What are Labour Standards?
Posted by admin on November 4, 2009 - (0)
As an owner there are many factors you need to be wary of such as competition, changes in the market and labor standards. Labor standards in recent times have become an important aspect of any business organization.
Labor law or employment law is the body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which addresses the legal rights of, and restrictions on, workers and their organizations.
They are a set of conventions written and practiced in the business community with regard to the conduct of employee- employer ethics and management. It is important for the employee as well as the employer to get a good and sound understanding of these laws for starting his / her business.
The employees use it to protect their rights and to ensure that they get treated fairly while employer needs to know them to ensure fair play in different aspects of business functioning such as hiring, work ethics and so on.
Being aware with the labour standards prevalent in a specific industry or regions endows the employer with many advantages. Some of them are:
1. Defining employment conditions:
A clear understanding of the labour laws helps in laying clear and reasonable employment and working conditions. When the standards or rules are followed, the conditions end up being in sync with other businesses operating in similar markets or regions and have a sense of homogeneity.
2. Deal with workplace issues:
These standards help to sort out numerous issues which arise in the business as well the employees. With regard to employees, it helps in sorting out issues such as workplace violence etc while for the employer it gives a framework to conduct his/her business proficiently and in a ‘just’ manner.
3. Exploitation of Labour:
Knowledge about the labour standards can help you avoid getting embroiled in issues such as number of working hours or exploitation of labor. For example, as a business manager you may be helping an employee to realize his / her potential by giving him challenging assignments. But that may lead to other consequences such as exploitation of the employee by making him overwork etc.
The other area where these laws could prove to be useful would be in the health and safety of your employees and relieving an employee of his or her services / unfair dismissal.
Thus, a sound knowledge of labour standards and laws always come in handy and help you aver such situations.
4. Minimum Wages:
In some countries and states, the laws require the employer to pay its employees a minimum basic wages, the ceiling for which keeps varying from one state to another. States apart such laws are different for different countries too.
You may get more information pertaining to laws of your country or state by visiting the specific sites on the web such as www.dol.gov/esa for people in the US.
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How to find and fund Employees for your Small Business?
Posted by admin on November 4, 2009 - (0)
Getting the right employees in a business determines its success to a great extent. But how do you get the right people in your business? This is the crucial question small business owners face when it comes to hiring people.
There are various means by which you can find and fund your employees, some of which are:
1. Use local stores and malls as hubs
You could use local malls and stores as hubs to advertise about your business and put up requirement notices for employees. This would act as a star network and disseminate information among people who visit the mall or local stores in the neighborhood or the suburbs.
2. Use major junctions as dissemination point for information
Major public points such as local bus stations and tubes could be used to put up news about opportunities in the beckoning. This would prove to be an effective means to spread the news and would get people from not different neighborhoods.
3. Use Tabloids
Newsprint could be used as another means to find the right kind of people. If you have a certain pocket of people in mind, then you could advertise in the tabloids of that region. This would help you get people from a particular region.
4. Harness the power of web
Nowadays, job search engine engines offer a wide pool of resources at a very nominal cost. So this could be a potentially viable source for all business start ups.
5. Use a share of profits
You could use a part of the profits to fund your employees. This part once invested in the salaries of the employees would result in the growth of the firm which would imply more profits and thus trigger a chain.
Also, a part of the profits could be invested in bourses and profits thus earned from the investment could be used to fund employees.
6. Build on the strengths of your business
You could identify the profit making segments of your business and invest in it to reap greater profits. This could be used to fund the employees.
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How to hire people/contractors for your job?
Posted by admin on November 4, 2009 - (0)
After setting up the business, the next big requirement is to get the right people in the right places. So, how does one hire people? This is a tricky proposition in the case of small business and calls for a few things to be adhered such as:
- Need analysis – You should hire people based on the need of the hour. This means no matter how good a person is, if he does not fit in the equation of things then you should not look to hire him/ her. Also you should start the hiring process by analyzing the level of help you need. These two things would help you narrow down on the kind of people required for the jobs.
- Identify jobs can be delegated – Certain jobs call for your role and involvement and are thus indispensable. But then you should look to find those jobs which do not require your constant presence and could be delegated. It is for such jobs that you should look to hire people.
- Be judicious – At times, there is a possibility to hire people owing to profits and inflow of funds. It is during these times that you need to judicious in ascertaining which are the portfolios that call for urgent placements and which ones don’t. This not only reduces your budget but also helps in bringing out the potential of other employees.
- Hire people based on priorities – Look to hire people based on a mix of their attitudes and skills. Infact it wouldn’t be a bad choice if the former outweighs the latter for skills can always be developed but attitude is something that takes time!
- Plan for fair-market pay - You should look to pay as per the market trends and not based on your own evaluation. This will get you efficient workforce without much hassles
- Try to get apprentices wherever possible - You should look to hire apprentices and get them to work in which ever job possible. This gives a two way advantage. On the one hand, you get to spend less on salaries and save for future. The other advantage which you get as an employer is, you get to evaluate the apprentice and if found suitable for the job, he / she could be later taken in that place as an employee.
- The one thing you should keep in mind is to get the right team in place which comes from getting the right people!
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