HRM

Q. 9 What is a grievance? Why do grievances arise? Explain in brief the

procedure handling grievances in business world

Ans :
Grievance is a si gn of employee's discontent with job and its na ture. It is caused the
difference between emp loyee expectation and management practice. Beach defines, "any
dissatisfaction or feeling of injustice in conne ction with one’s employment situation that is
brought to the mana gement."
Jucius defines, "an y discontent or dissatisfac tion, whe ther exposed or not, ether valid or
not, arising out of anything connected with the company wh ich an employee thinks,
believes or even fe els to be unfair, unjust or inequitable.

According to Kieth Davis, Grievance is any real or imagined feeling of personal injustice which
an employee has concerning his employment relationship.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) defines a grievance as "a complaint of one or more
workers in respect of wages, allowances, conditions of work and interpretation of service
stipulations, covering such areas as overtime, leave, transfer, promotion, seniority, job
assignment and termination of service".
From the above-mentioned definition following features can be derived:-
(a) A grievance refers to any form of discontent or dissatisfaction with any aspect of the
organization.
(b) The dissatisfaction must arise out of employment and not from personal or family problems.
(c) The dissatisfaction may be expressed or implied.
(d) The discontent may be valid, legitimate and rational or untrue and irrational or completely
ludicrous.
(e) A grievance is traceable to perceived non-fulfilment of one's expectations from the
organization.
(f) A grievance arises only when an employee feels that injustice has been done to him.
(g) Grievances, if not redressed in time, tend to lower morale and ·productivity of employees. -
N ature and C auses Grievances
of :
If a problem is related to all or majority of employees or if the trade union submits a
problem as a general claim, it falls outside the scope of grievance procedure and falls
under the purview of collective bargaining. Thus, an issue is wider in scope, it will be outside
the grievance machinery.
Causes of grievances relate to interpretation of all personnel policies and areas like placement,
transfer, promotion. Causes of grievances are classified as :-
(A) Grievance resulting from working conditions:
Improper matching of the worker with the job
Changes in schedulesor procedures
Non-availability of proper tools, machines and equipment
Tight production standards
Bad work place conditions
Failure to maintain proper discipline
Poor relationship with the supervisor
(B) Grievance resulting from management policy:
Wage paymentand job rates
Leave
Overtime
Seniority
Transfer
. Promotion. demotion and discharges
Lack of career planning
Hostility toward a labour union.

(C) Grievance resulting from alleged violation of:

The collective bargaining agreement

Central or State laws
Past practices
Company rules
Management's responsibility
(D) Grievance resulting from personal maladjustment:
Over-ambition
Excessive self-esteem
Impractical attitude to life
Grievance Handling Procedure

Grievance handling is a formal process which is preliminary to an arbitration which enables the
parties involved to attempt to resolve their differences The HR manager should help the top
management and line managers in the formulation and implementation of the policies,
programmes and procedures which would best enable them to handle employee grievance. In
India, there is a Model Grievance Procedure, which was adopted by Indian Labour Conference
in 1958 . At present, Indian industries are adopting the Model Grievance Procedure or
procedure formulated by themselves with modifications.
The steps are as follows:
Step I
The aggrieved employee verbally explains his grievance to his immediate supervisor or in a
conference or a discussion specifically arranged for the purpose. The employee seeks
satisfaction from his supervisor. The supervisor must give his answer within forty-eight hours of
the presentation of the complaint.
Step II
The second step begins when the grievance is not settled by the supervisor. The employee does not
receive an answer within the stipulated time or if he is not satisfied with the answer, he shall
either in person or with his departmental representative present has grievance to the head of the
department designated for this purpose.
Step III

If the employee is not satisfied with the answer, he can approach the Grievance Committee
which shall evaluate the case and make its recommendations to management within seven
days of presentation of the case. The Grievance Committee is composed of some fellow
employees, the shop steward or a combination of union and management representatives. The
committee may suggest possible solutions
Step V
If the employee is unsatisfied with the management's decision, union and management may
refer the grievance to voluntary arbitration within a week of the receipt of management's
decision by the aggrieved employee. The parties may agree beforehand that the arbitrator's
award will be final and binding on both the parties.

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Q. 1 Describe the essentials of performance appraisal. Discuss various conventional and

modern methods of performance appraisal.

Ans Performance appraisal is the s ystematic e valuation of the i ndividual w ith resp ect to his
or her performance on the job and his or h er pot ential for development. Major
comprehensi ve definiti on is as follows:

Performance Appr aisal is a formal structured s ystem of measu ring and e valuatin g an
employee's job r elated beh aviors and outcomes to d iscover how why the employee is
presentl y performing on the job and how the employ ee can perform mo re effecti vely in the
future so that the emplo yee, o rganization a nd society all benefit.

Essentials of performance appraisal

A sound appraisal system should comply with the following

(a) Reliability and Validity
The system should be both valid and reliable.. Appraisal system should provide
consistent, reliable information and data which can be used defend the organization-even
in legal challenges.
(b) Job Relatedness
The evaluators should focus on job-related behaviour and performance of employees. It
is also necessary to prepare a checklist so as obtain and review job performance related
information. Ratings should be tied up with actual performance.
(c) Standardization
Well-defined performance factors and criteria should be developed. Appraisal forms,
procedures, techniques, ratings etc., should be standardized. It will help to ensure
uniformity.
(d) Practical Viability
The techniques should be practically viable to administer, possible to implement economical
to underta ke.
(e) Training to Appraisers
The evaluators or appraiser should be provided adequate training in evaluating the performance
of the employees without any bias. Evaluators should also be given training in philosophy and
techniques of appraisal. They should be provided with knowledge and skills
(f) Open Communication
The system should be open and participative. Not only should it provide feedback to the
employees on their performance, it should also involve them in the goal setting process.
(g) Employee Access to Results
Employees should receive adequate feedback on their performance. If the result of appraisal is
negative and goes against the employee, it should, be immediately communicated to him so
that he may improve his performance.
(h) Clear Objectives
The appraisal system should be objective oriented. It should fulfil the desired objectives The
objectives should be relevant, timely and open. The appraisal system should be fair so that it is
beneficial to both the individual employee and the organization.
(i) Post Appraisal Interview
After appraisal, an interview with the employee should be arranged. It is necessary to supply
feedback,
j) Periodic Review
The system should be periodically evaluated to be sure that it is meeting its goals as there is
the danger that the system may become rigid in a tangle of rules and procedures many of
which may no longer be useful.
(k) Not Vindictive Nature
It should be noted by the executives of the organizations that the aim of performance appraisal
is to improve performance, organizational effectiveness and to accomplish organizational
objectives and not to harass the employees and workers of the organizations who are the vital
human resource.

Conventional and modern methods of performance appraisal:

A number of different performance appraisal methods or techniques are available for

evaluating the performance of the employees. These methods try to explain how management
can establish standards of performance. There is no fool proof method of evaluating the
performance of employees. Every method suffers from certain drawbacks in spite of some
merits. The methods can broadly be divided into traditional and modem methods.
1. Rating scale: The t ypical rating sc ale syste m consists of severa l numerical s cales,
each r epres enting a job -related performanc e criterion such as dependabilit y,
initiati ve, output, attendance, attitude, cooperation et c., each scale ranges f rom
excel lent to poor the nu mber of poi nts attached to t he scale ma y be linked to salar y
increase .

2. Checklists: Under this method, a che cklist of statements on statements on the traits
of the emplo yee and his or her job is prepared in two columns - 'YES' column and
'NO' column . The rater is to do is to ti ck the 'YES' if the answer is posit ive and tick
'NO' if the answer is 'NO' . The H R dept. gives point for e very "YES' when poi nts are
allotted the tech nique be comes a we ighted checklist .

3. Forced choice method: The rater is given a series of statement about the emplo yee
these are arranged i n the blocks of two or more, and the rater indicates wh ich
statement is most or least descriptive of the emp loyee . For e xamp le
( a) Learns fast - -------------------- ------------------works hard .
(b) Absent often ------------ -------------- ----------others usuall y tardy.
 The HR depa rtment does actual assessment .

4. Critical Incident method: It focuses on certain critical behavio urs of an emplo yee that
make all the difference between effe ctive and no n-effecti ve performance of a job .
Such incidents are recor ded by the superiors . as and w hen t hey occur.

5. Annual confidential report : ACR is mostly used in government departments like

military organizations etc. It has 14 items, twelve of these are filled on a four-point scale.

6. Field review method : This is an appraisal by someone outside the assessee's own
department. Two disadvantage of this are: (a) An outsider is not familiar with
conditions in an employee's work environment. (b) He does not have an opportunity to
observe employee behaviour of performance over a period of time.

7. Performance test : With a limited number of jobs, employee assessment may be

based upon a test of knowledge and skills. The test may be paper & pencil or an actual
demonstration of skills the test must be reliable & validated to be useful .

8. Behaviorally anchored rating scales : In this the scale represents a range of

descriptive statements of behaviour varying from the least to the most effective. A rater
must indicate which behaviour on each scale best describes an employee's
performance.
9. MBO Technique : The MBO are based on the concrete performance targets. which
are
usually established by superior and subordinates jointly. Peter Drucker (1954) described
MBO in 1954 in the Practice of Management. Drucker pointed to the importance of
managers having clear objectives that support the purposes of those in higher positions in
the organization.
10 . 360 Degree Appraisal
It is a method of appraisal in which employees receive their performance feedback from their
boss. colleagues. customers. peers and their own subordinates in the organisation. This form
of performance evaluation can be very beneficial to managers because it typically gives them a
much wider range of performance-related feedback than a traditional evaluation.

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Q7 Discuss the need of Human Resource Planning. Give steps involved in HRP.

ANS.
Human resource planning is th e process by which a m anagement determin es how an
organizati on should m ove from its current manpower posi tion to its desired manpower
position . Through planning, a management stri ves to h ave the right number and the right
kinds of people at the right places , at the right time to do things for recei ving the maximum
long-r ange benefits. Coleman has defin ed human resource or manpower plannin g as, "the
process of determina tion of manpower requirements and means of meeting tho se
requirements in order to c arry out the inte grated plan of the organization" .
Need For Human Resource Planning
Human resourc e plannin g is practically useful at different levels.
At the national level : It is generally done by the government and c overs it ems like
popul ation projections, pro gramme of economic de velopment, educ ational facili ties, and
geographical mobilit y of personnel .

1. At the sector level : It ma y be done b y the government - centr al or stat e - and m ay

cover manpower needs of agricultur al, industri al and ser vice sector.

2. At the industry level : It may cover manpower forecast for the specific industries,
such a cem ent, engine ering, heavy industrie s, consume r goods and p ublic utility
indus tries etc.
3. At the level of Individual unit : It may relate to its manp ower needs for various
department s.

Human resource plannin g is deemed nece ssary for all organizations for one or the other
of the foll owing reasons:

1. HR plannin g is need ed to identify areas of surplus p ersonnel or areas in which there

is shorta ge of personn el.

2. To meet the chall enges of a new and ch anging technology a nd new technique s of
producti on, existing employees need to be t rained or new people to be brought to the
organization .

3. To carry on its work, ea ch organization needs personnel wi th necessary

qualificati ons, skills, knowledge, work experience and aptitude for wo rk. These are
provided through effective manpower planning.

4. Human resource pl anning is necessary for meeting frequent labour turn over which is
unavoidable.

5. In order t o meet the de mand s for expansion pr ogrammes, there will be larger
requirement of human resources in the or ganization.
Steps in HRP

H R R e s o u rc e A c ito n in g o f
In v e n to ry A u d it
F o re c a s tin g P la n Pla n

1 . F o re c a s tin g

HR plannin g requir es data on the or ganizational goals objecti ves. On e should under stand
where the orga nization wants to go a nd how it wants to get to that point. The needs of the
empl oyees ar e deriv ed from the corporate objecti ves of the organization.

2. In v e n to ry

After knowing what human resources are re quired in th e organization, the next step is to
take stock of the curre nt emplo yees in the or ganization. The HR in ventory should not only
relate to data concerning numb ers, ages, an d loc ations, but also an analysis of individu als
and skill s. Skill s inventory provides valid informati on on professional and t echnical skills
and other q ualifications pro vided in th e firm. I t reveals what skill s are immediat ely
availabl e when c ompar ed to the forecasted HR requirements.

3 . A u d it

HR inven tory calls for collection of data, the HR audit requires s ystematic examinati on
and analysis of th is data. The audit looks at w hat had occur red in the past and at present
in terms of labour t urnover, age and sex g roupi ngs, training costs and absence. Based on
this information, one can then be a ble to pre dict what will happen to HR in the fut ure.

H R R e s o u rc e P la n

People are the gre atest ass ets in any orga nization. The organization is at li berty to
develop its staff at full pa ce in the way i deally suited to their individua l capacities. The
main reaso n is that the o rganization's o bjectives shou ld be aligned as near as poss ible, or
matched, in order to give optim um scope for t he develo ping potential of its e mployees.
Therefore, career plan ning or su ccessio n planning is must.

A c ito n in g o flaPn

There are t hree fu ndame ntals necessary for th is first step:

1. Know where organisation is goi ng.
2. There mu st be acceptance and backing from top management for the planning.

3. There m ust be k nowledge of the availab le resources

Once i n action, the HR plans become corporate p lans. Havi ng been made and concurred
with top management , the plans become a part of the company's long range plan . Failure
to achieve the HR plans due to cost, or lack of k nowledge, may be a serious constrai nt on
the long -range p lan.

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Q. 10 Write short note on any three

Q.10 (5). Line and Staff Organisation: Organizational structure involves the designation of
jobs within an organization and the relationships among those jobs. There are numerous ways
to structure jobs within an organization, but two of the most basic forms include simple line
structures and line-and-staff structures. In a line organization, top management has complete
control, and the chain of command is clear and simple. Examples of line organizations are small
businesses in which the top manager, often the owner, is positioned at the top of the
organizational structure and has clear lines of distinction between him and his subordinates.
The line-and-staff organization combines the line organization with staff departments that
support and advise line departments. Most medium and large-sized firms exhibit line-and-staff
organizational structures. The distinguishing characteristic between simple line organizations
and line-and-staff organizations is the multiple layers of management within line-and-staff
organizations.

Advantages and Disadvantages : Several advantages and disadvantages are present within a
line-and-staff organization. An advantage of a line-and-staff organization is the availability of
technical specialists. Staff experts in specific areas are incorporated into the formal chain of
command. A disadvantage of a line-and-staff organization is conflict between line and staff
personnel.

Q.10 (4). Leadership Styles: There are many ways to lead and every leader has his or her
own style. Some of the more common styles include autocratic, bureaucratic, democratic, and
laissez-faire.
 1. Autocratic Leadership Style : This is considered the classical approach. It is one in
which the manager retains as much power and decision-making authority as possible.
The manager does not consult employees, nor are they allowed to give any input.
Employees are expected to obey orders without receiving any explanations. The
motivation environment is produced by creating a structured set of rewards and
punishments. Gen X employees are highly resistant to this management style. These
studies say that autocratic leaders:
2. Bureaucratic Leadership Style : Bureaucratic leadership is where the manager
manages by the book. Everything must be done according to procedure or policy. If it is
not covered by the book, the manager refers to the next level above him or her. This
manager is really more of a police officer than a leader. This style can be effective when:
a) Employees are performing routine tasks over and over b) Employees need to
understand certain standards or procedures c) Employees are working with dangerous
or delicate equipment that requires a definite set of procedures to operate.
3. Democratic Leadership Style : The democratic leadership style is also called the
participative style as it encourages employees to be a part of the decision making. The
democratic manager keeps his or her employees informed about everything that affects
their work and shares decision making and problem solving responsibilities. This style
requires the leader to be a coach who has the final say, but gathers information from
staff members before making a decision. Democratic leadership can produce high
quality and high quantity work for long periods of time. The democratic style is not
always appropriate. It is most successful when used with highly skilled or experienced
employees or when implementing operational changes or resolving individual or group
problems.
4. Laissez-Faire Leadership Style : The laissez-faire leadership style is also known as
the “hands-off¨ style is one in which the manager provides little or no direction and gives
employees as much freedom as possible. All authority or power is given to the
employees and they must determine goals, make decisions, and resolve problems on
their own. This is an effective style to use when a) Employees are highly skilled,
experienced, and educated b) Employees have pride in their work and the drive to do it
successfully on their own.

Q.10 (2). Maslow's theory

Abraham Maslow developed a hierarchic theory of needs. All of basic needs are instinct or
equivalent of instincts in animals. Humans start with a very weak disposition that is then
fashioned fully as the person grows. If the environment is right, people will grow straight and
beautiful, actualizing the potentials they have inherited. Maslow set up a hierarchy of five levels
of basic needs. Beyond these needs, higher levels of needs exist. In the levels of the five basic
needs, the person does not feel the second need until the demands of the first have been
satisfied, nor the third until the second has been satisfied, and so on. Maslow's basic needs are
as follows
1. Physiological Needs
These are biological needs. They consist of needs for oxygen, food, water, and a
relatively constant body temperature. They are the strongest needs because if a person
were deprived of all needs, the physiological ones would come first in the person's
search for satisfaction.
2. Safety Needs
When all physiological needs are satisfied and are no longer controlling thoughts and
behaviors, the needs for security can become active. Adults have little awareness of
their security needs except in times of emergency or periods of disorganization in the
social structure. Children often display the signs of insecurity and the need to be safe.
3. Needs of Love, Affection and Belongingness
When the needs for safety and for physiological well-being are satisfied, the next class
of needs for love, affection and belongingness can emerge. Maslow states that people
seek to overcome feelings of loneliness and alienation. This involves both giving and
receiving love, affection and the sense of belonging.
4. Needs for Esteem
When the first three classes of needs are satisfied, the needs for esteem can become
dominant. These involve needs for both self-esteem and for the esteem a person gets
from others. When these needs are satisfied, the person feels self-confident and
valuable as a person in the world. When these needs are frustrated, the person feels
inferior, weak, helpless and worthless.
5. Needs for Self-Actualization

When all of the foregoing needs are satisfied, then and only then are the needs for self-
actualization activated. Maslow describes self-actualization as a person's need to be and do
that which the person was "born to do.. An artist must paint, and a poet must write. If a
person is hungry, unsafe, not loved or accepted, or lacking self-esteem, it is very easy to
know what the person is restless about. It is not always clear what a person wants when
there is a need for self-actualization

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Q. 6 Explain briefly the concept of morale. Discuss the relationship between morale
and motivation

Concept of morale : Morale is a state of individual psychological well-being based upon a

sense of confidence and usefulness and purpose. The theory of morale comes from B Flippo.
Morale is defined as “a mental condition or attitude of individuals and groups which determines
their willingness to co-operate. Good morale is evidenced by employee enthusiasm, voluntary
conformance with regulations and orders, and a willingness to co-operate with others in the
accomplishment of an organization’s objectives. Poor morale is evinced by surliness,
insubordination, a feeling of discouragement and dislike of the job, company and associates.”

Professor Ralph C. Davis thinks about morale as good organizational morale is a condition in
which individuals and groups voluntarily make a reasonable subordination of their personnel
objectives of their organization.

Morale is whether the people in the work environment are happy. Morale is important for
realization of common objectives. Morale is also depends on the reality and material
background. It depends upon the relations between expectations and reality.

Effects of Low Morale

The most significant effects of low morale are:

(a) High Rate of Absenteeism,

(b) Tardiness,

(c) High Labour. Turnover,

(d) Strikes and Sabotage,

(e) Lack of Pride in Work,

(f) Wastage and Spoilage.

Motivation and Morale: Motivation is whether the people in the work environment have
enough incentive to do their jobs. Typically, a salary is a good motivation, and being paid well
leads to higher morale. Even in a well-paid environment there are other things that companies
can do to improve morale, including assisting employees with work-/life balance, providing good
insurance benefits, a healthy work environment, and positive feedback when jobs are well done.

Motivating employees sometimes depends on the individual or generational differences, but

typically offering food or monetary incentives for higher performance works well, or negative
things can work as well, though they typically lower morale. such as threatening a person's job if
performance isn't improved.

Things tied to general morale are usually things that are just part of the job environment, and
things tied to motivation are tied to the performance of the individual. Morale is internal feeling
and it is inspired by the environment. Motivation comes from enthusiasm, zeal, confidence in
individuals or groups that they will be able to cope with the tasks assigned to them

Motivation is defined as an urge in an individual to perform goal directed behavior. Therefore,

motivation cannot be inflicted from outside but it is an intrinsic desire in a man to achieve the
target goal through performance or activity. Motivation is a dominant intrinsic urge in an
individual. The leader of the team can introduce a team motivation or group motivation where
the individual idiosyncrasy looses importance and the group goal becomes the target. It is then
not motivation per se but a group morale - an “espirit de corps” i.e. a sense of group activity with
desire for high achievement of the group goal. An individual can comfortably ignore his personal
goals or needs. Such morale is mostly psychological in nature and not physiological