Human Resources & Employment Relationships.
This paper focuses on Human Resources & Employment Relationships. Learning Outcome covered in this assessment: LO 4 – Demonstrate understanding of performance management and examine strategies to review individual performance.
Human Resources & Employment Relationships
Learning Outcome covered in this assessment:
LO 4 – Demonstrate understanding of performance management and examine strategies to review individual performance.
LO 5 – Identify and apply relevant legislation for various employment situations.
To answer the questions for this case study consider yourself as a HR consultant and employment law advisor. You have been contracted by the business owner to provide expert advice on improving human resource performance and to apply relevant employment related legislation for Carter Cleaning Company.
Case to accompany Assignment 3 – Part A
Carter Cleaning Centres
Jennifer Carter graduated from State University in June 2011 and, after considering several job offers, decided to do what she always planned to do – go into business with her father, Jack Carter.
Jack Carter opened his first laundromat in 1991 and his second in 2001. The main attraction of these coin laundry businesses for him was that they were capital- rather than labour-intensive. Thus, once the investment in machinery was made, the stores could be left to run with just one unskilled attendant and none of the labour problems one normally expects from being in the retail service business.
The attractiveness of operating with virtually no skilled labour notwithstanding, Jack had decided by 2007 to expand the services in each of his stores to include the dry cleaning and pressing of clothes. He embarked, in other words, on a strategy of “related diversification” by adding new services that were related to and consistent with his existing coin laundry activities. Also, He added these for several reasons. He wanted to better utilize the unused space in the rather large stores he currently had under lease. Furthermore, he was, as he put it, “ tired of sending out the dry cleaning and pressing work that came in from our coin laundry to a dry cleaner 5 miles away, who then took most of what should have been our profits.”
To reflect the new, expand ed line of services, he renamed each of his two stores Carter Cleaning Centres and was sufficiently satisfied with their performance to open four more of the same type of stores over the next 5 years. Each store has its own on-site manager and, on average, about seven employees and annual revenues of about $550,000. It was this six-store chain that Jennifer joined after graduating.
Her understanding with her father was that she would serve as a troubleshooter/consultant to the elder Carter with the aim of both learning the business and bringing to it modern management concepts and techniques for solving the business problems and facilitating its growth.
Carter Cleaning Company
The Performance Appraisal
After spending several weeks on the job, Jennifer was surprised to discover that her father had not formally evaluated any employee’s performance for all the years that he had owned the business. Jack’s position was that he had “a hundred higher-priority things to attend to”, such as boosting sales and lowering costs, and, in any case, many employees didn’t stick around to be appraisable anyway.
Furthermore, contended Jack, manual workers such as those doing the pressing and the cleaning did periodically get positive feedback in terms of praise from Jack for a job well done, or criticism, also from Jack, if things did not look right during one of his swings through the store.
Similarly, Jack was never shy about telling his managers about store problems so that they, too, got some feedback on where they stood.
This informal feedback, notwithstanding, Jennifer believes that a more formal appraisal process is require d. She believes that there are criteria such as quality, quantity, attendance, and punctuality that should be evaluated periodically even if a worker is paid on piece rate.
Furthermore, she feels quite strongly that the managers need to have a list of quality standards for matters such as store cleanliness, efficiency, safety, and adherence to budget on which they know they are to be formally evaluate.
Continuing case to accompany Assessment 3 – Part B
Carter Cleaning Company
The New Safety Programme
Employees’ safety and health are important matters in the laundry and cleaning business. Each facility is a small production plant in which machines, powered by high-pressure steam and compressed air, work at high temperatures washing, cleaning, and pressing garments, often under very hot, slippery conditions. Chemical vapours are produce d continually, and caustic chemicals are use d in the cleaning process. High- temperature stills are almost continually “cooking down” cleaning solvents in order to remove impurities so that the solvents can be reused. If a mistake is mad e in this process- like injecting too much steam into the still – a boilover occurs, in which boiling chemical solvent erupts out of the still and over the floor, and on anyone who happens to be standing in its way.
As a result of these hazards and the fact that chemically hazardous waste is continually produced in these stores, several government agencies have instituted strict guidelines regarding the management of these plants. For example, posters have to be placed in each store notifying employees of their right to be told what hazardous chemicals they are dealing with and what the proper method for handling each chemical is. Special waste-management firms must be used to pick up and properly dispose of the hazardous waste.
A chronic problem the Carters (and most other laundry owners) have is the unwillingness on the part of the cleaning/spotting workers to wear safety goggles. Not all the chemicals they use require safety goggles, but some – like the hydrofluoric acid use d to remove rust stains from garments – are very dangerous. The latter is keep in special plastic containers, since it dissolves glass. The problem is that wearing safety goggles can be troublesome. They are somewhat uncomfortable, and they become smudged easily and thus cut down on visibility. As a result, Jack always found it almost impossible to get these employees to wear their goggles.
Part A (55 Marks)
Read Carter Cleaning Company’s case study on page 62 and 342 from Human Resource Management, Gary Dessler 16th edition (handout provided).
Explain to Jack the meaning and importance of performance management. (10 marks)
Is Jennifer right about the need to evaluate the workers and the managers? Justify your opinion for each. (5 marks)
Examine five ways that could be use d by the on-site managers to monitor individual employee performance. (5×2 =10 marks)
Recommend five strategies to enhance employee performance by using the keys of Maori management. Refer to KOKIRI WHAKAMUA: Fast Tracking Maori Management. (Slides and reading material on Moodle) (5×2 =10 marks)
Develop a performance appraisal form that would help Jack and Jennifer to assess behavioural competencies of the on-site managers of each store. The performance appraisal form should include the following- (20 marks)
Five core competencies the job requires and each competency briefly explained (5×1 = 5)
Rating scales for each competency briefly explained (5×1= 5)
Five specific goals the manager needs to achieve for the appraisal period (5×1= 5)
An action plan to meet each goal (5)
Part B (40 Marks)
Read Carter Cleaning Company’s case study on page 590 and 591 from Human Resource Management, Gary Dessler 16th edition (handout provided).
Identify five possible hazardous conditions in laundry and dry cleaning business. (1×5 = 5)
Discuss three actions Jack and Jennifer should take to ensure they meet their responsibilities under the HSAW Act 2015. (3×3 = 9)
Discuss any three strategies to be use d by the managers at Carter Cleaning to get all employees to behave more safely at work. (3×2 = 6)
Identify five statutory requirements relevant for employment relationships and recommend appropriate practices for applying those to Carter Cleaning Company. (5×4 = 20)
Marking schedule
Part A：
Firstly, Defines Performance management (2 marks) and succinctly explains Performance management using own understanding (3 marks)
1.1States importance of performance management in an organisation, at least five points required (1 mark each)
Need to evaluate the workers
Provides own point of view with an effective justification.
Justification includes relevant.
Examples/evidences to support the point of view.
Need to evaluate the managers.
Provides own point of view with an effective justification 。
Justification includes relevant examples/evidences to support the point of view.
Also, Examines five ways that could be use d by the on-site managers to monitor individual performance (5×2 marks)
Additionally, The suggested ways should be actionable. （10 marks）
Recommends five strategies to enhance employee performance by using the keys of Maori management. Refer to KOKIRI WHAKAMUA: Fast Tracking Maori Management. (5×2 marks)
Lastly, Use of Maori terms and their literal meaning in English required. (10marks）
The performance appraisal form
Identifies five core competencies the job requires and briefly explains each competency (5×1 = 5)
Provides rating scales for each competency (5×1= 5)
States five specific goals the manager needs to achieve for the appraisal period (5×1= 5)
Provides an action plan to meet each goal. One action per goal required. (5×1= 5)（20Marks)
Part B:
Firstly, Identifies five possible hazardous conditions in laundry and dry-cleaning business (1×5 = 5) (5Marks)
Secondly, Discusses three actions to be take n to ensure responsibilities under the HSAW Act 2015 (1 mark each for stating appropriate action and 2 marks each for discussing the action) (9Marks)
Thirdly, Discusses three strategies to be use d by the managers at Carter Cleaning to get all employees to behave more safely at work (3×2 = 6) (6marks)
Further, Identifies five statutory legal requirements relevant for employment relationships (5×1 = 5)
Also, Recommends practices for applying those to Carter Cleaning Company. The practices should be feasible. Examples needed. (5×3 = 15) (20Marks)
Overall presentation
Firstly, Cover sheet included
Secondly, Professional layout /portfolio structure used appropriately
Thirdly, Grammar/spelling/punctuation
Fourthly, Consistent style of writing
Finally, APA 7th ed referencing and in-text citation, minimum 3 required. (5Marks)
Human Resources & Employment Relationships
