Employer’s market & good work

In fact, a recent Harvard Business Review article on the vagaries of hiring, noted that if the jobs market is now an employer’s one it would suggest that this might impact what potential and current employees are offered in terms of work, remuneration, benefits packages, as well as unsaid expectations upon them regards working hours. (WIRED recently reported that many workers are putting in unpaid longer hours because of this insecurity, or are scared of rejecting employer’s pleas to come back into the office, going against Government advice, due to fear of losing their job).

Whilst this might sound like employees are getting a net worse deal, some believe that this year has actually put a greater focus on ensuring ‘good work’ for staff. Jonny Gifford, senior research adviser at CIPD, explained that: “The coronavirus pandemic has brought into sharp relief employers’ duty of care for their people - and many employers have shown particular concern for the wellbeing of their workers at this unprecedented time.”

That said, Gifford is circumspect about how many employees are able to benefit from this increased focus on wellbeing. “The less fortunate include those whose jobs cannot be done from home and, related to this, those who are more likely to have been furloughed or made put at risk. The most immediate concern for these workers is getting back to work and ensuring job security,” he added.

Gifford’s comments are telling about how ‘good work’ can be measured. The CIPD boffin’s words note that it isn’t just about wellbeing. In fact, according to the CIPD there are ‘seven dimensions’ that impact the quality of work, which are: pay & benefits, employment contracts, work-life balance, job design and nature of work, relationships at work, employee voice and health & wellbeing. It is within these dimensions that the human resource management body believe good work can be measured and identified, affected affected by a range of factors, including employment legislation, labour market conditions, HR practices, the quality of people management and by workers themselves.

The equation for good work

The HR body believe that if work is fairly rewarded, offers security, gives a decent work-life balance, offers fulfilment, support and development, as well as a chance for employees to have their voices heard and be ‘well’ then work could be considered good. Yet, even before coronavirus, the CIPD noted that experience of work wasn’t exactly in a good place. Their Good Work Index shows that in January 2020, one in three UK workers (34%) often or always felt either exhausted (22%), under excessive pressure (21%) or miserable (11%) at work. What’s more, this pre-pandemic research suggests that work has become less healthy over recent years, in particular in relation to mental health, leaving HR departments with a headache over how to improve the nature of work itself.

The solution

Of course, there is no one answer to how to make work good. Solutions will depend on company culture, financial ability, and organisational size. However, some experts believe there are basic strategic tenets to follow. For Mario Cenon, CEO at Zereon Associates and ex-HRD of Ball Corporation, the solution to ensuring that work is good involves understanding the current context – fast change, digital-first, flexibility needed – and balancing that with what individual workers need.

He said: “Advanced HR practitioners quickly see major questions arise, such as how HR can ensure jobs are good quality, how to keep engagement and productivity, how to ensure employee wellbeing, and indeed how to prepare for the future of work. What we find is that the best companies understand deeply that technology and the ‘human factor’ reinforce each other, and tackle consequent HR changes in a comprehensive way…creating more inspiring workplaces for the employees and making businesses much readier for the future.”

For Erik Fjellborg, CEO and Founder of Quinyx, like Cenon, he understands that the interplay between employee and technology will be key to driving positive outcomes for both business and workforce. He explained: "Advanced AI-driven workforce optimisation service allows companies to balance different business objectives by fully automating the labour scheduling process, resulting in significant time and cost savings. This type of technology allows employers to create schedules that suit employees’ preferences, resulting in higher retention and engagement. AI and automation is the future for companies needing ROI across their WFM process.”

This differentiation dovetails with wellbeing. Norman Pickavance, ex-Executive Board Director for Group HR at both Morrisons and Grant Thorntons, adds that he believes one part of ensuring better work is for HR to help the Board understand that wellbeing is a core element of the business strategy, and that a focus on wellbeing can drive better results for both the organisation and the individual. (The implication being that ‘well’ workers improve the company performance and ergo their own job security. “HR people need to make a connection between the disconnect, to demonstrate that the business mission and wellbeing agenda are inextricably linked and are the same agenda,” he said.

Gifford largely agrees with Pickavance, noting that to ensure good work the responsibility usually falls with the people function. He added: “HR professionals have a central and leading role to play in championing good work within their organisation. This includes holding their senior management teams to account.

“HR should be reminding them that people are a company’s most important asset and need to be consistently treated as such through management policies, processes and practice.”