Question

In the current HR employer-employee relations, there’s more emphasis on improved employee degree of autonomy and responsibility. HR is also placing more focus on employability.

Use a real business example to discuss what is meant by empowerment era, employability, and the benefits, costs, and effects of employability.

Answer 1

A real-life example of a business is the business activities of Woolworths Inc.

The empowerment era refers to when employers of an organization welcome the inputs of employees in the decision-making process. It is a practical way of teaching employees about leadership by improving their decision-making capacity. Employers readily empower the employees for future-ready. Woolworth's employers allow their low-level employees in the organizational decision-making process to make them ready to take the organization's responsibility with an enhancement of engagement with the company.

Employability refers to a transferable skill that can be used to make employees employable. It includes a profound understanding of the subject area, efficiency in technical skill, hardworking skill, and capability to obtain new employment in case of requirements. All the skills that make employees ready for a job, and taking responsibilities are called employability. Woolworths's human resource management correctly checks the employability of the job aspirant before hiring them as employees. Moreover, they also arrange a training session to make employees adapt to the organizational environment and various health and safety management for employees.

Benefits of employability are as follows:

· It increases productivity and competitiveness

· It is cost-saving and reduces wastage of money.

· It improves the working capacities of employees.

· It encourages appropriate task allocation.

Employability does not cost much—it has a high return on low investment. Only a training session, performance development, and skilling courses can boost employees' working capacity that results productively.

Effects of employability are as follows:

· Boosts up employees' performance standard

· Helps employees understanding organizational environment

· Develops communication skill of employees

· Encourages the decision-making skill of employees