Approaches to staffing

• Explain what is meant by staff as an asset to a business

  • Skills + abilities of staff mean they add value to a product
  • Businesses should treat staff as valued asset to increase motivation + productivity
• Explain what is meant by staff as a cost to a business

  • They get remuneration (payment) for the work they do ( usually in the form of a wage/salary)
• Wage


  Paid to a worker based on the amount of work they do usually used for lower skilled manual workers eg, shop
• Salary


  Fixed amount that is usually paid monthly —> higher skilled workers
• What does a flexible workforce consist of?

  • Multi-skilling
  • Part-time/temporary contracts
  • Flexible hours & home working
  • Outsourcing
• What does it mean if a workforce is multi-skilled?

  • Business can employ fewer workers that can do multiple different aspects of a job
  • Workers can move between jobs when necessary
  • Can increase motivation as employees have more variety in their job leading to increased productivity
• What is meant by a part-time contract?

  • Fewer hours + can cover absent staff
• What is meant by a temporary contract?

  • Can cover temporarily when a particular job needs doing
• What is meant by outsourcing?

  • Business can outsource some tasks to external businesses
  • Advantage as no need to invest money in training staff for some tasks
• Redundancy 


  Occurs when the employees job role is no longer required
• Dismissal 


  Occurs when an employee is terminated from their job due to misconduct or unsatisfactory performance
• What is the difference between redundancy and dismissal?

  Redundancy: Position no longer needed Dismissal: Employee performance issue
• What are the two types of relationships an employee can have with their employer?

  • Individual bargaining
  • Collective bargaining
• Individual bargaining 


  • Employees treated as individuals for some purposes eg, appraisals regarding pay + working conditions
• Collective bargaining 


  • When a group of employees is represented by workforce representatives —> these negotiate with the employers on issues like pay + working conditions