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What are the human resources functional areas?
A human resources professional must comprehend the functional areas of their department in order to support employees when necessary. In addition, they must make plans to expand human resources practices such that they have a favorable impact on the remainder of the firm. Here are eight of the functional areas that a human resources staff can focus on:
Employee recruitment and placement
Hiring personnel is typically the responsibility of the hiring manager, however the human resources department reviews job applications to identify qualified prospects for the hiring manager. A candidate tracking system (CTS) use keywords to assist human resources in identifying applications that fulfill the requirements of the job posting. As appropriate applications are identified, they are forwarded to the recruiting manager for consideration. After deciding whom to interview, the hiring manager contacts human resources to arrange the meeting.
After a new hire has been picked by the hiring manager, human resources assists in determining the new employee’s start date, setting up the necessary paperwork, and providing any other materials pertinent to the position for which they are being on boarded. It is the role of human resources to orient new hires, show them their new workplace, and explain the company’s policies and benefits.
A representative of human resources (HR) composes job descriptions that correspond to the qualifications for available positions. They may also be required to update a description for accuracy or to ensure that it complies with legal requirements. They can attend job fairs in order to meet potential applicants. Typically, they will receive resumes or hand out business cards and discuss the open openings at the company.
Employee Benefits
Employee perks include health insurance, retirement funds, health care flexible spending accounts, vacation time, sick leave, family leave, and any other benefits an employer may offer. An attractive benefits package helps an organization attract and retain talent. In addition to ensuring that the plans comply with federal regulations, human resources must be familiar with the various types of employee benefit programs and the insurance companies that provide the best benefits at the lowest price. Human Resources offers instructional meetings for employees regarding their benefits and ensures that they update their plans for the upcoming year.
Compensation for staff
Human resources is responsible for determining a person’s salary, performance bonuses, raises, and salaried versus hourly status. In this regard, they provide the payroll department with the necessary information to pay employees the exact amount if vacation money is due, a sick day was taken, or a bonus has been granted.
When it comes to compensation, HR conducts research to determine the current competitive wage for a position, if the firm can afford to offer that amount, and what benefits can be supplied in lieu of money if the company cannot reach that amount. This is done as part of putting together the benefits package presented to a candidate, while retaining the compensation structure for employees at all organizational levels.
Worker and labour relations
Regardless of whether their employees are unionized or not, human resources must follow to procedures. Human Resources must be familiar with collective bargaining methods for union-affiliated firms, but non-union employers may have subcontractor contracts for employees.
In either scenario, it is the responsibility of human resources to draft contracts, negotiate details with knowledge of what the company can offer in terms of remuneration, and understand what the employees are seeking in terms of perks. Human resource specialists must also be skilled in the negotiating process and perform the role of the neutral party, balancing the requirements of all parties. Regardless of whether the firm is a union or non-union, human resources must remain current on changes in the law, employee needs, and remuneration.
When an employee is hired, human resources teaches the office code of conduct and verifies that the employee understands the bounds of appropriate workplace conduct. The representative of human resources also verifies that the employee is aware that the information is contained in the employee handbook and may need the employee to sign a paper indicating that they have read and comprehended the repercussions of violating the code of conduct.
However, each organization handles employee disciplinary proceedings in a unique manner. Some may have a zero-tolerance policy, but others may issue a warning for the same offence. When an employee violates business policy, human resources is responsible for implementing the policy.
Human Resources initiates disciplinary action when an incident occurs on corporate property or when an employee engages in inappropriate behavior while representing the organization. Some employee rules may make it obvious that employees are representatives of the firm both within and outside of the office, and that they may be subject to further sanctions if they fail to uphold this responsibility. For example, if an employee uploads insensitive content on social media, human resources might intervene with the individual and provide the appropriate course of action that best reflects the company’s fundamental values.
Conformity of human resources
Federal and state regulations regulate the maximum number of hours an employee may work, how an employee may be terminated, anti-discrimination safeguards, and the amount of unpaid family leave an employee may take. Consequently, an employer must work within the limitations of the law to always respect and observe these regulations.
One example is publishing pertinent information on workers’ compensation in the event that an employee sustains an injury on the job. Other examples include maintaining an up-to-date employee handbook in accordance with federal labor regulations, as well as employee eligibility and verification (I-9) when a new employee joins the organization. In regards to wages, benefits, and construction codes, your office may be subject to additional state and municipal restrictions.
Organizational structure
Despite the fact that this may be the job of the management team, human resources aids them in defining the organization’s business objectives and mission. They are able to grasp how an organization’s chart is constructed and how projects go through each department. Upon further examination, if adjustments are required, human resources can provide ideas for management to implement in order to achieve goals such as reducing employee turnover, creating career paths for existing employees, and promoting those who meet management’s desired KPIs.
Human resources must frequently remind employees of the organization’s mission and assist them in achieving their highest level of performance in support of the organization. In addition, human resources must be trained to execute many tasks that overlap with those of other departments in order to assist employees in improving their performance.
Personnel information and payroll
Human resources employees are responsible for monitoring the company’s work environment in addition to monitoring payroll activity. They must also receive employee feedback on their unique working environments to determine if they can provide better service to external customers. Overall, working conditions are crucial in shaping an organization’s reputation and whether or not customers would purchase its products. In this situation, human resources specialists must conduct an audit to determine what needs to be upgraded in the facility in which they operate and what solutions can aid in boosting employee productivity. They’ll need to consult with management over the budget they’ll need to make the required adjustments and reap the benefits of the initiative.
Training and development for employees
In partnership with management, human resources devises professional development programs to assist employees in achieving success in their respective fields. To determine if additional training is required, they will track the number of employees enrolled in each program, their performance, their manager’s feedback, and the results. Some programs include: Diversity and inclusion, Business communication and Training in customer service
