Employment Cycles

• Employment cycle


  Undertaken by Human Resources, the employment cycle organises all aspects of the employment of staff. From deciding on the staffing needs of the business and recruitment, through to the termination process.
• Stages of the employment cycle


  • Acquisition
  • Development
  • Maintenance
  • Separation
• Acquisition


  The first stage of the employment cycle. It involves predicting the business' need for staff and attracting the best employees to meet business goals.
• Staffing needs


  1. Determining staffing needs

  2. Recruitment methods

  3. Selection of suitable staff
• Determining staffing needs


  The business needs to plan for staffing needs, and must ensure that all requirements are identified.
• Methods to forecast future demand for labour


  • Staff turnover
  • Predicted business expansion
  • Sales and production budgets
  • State of the economy
  • Productivity
  • Season
• Methods to forecast future supply of labour


  • Number of people graduating from school and higher education
  • Unemployment rate
  • Number of people exiting the labour force (retiring)
  • Impact of technology
• Recruitment


  The process of attracting a pool of qualified applicants for a job. It involves advertising positions to attract suitable applicants.
• Sources of recruitment


  • Internal
  • External
• Internal recruitment


  • Less cost
  • Managers know the applicants well already
  • Motivating for current employees and signals loyalty by the company
• Internal recruitment disadvantages


  • May have to fill the position of the person who is given the job
  • Limited choice of applicants
• External recruitment


  • Can recruit people with fresh ideas
  • Can pick from a bigger pool of applicants
  • Can bring new skills into the company
• External recruitment disadvantages


  • Can be costly
  • May have to spend a lot of time training recruits
  • May be demotivating to current staff
  • Risk that the new employee won't perform well
• Selection


  1. Receipt of application/resume/cover letter

  2. Interviewing shortlisted candidates

  3. Background and reference checks

  4. Selection based on match of skills/experience

  5. Advising applicants of the outcome

  6. Offer and acceptance (or rejection) or employment, by successful applicants

  7. Probation periods, contracts and salary is negotiated at this stage
• Development


  Involves inducting new employees into the business and providing ongoing training as employees and the business develop and grow.
• Workplace inductions


  The process of getting new employees acquainted with the business. Should occur as soon as a new employee joins a business, helping them to settle in and giving them all the information to become a valuable team member.
• Workplace training


  The set of activities required to ensure that an employee has the required knowledge and skills to perform their job role.
• Maintenance


  Requires the business to continue to offer employees the conditions and support needed to retain and motivate them in the workplace.
• Agreements/awards


  Legal documents written by the Government outlining the minimum pay rates and standards of employment. Awards apply to businesses and employees depending on the industry they work in and the type of job worked.
• Contracts


  An agreement between an employer and an employee that sets out terms and conditions for employment. They are legally binding, can be written or verbal, and cover items such as pay rates, leave entitlements and working hours. Cannot provide less than the legal minimum set by awards/NES
• Performance management


  A human resource business function where a common understanding of the expectations of performance is reached. It is an ongoing process of communication that occurs throughout the year, providing feedback on employee's job performance.
• Separation


  The final stage of the employment cycle and is heavily affected by legislation.
• Types of separation


  • Voluntary separation
  • Involuntary separation
• Voluntary separation


  Occurs when the employee chooses to leave the workplace. The two important reasons are retirement or resignation.
• Retirement


  The point in time when an employee stops their full-time or part-time work for good. They have either reached retirement age or have enough superannuation or assets to support themselves without working.
• Resignation


  When an employee decides to leave their workplace and informs the employer in writing with due notice as per their employment contract. Reasons can be varied but could be to do with workplace culture, new job opportunities elsewhere, ill health etc.
• Involuntary separation


  Occurs when employment is terminated and the employee has not made the decision to leave the workplace.
• Retrenchment


  Occurs because there is not enough work for the business to continue to provide employment. An employer may make a position 'redundant' when its duties are no longer required to be done by anyone. Redundancy may be the result of bankruptcy, technological changes or business restructuring. Once the position is redundant, the person doing its duties may either be redeployed (given another job), or retrenched (lose their job and not be offered another.)
• Dismissal


  When employment is ended by the employer. There must be valid and fair reasons for dismissing the employee. These may include: Their inability to do their job, their conduct or performance in the workplace.