Unionism and peer-referencing

This study assesses the “fair-wage-effort” hypothesis, by examining (a) the relationship between relative wage comparisons and job satisfaction and quitting intensions, and (b) the relative ranking of stated effort inducing-incentives, in a novel dataset of unionised and non-unionised European employees. By distinguishing between downward and upward-looking wage comparisons, it is shown that wage comparisons to similar workers exert an asymmetric impact on the job satisfaction of union workers, a pattern consistent with inequity-aversion and conformism to the reference point. Moreover, union workers evaluate peer observation and good industrial relations more highly than payment and other incentives. In contrast, non-union workers are found to be more status-seeking in their satisfaction responses and less dependent on their peers in their effort choices The results are robust to endogenous union membership, considerations of generic loss aversion and across different tenure profiles. They are supportive of the individual egalitarian bias of collective wage determination and self-enforcing effort norms.EPICURUS, a project supported by the European Commission through the 5th Framework Programme “Improving Human Potential” (contract number: HPSE-CT-2002-00143

Employee Perceptions of Fairness in Performance Appraisals and Job Satisfaction

Business and management researchers have shown that performance appraisals have continued to remain a standard component of the human resource management (HRM) function and play an integral role in contributing to employee performance and job satisfaction levels. Recent researchers indicated that employees have continued to hold negative views about the degree of fairness and accuracy of appraisals, thus rendering the process a mere routine and periodic ritual detrimental to organizational efficiency and growth. The purpose of this study was to add to what is a paucity of data on perceptions of fairness of employees and examine the employee perceptions of fairness in performance appraisals related to job satisfaction. The conceptual framework for this study was rooted in organizational justice and motivational theory. Research questions examined the perceptions of employees of performance appraisals on job satisfaction. Qualitative data were collected in this multiple case study using face-to-face interviews of 20 participants. Data were organized, coded, and analyzed for emergent themes and patterns that aligned with the research questions. Research findings showed that employee perceptions of performance appraisals are critical and remain an invaluable component of the human resource function to benefit management executives and should include basic knowledge and employee input in the appraisal design and process. Implications for possible positive social change may include enhanced insights, knowledge, and understanding of the perceptions of performance appraisals that may enhance management decisions through fair, just, and accurate employee appraisals that will positively translate to job satisfaction

Manager's perceptions of performance appraisal implemented at Kansanshi Mine, Zambia

As managers with direct contact with workers on the floor, line managers are responsible for implementation of the performance appraisal system at Kansanshi Mining plc. Commonly, implementation of performance appraisal is affected by how line managers interact with their subordinates before, during and after an appraisal interview. Notably, no study has been conducted at Kansanshi mine to understand how line managers conduct performance appraisals since their introduction. This qualitative study aims to build an understanding of how line managers at Kansanshi conduct performance appraisal interviews and what enablers and barriers they face in this process. In pursuit of the research aim, line managers from all the ten departments of the mine were considered as eligible for the study. Using stratified random sampling, ten of the 30 line managers from all ten departments across the mine site were selected. A total of fifteen semi-structured, in-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted with ten line managers to gather data. These individual interviews were conducted on the mine site in the interviewees' offices as well as other convenient places such as the Kansanshi main boardroom. On average, each interview took between 45 to 60 minutes. All these interviews were audio recorded, transcribed and thereafter analyzed using open coding and constant comparison technique to induce themes. Findings of the study show a variety of barriers and enablers of line managers in their conduct of performance appraisal interviews at Kansanshi mine in Zambia. All ten line managers unanimously highlighted that (a) lack of clear job descriptions and set of individual targets as well as (b) lack of adequate refresher training on how to conduct performance appraisals affected how they conducted performance appraisals. Eight of the ten line managers highlighted that (c) perceived subjectivity of the system while seven of the ten highlighted that (d) predominant production focus and priority were barriers to them in how they conducted performance appraisals. On the other hand, ten line managers highlighted that (a) top management commitment to the implementation of a performance appraisal system, seven highlighted that (b) employees' hope for rewards and five line managers highlighted that (c) spring for career development and progression were perceived as enablers in their implementation of performance appraisals. This research is of value as it highlights how the conduct of performance is not only impacted by organizational support and other complementary organizational systems but also how the barriers to the conduct of performance appraisals affect both the appraisee and the appraiser

Development of an integrated performance appraisal system for truck drivers in the wine trade

Bibliography: pages 224-231.The purpose of this study was to develop a performance appraisal system for truck drivers in a wine manufacturing organization. One of the objectives of the system developed, was to improve the performance of the truck drivers. The sample involved in this study consisted of 80 truck drivers and six transport foremen. A preliminary study was done to determine the satisfaction of the drivers with the previous appraisal system. A need for a new performance appraisal system was established and it was therefore decided to develop a new performance appraisal system for the truck drivers in the Transport Department of the organization. A literature review indicated that the most suitable appraisal system for this specific situation was the behavioural observation scale (BOS). A job analysis of the truck driver's job was done, critical incidents were collected and behavioural dimensions were defined. This resulted in the final behavioural observation scale consisting of 37 behavioural items. The reliability of the appraisal instrument determined by Cronbach's coefficient alpha, was .98. An effort was made to achieve both content and face validity for the BOS. To determine whether the performance of the truck drivers did increase as a result of the new appraisal system, an experimental and control group were defined. Their performance was appraised three times at three-monthly intervals with the BOS. The experimental group received feedback on its performance, which included setting goals to be achieved by the next appraisal. The drivers in the control group were unaware of the fact that their performance was being appraised. To determine whether the performance of the drivers in the experimental group had improved, planned comparisons were done. There was a substantial improvement in performance amongst the experimental group, whilst the control group's performance remained unchanged. It was concluded that the intervention was successful. The use of a behavioural approach to performance linked with adequate feedback made a major contribution to the efficiency of these truck drivers as well as to their interaction with their supervisors, the transport foremen

Subordinate Ratings of Supervisor Performance: Balancing Accountability and Anonymity

Multi-source feedback often includes ratings from one’s subordinates; however, there is little research on the accuracy of these ratings. With multi-source feedback systems being used more for administrative decisions there is a precedent to test how accurate subordinate ratings are. The present study distinguishes between two types of accountability; appeasement-accountability and accuracy-accountability in an attempt to increase the accuracy of subordinate ratings of job performance. The result was three experimental conditions. The first was the anonymous condition which is in line with current practice; subordinates are typically granted anonymity when submitting ratings about their supervisor. The second was the appeasement-accountability condition, and the third was the accuracy-accountability condition. One hundred and fifty participants rated videos of four different trainers’ job performance using behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS). The dependant variables of interest were Cronbach’s (1955) accuracy components of differential accuracy, elevation accuracy, stereotype accuracy, and differential elevation. Significant differences were found between Conditions 1 and 3 for Differential Elevation. Additionally, the comparison between Conditions 2 and 3 was nearing significance for Differential Elevation. These findings are indicative of increased accuracy for administrative decisions for those in the accuracy-accountability condition. Possible explanations for the results found, study limitations, and directions for future research are discussed

Human resources performance management system applied to a SME

Mestrado em Gestão/MBAO Sistema de Gestão de Desempenho de Recursos Humanos é reconhecido, nos dias de hoje, como um fator determinante para a criação contínua de valor na empresa e alcance de todo o seu potencial. O seu principal propósito é combinar e alinhar os objetivos da organização com o desempenho e o desenvolvimento do funcionário por meio de um processo de feedback integrado, permitindo uma gestão mais eficiente dos recursos humanos. As pequenas empresas, devido à sua natureza, não entendem a necessidade de medir e gerir de uma forma estruturada o desempenho dos seus recursos humanos ou são incapazes de encontrar um sistema adequado e aplicável ao seu contexto. Essa realidade tem um impacto negativo no desempenho e na motivação de seus funcionários e nos resultados da organização. A falta de um sistema estruturado de gestão de desempenho de recursos humanos deve ser considerada um risco, que, em situações extremas, poderá comprometer a existência da organização. Devido à importância económica e social deste tipo de empresa e à sua operação num mercado altamente competitivo, qualquer medida no sentido de melhorar desempenho e resultados deve ser suportada e tida como uma oportunidade de diferenciação e alavancagem. O objetivo deste trabalho é apresentar vantagens, requisitos e importância da implementação de um sistema de gestão de desempenho de recursos humanos em pequenas e médias empresas e fornecer uma sugestão aplicável para implementação prática na Empresa X, uma pequena empresa de EPC contribuindo assim para um eventual aumento e melhoria do seu desempenho e resultados.The human resource performance management system is recognized as one of today’s significant factors towards the enterprise’s continuous creation of value and achievement of its full potential. Its main goal is to combine the organization’s objectives with the employee’s individual performance and development through an integrated feedback process and to allow a more efficient human resources’ management. Small enterprises, due to their nature and restrictions, either do not understand the need to structurally measure and manage their human resource performance or are unable to find a suitable management system applicable to their context. This reality has a negative impact on their employee’s performance and motivation, and ultimately in the organization’s results. Therefore, the lack of a structured human resource performance management system should be considered a business risk, which, in more extreme situations, is capable to jeopardize de organization’s existence. Due to the economic and social importance of these organizations and the highly competitive market in which they operate, any measure to raise performance and results must be nurtured and seized as an opportunity for positive differentiation and business leverage, therefore, the aim of this work is to present the advantages, requisites and importance of a human resource performance management system implementation in small enterprises and provide an applicable suggestion for a practical implementation through a case study approach in Company X, a small EPC company and, hopefully with that contribute, increase its performance and results.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The implementation of 360-degree feedback for high school DECA officers

Includes bibliographical references