Ler 100 Exam 1 Work Work is often reflexively equated with employment and formal jobs One good definition of work o A purposeful human activity involving physical or mental exertion that is not undertaken solely for pleasure and that has economic or symbolic value Budd 2011 1 Work as a Job Twain Marx Focus on survival Money benefits pay o Work is a necessary evil to be avoided Twain o Labour power is a commodity which its possessor the wage worker sells to the capitalist Why does he sell it It is in order to live Marx 2 Work as a Career Calvin All men were created to busy themselves with labor for the common good Focus on success esteem recognition power 3 Work as a Calling Dewey Conrad Focus on meaning purpose calling o To find out what one is fitted to do and to secure an opportunity to do it is the o I don t like work no man does but I like what is in the work the chance to key to happiness Dewey find yourself Conrad How Do Americans See Work Americans tend to view work differently than most other people in the world Why is this the case o Cultural differences o Tax rates o Unions Hours of Work Year South Korea 2 193 United States 1 836 United Kingdom 1 647 Germany 1 408 Holland 1 400 South Korea works the most year European countries work the least year Work Habits Ler 100 Exam 1 According to your reading Europeans work less than Americans because A Unions are more powerful in the Us than Europe B Europeans have historically always worked less than US workers C Tax rates in Europe are higher which leads to lower work hours Europeans value leisure D A and B E B and C Engagement of American Workers Many Americans are NOT engaged in their jobs Almost 75 of U S workers would today consider finding a new job About 1 3 of all U S workers are actively looking for another job at any given time Employees are increasingly becoming more flexible and less tied to one employer or location than in the past 2012 Gallup Poll Engagement of American Workers 18 actively disengaged 56 not engaged 26 engaged Why does engagement matter Work drives one s performance inspires optional effort and improves well being Joyful Work For better or worse your work and your life are inevitably linked one affects the other Effect your working situation will have on your mood and your health especially when your job isn t something you enjoy doing Ideally you d want to enjoy your job so you don t need to separate vocation from vacation work and home etc In reality many of us are working harder for fewer rewards The idea of joyful work may not matter much now but it will matter later in life How does work become joyful Often it starts at the top 1 Employees must feel like they re being taken care of 2 Employees must feel empowered 3 Negative politics in the organization must not dominate 4 Employees must trust their leaders 5 Leaders must recognize and value their workers Ler 100 Exam 1 Human Resources What is human resources The people who staff and operate an organization What is human resources management HRM The part of the management structure of an organization that focuses on the management recruitment and direction of the people in the organization People management Key factor differentiating between successful and unsuccessful organizations HRM takes on many forms and varies widely between organizations HRM cannot be viewed in isolation and must be considered alongside organizational strategies institutional considerations and labor market contexts Definitions of HRM 1 Hard Model of HRM Resources aspect of HRM Stressing tight links between business objectives and HR strategies 2 Soft Mode of HRM organizations Human aspect of HRM Employees are valued assets whose skills are competitive advantages for Theory Y Employee Advocate safety priority employee welfare positive work environment The function used to be called PERSONNEL but is now termed HR or HRM HRM and Organizations EVERY organization has HR people o Multinational corporations o Small businesses o Hospitals o Governments city state federal o Universities o Non profit organizations charities o Law firms o Pro sports teams o Even unions have HR people HR s value to companies is being increasingly recognized Historically HR managers performed mostly administrative tasks payroll signing people up for benefits scheduling etc Today HR plays a far more strategic role Ler 100 Exam 1 What does HRM include Compensation Recruitment and selection Benefits Wellness Employment laws Employment relations if unionized Training and development Diversity Performance management HR s Two Key Roles Role 1 Strategic business partner Hard HR Contribute to the bottom line Minimize labor costs Maximize labor productivity Role 2 Employee advocate Soft HR Concerned with employee welfare Help employees reach their potential Create a positive work environment Make safety a priority There are some common threads to HRM HR managers want workers to be committed capable motivated and aligned to HR managers dislike organizational friction and want workers and managers to get organizational objectives along HR managers are strategic in making workplaces more efficient HRM Police and Practice embedded within organization s culture Organizations embedded in national cultures Therefore any discussion of HRM must take account of outside influences 1 Theory X Goal Productivity HARD HRM HR there to fit the resources strategically into place so profits are made Workers don t like to work and will do whatever it takes to get out of it Management needs to counteract the inherent human tendency to avoid work Connected with ideas like Taylorism and scientific management Ler 100 Exam 1 2 HR and Theory Y what they do experiments Workers can receive pleasure from their jobs They don t inherently want to avoid work and under the right conditions can enjoy Employees can be trusted to be self motivated Connected with ideas like the human relations movement and the Hawthorne HR is there to foster a culture in which workers can be the most fulfilled Soft HRM Theory X Hard HR Goal Productivity Workers don t like to work and will do whatever it takes to get out of it Theory Y Soft HR Workers can receive pleasure from their jobs They don t inherently want to avoid work and can enjoy what they do Management needs to counteract the inherent human tendency to avoid work Employees can be trusted to be self motivated Taylorism and scientific management The human relations movement and the Hawthorne