Introduction
Managing employees has always been important task and challenge to organizations. But today, it has become essential to maintain good employee relations at workplace today. This topic employee relation has drawn interest among managers irrespective of industry sectors, academic practitioners and scholars. This growing attention is not only because failing to maintain employee relations affects productivity and turnover but, it is due to growing importance and awareness of employee legal rights. It is vital to maintain employee relations which builds psychological contract with its employees. Even though rewards system, incentives, pay and appraisal enhances employees performance at workplace it is also essential to create or maintain a state of security in employees which in turn enhances commitment and trust towards organizations and its vision. New work environment has created lack of trust between employee and employer relationship but on the other side, it has enhanced individual employee legal rights. It is essential to understand how employee relations is maintained at workplace and how could it be improved. In order to manage employees in an effective way, it is important to understand employee-employer relationship and their new contract of employment. Gennard & Judge (2002) Claim that "business strategy drives HRM strategy, which in turn drives employee relations strategy - and from this process are derived practices and policies that influence employee relationship". Therefore, HR function influence employee's relations at workplace but it is crucial to understand how law influences HR function. This report presents management of employee relations in workplace today and discusses on employee relations in current dynamic environment, where more focus has drawn on individual legal rights rather collective employee rights.
Managing employee relations in current work environment
Employee Relations Management (ERM)
In current workplace managing people has become important concern among employers because of the challenge to maintain good employee-employer relationship. Employee relations play a significant part in current dynamic workplace; this is because, human-capital has become an important and vital resource for organization's growth and success. In order to retain employee and their interest towards organizational goals, employee relations play a key role. Maintaining good employee relations involves being fair and treating all employees equally thereby enhances employees commitment towards organization (Gomez-Mejia, Balkin, & Cardy, 2001). Due to growth of globalization the shift from Industrial relations to employee relation has bought in number of change factors in new employee-employer relationship; The factors which influence employee relations managements includes economic, institutional/governmental, social and cultural, technological, Political, organizational, global and psychological (Singh, 2011).
Psychological contract
Psychological contract is created between employee and employers through trust and belief in organizational characteristics which enhances employees' commitment and interest towards organization and helps to increase organization performance. On the other hand, if the psychological contract is negative then it affect employee involvement and provide negative impact on organization (CIPD, 2010). Brewster et al (2003) quoted that there is fear of loss of job and benefits among employees in new work environment; lack of job security affects individual commitment and interest towards organizational goals. It is well understood that lack of employee commitment and involvement arise due to negative psychological contract with employers (Thornhill et al, 2000).
In concise the new psychological contract between employee and employers can be well understood from the definition given by Hiltrop (1996) as follows, "There is no job security, the employee will be employed as long as he or she adds value to the organization, and is personally responsible for finding new ways to add value. In return the employee has the right to demand interesting and important work, has the freedom and resources to perform it well, receives pay that reflects his or her contribution and gets the experience and training needed to be employable here or elsewhere" (Brewster et al, 2003).
HR and Employee Relations
Relation between employees and Human resources is vital in every successful organization. The bond between the HR and employees should be always maintained so that any change required in the organization could be implemented with less hassle. Good employee relations could be maintained by fair treatment to all employees, nepotism should be managed in such a way that employees should not be parted. Buford (2006) argues that morale of the employees is very important for an organization's success and the role of Human resources is to keep the morale as high as possible. Poor management may bring the morale of the employees down; relationship between HR and employees has to be built in such a way that the organizational goals are in line with the relationship. Communication channels are very important in maintaining the relationship between the both. Communications should be two-way, as useful feedbacks should be communicated to employees and vice versa, and upward and downward communications should be as transparent as possible to make valuable decisions. Management should be very careful in handling the feelings of its employees when it is downsizing or restructuring the organization (Gomez-Mejia et al, 2001). Information dissemination methods should be in place for the senior executives to make the decisions. Failure of communications will result in distrustful of management.
Legal System and employee rights at current workplace
Contract of employment and legal system
Contract of employment includes "terms and conditions of employment, common law duties and obligations, expressed terms, statutory rights, implied terms, collective agreements, custom and practice" (Corbridge & Pilbeam, 1998). It can be claimed that contracts were optional to organizations, but in recent years almost all organizations impose contracts on employees where they should abide by their codes of conduct and information security. Different types of contracts are involved in the recruitment process. Association of contract with the employees may be within a certain period or till they leave. Contracts will mention the incentives they get and also DONOT's during their tenure at the organization. Breach of contract's terms and conditions would result in termination of the employee. The rules will be very clear and it decreases the complications in controlling employees. With contracts in place communicating the code of conducts to employees will be easier.
Equal opportunity at workplace is important which helps to bring ideas of people from different ethnic groups, culture which in turn fosters confidence to work in a diversified workplace.Equal employment opportunity law includes The Equal Pay Act of 1963, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Gomez-Mejia et al, 2001).
Employees should be issued written statements of the main do and don't of employment as per the Employee Rights Act, 1996 and similarly as per the "The 1996 Data Protection Directive, effective from October 1998, employees have legal permission to access their own records held back from the recruitment and selection process (Corbridge & Pilbeam, 1998).
With the introduction of Employment Act 2002 have widened benefits for employees such as new maternity leave, paternity and adoption leave rights and the right for employees with young children to have their requests for flexible working arrangements to be considered by employers; similarly there are various legal acts in recent times that supports and helps employee rights at workplace such as Human Rights Act 1998, Anti-Discrimination Framework Directive 2000 (Leopold, Harris, & Watson, 2005).
Individual and collective employee legal rights
Individual right is given more importance than collective employee rights as the progressing world is turning out to be a world where individual's space is most important than for a group as such. As per the survey conducted by a leading market researching organization reveals that modern age individuals are not bothered about what others think but they care more about themselves and their priorities. As a result, human resources department takes this stance as an advantage for it and starts addressing issues on individual basis rather addressing it on the whole. This creates a vacuum space between employees and the HR. In the process of addressing the individual needs, other individuals feel disappointed and alienated from the organization. At this point, it proves that the other ways followed by HRM to impress its employees are not versatile and those leads to the disaster in the organization. So, always HRM should try to address issues with respect to group rather than to individuals.
Need of law at workplace
Beyond the psychological contract, rights of the employees are the ability to engage in a behaviour which is protected by law and possible does not any interference by another party (Gomez-Mejia et al, 2001). Laws are in place to have and maintain positive and progressive discipline in the organization. Laws ensure that behaviour of their employees are ethical and does not affect their position in the market. For the employees who change organizations, laws serve their purpose by prevention of whistle blowing and for implementing ethical behaviour. Organizations are very much aware of the HRM laws for such breaches which will jeopardize the status of employees. Law is also a tool to put individuals under hammer if they breach or steal trade secrets. Law makes fair treatment to employees as well as employers. For example, The Employment Right Act (ERA) 1996 acts a protective weapon for employees to claim against not reasonable treatment of employers or termination (Corbridge & Pilbeam, 1998). Law ensures that both employees and employers get most out of each other. There are situations and cases where employee unions are lost and there are many where employers lost. Law depends on the government it is made under, laws differ ethnically and continentally. Law is directly proportional to the wealth of the nation, where wealthier nation focuses on the secondary needs of employees and employers whereas in developing nations it focuses on the primary needs.
Law and HR function
Frequently we notice in the newspapers, misbehaviours in the organizations, sexual harassments, breaches of code of conduct and whistle blowing, laws ensure that justice is given to whoever is innocent. Issues like bullying, harassment; discrimination, safety, and health of employees are addressed by laws. Implementing equal opportunity and fairness in the workplace are amended by law in human resources practices. It is essential that HR managers must have up to date knowledge and understanding about employment laws to avoid future disputes thereby providing equal opportunity and fair treatment.Legal issues and constraints has become complex and plays a significant part in current complex work environment; therefore understanding and act in accordance of law is important because it helps the employers to understand its legal imitation of its HR function and helps to reduce potential liability of the firm (Gomez-Mejia et al, 2001).
Conclusion
HR function should aid organizational growth and success through initiatives that supports good employee-employer relationships. Rees & McBain (2004) quoted that "Bundles of HRM policies and practices especially those relating to recruitment, retention and training must be integrated to provide not only acceptable written terms of employment but also often in an implicit understanding between the parties, a new psychological contract". As quoted by Rees & McBain it is essential to create new psychological contract that builds understanding and trust between employee and employer through intervening of HRM practices and policies. It is essential that managers must seek HR department before violating law.
It can be clearly understood form the report that employee rights have been strengthened due to emergence of various legal rights and acts. In order to strengthen employee-employer relationship HR should initiate activities and programs in their organizations. The role of HR should take a developmental perspective moving from a staff function and thereby implementing essential changes in the HR practices for organizational performance; As quoted in Singh (2011) measures should be taken to improve employee relations in organizations.
HR function should attempt to enhance employee relations through various activities that involve employees of all levels in the organizations. It is important to enhance employee - engagement, involvement, empowerment through career programs, virtual learning, and knowledge transfer session and entertainment activities. On one side this helps to understand peers strength and knowledge and on the other side it improves effective communication and ease of approaching peers in a friendly and confidential manner. HR should listen to its employees concern and suggest solutions and remedies accordingly for successful employee relations.
