JOB CHANGES

"Job changes" in the context of Human Resource Management (HRM) refer to alterations or
modifications made to an individual's job role within an organization. These changes can
encompass various adjustments, transitions, or advancements in an employee's
responsibilities, tasks, duties, or position within the company. Job changes may include
promotions, demotions, lateral moves, transfers, job rotations, job redesign, or changes in job
title.

Here's a breakdown of some common job changes in HRM:

Promotion: A promotion involves advancing an employee to a higher-level position with

increased responsibilities, authority, and often, compensation. Promotions recognize and
reward employees' performance, skills, and potential for growth within the organization.

Demotion: A demotion occurs when an employee is moved to a lower-level position with

reduced responsibilities, authority, or compensation. Demotions may result from performance
issues, organizational restructuring, or changes in business needs.

Lateral Move: A lateral move involves transferring an employee to a different position at the
same hierarchical level within the organization. Lateral moves provide employees with
opportunities to gain new experiences, develop new skills, or explore different career paths
without vertical advancement.

Transfer: A transfer involves moving an employee from one job role or location to another
within the same organization. Transfers may occur due to organizational restructuring,
staffing needs, career development opportunities, or personal reasons.

Job Rotation: Job rotation involves periodically rotating employees through different job
roles or departments within the organization. Job rotation programs are designed to enhance
employees' skills, knowledge, and versatility, while also providing cross-functional exposure
and career development opportunities.

Job Redesign: Job redesign involves modifying or restructuring existing job roles to better
align with organizational goals, improve efficiency, enhance employee engagement, or
accommodate changing business needs. Job redesign may involve changes to job tasks,
responsibilities, reporting relationships, or work processes.
Job Title Change: A job title change involves updating or revising an employee's job title to
better reflect their current responsibilities, expertise, or level within the organization. Job title
changes may occur as part of promotions, job reassignments, or organizational rebranding
efforts.

Overall, job changes in HRM play a significant role in managing employees' careers,
supporting organizational objectives, and ensuring the effective utilization of human capital
within the organization. Effective management of job changes involves clear communication,
transparent processes, fair practices, and alignment with the organization's strategic goals and
values.

Promotion

Promotion is an upward movement of employee in the

organization to another job, higher in organisation’s hierarchy. In
the new job, the employee finds a change in salary, status,
responsibility and grade of job or designation. As a whole, the
organization perceives the staffing of vacancy worth more than
the employee’s present position. In contrast to promotion when
the salary of an employee is increased without a corresponding
change in the job-grade, it is known as ‘upgrading’. But when
promotion does not result in change in pay, it is called ‘dry
promotion’. Promotion is a method of internal mobility.

Principles of Promotion

Promotion is a double edged weapon. If handled carefully, it

contributes to employee satisfaction and motivation. If
mishandled, it leads to discontentment and frustration among the
employees. It is the responsibility of the HR manager to lay down
a sound promotional policy and ensure its implementation.

promotion involves the reassignment of unemployed to a higher higher level job. This also refers to
the upward or vertical movement of employees. It in an organisation from lower level jobs to a
higher level jobs involving increases in duties and responsibility, higher pay and privileges

Policy of promotion

The HRM must make it clear whether to fill up higher positions by

internal promotions or recruit people from outside. Generally
speaking top positions in an organisation are filled through
external recruitment. The lower positions are filled by promotions
from within.

When it has been decided to fill up higher positions with

promotions, a further decision on determining the basis of
promotion should be made by HRM. The basis of promotion may
be seniority or merit or both.

One most important point regarding the policy of promotion is

whether to promote employees against vacancies or non-
vacancies. In many organizations promotions are done on a non-
vacancy basis after they complete a minimum period of service.
Such promotions are time bound and not based on vacancies or
merit. The other practice is to link promotions to vacancies.
Sometimes these vacancies are created to avoid frustration
among the aspirants for promotion.

A promotion should be preceded by a job analysis and

performance appraisal. A job analysis is important to know what
the job demands from the employee and performance appraisal
will enable the management to know whether the employee in
question can match the requirements of the job.

The promotion policy should be discussed with the labour unions

and their acceptance must be obtained in the form of an
agreement.

When promotions are made on the basis of competence, openings

for promotion should be displayed at several places to enable
interested people to apply.

3.3. Bases of promotion

Organisations adopt different bases of promotion depending on

their nature, size, managerial policy etc. The well established
bases of promotion are seniority and merit.

3.3.1. Seniority based promotion

If seniority is the bases for promotion, an employee with the

longest period of service will get promoted, irrespective of
whether he is competent or not.

Advantages

 It is easy to administer.
 It is easy to measure the length of service and judge the
seniority.

 With the base of seniority there is no scope for favoritism,

discrimination and subjective judgement.

 By seniority everyone is sure of getting promotion one day.

 Subordinates are more willing to work under an older boss

who has given many years of service to the company.

Disadvantages

 The learning capabilities of senior (older) employees may

diminish.

 It de-motivates the younger and more competent employees

and it results in more employee turnover.

 The organisation is deprived of external talent which is very

necessary due to technological advancements and multi-culture
organisation.

 Judging the seniority is highly difficult as the problems like

job seniority, company seniority, regional seniority, service in
different organizations, trainee experience, research experience
etc., will crop up.

3.3.2. Merit or competence based promotion

Merit based promotion occur when an employee is promoted

because of superior performance in the current job. Merit means
an individual’s knowledge, skills, abilities as measured from his
educational qualifications, experience, training, and past
employment record.

Advantages

 Promotion by merit is a reward to encourage those

employees who make a successful effort to increase their
knowledge or skill and who maintain a high level of productivity.

 It helps the employer to focus on talented employees

recognize their talent and reward their contributions.

 Efficiency is encouraged, recognized and rewarded.

 Competent people are retained as better prospects are open
to them.

 It inspires other employees to improve their standards of

performance through active participation in all activities and
putting in more efforts.

Disadvantages

 It is not easy to measure merit. Personal prejudices, biases,

and union pressures may come in the way of promoting the best
performer.

 When young employees get ahead of senior employees in

the organization this creates frustration among senior
employees .They feel insecure and may also quit the organization.

 The past performance may not guarantee future success of

an employee.

 Loyalty and length of service is not properly rewarded

3.4. Advantages of Promotion Plan

 It provides an opportunity to the present employees to move

into jobs that provide greater personal satisfaction and prestige.

 It offers opportunities to management to provide recognition

and incentives to the better employees, to correct initial mistakes
in appointments and to ‘freeze’ inefficient personnel.

 It generates within an organization beneficial pressures on

work performance and desired behaviour of all its members.

 It serves as an orderly, logical and prompt source of

recruitment for management to fill vacancies as they arise.

 Promotion fulfils the long cherished desires in the lives of

employees.

3.5. Disadvantages of Promotion Plan

 Promotion promotes “inbreeding” in which the company will

not have new blood and new thinking. Old habits and ideas are
perpetuated.
 The system becomes stagnant, repetitious and very
conventional.

 The newer employees are introduced at places where they

are having little influence.

4. Demotion

Demotion is the reverse of promotion. It is the downward

movement of an employee in hierarchy with lower status, salary
and decreased responsibilities. It is generally used as a punitive
measure for incompetence or a preliminary step to dismissal. It is
a downgrading process where the employees suffer considerable
emotional and financial loss.

Causes for demotion

 The employee may be unable to meet the challenges posed

by a new job.

 He may have low administrative skills.

 Due to poor business conditions and continuous losses, a

firm may decide to layoff some and to downgrade others.

 It is sometimes used as a disciplinary tool against offending

employees.

Transfer

A transfer implies a lateral movement of an employee in the

hierarchy of positions with the same pay and status. Transfers
may be either company initiated or employee initiated. In fact, a
transfer is a change in job assignment. It may involve a
promotion, demotion or no change at all in status and
responsibility.

Transfers from one job to another may be either temporary or

permanent. Temporary transfers may be due to

 temporary absenteeism

 shifts in the workload

 vacations
Permanent transfers may be due to

 shifts in the workload

 vacancies requiring the special skill of the transferred

employee

 ill-health of the employee

Transfer requests might come from the worker himself, from his
superior, from the head of another department or may be made
necessary by changes in the volume of trading activities. When
the transfer request comes from the employee himself, it is
because he does not like the work or the place of work or the co-
workers.

Requests for transfers should be favourably considered especially

when it comes from an employee. An unsatisfied employee is
more of a liability than an asset. It is true that no company can
comply with all requests for transfers.

Different types of transfer in the jobs are listed below.

5.1.1. Production transfer

Transfers from jobs in which labour requirements are declining to

jobs in which they are increasing (through resignation or
otherwise) are called production transfer.

This type of transfer is made to avoid lay-off of efficient

employees by providing them with alternative positions in the
same organisation.

5.1.2. Replacement transfer

These are transfers in which a long- service employee is

transferred to a similar job where he replaces or “bumps” an
employee with shorter service. This type of transfer is made when
all operations are declining but management wants to retain the
long-service employee as long as possible.

5.1.3. Versatility transfer

The versatility transfer (better called ‘rotation’) is for the purpose

of providing management with a more versatile group of
employees.
This type of transfer will increase the versatility of the employee
by shifting him from one job to another. The employee gets an
opportunity for varied job experience. This helps the employee
through job enlargement.

5.1.4. Remedial transfer

These transfers are made to remedy the situation. Remedial

transfers provide management with a procedure whereby an
unsatisfactory placement can be corrected. Initial placement
might be faulty or the type of job might not suit his health. In such
cases the worker would benefit by transfer to a different kind of
work.

5.2. Benefits of transfers

 Improve employee skills

 Remedy faulty placement decisions

 Prepare the employee for challenging future

 Improve employee satisfaction

 Improve employee-employer relations.

5.3. Problems with transfers

 Inconvenient to employees.

 Employees may or may not fit in the new location

 Shifting of experienced hands may affect productivity

 Discriminatory transfer may affect employee satisfaction.

6. Employee separation
Employee separation occurs when employees cease to be a
member of an organization. Agreement between employer &
employee comes to an end. Employees decide to leave the
organization or organization ask employee to leave. Reasons for
employee separations are voluntary or involuntary. In the former
initiation for separation is taken by employee himself or herself.
Where the employer initiates to separate an employee it becomes
involuntary separation.
TYPES
6.1. Voluntary Separations

6.1.1. Quits

An employee decides to quit when his or her level of

dissatisfaction with the present job is high or a more alternative
job is awaiting the individual. Organisations often encourage quits
through cash incentives. Popularly known as voluntary retirement
scheme (VRS) these schemes are offered by the organizations
when they are experiencing losses. They resort to cost saving and
believe that the best way of cost saving is to cut the wages of the
employees. As VRS are induced by the management it comes
under involuntary separations.

Retirements

Retirements occur when employees reach the end of their

careers. The age for an employee’s superannuation differs.
Retirement differs from quits. When the employee superannuates
and leaves the organization, he or she carries several benefits
with himself or herself. Such a privilege is denied to the employee
who quits.

Second, retirement occurs at the end of an employee’s career but

the quit can take place at any time.

Third, superannuation shall not leave any bad relationship behind

the retiree but a quit is likely to result in hurt feelings with the
employer.

Involuntary Separations

Employers resort to terminate employment contract with

employees for at least three reasons:

 Organization is passing through lean period and is unable to

maintain the existing labour
 Initial faulty hiring resulting in mismatch between job and
employee.

 Employee exhibits unusual behavior making the

environment ineffective.

Discharges, layoffs, retrenchment and VRS are the common

methods of employer sponsored separations.

6.2.1. Discharge or Dismissal

A discharge takes place when the employer discovers that it is no

more desirable to keep an employee any longer. Discharge, also
called termination, should be avoided as far as possible.
Termination is expensive as the firm must seek replacement, hire
and train the new hiree. A discharged individual is likely to
badmouth about the company. Dismissal is the last step and may
be resorted to when all the efforts in salvaging the employee
have failed. The following reasons lead to the dismissal of an
employee:

 Excessive absenteeism

 Serious misconduct

 False statement of qualification at the time of employment

 Theft of company property

6.2.2. Layoff

A layoff is a temporary separation of the employee at the instance

of the employer. Section 2(kkk) of The Industrial Disputes Act,
1947, defines layoff as “the failure, refusal or inability of an
employer to give employment to a worker whose name is present
on the rolls but who has not been retrenched”. A layoff may be for
a definite period on the expiry of which the employee will be
recalled by the employer for the duty.

As the employees are laid off by the employer they have to be

paid compensation for the period they are laid off. Section 25
of The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 makes it compulsory for
the employer to pay compensation for all the days of layoff. The
compensation must be equal to half of the normal wages the
employee would have earned if he or she would not have been
laid off.
A layoff may be for one of the following reason:

 Shortage of coal, power or raw materials

 Accumulation of stocks

 Breakdown of machinery etc.

6.2.3. Retrenchment

It refers to the termination of the employee because of the

replacement of labour by machines or the closure of a
department due to continuing lack of demand of the products
manufactured in that particular department of the organisation. If
the plant is itself closed then the management and the employees
have to leave for good. Like layoff retrenchment also entitles the
employees to compensation which in terms of section 25(f) of the
industrial disputes act, 1947 is equivalent to 15 days average pay
for every competed year of continuous service.

Retrenchment however differs from layoff in the sense that in

layoff the employee continues to be in the employment of the
organization and is sure to be recalled after the end of the period
of layoff whereas, in retrenchment, the employee’s relation with
the company are detached immediately.

Retrenchment also differs from dismissal. An employee is

dismissed due to his or her own fault and dismissal is usually
done of one or two employees whereas retrenchment is forced
both on the employer and the employee and it involves the
termination of several employees.

6.2.4. Voluntary retirement scheme

Beginning in the early 1980’s, companies both public and private

sector have been sending home surplus labour for good reasons
not by retrenchment but by a novel scheme called Voluntary
retirement scheme VRS also called the “golden hand shake plan”.
Handsome compensation is paid to the leaving employees. VRS is
thought to be painless and time saving method of trimming the
staff strength and getting rid of unproductive older workers. Many
organizations like Hindustan Lever, Siemens, TISCO have
successfully operated this scheme and achieved great success.

TISCO had set aside Rs.100 crore for its VRS in 1997. The
company had decided to cut off its employees from 68,000 to
55,000 in five years to improve efficiency and it received good
response.

6.2.5. Resignation

A resignation refers to the termination of employment at the

instance of the employee in that case it is voluntary but if forced
by the employer for not putting his duty well ,or for some serious
charge against him than it becomes involuntary. An employee
may resign when he or she gets a good job elsewhere, or due to
ill health, or may resign due to some personal problems.