ADMN 201 — Ch8: Managing Human Resources and Labour Relations
Overview
Chapter 8 covers the full HR function — from planning who you need, to finding and selecting them, to paying, developing, and legally protecting them, to managing the collective bargaining relationship when they unionize. HRM is framed as a strategic function, not administrative overhead.
mindmap root((Ch8 HRM)) HR Planning Job Analysis Job Description Job Specification Forecast Demand + Supply Match via Hire or Layoff Staffing Internal vs External Recruiting Realistic Job Preview ATIРО Selection Process Behaviour-Based Interviewing Development Orientation On/Off Job Training Mentoring + Reverse Mentoring Performance Appraisal ABC Compensation + Benefits Wages vs Salary Incentive Programs Statutory vs Non-Statutory Benefits Cafeteria Plans Legal Landscape Human Rights Act 1977 BFOR Exception Employment Equity Act 1986 Comparable Worth OH&S Right to Refuse Labour Relations Shop Spectrum 4-Phase Bargaining Cycle Union vs Management Tactics Conciliation Mediation Arbitration Evolving Workforce Diversity as Advantage Knowledge Workers Contingent Workers
1. Strategic HRM and HR Planning
HRM = attracting + developing + maintaining an effective workforce. Employees are treated as Human Capital — measurable assets.
HR Planning Cycle: Job Analysis → Forecast (demand and supply) → Match (hire if shortfall, transfer/layoff if overstaffed) → Recruit → Develop → Appraise → loop
- Job Description: what the job entails (tasks, conditions, tools)
- Job Specification: what the person needs (skills, education, credentials)
- Employee Information Systems: internal talent databases used to find candidates for promotion
- Performance Appraisal: evaluates performance AND validates whether recruiting is working — ABC model (Accurate, Business-Oriented, Consistent)
2. Recruitment and Selection
Recruiting builds the applicant pool. Two sources:
- Internal: builds morale, uses Skills Inventories
- External: ads, campus, social media — must give Realistic Job Preview to prevent early turnover
A.T.I.R.O. Selection Process: Application → Testing → Interview → References → Offer
- Testing = best predictor of success
- Unstructured interviews = weakest predictor (bias)
- Behaviour-Based Interviewing: ask about past behaviour, not hypotheticals → fixes the bias problem
3. Compensation and Benefits
- Wages = hourly; Salary = fixed interval regardless of hours/output
- Incentive Programs: Piece-rate (individual/unit), Profit-Sharing (firm profits), Gainsharing (team cost savings)
- Benefits add 10–25% to wage bill
- Statutory (required by law): EI, CPP, Workers’ Compensation, parental leave
- Non-statutory (optional): extended health, dental, tuition, wellness
- Cafeteria-style: employee chooses how to spend a fixed benefit budget
4. HRM Legal Landscape
Three phases — Hiring, Compensation, Managing:
| Phase | Key Law / Concept | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
| Hiring | Canadian Human Rights Act (1977) | Prohibits discrimination on protected grounds |
| Hiring | BFOR Exception | Permits protected-trait use when job-essential |
| Hiring | Employment Equity Act (1986) | Four groups: women, minorities, Indigenous, disabled |
| Compensation | Comparable Worth | Equal pay for work of equal value — dissimilar jobs |
| Managing | OH&S Acts (Provincial) | Safe environment; right to refuse unsafe work |
| Managing | Anti-Harassment | Quid pro quo and hostile environment liability |
| Managing | Mandatory Retirement | Abolished — cannot force retirement by age |
5. Labour Relations and Collective Bargaining
Shop Spectrum (most → least union control): Closed → Union → Agency → Open
4-Phase Bargaining Cycle:
- Certification vote → legally obligated to bargain
- Negotiation: 4 pillars (Compensation, Benefits, Job Security, Management Rights)
- Impasse: Union (strike, boycott, slowdown, picket) vs. Management (lockout, strikebreakers)
- Resolution: Conciliation (clarify) → Mediation (suggest) → Arbitration (impose, binding)
Historical milestone: Privy Council Order 1003 (1944) gave unions the legal right to collectively bargain.
6. Evolving Workforce
- Diversity = strategic advantage; inclusion goes beyond hiring
- Knowledge Workers: value from expertise; skill half-life ~3 years; continuous development required
- Contingent Workers: 5 categories (part-time, contractor, on-call, temp, contract/guest); managed via Plan → Cost-Benefit → Integrate
- Gig economy = growing legal grey zone (Uber case)
Cross-Course Connections
- Bias-PerformanceAppraisals — PHIL252 bias taxonomy explains why interviews fail and how behaviour-based interviewing fixes it
- ClassificationSystems-LabourRelations — PHIL252 classification rules applied to shop spectrum, worker categories, and third-party resolution
- Argument-Lobbying — collective bargaining as structured argument under pressure