NICMAR CENTRE OF DISTANCE EDUCATION CPM - 23 SITE PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION LESSON BOOK NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCHThis Lesson Book contains course material compiled for learning and self-study by students; and for purely teaching and training purposes. Private circulation. Not for sale. No part of this Volume may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means or stored in a data base or retrieval system without prior permission of the Chief, CODE, NICMAR Pune Campus. This Lesson Book has been compiled by Mr. K.K. Bahl, Vice President (HRD), Nuchem Ltd. and for some time Deputy Director, NICMAR Delhi. June 2000 Published by J.C. Rodrigues, Manager, NICMAR Publication Bureau, National Institute of Construction Management and Research, Walchand Centre, Tardeo, Mumbai 400 034, India, Tel. 022 - 492 7847, Fax, 022 - 495 2453. Email : nicmarmb@giasbn01 .vsnl.net.inSr. No. CONTENTS Title Page PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION 1 FUNCTIONS OF SITE PERSONNEL OFFICE 4 MANPOWER PLANNING AND PROCUREMENT 10 SKILL DEVELOPMENT, TRAINING, 16 UPGRADATION AND REDUNDANCY WORKING HOURS AND WORKING CONDITIONS Ps WAGES, ALLOWANCES AND OTHER PAYMENTS =. 27 OTHER COMPENSATIONS 31 LEGAL MANAGEMENT OF DISCIPLINE 38 DEALING WITH TRADE UNIONS 44 UNDERSTANDING HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, 48 MOTIVATION AND CHANGE BIBLIOGRAPHY 56 SUGGESTED READINGS 56LESSON 1 PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION SUMMARY This introductory chapter highlights the construction industry and its people. Construction industry is the second largest industry in the country. It accounts for 16 percent of the working population of India. There are about 16 million people on job today and the projections are that in the year 2004 there shall be 32 million people working for it. Surprisingly the industry is still known as an informal one. There are about one lakh ‘A’ class contractors registered with the government and other client bodies. The major chunk of construction work force is the contract labour. Fluctuations in demand for labour leads to instability and encourages the unfair labour practices. INTRODUCTION It should be of interest to have a look at the construction industry and its people, at the outset. The construction industry has registered enormous growth worldwide during the last few decades. The growth has been diverse in nature. The industrialised countries invest more on civil works projects associated with energy, space research, armaments industry, new building materials and machinery and on retro-fitting, upgrading and maintenance of existing structure. The developing countries are engaged in the construction of civic, social and developmental infrastructure projects, housing and other structures required for economic growth and improving the quality of life. The construction industry is the second largest economic activity in India and plays an important role in the nation's economy. It is a vanguard activity of several other key sectors of economy whose performance is dependent on the satisfactory performance of the construction industry. Construction accounted for about 40 percent of the development investment of India during the last 50 years. Around 16 percent of the nation's working population depends on construction for their livelihood. The construction industry is an essential contributor to the process of development. Roads, dams, irrigation works, schools, houses, hospitals, factories, and other construction works are the physical foundations on which development efforts and improved living standards are established. Construction is an employment spinner activity. According to an estimate of the National Building Organisation, every one million rupees spent onNICMAR construction gen-erates 3000 mandays of skilled and semi-skilled, and 1300 mandays of manage-rial/technical employment. NICMAR has recently published a study giving estimates and projections on employment for the period 1995- 96 to 2004-05 in the construc-tion industry. According to this study - i. The number of persons employed in the construction industry in India in 1995-96 is estimated at 14.6 million. It is expected to increase to 32.6 million in 2004-05. ii, The annual increase in employment in the construction industry ranged from 8.38 percent in 1996-97 to 10.16 percent in 2004-05. The additional employment generation in the construction industry is ex- pected to be about 1.224 million jobs per year and is likely to increase to 3.013 million by 2004-05. iv. Employment by skill distribution in construction is likely to be as under: ‘Skill 1995-96 2004-05 (Percent) (Percent) Engineers an 8.47 Technicians 2.46 4.43 Clerical 4.40 4.40 Skilled workers 18.35 (27.62 Unskilled workers 55.08 700.00 vi. The estimated employment generation over next ten years by four major sectors of the construction industry is given below: TABLE 1 Employment Generation by Sectors Road & Housing Civic & Infra Annual Years Building Social structure Total increase Infre-stucture Devt. Sector % structure Sector 1995-96 1485 8580 1091 3465 14621 : 1996-97 1582 9380 1192 3691 15845 8.38 1997-98 1691 10273 1306 3945 17216 8.65 1998-99 1812 11273 1433 4228 18745 8.88 1999-2000 1946 12392 1575 4541 20455 9.12 2000-01 2096 13650 1735 4890 22371 9.37 2001-02 2262 15065 1915 6279-24521 9.61 2002-03 2448 16660 2118 8713-26938 9.86 2003-04 2654 18445 2345 6192 29635 10.01 2004-05 2881 20445 2599 6722-32647 10.16 ‘Source: employment Projection in Construction Sector, 1996-96 to 2004-05, A NICMAR Publication, 1997. 2NICMAR A Rs. 3,30,000 million a year industry employing 14.6 million persons is surprisingly called the informal sector of economy. This is primarily due to the structure of the industry. Broadly categorised, the industry comprises over 200 firms which may be called the corporate sector. These firms are large by Indian standards, are quoted on the stock market if privately owned and in the big league if owned by the government and about 90,000 firms are classified as class ‘A’ contractors registered with various government construction client bodies. These firms, may be from medium to large size in terms of volume of business turnover. There are about 6 hundred thousand small firms of contractors/sub contractors who compete for small jobs or work as sub contractors of prime or other contractors. The major chunk of the construction workforce is constituted of contract labour. The term ‘contract labour’ refers to persons hired by a labour contractor as well as job contractors for carrying out various kinds of skilled, semi-skilled or unskilled or unskilled jobs on construction sites. With the rapid industrialisation requiring the use of more advanced technology and skilled personnel, industrial workers engaged in the formal sectors of the economy form a privileged category. They unionized themselves and registered major wage-welfare benefits. More importantly, they were able to eliminate the institution of ‘jobbers’ and restructure their employment relations. Such is not the case for the construction workers. Construction sector is an aggregate of numerous discrete elements which facilitates contracting Fluctuations in demand of construction serv-ices contributes to instability in workforce and encourages the paradigm of owner-contractor-subcontractor- worker relationship, but skill is the only security of contract workers in the construction job market. There is enough evidence to show that skilled workers dictate their own terms and set their own work schedules. Review Questions 1. Discuss the nature of building and construction industry and its labour force. 2. What leads to the exploitation of construction labour? What do you mean by the situation of 'jobbers' ? How can it be eliminated? 3. What is the role of vocational training in construction industry?LESSON 2 FUNCTIONS OF SITE PERSONNEL OFFICE SUMMARY Unlike a factory, the construction industry works under uncertain conditions. Site conditions and work climate are different at every worksite often remote and inaccessible and lacking communication facilities. A site manager has to take alf technical as well as personnel management decisions and as such site personnel administration is one of the vital activity of a site manager which calls for a high level of managerial ability. Like other components of project management, personnel ‘management and administration are essential activities. Road map to P&A activities includes division of labour in manageable work sections, initial training to people for time management, liaison with police and other governmental authorities and community at large. Strict provisions for safety and protective precautions are also important. Building image of the company with client company end community is very important for its future business and growth CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY Construction gives birth to manufacturing but there is vast difference between manufacturing and construction activity. In the manufacturing and engineering In-dustry the product is uniform, the place of production is determined, the design and methodology of manufacturing is well established, the properties of material used and characteristics of machines employed, as also the skill of man-power deployed is well known. Compared to this in construction one is beset with uncertainties of site, work, climate, skill of labour, and environmental condition. All these calls for nigh level of dependence on the managerial ability, his innovative skill and leadership qualities. Site managers have to take decision at the site which in many cases could be remote and inaccessible, suffering from lack of communication and therefore site and its Head Office have to be on some wave length in respect to basic procedure, system and policies. There can be a written guidance or commonly practiced set of work practice. Site personnel administration is one of the vital activity of a site organisation. For effective achievements of intended result it is essential to set up a suitable organisation at the site. The organisation should afford translation of plan into an activity which promotes completion of the work. As stated, Head Office and Site Office should work in support of each other. While the initial conceptualisation, planning of project, preferably in association with the designed project management is carried out at the Head Office, the activity of actual construction has necessarily to take effect at the site.NICMAR A good site organisation in which all individuals concerned constantly interact for achieving project objectives is vital for the success of the project. A project/site organisation takes over from the Head Office team once the planning process, statutory clearances and allotment of fund has been made. A concept of the Organisa-tion is formulated in the planning stage itself, and at the commencement of the execution stage, a formal character is given to its activity and delegation of individuals is made clear. Like other components of a project site management, like planning, monitoring, engineering, quality control, finance and accounts, personnel and administration is an essential activity. It starts from man power deployment. All record of employees, with respect to their pay, leave, transfer, promotion, training etc. kept here. Though a project being of limited duration, but for the period of its operation record is maintained. At construction site, certain social problems may also be encountered. Most sites are at far off and inaccessible location, where employees would be staying away from their families. Site Personnel Management is the most important function of a Building and Construction business, which is physical execution of the contract job. The human efficiency decides the organisations’ success or failure. Motivated and committed work force can take it to unimaginable heights. Similarly, bad execution can destroy the enterprise. So extreme care and productive efforts ate necessary to make people perform the work excellently. ORGANISATIONAL LINE/NETWORK AT THE SITE In case you have been posted at the work site as incharge of Personnel Administration Department to work with the Chief man at the site, you have to be a confident man with definite direction and strong inspiration, honest to yourself and honest to your employer and a natural leader with pleasing disposition to successfully work in a team. With your professional knowledge in behavioural science and administration, you have to be dynamic enough to do the desired as per work need and circumstances there. You should know the relevant operational clauses, provisions and expectations of the client as mentioned in the Contract to have an overall working knowledge of the plans and targets as per work agreement. ROAD MAP TO SITE PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION ACTIVITIES Divide the Site into Manageable Work Sections If the site is unwieldy and if the work is separable, recommend its division into units, departments or sections with one engineer or foreman in charge of each. In allocation of human resource, there should be intersectional 5NICMAR transferability and diversion made possible with a control by you and your Chief Manager ensuring least wastage and idleness. Make People to learn, to train, to guide and to delegate Site organisation is usually drawn up at the head office to suit the scope of work at site, but action on recruitment is taken by Site Personne! Manager after taking approval of his Chief Manager. There must be a reasonable ratio between supervisors and workmen for effective control. Motivating people by delegating more responsibility and authority in recognition of their competence and creating challenges in their assignments is essential. Remember that the time your management spends on training and guiding the people at work will pay you multiple dividends later. While on the subject of training, you must train your supervisors not only to lead the workmen but also to teach them the trade. Even those men who are not operating these plants and equipment directly should be given training in their use. In fact, all key men at site should know the scope, capacity and use of these machines, their maneuverability, economics of use, their installation or placement, movement ‘or marching, requirements for operation, dismantling, etc. All these should be explained not only to supervisors but also to senior workmen. If your men are kept in the dark, their efficiency will be poor. Give on-the-job training to the workmen. Before the commencement of any activity, explain to the full understanding of your men the scheme, the method, the materials and tools needed, how to use the tools, advantages and disadvantages of different types and makes of tools serving the same purpose, precision needed, tests re-quired to be carried out, and so on. Both the supervisors and workmen should take the responsibility for the safety and security of the tools and equipment allocated to them. They should ensure their own personal safety also. Empowerment and delegation makes people at all levels to carry out their responsi-bilities efficiently. The delegation of such authority should be made known to all people in the site organisation so that they act without the fear of being questioned So, do all that you should, to remove all kinds of constraints in advance so that your people are able to achieve the targets Remember always that in construction "time lost is money lost" and as far as time is concerned, you have to always consider that you are under ‘emergency’. Think not only of your losses but also of the owner's and the nation's loss. A day saved can probably save a few million rupees. Never think of finding out excuses for not doing the work. Excuse you can find in plenty. But whom do they help? The moment you start narrating excuses, intelligent people who hear you rate you as one not interested inNICMAR delivering the goods. At the end of the month, what your employer and your ‘owner expect is not a long list of excuses that stood in your way, but solid figures of achievements. A capable construction manager should guide things in the direction of execution. He should be a creator’ at the site, not a ‘spectator’ of things somehow happening by themselves without human effort like rain falling or breeze blowing. Help Monitoring Progress/Results Instead of people coming to you for guidance, you must go to them and discuss the performance, and where necessary tell them. This is necessary because as a leader in human relations, give credit to others for their achievements and own up their shortcomings before the head Manage Time At the construction site, you will always face pressure of work and lack of time. This is a manageable problem. Time management is an art which you can easily learn and practice if you want to. Many of us waste a lot of our time and_say "no time even to breathe". Lear to structure time and priorities of your time. There is no substitute to this practice and habit. With this self discipline, you can make other team members to do the same. Departmental Labour The regular work force directly engaged on your roll is the departmental labour. Engage departmental labour on key elements of jobs over which your management people shouid exercise extreme quality assurance, control of progress and workstudy for future purpose. Those jobs which are of longer duration and more profitable must be done departmentally. Sub Contractor/Agreement The reasons for subcontracting are want of specialist skill, uneconomic volume for you to mobilise, want of special tools, paucity of capital to equip for a new activity and some times the policy of keeping low the direct employment of workmen as per instructions from Chief Manager or Head Office. At the beginning stage itself your organisation may decide to subcontract certain portions of work. You must know the subcontractor and his work force since this all work is on the responsibility of principal employer, your Organisation. In fairness to the subcontractor, an agreement without the pitfalls detailed should be signed. However, while being fair to others, you must ensure that organisation also receives fairness. There should be no compromising at the cost of your Company's interest in business.NICMAR Contents of the agreement can be taken relevantly from Head Office. As far as possible, use one of the standard forms of agreements with the necessary modifications. One thing which you must particularly ensure is the creativeness presence of workforce on work. Support the Subcontractor and ensure that he does not fail. If a subcontractor fails, this would cause some dislocation and set back in the project work. Therefore, try to prevent it. Here are a few tips: - Your work team has to be transparent. No cheating or distorting of quantities in measurement books. - Without taking advantage of his weak bargaining power, give him fairness and support in everything, But when he is otherwise well off, you need not share the details of business terms of your Company with the Owner. - Help him with your management skill, administrative ability and personal ad-vice in increasing his effectiveness and profitability. Liaison and Sociability with the owner's representative This is a subject to be handled by you and your boss delicately. Your Company needs the owner's goodwill and support throughout the contract period. He deals most mostly with his people like engineers and others. Never rub them up the wrong way. Get along well with him. If and when mis- understanding crops up, talk it out amicably. Cordiality should be the keynote. Teach your people how to deal with the owner's representatives at various levels. Tell them that they would not lose anything by giving a little extra respect someone regardless of level differences. Ligison and Rapport with Local Authorities The provincial government's local administration set up is popularly called ‘local authority’. You will have a host of things to do with many of them n your day to day administration. Keep them in good humour. An occasional ego-boosting visit to their office by you, presentation of some compliments, cooperating with them in problems affecting the local community., etc. will go a long way in keeping good rapport with them. Never slight anybody. Health and Safety Contractors who have a concern for the health and life of their men should ensure that ‘safety’ is an important part of their work culture. There are safety trainees especially for the Sites with their local offices in all prominent towns. Moreover, every owner/principal employer has to include all health & safety plans along with design of a site project. Factory Inspectorate and State Safety Councils maintains link with the national or local safety council. Contact them for the safety codes to be followed for your type of work. 8NICMAR Train your supervisors and workmen how to work without exposing themselves to injuries that can cause deaths or disablement. Give them the necessary safety appliances, land see to it that they use them while on work. If anybody is found negligent in the practice he must be punished straightway. Practice of safety and accident prevention shall be an important part of the work culture of the organisation. Provision and Use of Safety Appliances and Protective Clothing For dry type of site job, the appropriate safety appliances and protective clothing necessary to ensure personal safety and protection shall be issued to employees. All employees shall be given safety instructions at the time of induction. Later on, they shall be warned of the consequences of negligence at regular intervals.The management must inflict appropriate appropriate punishment on all employees flouting safety instructions. All supervisors whose teams achieve "zero-accident” shall be given annual awards. Image Building Conduct of all the people and your management team throughout the existence at the site should be such that when you jeave the place, you go with a respectable image. The organisation's image is very important for its future business and growth. The perfect professionalism with which you conduct your affairs at the site, your dealings with the people, the high standard you have demonstrated in your performance of work, the calibre of your executives and the skill of your workmen are things which build your image as an organisation. At every step you take, the ‘image’ of your organisation side by side with other objectives should be uppermost in your mind. Review Questions 1, How is the role of a site manager crucial in managing people at site? 2. Howis personnel administration a vital management activity at a site organisation? 3. Why is on the job training unavoidable at site? Why health and safety education are necessary at work sites? 4. How ‘image building’ contributes for the future business and growth of a company? What do you mean by sociability with owner's representative?LESSON 3 MANPOWER PLANNING AND PROCUREMENT SUMMARY ‘Manpower planning is a significant part of management planning. Manpower planning is a process of providing the right kind of people in right numbers for a right job at the right time. As a result of work study, past experiences and job analysis job- Specifications and job descriptions are determined for recruiting people. People are recruited through various sources including employment exchanges. given appointment letters and placed on the job. The process of induction and training goes on to develop them for enhancement and rewards by increments and promotions. Personal files and written records are maintained to know the work, conduct and performance of an employee. INTRODUCTION Manpower planning is that significant part of management which deals with planning for all types, nature and class of workers, supervisors, engineers and technicians etc. Required for proper and efficient execution of work. Manpower planning is known as the process of keeping right kind of people in right number for a right job at the right time. It deals with planning recruitment, selection, placement, training and process of upgradation and promotion of the company workers and staff at different stages of work or time according to the demand of the work. Manpower planning department of a construction company helps its management to carry out the project execution smoothly. Manpower planning department carries out detailed study of the type and nature of project for estimating numbers of skilled or unskilled workers, types of skills required, for what duration this type of skilled/unskilled workers are required and where the labour will be engaged after completion of the job. They carry out detailed studies for the type of engineers, technicians, managers required and from where to get them. Proper upgradation, training, promotion, increment of workers and staff also lies with this department. With proper manpower planning the company does not have to stop working due to demand of labour or staff. Nothing comes to the management all of a sudden. A lot of work is necessitated for manpower planning. It includes: - Collecting data of the whole project, the nature of the project, equipment use, amount of work, time frame to complete the project etc., specification of work, contractor etc. - Labour components in various items. - Level at which labour is required.NICMAR - Location of project. + Degree of responsibility, skills and knowledge required - Consideration of the rate of absenteeism. - Money to be given to various levels of employees according to their level of responsibility, working conditions, importance of work, skills required for a work etc. The above steps are part of work-study and job analysis which enables us to make job description and job specifications. This is done by using CPM and PERT methods. A project is divided into a number of activities that will make it complete. The duration of the activities is estimated on the basis of experience. Lead times are also considered. Then it is decided how many employees are required and when. Some are needed at the very beginning, while others are required at the time of execution. Job Evaluation Job evaluation means knowing the worth of the employee. It is done in three ways: - Classification method: Whether a person is needed at supervisory fevel or at a higher level, what kind of job he will handle, how much work is needed, and whether the work is laborious or not. - Point rate method: In this numbers from 1 to 10 are given to various functions which are similar in nature. Each element is then measured e.g. it comes out to be 10. If the number of elements are ten then the total becomes hundred. If Rs. 60 is to be paid to the worker and Rs. 40 is minimum pay the 60 /40 is the job value. - Job rating: In this exercise, the job is rated as per skills required by a person. The knowledge desired, his capability and extent of work responsibility on a job. This also leads to find the worth of an employee. Meticulous care has to be taken in manpower planning in order to ensure timely deployment of just the required number of workmen of the right trade and skill. Both over-manning and under-manning are bad. At the same time, there should be no sudden fluctuations in the labour strength. Remember that the manpower and productivity would hold the key to profitability in construction. In a construction organisation, manpower planning is done with a lot of learning from Head office and project chief and other functionaries in planning activity. A site manager and a site per-sonnel officer seeks help: - to schedule the work force from start to finish showing expected decrease or increase at times; - to determine the manpower skill specifications and assess the number of mandays of various trades and skills to be put in every month; "NICMAR - to draw a chart of manpower needed weekwise or monthwise; - to adjust the schedule and manpower requirements avoiding sudden and steep fluctuations; = to ascertain the availability of men of the right trade and skill either in on going and other sites - to put off the recruitment of those categories which available for spot- recruitment and which herdly need any training; - to recruit and train the scarce categories in advance, but try to keep idling to the minimum; - The concerned site manager/personnel officer should help his Chief Manager at site to maintain a reasonable ratio between supervisors and workmen ensuring effective supervision and high productivity and also to have a periodical review of the manpower of every section of the site and of the organisation as a whole, keeping the present and future needs in view and avoiding manpower shortage and high overtime on one side and idling, underutilisation and surplus on the other. He must prepare manpower charts for earliest start and latest start of activities as per need. It should be borne in mind that sudden sharp fluctuations in labour strength alone will have corresponding adverse impact on supervision and infrastrucutral facilities which will lead to fall in efficiency and it is not an economic and practical proposition to increase or decrease the labour strength. This is an important aspect to be given proper attention while planning the manpower. General and clerical staff such as material chasers, time keepers, stenographers and typists shall also be needed. One need not expect the general staff to possess all the desired qualities and skills. They should have a basic idea about the work they are expected to do, be able to understand instructions well and carry them out with speed and accuracy using common sense. They would generally have good physique and pleasing nature. General staff can be recruited as and when found necessary. They too need some training. And a few of them have to be retained on the permanent roll of the enterprise. The number of positions will depend on the scope and volume of work. One must ensure that the actual employment does not exceed the number and duration considered in his manpower estimate as given to him by his top management. He must aim at keeping the actuals below the estimates so that he stands to gain economically. Never start with the full contingent of men. And finally, try to recruit the best available men for all positions because it is the appropriate people who deliver the goods as per plan. 12NICMAR The site organisation shall recruit only meritorious candidates with the appropriate qualifications, experience, capability and potential for development. As far as possible, candidates below the age of 35 years shall be given preference. Every year, a few fresh trainees may be recruited. Where local recruitment of temporary men is necessary, such recruitment may be made through Employment Exchanges or Placement Agencies. In the initial recruitment, age may be relaxed because of the need for well experienced people in different positions. But along with them, youngsters also shall be taken in for training and succession. Further intakes shall be planned on the basis of the future expansion of the work and business organisation and the aging of the first recruits requiring replacement. The subsequent recruitment shall be mostly of qualified trainees who shall be given the appropriate training in the relevant jobs and absorbed in various departments and groomed for different posts, giving due consideration to the qualities found in them during the training. Interview and Selection Regardless of how or through whom the candidates have come, every candidate for employment shall be interviewed and even tested, where relevant. You and your other interviewers shall prepare themselves in advance to conduct the interview with dignity land make a proper evaluation of the candidate from the angles of: job specifications and the candidate's suitability, considering his personality, intelligence, theoretical education, practical knowledge, area of experience, achievements, reason for seeking change, his choice of job, attitude, aim in life, language ability, the training if any he needs to suit the present post and ability to get along with colleagues at different levels. In the interest of the organisation's efficiency, selection of employees shall be based solely on merit. Where a deviation is necessary to oblige a business friend, top management's approval should be obtained before a job is offered. Verification of Antecedents and copies of Testimonials As far as possible the organisation shall verify the antecedents where such reference is thought necessary. Original certificates and testimonials shall be seen and compared with photocopies before selection of any candidate. Forging of testimonials is a common practice in construction field. Therefore, where necessary, a copy of the testimonial may be made out and sent to the previous employer for verification of its authenticity. Specimen of Application Form The organization shall have its own application form placed among appendices. 13NICMAR The contents shall be: name; father's or husband's mame’ permanent and temporary addresses; date of birth, religion, caste or denomination; height; weight and identification marks; marital status; next of kin's name and address; whether related to a director of the company; and if so how; names and addresses of two respectable persons other than relatives, to whom reference may be made regarding the applicant's antecedents; full details of educational qualifications - supported by photo copies of certificates; full particulars of working experience - evidenced by photo copies of testimonials; special or extra curricular achievements with proof thereof; job applied for; emoluments expected; joining time needed; remarks of the interview committee and decision. Employee’s Service Record It is essential and also as per requirement of law that employee shall complete and updated record of every employee, in the prescribed register. The organisation shall comply with this requirement, without any delay. Any additional information thought necessary may be added in the said register so that it can be used as the permanent employment register. Separate personal files are also kept for all employees for day to day use. While each workman shall be given either an employment card or a service book, every member of the staff shall be given an appointment letter. It will set forth the principal terms and conditions of employment. Contents of appointment letters shall include: position offered; cadre; place of work; whether the appointment is on permanent or temporary or casual roll; pay; allowances; probation; confirmation and duration of employment; leave entitlements and for the rest of the working conditions. A copy of rules and standing practices and Certified Standing Orders for the rest of the working conditions. The employee shall sign at the bottom of the ap-pointment order and accept the appointment order unconditionally. Employment Card or Service Book Contents of employment card or service book shall be: name and address of the employer; address of the particular office or establishment to which the employee is attached; full name of the employee; father's or husband's name; date of entry into service; designation of the employee on his entry into service and any subsequent change therein with its date; whether the appointment is on permanent or temporary or casual roll; rate of wage and subsequent change therein with the date of each change; rate of daily allowances payable to the employee on his entry into service and any subsequent change therein with the date of each change; of any other concessions, such as medical benefit and rent-free quarters and any subsequent change therein with the date of every change; rules and regulations concerning attendance, safety, etc., 14NICMAR which the employee must follow; signature of the employer with stamp. A photograph of the employee may be affixed with the organization's seal. Induction Initiation of induction should be such that the initial experience creates a lasting good impression on the new recruit's mind. It should be made clear to the employee as to when, where and to whom he should report for formal joining and the site or department concerned shall be given an advance arrival information. Every employee shall fill up and sign a "joining report” when he joins the organisation. The joining report is a simple form containing; name, designation, the department of joining, date of joining, reference number and date of appointment order and the employee's signature. Head of the department shall sign and return the same to the personnel department for the permanent record in the employee's file. The employee's name shal! be entered in the department’ wise "attendance register". Introduction to Colleagues Either the head of department himself or his second-in-command or any other member senior to the new employee shall take him round and introduce him to all his colleagues in the same department. This must be done with due respect and dignity. Depending upon seniority, the employee shall be introduced to client's officers also. In course of time he will introduce himself to members of other departments. During the introduction, mention shall be made of special merits, if any, the new member of the team has to his credit. The site manager and site personnel officer shall ensure that the new member of the team is informed of those aspects of the organisation which will help him identify his role clearly and fit himself fast into the culture of the organisation. Review Questions 1, Define HRP and the aims and objectives of the process. What are the reasons for the current interest of companies in it? 2. Identify Job-description and Job-specification. How are they different from each other? 3. What is recruitment? What are the various sources of recruitment? How is re-cruitment different from selection? 4. Define interview. What are the types of interviews commonly used in the industry? What are the qualities of a good interviewer? 5. Discuss the objectives and uses of performance appraisal. How is it different from potential evaluation? 16LESSON 4 SKILL DEVELOPMENT, TRAINING, UPGRADATION AND REDUNDANCY SUMMARY This chapter deals with practical aspects of training, developing and keeping the employees at ease and motivated. Training is the mother of progress and performance. When company goals and objectives are welded and wedded with individual and team goals, there is all round prosperity and peace. Handling grievances, an objective performance appraisal, positive human relations and proactive dealing with employees provides a conducive work climate in the organisation. A site manager incharge should have a succession plan so that when an employee leaves or retires, there is a smooth replacement without a vacuum or loss of work. INTRODUCTION The organisation shall have training scheme aimed at improving its employees’ skill, competence and quality of performance and thereby the organisation getting better output in terms of quality and quantity. Even experienced persons might need a training when they join a new organisation as job expectations vary from organisation to organisation. Such training shall be designed to meet the particular needs of the policies, style and working methods. Training opportunity shall be given to everybody in a planned manner and training shall be separately planned for: - Managerial Staff; - Supervisors and General Staff; and = Workmen They shall be further divided into: fresh trainees and regular employees. Foi fresh trainees, the training shall be for long duration. Contents of their training may include even preliminaries or fundamentals of practical work. Regular employees who have newly joined the organisation must have had their initial training under other employers. Also they must have had post- training working experience. Therefore, they need only short-term training under the new employer. Training scheme and contents shall be separately planned for each category according to level from the following angles: - objectivity and job expectation - on-the-job learning of the workNICMAR - higher skill development - speed in performance - quality of work and avoidance of wastage - technological and theoretical advancement - maturity in judgment - human understanding and the art of motivation - ability to get along with co-workers - capacity to face frustrations, adversities, pressures and stress - decision-making and problem solving - communication and negotiation skills - work culture including safety of self and tools and ethics including the noble nature of employer-employee relationship. Fresh trainees may be trained even how to dress decently, how to behave and how to conduct themselves with dignity in an organisation. The scheme shall be implemented through: - on-the-job training, individually or in batches under qualified and experienced seniors who themselves had wide training - occasional class room lectures, seminars and case studies - supply of written materials for studying and making written reports - periodical test-papers and feedback - encouragement of self-learning and award for acquiring additional qualifications. Periodical evaluation shall be made of the impact of the training on the employee's overall performance. Regardless of whatever theory of evaluation is followed, the employee's performance shall be evaluated from the following angles - how much has be learned? - how much does he do? - what is the quality of work? - does his attitude towards the work show willingness and dedication? - is he loyal to the organisation? - is there potential for developing him to a higher position? While assessing the potential, weightage shall also be given to the individual's intelligence, ambition and personality. Personality is the individual characteristics of a person which make him different from athers in his total performance. After evaluation, every employee must be given a feedback on how well he 7NICMAR is doing. Such feedback is to help the employee improve on his performance if he is lacking in any aspect and to motivate him further if he is doing well. In-house Facilities and Hired Facilities In a construction organisation, most of the training shall be work-related, in-house and on-the-job. Senior managers alone may be sometimes sent for outside training. For class room lectures, audio-visual presentations and seminars which are more theoretical than practical, the organisation may hire experts for short duration to aid in-house training. The rest of the training should be imparted by competent senior employees of high levels in association with the personnel manager. The personnel manager shall draw up the training schemes with the help of the heads of the departments concerned. If operatives are required to operate some newly acquired machine, the manufacturer must give the necessary training as a part of his after-sale service obligations. If a new technology is acquired from another organisation, the employees implementing the technology may be given training under the experts of that organization. Such training may be partly in their own organisation and partly in the other organisation's office or factory. Bond to Serve a Minimum Period as Consideration for Training The organisation would incur visible and invisible costs for training every employee who is taken in as a fresh trainee. Therefore, the organisation shall expect every trainee to serve it, after the training, for a period of at least three years. To this effect, a bond must be executed by the trainee along with a surety. (Legality and enforceability of bond to serve differ from country to country. Therefore the organisation must get the bond prepared by a practicing lawyer of the locality). Career planning shall be done at two stages of training. Before starting the training the organisation shall plan what it wants out of the employee's career. On completion of the training it will know what it can get out of the employee's career, based on the potential he has shown. In actual placement on the job and further development of the employee this plan shall be kept in mind. The employee must be told of the career plan at both the stages because he will be happy to work with the organisation only if its career plan for him tallies with his own career expectations. It shall be found out through a discussion whether there is a matching of career plan and career expectation. 18NICMAR Criteria for career planning shall be: strengths and weaknesses with reference to job requirements of the organisation, individual's own ambitions, the values he expects of the employer and the matching of his personal characteristics with the culture of the organisation. As a matter of policy, the organisation shall never encourage any seniors suppressing the merits of capable juniors. Once an agreement is reached between an employee and the organisation on a career plan, it shall be treated as a mutual commitment, the employee becoming whole-heartedly committed to the organisation's goals and the organisation to the employee's support. While employee evaluation will be a continual process, additionally once a year each employee's overall performance shall be reviewed. Then, commensurate with individual merits, salary revision may be granted. Increment is not automatic, nor a matter of right. One has to deserve it. In deserving cases, additional increments or promotion to the next higher grade or even change of title and cadre may be granted. Where there is a need, the employee, the employee shall be sent for further training. Employee's performance shall be assessed by their superiors with reference to targets and expectations. At a construction site, it shall be done by the construction manager for supervisors (by whatever designations they are called) and by supervisors for their subordinates. In both the cases, besides reports on the quantitative aspect of individual or group performance, the superior concerned shall interview each subordinate when the individual's appraisal report shall be read out and dis-cussed. The subordinate's agreement or disagreement with each item of the appraisal should be then mentioned in the report. The Organisation shall have its own performance appraisal report form to contain the following: site and date at the top; name and designation of employee; performance of the past year - quantitative achievement of the year against budget if applicable; duties and responsibilities; effectiveness rating in each of them according to the superior in terms of high, medium, low; the employee's agreement or disagreement with each of them and his explanation of the constraints and problems which limited the performance: superior's comments on each of them and his concluding remarks on the performance career potential in the employee - strengths, weaknesses and the training necessary to build up the strengths and correct the weakness - list and extent of additional knowledge, experience and personal qualities to be developed; the employee's agreement to and acceptance of the superior's assessment and suggestions; overall rating - excellent, good, average, poor; signature, name and title of the appraiser. 19NICMAR The Organisation may ask for appraisal reports from subordinates on their superiors’ performance. But superiors shall be interviewed only by their superiors. Grievance Procedure Step 1. Any aggrieved employee may approach his supervisor under whom he is directly working for redressal of any complaint regarding his work, conditions pertaining to his service, etc. The supervisor shall look into the complaint and give a reply to the aggrieved employee as soon as possible, but within three working days. Step 2: If the aggrieved employee is not satisfied with the reply received from his supervisor, he may approach the personnel officer who shall investigate the matter dispassionately and give a reply to the employee with the next 7 days. Step 3: If the employee concerned is still not satisfied, he may make a second approach to the chief site manager, in writing, for a revision of the decision. The chief may then consult the government labour officer of the locality and/ or the head office, depending on the nature of the grievance, and give a written reply to the employee. This will be final. The site management's approach shall be such as to redress the employee's grievance with the framework of the organisation's rules and standing orders, if any. Step 4: If the Chief Manager's final decision does not satisty the employee, he may raise a dispute as per provision of the law. Resignation/ Retirement The organisation recognises that every employee shall have the right to resign from his post as per term s of the appointment, i.e., notice period. Resignation should be in writing, stating the reason and routing through proper channel of superiors. Employees under bond should pay the bond money. Every employee should give notice for the period stipulated in his appointment order or the relevant statute. The Organisation keeps to itself the right of accepting notice pay instead of notice from the employee. On attaining fifty eight years of age, every employee shall retire, The Organisation keeps to itself the right to revise the retirement age. Normally no extension of service shall be given to employees reaching the age of retirement, but in certain exceptional cases extension is in practice for the benefit of the organisation. The head of department of the retiring employee shall train up in advance suitable successor to take over charge smoothly 20NICMAR The retiring employee as in case of resigning employees, must obtain clearance certificates from all the dealing and concerned departments/sections including HO. The organisation may bear the cost of moderate send off meeting over tea and a presentation to the retiring employee, depending on the length of his service Settlement of Account Usually, the resigning employee's account shall be settled within two working days from the expiry of the notice period. He must produce clearance certificates from his departmental head, stores, administration and accounts. However, for settlement of provident fund, gratuity and other long-term social benefits he has to wait, as provided for in the relevant statute or deed. Final settlement shall cover the remuneration he has earned, encashment of privilege leave and another statutory benefit he is entitled to. Review Questions 1. Discuss the need and objectives of training and development. How are training needs assessed? 2. What is succession planning? How is it different from cereer planning? 3. How is grievance handling useful for employer and employee? What areas and issues are dealt in it? 21LESSON 5 WORKING HOURS AND WORKING CONDITIONS SUMMARY Wage and salary are important but the climate of work and other benefits are equally important. The work environment, hours of work, weekly rest, leave and other holidays keep employees fit and satisfied. Taking care of their safety and health is a legal as weil as voluntary welfare activity. In case of accidents a building worker is compensated with leave and other statutory benefits. Working hours and shift hours of both manual and office employees are regulated by labour laws. Over-time is also paid as per related rules. INTRODUCTION All employees shall work a fixed number of hours per week, more or less equally spread over six days, as normal working hours. Statutory requirement of the country of the labour laws shall be followed in this matter. Hours of work and shifts shall be notified in advance every week on the notice board at the time office. Normal working hours and break time together shall not exceed a continuous duration as per pertain law. For overtime work done beyond normal working hours, employees shall be eligible for payment at extra rates. The organisation shall follow the practice prevailing in the area of industry. Generally, field employees are paid at double the normal rate for which done beyond the total number of hours fixed for normal work per week. Where an employee does several hours of overtime work, but in the same week partly absents himself from normal duty so that the total normal hours and overtime hours put together fall short of the total hours fixed for normal work per week, he shall be paid for part of the overtime work at double the rate and balance at single. Generally, senior office staff, supervisory personnel and managers are not eligible for overtime payment, But in consideration of longer work done continually beyond normal hours, they are usually given compensatory leave. As uncontrolled overtime work at higher cost is one of the causes of financial loss in construction business, overtime work shall be discouraged, unless there is corresponding benefit. Separate cost-benefit estimate should be made before sanctioning overtime work and their actuals analysed by measuring, at short intervals, the work done during overtime. If it is making in-roads ‘on normal profit margin, overtime work shall be discontinued at once.NICMAR 1@ work The following are the situations when it may be necessary to do ove! - Ina crash-programme to regain lost time and put the project back on tract - When construction equipment and tools are insufficient to engage more number of workmen during normal time. - When work content of any one operation of the critical path is much more than what can be done in normal time for which alone introduction of an additional shift may not be economical, - When there is a dearth of workmen of any particular trade or skill. - For completing shut-down or emergency jobs for clients at higher than usual price. - To repair own construction equipment. There could be some more situations of similar nature. But in every situation, direct and consequential costs and benefits should be considered before and after doing overtime work. If overtime work is found to be continual in any job site, then it shall be reckoned that there is something wrong in planning and organisation. Overtime payment should never be introduced as an incentive, Every site supervisor must be made aware that there is also a statutory ceiling for overtime work. All officers concerned should remember that thoughtlessly introduced overtime work practice can spoil the organisation's work culture for all times to come Time Recording/Lunch Break At sites, sometimes conflicts and malpractice take place by way of late coming, false attendance and overtime, and ‘ghost cards’. With a view of avoiding these, the organisation shall follow a system of combination of automatic punching of attendance cards by everybody personally, a consolidated attendance report by every supervisor or head of section and an independent headcount by time office during both normal and overtime hours. The statutory requirement in the matter of refreshment break shall be ascertained from the local practice and as per provision in the labour laws. Those who introduce a ‘tea break’ in addition to the statutory refreshment break will suffer because what is conceded as a ten-minute break on humanitarian ground will gradually grow in duration and assume this as a right, considerably reducing the effective working time. If tea is a must, serve it at the work spot. Refreshment break shall be timed between the two more-or-less equal halves of the normal working day. 23NICMAR National And Festival Holidays Regardless of length of service or cadre, all employees of the organisation shall be entitled to the paid holidays observed by it as per their respective service condition and classification/cadre and provision of law. The organisation will observe the national holidays as paid holidays. Except for emergency, there shall not be even overtime work on national holidays. There may be especial overtime rate for working on national holidays. Other than national holidays, the organisation may grant some paid holidays as festival holidays with an option for individual site's employees to choose from a long list of local or national festivals as per Holidays Act of the respective State of operation. Weekly Holidays and their Staggering After six days' working, every employee shall be eligible for a paid weekly holiday. Where it is necessary to keep the work going throughout the month without any interruption, the organisation may stagger the weekly holidays, granting different days to different groups or individuals by corresponding adjustment in work schedule with an intimation to concerned Inspector under the particular applicable Labour Law. Special Holidays Either the government concerned or the organisation may declare special paid holidays on some occasions. Such holidays shall be for all employees of the particular place of work. Earned Leave/Leave with wage/Privilege leave Unlike paid holidays, leave has to be earned by employees in proportion to length of service and entitlement of their category. Normally, leave of absence with pay will not be granted in advance. A minimum leave entitlement, usually of privilege leave (leave with wage) and maternity leave only is guaranteed by the relevant statute. Such minimum is the normal entitlement to which empioyees have a right. The organisation may grant additional leave of absence to some categories or cadre of staff or even workmen of a particular place on different considerations as a result of an Agreement or Certified Standing Orders of that Organaisation, Generally, the annual leave is calculated at the rate of one day's leave for every twenty days of actual work. Employees must get leave plan approved in advance in the beginning of every years, so that their work does not suffer in their absence. This method of leave calculation is not used in case of staff, 24NICMAR supervisory and mana-gerial personnel. These categories are normally thirty days as annual earned leave which is also known as privilege leave which is not calculated on the basis of actual present days. In this case one's name only has to be there on roll of the organisation. This leave is also calculated on calendar year of service. No extra sick leave is admissible in case of these higher categories since 30 days annual earned leave is inclusive of sick leave. Maternity Leave Women employees who have been in continuous service of the organisation for a minimum period of one year shall be eligible for maternity leave of absence with full pay of three months, six weeks before delivery and six weeks after delivery. See current statutory eligibility. Sick and Casual Leave It shall be entirely upto the organization to grant additional leave of absence for sickness. For workmen sick leave is statutory. It can be 14 days on half pay or 7 days on full pay. The organisation has to grant some days of casual leave. This is minimum for 7 days as per state laws. For staff, supervisory and managerial personnel casual leave can be for 12 days or more but ir. this case sick leave is included in annual leave. Accident While On Duty/Accident Report The organisation shall assume responsibility for accident while on duty. liness directly attributable to occupation also shall be treated on par with occupational injury although causes for occupational illness are almost nil in construction work. In case a site is not covered under ESI Section, for injury, timely and full medical treatment, in a government hospital or a better hospital of the organisation's choice, shall be given. Usually, the rate of payment for the period of absence caused by accident is fifty per cent of the total remuneration. If the period of absence does not exceed three days, which period is called waiting period, there shall not be any payment of compensation. Generally, Government prescribe under Workmen's Compensation Act a schedule of payment linked with the earnings of employees. The orgnisation shall, either directly or through its insurer, follow such schedule where necessary. Supervisory staff may be covered by a separate group personal accident insurance policy providing for full payment. If any accident results in permanent, partial or full disability, the employee affected by it will receive compensation for the percentage loss in earning capacity caused by such disability. The rates for disability payment shat!-also be taken from the schedule in the Workmen Compensation Act, E.S.I, Act or any other 25NICMAR coverage already provided by the management. in case of death resulting from accident while on duty, compensation shall be paid as prescribed and stipulated in the law. Payment shall be made to the legal successor of the victim. The local government officer administering the Workmen‘s Compensation Act or its equivalent shall be a witness to this payment. The organization shall at its own reasonable cost, transport the dead body of the victim of fatal accident and hand it over to his family members with a carefully worded letter of condolence. Fatal accident reports must be sent to client's engineer, the organisation's own head office, insurer and to the government officers through a preprinted intimation form. This should be done immediately after the occurrence. Death cer-tificate and post- mortem certificates must be obtained from a government medical officer authorised to issue them. Death may be reported to the local police, to be on the safe side. Minor accidents need to be reported only to the insurer. Review Questions 1. For how many hours in a work, can a worker be made to wark? Under what circumstances can he be engaged on overtime? On what rate ir overtime paid? 2. Can you change the fixed weekly holiday of an employee? How can it be compensated? 3. How do we calculate annual Jeave with wages? What are the conditions to be fulfilled before availing this leave? 4. Write notes on casual leave and sick leave. 26LESSON 6 WAGES, ALLOWANCES AND OTHER PAYMENTS SUMMARY Wage and salary administration is one of the major aspects of personnel administration function. Work force is paid according to their contribution, area, market rates and in accordance with labour laws in which minimum wages are laid down. Wages are strictly to be paid without any exploitation. Incentives, bonus and other statutory payments are a component of wages. Soft and interest free loans and advances are also considered by the management to help the employees and to keep them satisfied with the organisation. INTRODUCTION For workmen, generally everywhere, there are statutory minimum wages fixed by the state government concerned. The organization shall pay not less than those minimum wages to its employees. It may adopt its own pay scale for permanent workmen. For staff, there shall be scale of pay or consolidated pay with incremental progressions is provided. Usual annual increment shall be about five per cent to 11 per cent. Allowances And Incentives The organisation shall ascertain from the local government labour office the prevailing statutory allowances and implement them, like dearness allowance and minimum wages. The Payment of other allowances to workmen and staff shall be entirely organisation's discretion depending upon paying capacity. it shall try to be comparable with other employers in the construction industry. Travel Allowance, at rates fixed from time to time, shall be paid to those employees who are required to undertake tour on duty. In construction industry, especially in the erection of industrial plant and equipment, the various production incentive schemes operating in the manufacturing industry cannot be introduced because the outputs are not precisely linkable to individual efforts, although the effectiveness of individual efforts is visually assessable for granting promotion. If group incentive is introduced, the groups which do not earn incentive will raise dispute on the basis of job contents and selling price by comparison. If any scheme would benefit all employees of the site alike, it will fail to be a motivator, However,NICMAR the only workable scheme is group incentive as a small percentage of the value of monthly production above the break-even level and the payment of certain percentage to group members on the basis of their basic rate of wages and actual attendance. In calculating the monthly production and productivity, the previous month's work-in-progress should not get mixed up with the Present month's output. Pay Roll and Date of Payment Depending upon the number of men employed, workmen shall be paid their monthly wages between the first and seventh of the succeeding month, and according to the provision of labour laws. Staff members both at head office and at site shall be usually paid on the last working day of the month Payroll specimen is provided by Head Office in line with labour laws rates of every state under Payment of Wages Act or other Regulations of the state. The organisation shall design and print its own form without doing away with the provisions for information required to be given as per statute. While workmen shall be paid by cash, staff shall be paid either by cash or by transfer to their bank account, depending on how far away the bank is situated. Managers and directors shall be paid by cheques or bank transfer only. Every employee shall be given a pay slip containing the rate of pay and allowance, amounts earned for actual attendance, deductions on various accounts and net amount paid. Payment in absence may be made to absentee employee's bank account or through money order or to the order of the employee. Once an employee joins a provident fund scheme implemented by the organisation, recoveries towards provident fund from his pay will not need his authorization, The organization shall deposit or invest the amount so recovered, together with its own contribution, in the prescribed manner, within the time lifted for that. Failure to do it will be a punishable offence. Under special circumstances, it may get time extension to deposit its own contribution, but not for the employee's contribution. Review and Revision of Scale ‘Once every three years or so, the organisation may make a general revision of the scale of pay of all staff raising the lowest minimum by a certain percentage linked with the cost of living. Such revision shall offset such part 28NICMAR of the inflation which may not have been compensated by annual increments. The organisation's order position, profitability and paying capacity will be given due consideration white making any general revision of pay scale but industry-wise area practices can not be completely ignored. In the case of workmen, government authorities will make revisions in pay scale as and when found necessary on the basis of economic statistics Where the government concerned does not have the practice, the organization shall do the revision periodically. Tax Recovery at Source, its Payment into Government Account and Giving of Certificate Under legal obligation, the organisation, as the employer, will deduct at source from employees’ salaries and wages, due amounts of income tax, profession tax and any other prevailing tax on employment and income. The organization is not authorized to set off employees’ financial loss on business or on any other account against the income from salaries and wages and thus grant relief in tax. But at the same time, if any employee declares any other taxable income which has not been taxed, the organization shall deduct tax on such income also, Tax deducted at source must be paid into government treasury in the prescribed manner within the due date. Relief other than what employers are legally authorised to give as @ deduction from taxable income from employment should be claimed by the employees concerned from government income tax officer of the appropriate jurisdiction in the manner prescribed by income tax law. Filing of personal tax returns is the individual responsi-bility of employees. The organisation shall remind them of this and give tax deduction certificates to everyone in duplicate, one copy for filing with income tax return and the other for the employee's own record. The organization shall file monthly challans for tax paid and a yearly return giving the account of deductions made at source and payments made to government account. Advance Against Pay Advance against pay shall be granted only in real emergency. Drawing of advance against future pay to meet current living expenses will upset the personal budget of the employee concerned, the ripple effect of which will continue till recoveries are completed. For certain specific financial requirements, the employees may be advised to take non-refundable loan from their provident fund accumulations. Depending upon liquidity position, the organisation may grant advance equivalent to a half month's pay once in a year or a full month's pay once in two years, to those employees who have put in continuous service of one year or more. 29NICMAR Minimum monthly recovery shall be ten per cent of the monthly pay, unless a lower rate is agreed to with head office approval. Social Security at Site To start with, the organisation shall comply with the statutory requirements of employees’ social security schemes like provident fund, pension scheme, insurance under Workmen Compensation Act and gratuity. Later on, when paying capacity increases, tax-favoured additional schemes such as group insurance and superannuation may be introduced for the better morale of the employee. For schemes required to be implemented statutorily, eligibility also is prescribed in the relevant statutes. For example, under law Deposit Linked Insurance and_ gratuity needs to be paid only to those employees who have completed a minimum continuous service of five years. For other schemes such as superannuation which is partially covered under Provident Fund law, the organisation may determine a long period scheme so that people stay with it with greater sense of security, especially the middle and higher managerial persons. The organization shall have the right to form its own private trust for various social security schemes in consultation with and with the approval of "Head Office” and the income tax authority, to administer all types of employees ‘welfare’ schemes. Every trust must have a trust deed approved by the authorities concerned including the income tax authority. Advantage of private trusts is that employees will get faster service and funds of employees’ and company are invested for better returns. It is legal requirement that benefits should not be less favourable than the schemes administered by the government schemes. Review Questions 1. What is salary structure? How is it designed? 2. What are the labour laws regulating payment and minimum wages in establishments? Give details of provision in these laws. 3. What is the role of incentives? Discuss various types of incentives available to employees working in construction companies and firms 30LESSON 7 OTHER COMPENSATIONS SUMMARY This chapter details a list of compensations and welfare benefits to workers. Benefits in cash and kind are given by many organizations to atvact and retain talent for the best interest of the company. It is also due to the nature of competitive labour market. Good operatives, skilled workers and effective executives are not readily available. Further, as a result of collective bargaining and to keep a peaceful and committed labour force happy, @ good number of managements go on adding more and more benefits and welfare schemes in their growing companies. L.T.A., conveyance and transport allowance, medical reimbursements, shoes and uniforms, education subsidy for employees’ children and many other gifts and awards are introduced to make people proud of their companies. INTRODUCTION The organisation shall always be interested in the quality of living and welfare of its employees. Considering the hardships of under-developed project sites where construction employees work and live, they shall be given more fringe benefits than those given to head office staff and other junior employees. Some benefits and other payments commonly paid at sites and also in offices of the construction companies are discussed below: Conveyance/Transport Allowance While permanent members of the staff shall be transported to and fro between site and residence to and fro in the organization's vehicies, temporary junior staff and workmen shall be liven bicycles or a reasonable amount of cycle allowance. Depending on site conditions and distance involved, subsidised conveyance may be provided. For scooter/motor cycle/car enhanced allowance can be admissible provided the entitled officials own vehicles in their own name and maintain in good condition and use for official out-door duty also. They must possess a valid driving license. Professional Pursuit Aliowance This allowance is granted for encouraging the academic research and other professional pursuits leading to updating the knowledge of managerial personnel and meking them more proficient in their jobs. The rate of reimbursement of PPA is on discretion of the management. This is mainly for managers and engineers both at sites and head office.NICMAR Leave Travel Assistance (LTA/LTC) Medical Benefit (Rei The LTA is applicable to all categories of confirmed employees only. In case the employee is confirmed in the next calendar year, he will be paid LTA for the last year on pro-rata basis along with the LTA of current calendar year with effect from the date of joining. The LTA facility can be availed by the employees during a calendar year as per rules made and modified from time to time for each category of employees through Office Orders/Union agreement. LTA can not be carried forward and automatically shall lapse if not availed in the calendar year in which it falls due. However, the Divisional Head may permit to avail LTA upto March 31 for which prior approval is necessary and shall be put on records. LTA will be paid upto an amount not exceeding one month's basic salary of the manager. The supervisory staff can be paid equal or less than managers. In case of workmen it can be as per terms of the mutual agreement. The employees of senior managerial category have the option of availing the LTA upto two months basic salary limit twice in a block of four years commenced from calendar yeat 1998 onwards. This perk is governed strictly by Govt./I. Tax Rules. An eligible employee, wishing to avail of LTA will furnish in duplicate all relevant particulars on the prescribed form within 7 days prior to proceeding on leave, to the personnel department through his departmental head duly sanctioned with pay accumulated E/L of the last year. The personnel department will process the case and convey the decision to the applicant accordingly. If after availing LTA an employee leaves the service of the company during the same calender year or period of service is short of a full calendar year LTA amount will be allowed on pro-rata basis only. The top and senior managerial personnel who have been provided Co.'s Staff Car will bear themselves the petrot expenses if the vehicle is used during L.T.A. period. bursement of expenses) In some companies employees who are not covered under any statutory medical scheme in their HO, permanent staff are offered medical reimbursement. This reimbursement is a sum equivalent to but not exceeding one month's basic salary in a year. This reimbursement is towards medical expenses incurred on self and dependent family members. In some companies medicare scheme is also extended to the employer and their family members. The family means self, spouse, dependent 32NICMAR children, dependent unmarried brothers and sisters and dependent parents. The employee will declare his/her dependents on the prescribed form at the time of joining the service. The medical expenses include OPD, domicillary visits, hospitalization, diagnostic and investigative services, purchase of medicines on prescription, dental and ophthalmic care. Purchase of a mediclaim policy is also permissible as medical expense. The medical treatment will be taken from a qualified and Registered Medical Practitioner of employee's choice in any system of medicine. The claims for reimbursement will be made upto the 7th day of the following month, The claims will be made on the prescribed forms which will be submitted to the Personnel Department. The Personnel Department will register the claims, and get them processed with the Accounts Department. The unavailed amount of Medical reimbursement will automatically lapse after the end of a financial year. G.E.T's, Management Trainees and other employees who are not covered un-der E.S.I./Workmen Compensation Act and are getting salary on consolidated basis, wit! be entitled for 15 days ° salary in a year towards reimbursement of medical expenses. Good Attendance Incentive Attendance Incentive is given for good attendance only to W category of employees. It is paid at a certain rate which can be divided in two Parts of 15 days each, i.e., fortnightly basis. In case an employee has full attendance in both the fortnight of that month, he is entitled to full amount of incentive for that particular month. In the event of lateness, any type of absence/leave in any of two fortnights, the employee shall lose this incentive for that very part of the months. Incentive for Family Planning An employee undergoing Tubectomy or Vasectomy Operation of self or spouse gets an incentive for family planning at the rates as may be fixed by management. - 2 children (male or female) Rs. - 3 or more children Rs. Such an employee is also granted a special casual leave of 6 days only. Additional leave can be considered on advice of the operating Medical Officer for self operation only This incentive is over and above the incentive paid under the Family Planning Schemes of the government or any other agency. 33NICMAR Uniform /Shoes to Workmen As per standing decision of the management or a mutual settlement with their workmen, the permanent workmen of W category are provided Uniforms and one pair of shoes every year. To maintain discipline and uniformity at all Divisions, the Company policy cab be to provide identical Uniforms to the workmen and other eligible category of employees - like Peons, Drivers and Security men. It has to be ensured that employees wear uniform while alt work/duty and it is desired that uniforms are issued in one lot. Individual personnel departments can decide the date of distribution in consultation with their workmen. Some categories of workmen such as watchmen, drivers, office hands and peons may be given monthly washing allowance as may be fixed by the management. The Uniforms Pattern/Specifications Category ‘A’ : Workmen and Sanitation Workmen It is not a legal requirement. Following is only an example of a medium size Company. a. Summer Uniforms: - Pair : 2(Two) - 2 pants, one half sleeve and one full sleeve shirt with Company logo. = Cloth : Binny Shade No. 8818, or other available, 2.75 meters for full Shirt Uniform and 2.5 Mtrs. for Half Shirt Uniforms - Colour : Gray, Shade No. 8818 or any other available. - Stitching : To be decided by the Personnel Adm. Departmen: after approval from Chief Manager. b. Winter Uniforms: Jersey (Pull Over) One Pull over to be issued in September/October for two or three years. Category 'B' Peons, Office Hands/Drivers etc. a. Summer Uniforms : 2 pairs as in case of workers with 2 pockets with cover. Flaps on Shoulder and Company Logo. b. Winter uniform - Jersey (Pull over) : One Jersey for two winters - Pant-Coat : One pant-coat for three winters. - Colour :Navy Blue or any dark colour - Socks :2 pairs in a year. Category ‘C’ Security Staff Security staff uniforms and shoes will be specified by Head Office in consultation with Site Administration/Security incharge. 34NICMAR Education Allowance This allowance is given to the student children of the employees on the following basis, subject to 2 children student at a time in case they study in local or nearby school, The management may render assistance for making schooling facility available to employee children in local or nearby school around. Class/Standard Rs. per quarter {as may be fixed) Nursery to IV th Vth to Vilth IXth to Xth Xith to Xllth In case the student children of the site/project employees live away in a far off place in a hostel or with some relation they can be entitled to the Children Education-Cum-Hostel Expenses Allowance for their school going children at a enhanced rate which is admissible to only those personnel who live at or near project site along with families and their children study away in the cities. The reimbursement of this allowance shall be subject to a maximum limit per month per child upto a limit of two children only, on submission of appropriate bills to the satisfaction of the management. Canteen Services/Subsidized Or Free Tea To Employees Whereas it is as per laws or otherwise the company provides a Canteen run by a Canteen Contractor to provide meals and snacks to the employees on subsidised rates, The furniture, utensils and other kitchen equipment are provided by the management. The management pays subsidy to the contractor as per negotiated terms from time to time. The list of subsidised rates for tea, snacks and meals is fixed by the management in view of the cash subsidy at respective place. Workmen can be provided subsidized tea at a concessional rate at their respective working place. Free tea is supplied to managerial and supervisory category of employees twice during the day. Recreation Clubs The site management can help and motivate the employer to form Employees Club for W. categories of employees and Staff Club for 'S' and 'M' categories of employees. Both the clubs cater to the recreational, sports and excursional needs of their respective members. Both the clubs can have separate constitutions and Bye-laws and the election held as per rules framed therein. However, the management can nominate Presidents from managerial personnel. The contribution for membership can be Rs. 5.00 and Rs. 10.00 for Employees 35NICMAR Club and Staff Club respectively and a matching contribution can be paid by the management. Credit and Thrift Society To cater to the financial needs in the form of easy loans for their members the society with a constitution and elections for its Managing Committee in a democratic fashion. Every employee contributes a sum of Rs. 30.00 per month towards society saving fund on which 12% per annum simple interest is added at the end of the year. The fimit of the loans is decided by the Managing Committee of the Society as per bye-laws and their own available resources. The objective of society shall be to grant loans on reasonable interest to the members to purchase plot for residence, for construction of house, self-marriage, any dependents marriage or for any other contingency of unavoidable nature and further the society can evolve a scheme for the benefit of the Employees under which on the event of retirement or death an amount is given to the employee's nominee. The funds for this scheme accumulate from the monthly membership subscription of Rs. 2.00 per month of the society and the matching contribution by the management. Cash Gift On Daughter's Marriage (Kanyadan) By The Management The company can have a policy to give a cash gift or some amount on the occasion of the daughter's marriage of an employee upto two daughters only The gift is a privilege and not a right. The management may at its discretion can deny this Gift on verification, if the marriage is found irregular and avoidable as per laws and social norms. This practice can be for self marriage or son's marriage also. Long Service Awards The organisation can give long service awards to the employees having completed various lengths of service in the company. Befitting awards can be considered as per the schedule given below: 6 years service - 10 years service - 15 years service : 20 years service : 25 years service 2 The above said awards for long service can be given twice in a year on the occasions of pooja/Diwali or any big festival at site. 36NICMAR Dispensary The organisation shall provide dispensary at its sites to cater the first-aid needs of employees. The dispensaries are under the charge of personnel department through a Qualified R.M.P. In addition to the first-aid facilities, certain medicines are also available in case of sudden sickness of employees while on duty. Depending upon number of employees that can be on obligatory and statutory requirement also and even an ambulance van may be required where more than 250 workers are working at the site. Housing Accommodation All employees of construction site shall be either provided with moderate housing accommodation and use of furniture free of charge or can be paid house rent allowance as a percentage of pay, linked with cadre and grade. They shall pay for actual electricity consumption at a concessional rate, when they avail themselves of the accommodation provided by the organisation. Review Quest ns 1, Enumerate statutory and non-statutory welfare measures at site and HO of an organisation. How are voluntary schemes beneficial for the company and its employees. 2. Is employees’ participation necessary for all welfare programmes? How shall you involve them ? 3. Why do managements give fringe benefits and various other payments instead of a big basic pay? 4. What recreational and other such activities will you suggest for your site? Are they useful? 37LESSON 8 LEGAL MANAGEMENT OF DISCIPLINE SUMMARY The management tries to develop a culture of positive discipline but there could be a few employees who would not conform to the norms of behaviour and desired conduct as per standard practices and standing orders of the organisation. Repeated acts of misconduct and willful insubordination or disobedience to any lawful orders of the superiors and acts of fraud, dishonesty and related malpractices at site warrant disciplinary action. Disorderly and riotous behaviour is also a major misconduct. A site manager in consultation with company personnel department of a labour law specialist has to initiate action, as per law and procedure. Malpractice And Other Misconduct At Site - Disciplinary Action The organisation shall attend to all its employee grievances with a sense of understanding and try to redress grievances speedily. It shall not introduce or follow any unfair labour practice. At the same time, it expects every employee to be absolutely disciplined and devoted to the organisation. Action shall be taken for all types of misconduct. In such action, the organization shall observe the principles of natural justice. People who want to indulge in malpractice with a view to misappropriating will find a way everywhere. The most common malpractice of construction sites are mentioned below, Here is a longer list of misconduct in the Certified Standing Orders/Model Standing Orders: Ghost-labour account is carried in the muster roll and the non-existent labourers’. . Wages are misappropriated and shared by the persons indulging in it. iii, False overtime hours are allowed to workmen with the understanding of sharing the wages. iv. Incompetent workers are recruited after taking money from them secretly. v. Underhand sale of tools and costly consumables are made from site store to other contractors working in the same area at low rates and the sale proceeds shared. vi, Excess rates measurement and extras are given to subcontractors on secret vii. Understanding to share the benefit thus harming Company's interest. vii. Inflating the expenses on repairs to vehicles and equipment. ix. Drawing and selling petrol, oil and lubricants to outsiders stealthily.NICMAR Organisation employing more than 60 workers have a disciplinary code, called certified standing order. Where there is no such code, model standing orders of the state are applicable, the organisation shall practice the below mentioned procedures: Step 1: A written report by the immediate superior of the employee who has committed the alleged misconduct. Such report shall be addressed to the Chief Manager through Personnel Officer. Step 2: The Personnel Officer collects full facts of the case and also studies the previous records of the employee involved in the allegation before forwarding the report to the Chief. Step 3: A preliminary enquiry is ordered by him which is conducted by Personnel Adm. Office or his nominated representative. The purpose of such an enquiry is to ascertain the truth in the complaint and to decide if disciplinary action is necessary. Statements may not be recorded formally. Only some fact-finding, questions may be asked to the employee complained against and to the eyewitness, if any. The preliminary enquiry shall be conducted, as soon as possible, after receipt of the report of misconduct. If Chief Manager decides not to proceed with further action, he shall record so with his reasons and inform the supervisor of the decision. Stage 4: If the Chief Manager decides to proceed with disciplinary action, then the next step is a charge sheet prepared by Personnel Adm. Department. The scope of the charges mentioned in the charge sheet can never be enlarged at any stage after issuing the charge sheet. The charge sheet shall be served either by delivering it personally to the employee under his acknowledgment, or, if he is absconding, by posting it to his last known postal address under certificate of posting with a copy displayed on the notice board at the site office. If he refuses accepting of the charge sheet, it must be pasted on the notice board with witness for refusal. When the employee's reply to the charge sheet is received, the following points shall be observed: - Write on the reply the date and time of its receipt. - forward it immediately to the authority issuing the charge sheet. - earefully examine it vis-8-vis the charge sheet. - it should bear the signature of the employee involved and not that of another person or representative on his behalf. If the charge sheeted employee admits the charges, appropriate action shall be taken viewing the gravity of the charge. 39NICMAR Suspension: While charge-sheeting, if the charges are grave, the employee should be suspended. If he is suspended, a statement setting out in detail the reasons for such suspension shall be supplied to him within a week. In the event of such suspension, subsistence allowance shall be paid to the at the rate of one half of the basic wages and other compensatory allowances to which he would have been entitled, if he were on leave with wages. (This applies only to the first 90 days of suspension. Beyond 90 days the rate shall be three fourths). In the event the employee is acquitted of the charges leveled against him, the remaining wages shall be paid. If the employee is dismissed, the subsistence allow-ance already paid shall not be recovered from him. Step 5: If the superior officer or Personnel Officer is not satisfied with the explanation given by the delinquent employee to that effect he submits a report to the punishing authority who, at job site, shall be the Chief Manager. Step 6: The Chief Manager then orders that a domestic enquiry be conducted into the alleged charges. This shall be recorded in writing either on a note sheet or on the letter of explanation of the employee. Even when the employee refuses or fails to give a written explanation, a domestic enquiry shall be held. Step 7: A notice of domestic enquiry is served to the accused employee. in the same manner as the charge sheet. Copies of the inquiry notice shall be served also the complainant and the management witnesses, if any. Lawyers shall not be allowed in domestic inquiry. Step 8: An Enquiry Office (E.0.) is appointed by the punishing authority. His appointment order must be in writing. A copy of the notice of enquiry and all the previous papers shall be sent to the E.0. who shall never be the complainant himself. If no competent is there within the Organisation, then an outsider with an appropriate education and experience may be appointed to conduct an independent enquiry. The E.0. must be a person of balanced judgment who knows how to conduct an inquiry, but need not necessarily be a person with a legal background, A single inquiry can cover more than once accused employee. involved in the same incident of misconduct. Step 9: Inquiry proceedings. The E.0. shall : - conduct the inquiry exparte, if the accused employee refuses to attend the enquiry 40NICMAR - give full opportunity to the accused. if he is present, to cross examine management witness and defend himself = record the commencement and closure of the enquiry proceedings in running sheet after putting date, time and attendance of the parties - write his name using the title "Enquiry Officer" among the persons present If the accused employee attends the enquiry, along with a colleague to assist him, the E.O. shall get every relevant part of their statements signed by both. Every page of the proceedings and all corrections should be signed or initialed on the margin by parties giving their statements and by the E.O. himself. He shall note the date and time of the enquiry and also the names of those who are present, especially the accused. The E.0. need not write the names of the witnesses among those present because witnesses are to be kept away and called only when needed for examination and/or cross examination. He needs to write the names of the accused employee's colleague, if one present, the complainant and the representatives of the management. But while recording evidence, he shall write the details of the witnesses and obtain their signatures, separately. Step 10: The E.O. submits his resort in an unbiased manner to the punishing authority. The E.0. must also submit the exhibits and proceedings along with his report. It is expected of the E.O. to give also a concluding remark on the findings of the enquiry, suggesting the action to be taken by the punishing authority, that is whether the employee should be acquitted of the charges of punished and whether punishment should be in the form of a fine, warning, stoppage of increments, dismissal or any other form of punishment. Step 11: The punishing authority decides on the report. He may or may not consult head office or the local government labour officer. If the charges are not proved, the accused employee shall be immediately reinstated with full attendance which will qualify him to receive payment of the balance 50% or 25% wages and allowance, as the case may be.» Step 12: If the charges are proved, the decision of the punishing authority is intimated in writing to the employee. Punishment intimation shall be delivered in the same manner as the charge sheet. Notice to Employees and Statutory Authority Notice either in accordance with the relevant statutory provision or as stipulated in service conditions shall be given to employees. The organisation reserves to itself the right to give notice pay instead of notice to an employee atNICMAR on retrenchment. For termination following offence, notice is not necessary. For automatic termination at the end of a specific term of employment, no notice needs to be given. While endeavour shall be made to serve individual notice, in the event of a mass retrenchment, a notification listing out all the names, on the site office notice board will suffice. Notice of retrenchment shall be served in the prescribed manner to the appropriate government authority who is usually the secretary to the local government for labour and employment. Employees’ Entitlements on Termination For termination following offence, employees shall be entitled to the wages and allowances earned, encashment of privilege leave and the contributions to long-term social security funds. Payment of ‘employer's contributions’ to the funds will depend on the terms and conditions stipulated in the relevant deed or rules. For both retrenchment and termination on expiry of specific term, employees shall be entitled to retrenchment compensation for loss of employment as provided for in the relevant Industrial Disputes Act or National Labour Relations Act or National Working Rule Agreements. Such compensation shall be besides the dues as per service conditions and contributions to social security funds. Special Condition when a Dispute is Pending When a termination following offence is to take place, if an industrial dispute between the organisation and the employees including the terminated employee is pending for conciliation or adjudication, the organisation shall seek the permission of the authority before which the dispute is so pending, in the prescribed manner, but before receipt of such permission, the termination shall be given effect by payment of an extra month's wages to the affected employee. Settlement of Account Final settlement of any terminated employee's account shall be made within two working days of expiry of notice period. For calculation of final settlement dues, the average of the past three months’ pay shall be the monthly rate to be considered. Re-employment of Retrenched Employees If the organisation happens to recruit men after a retrenchment and if any 42NICMAR re-trenched employee of the same trade, skill and grade applies, such employee shall be given preference. If the number of posts are fewer than the number of applications from retrenched employees, decision shall be based on seniority in the previous phase of service. Record of conduct during the previous phase shall also be a point of consideration for re-employment. Review Questions What do you mean by disciplinary action? Why is it necessitated? What are the various types of major misconduct as per standing orders? What are the steps and phases involved in a disciplinary action? Pen What do we mean by principles of natural justice? How will you relate them to disciplinary action including domestic enquiry and passing of orders on a charge-sheet? 43LESSON 9 DEALING WITH TRADE UNIONS SUMMARY Over the years, the master and servant relationship between owner and worker has evolved into employer-employee relationship. The change is significant in many ways. The relationship is not one sided. It is based on reciprocity. Trade unions despite their shortcomings have come to stay and work as pressure groups. Managers have to learn with unions. With a radical change in work culture and social awareness management have to be transparent. The success of TOM and process of collective bargaining entails certain rights to both the parties. Conflict is inevitable in industrial life. Ways and means have to be found to think and act proactively because industrial relations also form an integral part of the important objectives of an organisation. INTRODUCTION In establishments where men and women sell their services, trade unionism is @ natural and universal phenomenon. Human resource is not an ordinary resource. It is an asset also. Social awareness and changing values of management have made them realistic and pragmatic. As a matter of fact, if the organisation practices justice and fair play, as it should, in its dealings with employees, individually and as a whole, the employee will not be interested to embrace unions or associations. However, if employees want to join unions or form associations, the organisation shall not view them with displeasure. Well meaning trade unions and staff associations can be of immense help to the organization in matters like: achieving better productivity, disciplining the employees, guiding them in rational thinking and conducting reasonable negotiations with management. As far as possible, the organisation shall encourage the employees' members and site management's representatives. Such works committees, the formation of which is generally envisaged in labour laws shall discuss and resolve all grievances, disputes and productivity problems. Works Committees will have the advantage of keeping the employees away from the clutches of unscrupulous politicians who infest trade unions. In some countries, trade unions are banned (example, Gulf countries), in some others, trade unionists have no right to strike work (example: Britain) while in a few others, union membership is compulsory (example: USA). Therefore, if the Organisation takes up work in a new country, that country's labourNICMAR laws shall be studies, be-sides consulting a legal counse! well-versed in labour laws there. Recognition The organisation shall not have any objection to recognise any trade union which has the specified number of membership of its employees and which statutorily proves other criteria prescribed for recognition. However, such union should not be one whose entry into the site has been banned by the owner for unlawful conduct. Election Arrangements and Organisation's Involvement The organisation shall guide the employees and participate in the election of members and office bearers of work committees. Similarly, the organisation shall co-operate with the employees in union election. Election should be arranged without any adverse impact on normal work schedule. Standing Orders and Their Notification Standing orders are the set of general regulations governing workmen's employment conditions - whose contents are more or less the same as those of a personnel manual. The organisation shall have the choice of either having its own standing orders certified by the appropriate government authority or following, as is allowed by law, the model standing orders or code of practice issued by the government of the country of operation. Most of the construction companies’ practice is to have a personnel manual which would practically cover all aspects of employment of both staff and workmen and then follow the model standing orders in regard to matters not covered by the personnel manual. The better of the two shall be adopted in every matter. Generally, provisions in personne! manual are better. Where separate standing orders are certified and adopted, their copies shall be given to the workmen for their information and guidance. Also one copy shall be displayed on the site office notice board. Disputes An individual employee or all employees of an establishment together might raise a dispute when there is some unredressed grievance or an unfair action taken by the management. Disputes shall be in writing addressed either by the recognised union or by the workmen under their signatures, to the construction manager, with a copy to the local government labour officer who is the "conciliation officer” appointed by the government. It may be in the form of a "demand-cum-strike notice". It might say that unless the 45