.

Also I suggest that Safe-cares policies and procedures should be actionable in the sense that
it gives direction to the organisation and also set specific standards and responsibilities that
will provide staff with all the necessary information like health and safety, workplace equali-
ty. To make it happen, I suggest that Safe care employs a dedicated staff who will be a custo-
dian of the HR policies, including health and safety, equality as discussed who will constantly
keep abreast of changes in regulations and working place standard especially in the ever
changing care industry.

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