Discrimination Against Women Essay

The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millennia. From equal status with men in ancient times through the low points of the medieval period,to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, the history of women in India has been eventful. In modern India, women have adorned high offices in India including that of the President, Prime minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Leader of the Opposition. As of 2011, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha (Lower House of the parliament) both are women. However, women in India continue to face discrimination and other social challenges and are often victims of abuse and violent crimes and, according to a global poll conducted by Thomson Reuters, India is the â€Å"fourth most dangerous country† in the world for women, and the worst country for women among the G20 countries. History Ancient India Scholars believe that in ancient India, the women enjoyed equal status with men in all fields of life.[11] However, some others hold contrasting views.[12] Works by ancient Indian grammarians such as Patanjali and Katyayana suggest that women were educated in the early Vedic period[13][14] Rigvedic verses suggest that the women married at a mature age and were probably free to select their husband.[15] Scriptures such as Rig Veda and Upanishads mention several women sages and seers, notably Gargi and Maitreyi.[16] There are very few texts specifically dealing with the role of women;[17] an important exception is the Stri Dharma Paddhati of Tryambakayajvan, an official at Thanjavur around c.1730. The text compiles strictures on womenly behaviour dating back to the Apastamba sutra (c. 4th c. BCE).[18] The opening verse goes: mukhyo dharmaH smr^tiShu vihito bhartr^shushruShANam hi : women are enjoined to be of service to their husbands. Some kingdoms in the ancient India had traditions such as nagarvadhu (â€Å"bride of the city†). Women competed to win the coveted title of the nagarvadhu. Amrapali is the most famous example of a nagarvadhu. According to studies, women enjoyed equal status and rights during the early Vedic period.[19] However, later (approximately 500 B.C.), the status of women began to decline with the Smritis (esp. Manusmriti) and with the Islamic invasion of Babur and the Mughal empire and later Christianity curtailing women’s freedom and rights.[7] Although reformatory movements such as Jainism allowed women to be admitted to the religious order, by and large, the women in India faced confinement and restrictions.[19] The practice of child marriages is believed to have started from around sixth century.[20]

Study of Consumer Attitudes to Drinking

CONSUMER ATTITUDES TO DRINKING – UK – AUGUST 2010 – Consumer Usage – Market in Brief ? There are opportunities for both the on- and off-trade to take advantage of consumers’ willingness to try different drinks. As cocktails are associated with bartender knowledge, skill and theatre of serve, there is scope for the pub industry to differentiate and for manufacturers to replicate, as already seen by Bacardi’s Mojito mixed drink, now complete with branded packs of ice cubes at Tesco. Internal marketing Environment UK alcohol consumption has been in decline since 2004 but penetration levels are still high as drinking is deeply ingrained in the British culture. What People Drink and How Often Although alcohol consumption is down in the UK, consumers are increasing their drinking repertoire, with cider now ranked alongside the lager, wine and spirits categories. Rose benefits from appealing to all age groups and the much sought-after younger demographic, something the red and white varieties have failed to do. ? Rose wine has managed to do what white and red wine have been trying to do for years: appeal to the younger demographic. While it is not as popular a drink as the other wine flavours, white spirits or cider, rose has the advantaged in appealing almost equally to every age group, from 18-24-year-olds to the over-55s. ? Lager has been drunk by the most people (60%) over the past 12 months and is the largest market in terms of volume sales (see Internal Market Environment). ? Lager drinking remains largely male-dominated, with three quarters of men drinking lager in the last year compared to 40% of women, while the opposite is the case for white and sweeter-tasting rose wines, which women tend to prefer. Choice differs by age Figure 17: Types of alcohol drunk in the last 12 months, by age, August 2010 Base: 838 internet users aged 18+ ? Over a third of women, however, drink alcohol less than once a month or never drink alcohol. Interestingly, and in contrast to reports in the media, the highest proportion of people who never drink alcohol is amongst the 25-34-year-old age group, followed by 18-24-year-olds. ? According to Mintel’s On-trade Soft Drinks – UK, December 2009 report, women are much more likely than men to drink soft drinks in the on-trade and are opting for healthier and somewhat more expensive drinks when they do so. There are several barriers to women drinking alcohol, including health and social mores. Mintel’s Understanding Drinking Occasions and Unlocking Potential Customers – UK, August 2009 report found that almost a third of women would be encouraged to try a new alcoholic drink if it were low in calories, suggesting that brands, retailers and pubs need to d o more to inform health-conscious customers that lower-ABV and -calorie alcoholic drinks exist, both in the off- and on-trade. Factors influencing drinking habits: ? The social dimension is important when drinking alcohol, with over half of consumers drinking when catching up with friends. This is a universal factor of why people drink, being a key reason for over half of men and women and typically most important to 18-34-year-olds, although this is still high for the over-35s and across almost all socio-economic groups. Social beings Figure 24: Net difference* between any agree statements on drinking alcohol, by gender, June 2010 Base: 1,701 internet users aged 18+ who have drunk alcohol in the last 12 months * this is worked out by subtracting the percentage of female drinkers agreeing with each statement from the percentage of males. For example, 65% of female drinkers said ‘I don’t like running a tab as I can lose track of how much I’m spending’ compared to 58% of men, therefore giving a score of +7 percentage points. Source: GMI/Mintel Key analysis: While sharing pitchers of beer is common in the US and larger beer glasses pervade the European Continent (e. g. 1-litre beer steins in Germany), in the UK the defining consumer drinking behaviour is the buying of rounds. What is probably most peculiar with buying rounds of drinks is the fact that friends or family are able to request whatever drink they like, regardless of price or type, in the (usually) safe knowledge that the gesture will be returned. More could be done to encourage customers to share their knowledge of favoured drinks when buying rounds, therefore acting as brand ambassadors by driving word-of-mouth recommendations. Drinking Habits Among 18-24yr Olds – UK – June 2010 – Drinking in Context ? Findings in this report indicate that both young men and women feel under considerable pressure to drink to excess, even if they do not like the taste or the experience of getting drunk. While this is more pronounced among men, who are trying to fit in with masculine norms, a sense of social pressure to drink is also common among women. This causes greater internal conflict for them, as women are not only constrained by negative gender stereotypes of getting drunk, but they are also much more sensible about the potential detrimental health problems that alcohol abuse can cause. However, women aged 18-24 are most influenced to not drink by their ego rather than concerns about their health, with the prospect of putting on weight being the single most influential factor in their not drinking alcohol. However, despite this they are just as likely to binge drink as men, although they are less likely to be extreme binge drinkers. As a rule they prefer sweeter-tasting drinks; they are almost three times as likely as all adults to drink pre-mixed spirits (also known as alcopops or alcoholic ready-to-drinks); as well as being much more likely to drink cider and spirits which mix well with soft drinks and in cocktails, such as white rum, bourbon. ? The choice of drinks for 18-24s is influenced by alcohol being such an acquired taste, meaning that younger drinkers prefer sweeter drinks which disguise the raw taste of alcohol. For example, a major finding from Mintel’s Wine – UK, June 2009 was that wine was attracting many more consumers once they reached their mid-thirties onwards, and a main reason for this was that it takes people a while to develop their drinking palates, alongside a greater propensity to drink at home. ? Recently rose has started to attract younger drinkers put off by the negative baggage surrounding alcoholic ready-to-drinks (ARTDs), but it is the brands with higher sugar content, rather than dry roses which are leading the charge. Cider has been one of the few alcoholic beverages to see its sales volumes increasing yearly over the past five years. It has benefited from being re-invented by the Magners ‘on ice’ concept. This appealed to younger drinkers and women by highlighting its refreshment and fresh, fruity taste, in particular for summer occasions (see Cider – UK, November 2008). Few people understand how easy it is to binge drink†¦ Binge drinking is defined according to government guidelines as: * for women, drinking six units of alcohol or more in one session (ie two large glasses of wine) Flavoured Alcoholic Beverages – UK – October 2007 – Market in Brief * Young women have traditionally been the target for FABs and certainly the profile of those that drink them at least once a week still reflects that, for both on- and off-trade drinkers. The regular FAB drinker is more likely to be female, single and less affluent. * There is still some appeal among older women (25-34) who perhaps started drinking when FABs first appeared on the market, although it’s more likely these consumers are drinking less than they use to. Some women have been attracted to the new innovations in lower-calorie FABs, however, the research shows there is a growing need to develop the category as these consumers are looking for a more sophisticated drink. SWOT Strengths * Consumer demand for more refreshing drinks with lower alcohol levels. * Growing interest in fruit-flavoured drinks. * A large proportion of consumers occasionally drinking FABs providing an opportunit y to increase frequency. * Increased NPD in this market. Government campaigns on units should alert consumers to lower strength than is perceived. * A willingness from retailers to develop the category via premiumisation. Weaknesses * Fall in the number of consumers drinking alcohol as healthy lifestyles take hold. * Poor image associated with the category with underage consumers and binge drinkers. * Continued price pressure from supermarkets. * FABs’ unsuitability to developing on-trade occasions such as food-led. Lack of premium offering appealing to over-25s. * For a market in decline focus on young women is limiting the appeal and targeting requires a broader audience. * Increased competition from cider and lager offered in premium-style bottles. * Declining availability as increased options in premium drinks such as lagers, ales and ciders and soft drinks squeeze shelf space both in supermarkets and bars. Drinks Market 2008 Key Note Alcoholic drinks worth an estimated ? 41. 6bn

Gender wage gaps Essay

Introduction Everyone is entitled to the equal wages for equal work. However, women’s average income has been lower than men’s in nearly all occupation and women in Canada are still far behind the men’s starting line on wage in the labour market. It is one of many parts of gender inequality in Canada, when considering labour market participation in view of gender. I think that the current measures to settle wage discrimination are not effective enough to correspond to market income inequality. That’s why I choose this topic. It is required to think of new alternatives for closing the gap. So I provide a few ways to figure out gender wage gaps. What is the gender wage gap? The gender wage gaps describe the earning differences between men and women on paid employment in the labour market. It can be measured in many ways, but the most common method is to focus on full time and full year wages. It is also able to be measured the gender wage gap on the basis of hourly wages. The most recent Statistics data of Canada shows that the gender wage gap in Ontario is 28% for full time and full year workers. It means that when a male worker is to earn $1.00, a female worker is to earn only 72 cents. When the Pay Equity Act was passed in 1987, the gender wage gap was 36%. It has been reduced gradually over time. The current situation As a result of women have been investing significant time and resources in their education, women now consist of the majority of undergraduate and master’s degree in Ontario. 62% of university undergraduate students in Canada are women. But women still earn less than men in all occupational categories and all educational levels. Although more women than men go to university or college, they don’t always get paid better than men who have the same work. It is particularly embarrassing that the pay gap is grater  for younger generations of women. There is a 39% gap between men and women’s earnings in the ages from 35 to 44. Women account for 60% of all minimum wage workers and the women at low wages are presenting all age groups. This is the reason that poverty follows women after their retirement with women age 65. It’s over twice as likely as men to be low income. The gender wage gap gets wider when women have children and when they have a part-time job. Women having children earn 12% less than women without children. Women’s opportunities for higher wage are limited by the responsibilities of family which they still burden disproportionately. While now the most majority of mothers work in the paid labour force (almost 70% of women having children under five are working), the employment rate of women with children have much lower than men with children. Making less money for their family than men affects significantly them throughout their lives, which could put women and their children at a higher risk of poverty and decrease their income to earn a lifetime and retirement income. The reason of gender wage gap There are several factors that caused the gender wage gap. According to a report by Dr. Pat Armstrong, the gender wage gap is caused by the following three features of Canada’s labour market, which interact to yield substantially lower wage for women. â€Å"That is 1. The majority of women are segregated from men into different work and different workplaces. In Canada, 67% of women work in traditional occupations such as teaching, nursing, clerical, admin or sales and service jobs in 2009. 2. In general, women’s segregated work is paid less than men’s work. The higher the concentration of women, the lower the pay. Women’s skills and competencies are undervalued because of their association with women, as are sectors and industries such as health care and services in which women predominate. 3. Women’s lower pay reflects the systemic undervaluation of women’s work relative to that of men.† Functionalistic perspectives of the gender wage gap Functionalists have the view that inequality is a product of the traditional  division in human societies. In the past, men had a tendency to attend to more external tasks such as working for company or doing government job and women attended to more internal tasks such as those involved in raising child or doing house work. While both kinds of labour are functional and necessary for a society’s survival, the external tasks which were accomplished by men always have been more highly rewarded than the internal tasks made by women. So in functionalism, it was very natural for men to get higher wage than women. However, gender roles and their accompanying inequalities have changed in industrialized societies. Industrialized society made the traditional division of labor less functional. Even though traditional arrangement remains in force in most societies, the traditional labour of division is no longer meaningful today. That means men and women are the same as the part that comprise the social and men are women must be treated equally if they do the same work. So, I think that it is not appropriate to explain the gender wage gap in functionalistic perspectives any more. Solutions of the gender wage gap There are three solutions which I want to suggest for solutions of the gender wage gap. 1. To support working families Although female workers have lower wage than men, their role is very important part of this society. As we know from this sentence â€Å"Women having children earn 12% less than women not having children†, it is important to make circumstances to focus on work in workplace. Governments and companies need to create more family-friendly workplaces and workplace policies especially for women with children. Work places need to consider providing parental leave and paid leave for sickness and family care. It is also necessary to offer high-quality childcare arrangements and encourage the development of more part-time jobs to pay well and to have good benefits. Not only is such policies good for female workers, but it beneficial to the company that want to hire competent female workers. 2. To increase the minimum wages Because the majority of 534,000 minimum wage workers in Ontario are women,  the increasing of statutory minimum wage is necessary to close the wage gap. Increasing the minimum wage to reflect the rising living costs every year reduces poverty and inequality of income. Ontario’s minimum wage has been fixed at $10.25 for three years. The three year fixing brings the effect lowering the income of minimum wage substantially by 7%. So it results in widening the wage gap. To close the wage gap, I think, the best solution is that the minimum wage is to rise as a certain percentage automatically by laws or rules. Even though it is not possible to determine the specific number because of changing economic conditions every year, it is very effective that the minimum wage increasing is controlled by rules. 3. To need detailed analysis the data Although there are sufficient resources to show that female worker tend to work equal and earn less than men, more detailed analyses are needed to settle underlying causes. Governments need to collect and share particular and reliable country’s data from which the respective gender wage gaps of country can be calculated and compared. This would make it possible to find out effective ways of dealing with the problem and to identify possible improvements to existing legal frameworks likely to lead to decreasing significantly in the wage gap. Wage Gap Program The Pay Equity Office started the Wage Gap Program in 2011, designed to examine current compensation data and assess the possibility of gender wage gaps for non-unionized employees in Ontario’s private sector workplaces. Wage gaps can be caused by a lot of factors, one of which relates to wage equity. The Wage Gap Program enables the Office to more precisely direct its efforts for supporting workplaces that appear to have wage equity gaps. At first, the Office conducted the Program by obtaining correction data from employers with over 500 employees. Workplaces with 250 to 499 employees are being examined now and it is expected that by the fall, workplaces with 100 to 249 employees will be contacted. References Gender Wage Gaps and Earnings Ratios in Ontario. (2012, November 21). Pay Equality Commission: Equal Pay For Work Of Equal Value. Retrieved from http://www.payequity.gov.on.ca/en/about/pubs/genderwage/wagegaps.php Blau, F. and Kahn, L. (2007, February). The Gender Pay Gap: Have Women gone as far as they can? Academy of Management Perspectives, pp.1-23. Morissette, R., Picot, G., & Lu, Y. (2013). The Evolution of Canadian Wages over the Last Three Decades (No. 2013347e). Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch. Adshade, M. (2013, January 22). Do women choose lower pay?: The gender wage gap explained. Canadian Business. Retrieved from http://www.canadianbusiness.com/blogs-and-comment/gender-wage-gap/ Armstrong, P. (2008, June). Equal Pay For Work of Equal Value. Expert Report.

2nd grade math lesson plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

2nd grade math lesson plan - Assignment Example The analyzed issues involve; goals, constraints and relationships (Walle, 2013). The analysis aims at planning the solution pathway, instead of only directly illustrating the answer. The mathematically proficient learners adequately understand the correspondences involving equations, tables, graphs, trends. The key learning objective for the mathematics lesson is; to enhance the proficiency in addition and subtraction. The students will apply their understanding of addition and subtraction to improve calculation fluency within 100. One example of this is 20+40=60; another example is 50-10=40. The students are also expected to analyze problems within 1000, by applying addition and subtraction models. The academic language involves grammar, examples and discussions. The grammar aspects give the learners adequate understanding of the mathematical signs (Johannes, 2013). The = sign illustrates that two value sets are equal. For instance 4+7=11, illustrates that the sum of 4 and 7 totals to 11. The sign > illustrates that one number is greater than another number of set of numbers. For example, 20-5>10 denotes that the difference between 20 and 5 is greater than the 10 value. The learning target and also environment is student friendly. The discussion sessions enables the students to analyze the path to answers, in line with the instructions of the teacher. The learners are also greatly encouraged to ask questions, especially in areas that are confusing. This enhances understanding, as the teacher is then the opportunity to further elaborate on the pathways to reaching the solution. Formative assessment is applied during the lesson. The teacher assesses students understanding through mostly applying questions. The students are given questions, and then through class discussions the pathways to the solutions are discussed (Alphonso, 2013). Another aspect of evaluation entails given quizzes during the course of

Organizational Structure and Performance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Organizational Structure and Performance - Essay Example For any organizational structure to  succeed  towards  performance, it needs to  have  outstanding  leadership skills and strategies such as those depicted by Rossetti’s organizational leadership in the agency (Rainey and Thompson, 2006). Through exemplary leadership techniques, performance can be improved within an  agency  but  again  the  employment  of such techniques requires the  application  of appropriate organizational structures that are in accordance with the nature and missions of the agency. In his time at the IRS Rossetti applied various  leadership  techniques in implementing reforms and a new organizational structure to change the  face  of the  agency  and improve performance.  In this  paper  I  relate  how Rossetti integrated  the use  of his outstanding leadership strategies in implementation of the new organizational structure.  The manner of functioning of this new organizational structure and the  difference  from the  past  organizational structures and Rossetti’s strategies in ensuring the success of this organizational structure in the  agency  and improvement of performance in customer services  delivery  and dealing with complaints. ... He further enhanced communication within the structural levels of the  organization  upon taking the leadership role. He depicted  leadership  through being the first to leave his office door open throughout as a symbol of openness in communication. This  effective  communication strengthened the relationship among the different department of the organization and in the overall improving the performance. He  further  embraced participation and  partnership  both within the organization and with outsiders. He ensured this through the buildup of  activity  teams and groups within the employees to facilitate  aid  and decision making among the employees. He also made the decision to  bring  professional outsiders within the  organization  to  aid  in the running of the organization in  completion  of its mission. Throughout and after his employment period Rossetti became a legend in the IRS for his ability to  depict  keen  intellect and analytical abilities within the organizational structure. Through this, he became a staunch analyst in the management and running processes of the  organization  and later became referred to as â€Å"a  genius† and â€Å"management  genius† by his colleagues in the IRS. Upon the employment of Rossetti in the IRS, various structural and reforms changes authorized with his innovation and commitment to make the n  succeed  in spite many people’s  criticism  of his plans and  ability  to  ensue  change within the IRS.  Before his employment, the IRS was incorporating the use of a fragmented organizational structure. On his emergence into the IRS, Rossetti regarded this  use  of fragmented organizational structure as a

EARLY VERSUS LATE CLAMPING OF THE UMBILICAL CORD Essay

EARLY VERSUS LATE CLAMPING OF THE UMBILICAL CORD - Essay Example Internationally, roughly a quarter of children below the age of four have iron deficiency anaemia, the severest type of iron deficiency (McDonald & Middleton, 2009). In Europe alone, the occurrence of this iron deficiency is between 3 to 7% among children below the age of four, and the occurrence of iron deficiency has been found to be as high as 26% (Grajeda et al., 2013). Some researchers argue that late cord clamping might have poor neonatal implications with enhanced risk of polycythaemia, respiratory symptoms, need of phototherapy and hyperbilirubinaemia (Emhamed et al., 2012). However, the main findings of this paper are that delaying of the umbilical cord clamping in full-term neonates for at least 2 minutes following birth is useful to the infant, extending into infancy. Even though, there was a raise in polycythemia among babies in whom cord clamping was belated, this condition seemed to be benign. Another main finding of this paper is that the iron amount in the blood in th e cord is large, which the baby requires for optimal fitness and for the hindrance of anaemia. Prior to the mid 50s, the phrase â€Å"early clamping† was defined as the clamping of umbilical cord in a minute just after birth, and â€Å"late clamping,† on the other hand, as clamping the of the umbilical cord over 5 minutes following the baby’s birth (Grajeda et al., 2013). In a number of researches of blood quantity changes following a baby’s birth carried out by researchers in nations like the U.S., the United Kingdom, as well as Canada, it was found out that in healthy term babies, over 90% of blood volume was attained in the first few breaths the baby took following birth (Mathew, 2011). Due to these findings and the lack of specific recommendations regarding the best timing, the period between birth and clamping of the umbilical cord started to be reduced. In a majority of cases, clamping of the umbilical cord is carried out between 15 to 20 seconds following the birth

ART HISTORY Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

ART HISTORY - Assignment Example Through the friendship, the affiliates of Kino sculpture were reassured of free enterprise on the either side of the borderland. More so, the proponents so the sculpture of Kino as the reminder of modernization that will encourage economic development and prosperity through the removal of discrimination. Paradoxically, those who opposed it so took it as a poignant reminder of discrimination that was prominent at his time (Widdifiied 212). On the other hand, the Villa sculpture was also received with both hospitable and hostile response. The proponents of the Villa sculpture perceived it as a source of inspiration for the continued pursuit of justice and equality as he did in his time of struggle with impartiality. Widdifiied, the mission that Villa came up with in Christianity that helped many through faith are among sweet memory the sculpture invokes (220). Those that opposed the sculpture were a reminder of the sad regional history of those days. To them, a sculpture was evocative of the struggle that the two regions have

Project management yara1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Project management yara1 - Essay Example The company should sponsor the project because the product will bring revenue to the company in case of success. The issue of the project manager should be given to the person who best qualifies to be a manager. The considerations may include past performances and characters in the job market. The department cannot be specified because it might limit the talent needed in carrying out a new project. The results of a new project are numerous. The project is expected to add the items in the purchase list of the company (Figge & Schaltegger, 2011). The project is anticipated to increase target market of the company. This will in turn create more revenue for the company. It will create new employment opportunities. Other expectations are new consumer tastes and preferences. The project charter will spell out the scope of the project, the goals and objectives and the participants. The project will show that the reasons for undertaking it are the expected results as mentioned earlier. The main objective is to earn more revenue in order to benefit the company. The participants include the design department, production department, purchasing, shipping, and sales and the marketing departments. The projects value is that the company will not only create more choices for its customers but also compete with other business entities. This is because the variety of the company’s products will be added. This will raise the company’s bargaining position especially in the market. The problem that the project will solve is (Post, 2002) that of quantity. The customers will have options of buying bigger plastic storage, but with significantly better features. This will increase the demand of the container. The ramifications that are involved in not carrying out the project are devastating. This means that there will be no product creation or development in the company. There will also be no motivation of the employees who came up with the

Interpretations of skill and skill that only few people have, but all Essay

Interpretations of skill and skill that only few people have, but all people can master - Essay Example These skills are so common that they always go unnoticed most of our life. On the other hand there is the functionality of voluntary skills. Voluntary skills are those skills that can be judged as specialized skill and had to be acquired by an individual with the dint of time management- noted or unnoted. It is this voluntary skill that gave birth to the concept of division of labor and ignited a spark to get the ball of civilization rolling. Picture this: the setting is somewhere in Southern France and the time is around the end of the last Ice Age. You will find a group of hunter-gatherers busy with their daily life. The men folks are coming back from the hard days hunt to their temporary settlement and the women of the tribe are separating the findings of the days work. And out in a corner there is an aged man busy with his Paleolithic tools- working hard to shape and sharp their jagged edges. Now, all the hunters are skillful huntsman and all the women are worthy gathers and this is almost inbuilt quality of the tribe simply because without these skills the tribe would seize to exist. It is but obvious that the sense of hunting and the eye for finding the needful elements scattered all around you requires a specific amount of skill and it should be learned to master them. Some of the women are better gatherer and some of the men are more skillful hunter than the other or average tribal. This could be termed that they have got a talent for hunting or gathering but the focal point of the skill is that this is not any specialized skill to mention as because the other members of tribe are attributed with the same skill, but the other maybe more or less skillful to their task. Thus, these skills could be termed as involuntary skills. On the other hand, the elderly person busy with his 'modernized' primitive tools is an example of the voluntary skill. It is not that he is not able to hunt but he has specialized himself into an occupation that no other in the tribe can share. It is not that this elderly Cro-Magnon is an Einstein of his tribe but it is this specialization that keeps him apart. Thus, this could be safely stated that "there are, however, certain skills that only a limited number of people have, which allow them to be more effective in areas that the average person is not. Even though only a small percentage of the population has mastered these skills, their benefits are too great to be kept to themselves. Conquering them requires time, dedication and patience. Devotion is challenging for the average person due to our busy lives." (Lamb, 87-88) In today's context, the job of a software programming professional is completely 'Greek' to a general person and the skill of a rocket engineer is completely unknown to a software programming professional. This is because these are completely specialized occupations and thereby absolutely voluntary in nature. But for both the software programming professional and rocket engineer driving is a common skill and they both are skillful in it in respective ability. Therefore we can summarize that driving is a involuntary skill that these two specialized persons share commonly. It is such a

International economics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

International economics - Assignment Example Fagnusson says that once the product is acquired abroad, they are labeled by the apparel company to ensure that they command brand identification after which they are sold either in the domestic or foreign markets (103). This scenario attests to the fact that cost of production is important element in making strategic production choices. When Spain opens its borders to the large number of unskilled Africans seeking to immigrate, they gets access to cheap labor. Suppose Spain was to open its borders to the large number of unskilled Africans seeking to work there, it is likely to benefit from cheap labor. Unskilled labor is cheap because these people do not possess any skills; hence they lack the bargaining power in the market. When skilled labor is acquired cheaply, the implication is that the overall cost of production becomes cheaper (Salvatore 221). The fact that Spain allows influx of unskilled labor in the market implies that the country will enjoy a comparative advantage in its production. Comparative advantage refers to the ability of a country to produce goods or services at a lower marginal cost and opportunity cost over the other. Spain stands to benefit greatly in international trade because it enjoys absolute advantage in its production because of cheap labor. For instance, if Spain decides to import skilled labor for manufacturing sector, then it enjoys absolute advantage in production of manufacturing products. Spain, therefore, stands in a good platform to exploit its comparative advantage since it concentrates in the production of manufactured goods for export; and since it can import other goods or services, which it does not enjoy comparative advantage (Viner 125). The concept of comparative advantage has merit in many areas in the sense that it assists the country to earn foreign currency. The foreign earnings a re good since they can be used to finance various social and infrastructural programs in Spain. The foreign earnings are

The Perfect Pizzeria Essay Example for Free

The Perfect Pizzeria Essay Please answer the following questions applying OB concepts and theories as appropriate. While the case primarily focuses on motivational approaches, you find that other OB concepts that we have covered are applicable. 1. Consider the situation where the manager changed the time period required to receive free food and drink from six to twelve hours of work. Apply the appropriate motivational approaches (theories) to explain what happened. 2. For the situation in which the manager worked beside the employees for a time and then later returned to his ofï ¬ ce, which motivational and/or learning approaches (you may refer to previous chapters) can be applied to explain what happened? 3. Establish and justify a motivational program based on one or a combination of motivation theories to more effectively deal with the situation as it exists at the end of the case.

Economic progress in Russia in the years 1981-1982 Essay Example for Free

Economic progress in Russia in the years 1981-1982 Essay Despite frequent changes in policy, Russian and Soviet governments were spectacularly unsuccessful in securing sustained economic progress in the years 1881-1982’. Assess the validity of this statement. Between 1981 and 1982, Russia underwent huge changes, particularly the in economy. Russian history is well known for its frequent changes in policy as the country faced revolutions, changes in regime, changes in leadership and not to mention its involvement in various conflicts. As a result, Russia’s economic policy was subject to major change apart from three key areas, industry, agriculture and the tertiary sector. These three areas of the economy remained a constant in its ever changing climate; however, many historians still argue that Russia’s economy was unsuccessful and poorly managed despite its frequent change in policy. Thus begs the question, ‘To what extent is this true?’ The Tsarist regime, for many Russians, was a period of economic instability as agriculture was seen as a secondary concern. Growth rate was not structured and growth rate fell considerably between the late 1890’s and 1905.[1] Meanwhile, other economies expanded leaving Russia struggling to catch up and some historians see agriculture as a reason for Russia’s economic decline. For example, Carol. S. Leonard argued that Russia’s grain production per capita GDP was lagged far behind that of America in 1913.[2] This argument shows how agriculture in Tsarist Russia wasn’t dealt with effectively and as a result, the economy suffered. On the other hand, some historians have pointed out that agriculture in Russia during the late Tsarist years were not so destructive. One argument maintains that actually, Russia’s agriculture grew and developed quite substantially pre- revolution. For example; from 1890 to 1913, cereal production per capita increased by 35%[3]. Although this evidence is hard to ignore, it is also difficult to turn a blind eye to the contrasting evidence which suggests that agriculture suffered under the late Tsarist regime and consequently, affected the economy as a whole. For example: â€Å"There was very little investment in agriculture in Imperial Russia and this lead to small yields and economic volatility when prices rose and fell†¦lack of investment in agriculture frequently caused grain prices to rise which caused famines†[4] Overall, although agriculture grew slightly during the Tsarist regime, ultimately it suffered greatly as did the Russian people. Looking at agriculture alone, Russia’s economy looked bleak however; industry had slightly more success during this time so perhaps the economy was not so bad after all. S J Lee puts forward a simple statement: â€Å"The periods of most rapid growth were in the reign of Nicholas II (1894-1917) as a result of the economic reforms of Sergei Witte (1892-1903)†[5]. This is easy to see, when one considers that in 1914, Russia produced 35 million tons of coal, ranking Russia fifth amongst the main producers.[6] Building on Lee’s argument, there seems to be a lot of evidence pointing to Sergei Witte as the main reason for Russia’s industrial boom. Upon taking office, Witte raised massive amounts of capital by securing a loan from France and raising taxes and tariffs and interest rates.[7] However, it is the development of Russian railways which Witte is perhaps most remembered for. Under his guidance the railway network grew from around thirty one thousand km to around fifty three km worth of track.[8] With Witte at the helm, Russia’s industry continued to develop with growth rates comparing well next to those of the United States and Germany. Witte has often been credited with modernizing Russia to such a great extent that its industrial boom continued long after he left his post as Finance Minister in 1903. For example, in 1913, Russia’s steel production stood at 4.9 million metric tons next to France’s 4.7 million, with coal and iron not far behind.[9] On the other hand, Witte’s industrialization policies were not always so successful. For example, between 1890 and 1899, Russia’s industrial growth stood at 8.0% whereas between 1900-06, it reduced to 1.4%[10]. His aims of modernizing came with a heavy cost and it was consumers who had to pay the price. Taxes were raised but only for the lower classes, indeed the wealthier classes were spared from taxation although their money was needed for private capital. Tariffs also caused problems as, although they protected Russian industry, they added to the cost of living.[11] Whatsmore, although some historians have credited Witte’s decision to seek loans from foreign investors, some remain critical. This is because the interest added to the loans had to be paid in a secure medium meaning, in order to pay off their debts, Russia was forced to export grain regularly, including during the famine of 1891.[12] Overall, although Witte made huge strides in modernizing the Russian economy, he was not entirely faultless. Industry picked up, but there were still issues and it was the common man who had to pay. The economy still suffered, although, arguably, not as much as it would have done without Witte. However, the tertiary sector also contributed to the economy. Although some historians critique Russia’s dependence of Western investors, these ties had corresponding benefits in the shape of trade. [13] Business also boomed within Russia with eight large banks emerging in 1899 which owned more than half the total bank capital. This provided free access for foreign capital, controlling important branches of the Russian economy, including the fuel and metallurgical industries. [14] Moreover, according to Robert Service, domestic industrialists and banks were thriving too.[15] This argument can be supported by the growth in towns and cities between 1897 and 1914. For example; the population in St Petersburg grew from 1’300 thousand (1987) to 2’100 thousand (1914)[16]. This shows that the economic growth had a positive impact on society and the country was doing well under the Tsarist regime. However, although to the naked eye Russia seemed to be doing well, their growth wasn’t so great. Compared to the other Great powers of the period, Russia was lagging far behind. Between 1894 and 1913, Austria-Hungary had a 79% increase in national income whereas Russia was lagging far behind with only a 50% increase[17]. This clearly demonstrates that Russia’s overall situation was not so great and actually, Russian people did suffer. When Lenin came to power in 1917, he brought with him a change in regime and economic policy including the introduction of war communism. War communism aimed to socialize the economy through state involvement. Rural areas were subjected to grain requisition which was forcibly removed by the military.[18] This inevitably was unpopular and caused much suffering and peasants who stored their crops were often wrongfully prosecuted. It was not just agriculture which suffered. Factories were nationalized by November 1920 and were geared towards war production.[19] Additionally, private trade was banned and rationing was introduced on consumer goods including food and clothing. War communism was, effectively a self destructive policy. Grain requisitioning meant more than three million people died of starvation by late 1922.[20] Moreover, money lost its value and people got by through a system of barter. Inflation shot up and multiplied 1917 costs by four million in 1922. Additionally, in comparison to the growth in city population during the Tsarist regime, people fled the cities. For example; in December 1920 the population in Petrograd fell by 57.5%[21] Lenin knew that it was time for a change. War communism caused more harm then good so Lenin came up with an alternative, the ‘New Economic Policy’ (NEP). Peasants were allowed to sell grain for profit and they paid tax on what they produced rather than giving it up[22]. Things also changed industrially and in the tertiary sector. Businessmen could own small or medium sized businesses however large firms were still state owned.[23] The NEP basically gave the people of Russia freedom and Lenin hoped that it would boost economic growth as well. However, in 1924, Lenin died and Stalin came to power. Stalin also brought new ideas and his own ways of modernizing the economy. In November 1927, Stalin introduced his policies of industrialisation and collectivisation with the aim of modernising the economy. They were supported by a series of five year plans, the first (1928-32) aimed to improve living standards and the second (1933-37) and third (1938-41) aimed to highlight and thus, amend, Russia’s weaknesses[24]. Industrialisation was relatively successful as by the late 1930’s many workers conditions had improved and they had acquired better paid jobs and unemployment was almost non-existent. Accounts from the time support this view: â€Å"Good progress was made†¦4’500 new factories, plants, mines and power stations were commissioned, three times as many as the first Five-Year period’[25]. On the other hand, industrialisation was harsh and lateness for work often led to employees getting the sack. Many prisoners also paid the price by working on the grand engineering projects and working in appalling and dangerous conditions. For example; around 100’000 workers died building the Belmor Canal[26]. Collectivisation was ultimately unsuccessful and peasants were in a worse position than ever before. The concept of sharing farms and thus, sharing salary meant there wasn’t enough money to go around and crop production fell too. For example: â€Å"†¦Grain shortages, combined with continued forced procurements, led to rural famine†¦Ã¢â‚¬ [27] However, some people benefitted from collectivisation such as Bertha Malnick: â€Å"We have more than 600 hectares†¦our farmers have built 70 new houses for themselves during the last few years†¦Ã¢â‚¬ [28]. However, it is reasonable to conclude overall that collectivisation was unsuccessful given the various sources which provide figures of those who died or badly suffered during Stalin’s reign. Stalin died in 1953 and Khrushchev took over. Khrushchev focused on DeStalinisation, distancing the USSR as far away from Stalin as possible. Khrushchev was keen to adopt a different economic policy with the aim of building on the country’s previous economic growth and amending its weaknesses and one way he did this was by abandoning the five year plans and starting a new, seven year plan (1959-65) which aimed to take advantage of newly discovered mineral resources and fit in with industry[29]. Khrushchev pumped a lot of money into agriculture and overall 40% of investment was put into the neglected eastern regions of the USSR[30]. However, the seven year plan had similar flaws to the previous five year plans such as mistakes in resource distribution. Living standards got worse, the opposite to what Khrushchev had hoped to achieve. For example; only five in one thousand citizens owned a car and in 1963, the USSR was forced to import grain from the capitalist west to compensate shortages.[31] There were successes during this time such as the rise in foreign trade however this can’t compensate for the huge failures experienced during this time. Khrushchev made an honest attempt to improve the economy however his plans backfired and once again the country was left to clean up an economic mess. Eventually, Khrushchev was removed from power and in his place came Brezhnev who did little to change the economy. The era of Brezhnev has often been described as ‘a period of economic stagnation’ but some historians believe that this is not fair. Like Khrushchev, Brezhnev wanted to focus on improving agriculture and living standards in Russia. Historians Gwyneth Hughes and Simon Welfare support this view saying: â€Å"†¦After the terror of Stalin’s reign and the chaos of Khrushchev’s, the Soviet Union was in for a period of stability, and that meant everyone kept their job and their perks for life.†[32] Brezhnev allowed farmers to work on state own plots which motivated them to produce as much as possible in order to sell the surplus[33]. This, in theory, should have been beneficial and shows that Brezhnev was trying to improve the economy through new methods however, he was not so lucky. In 1975, the USSR suffered another poor harvest meaning Brezhnev had to increase foreign exports to keep everyone fed. This was just another disaster in Russia but Brezhnev did little to help. His aim to improve agriculture and living standards meant he neglected industry and production rates continued to rapidly fall[34]. However, arguably his biggest flaw was his inability to change the already ridged economy. Brezhnev had new ideas but couldn’t fight the system and by the end of his reign, Russia had made little improvement. Historian Dmitri Volkognov best sums up the Brezhnev period saying: â€Å"If Lenin and Stalin, and to some extent even Khrushchev, were able to enliven the moribund ideology of Communism, it was quite beyond Brezhnev†¦Ã¢â‚¬ [35]. In conclusion, between 1881 and 1982, Russia experienced much hardship especially surrounding the economy. After analyzing this one hundred year period it is hard to deny that the statement ‘Despite frequent changes in policy, Russian and Soviet governments were spectacularly unsuccessful in securing sustained economic progress in the years 1881-1992’. The economy under the Tsarist regime had its faults and during and after the 1917 revolution, it was widely believed that the country’s economic situation would improve. However, from Lenin to Stalin and Khrushchev to Brezhnev, it seemed that no leader was able to sustain a long-lasting and successful economic policy. The economy grew as quickly as it declined and it has taken many years to make any significant progress since. Therefore, this statement is valid. ________________ [1] Heinemann Advanced History: The Modernisation of Russia 1856-1985 [2] Agricultural Productivity Growth in Russia 1861-1913. From Inertia to Ferment by Carol. S. Leonard [3] The Penguin History of Modern Russia by Robert Service [4] www.historymadefun.co.uk/Tsarism [5] Overview from Russia and the USSR: Autocracy and Dictatorship (questions and answers in History) by Stephen. J. Lee [6] Stephen J Lee [7] http://www.slideshare.net/russeltarr/tsar-nicholas-ii-and-industry [8] The Industrialisation of Russia by M. Falkus [9] http://www.portalus.ru/modules/english_russia [10] M. Falkus [11] A2 History OCR: A Russia and its Rulers 1855-1964 [12] A2 History OCR [13] S. J Lee [14] A History of the USSR [15] Penguin History of Modern Russia [16] M. Falkus [17] The Making of the Revolution, 1881-1905 [18] From Years of Russia and the USSR, 1851-1991 by Evans and Jenkins [19] Evans and Jenkins [20] The Russian Revolutions 1914-1924 [21] Evans and Jenkins [22] The USSR, Germany and the USA between the wars [23] Russia and the USSR 1905-1941 [24] The USSR, Germany and Russia between the wars [25] A Soviet view of the second five year plan from History of the USSR by Y. Kukushkin [26] Stalin and the Soviet Economy [27] European History 1848-1945 by T.A Morris [28] Everyday Life in Russia by Bertha Malnick [29] AQA A2 History Triumph and Collapse: Russia and the USSR 1941-1991 by John Laver Sally Waller [30] Russia 1855- 1964 Flagship History by D. Murray and T. Morris [31] The Soviet Economy 1917-80 by S J Lee [32] Red Empire. The Forbidden History of the USSR by G. Hughes and S. Welfare [33] www.ibguides.com/history/notes.ccom [34] Years of Russia and the USSR, 1851-1991 [35] The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Empire by D.Volkognov

Pay Framework and Store Management of Matalan Retail

Pay Framework and Store Management of Matalan Retail The following paper is a report about the introduction of an innovative pay framework at the Matalan stores. The company is relatively new in the market since its inception in the year 1985. Though the progress has been staggering and the company has moved forward while imbibing some of the best management practices seen in corporate history, there is a slack in the current pay structure practised at Matalan. Though they had a formal structure in the past, at the moment each store has its own recruitment policies and salary structures. Thesis causing problems within the human resource department at each store due to the discrepancy in maintaining similar levels of pay structure. The company would need to undergo change and create a new pay framework, which imbibes all the concepts of equal pay to avoid any legal proceedings in the future. At the same time the paper also takes into consideration factors, which are important while trying to create pay frameworks for organisations – motivation, communication channels, training and development, equal opportunities and similar non financial rewards which have proven to go a long way in improving performance at the work place. The report goes through a series of different headings which come together to weave a structure which best explains the problems, founding issues and a possible solution. Introduction Matalan is one of UK’s leading clothing and home furnishings retailer. The quality of clothes and home ware is relatively high with an affordable price tag. It was John Hargreaves who founded Matalan; he initially discovered the concept of out of town selling at lower prices in the US markets. The learning process was enough for him to know that this could turn out to be a very successful retail strategy in the Upmarket. The first Matalan store was opened in Preston in the year1985. By 1995, the company had made tremendous progress and had 50 stores to their credit across UK. The year 1997 was one with multiple changes in the business strategy and management practices, since the company was growing at a phenomenal pace; the head office was moved to Skelmersdale to be in a better position to oversee company growth and management issues. The success was reinstated in the market with company floatation in the year 1998, at the moment Matalan trades from 5 million square feet in over 170 stores. For the consumers the opportunity to shop at Matalan is very satisfying since they get unrivalled quality at unsurpassed prices. The strategy Matalan follows is to buy from the manufacturers and having out of town less costly stores, which enable them to pass on the cost benefit to the customers. Please refer appendix 2 for more information about Matalan’s positioning the UK market in comparison to other clothing retailers. A visit to a Matalan store reveals the complete family range the store has on offer, there is something for everybody. On an average the store size is an approximate 30,000 sq. ft. per store, the product range is comprehensive combination of home ware, clothing line for men, women and children. Each clothing line has a further divide in range and styles – formal, informal, sporty, seasonal, modern basics to some very classical styling, other than having their own labels on display there are also other brands on offer – Wrangler, Flamer, Lee Cooper, Wonder bra and Wolsey, this gives the customers a more balanced profile to choose from. The head office provides immense functional support tall stores across UK – be it buying, merchandising, marketing, HRM,finance, operations or property management. To get a better understanding of what each store entails in terms of human resources, we have the following line up. Store Manager Deputy Manager Sales Manager Ladies wear Sales Manager Men swear Sales Manager Childrens wear Sales Manager Home ware Full and part time General Sales Assistants At the same time, there are flexible changes in the way roles might be managed in a store, in smaller stores the home ware and children ‘swear departments are overlooked and managed by a one sales manager instead of two which is a norm in bigger sized stores. Matalan prides itself on some very progressive practices in all departments; the management believes that what they have on offer for employees is a fast track progressive career path, which is completely matched with one’s personal ambitions to succeed. [www.matalan.co.uk] The pay framework at Matalan includes the following benefits and perks. Highly competitive Salary Bonus Scheme Discounted Share Save scheme Life assurance policy Private Health Care 10% discount at all stores Generous holiday entitlements [http://www.inretail.co.uk/pages/content.asp?PageID=311] The above is an insight into what Matalan Retail has to offer its employees and staff across the stores. There are problems with the current pay structure, some of the new recruits are paid with regards to market rates and this is not in sync with what is paid to the old recruits in similar roles. The local HR offices have been exercising autonomy in recruitment and salary structures, which might, create friction between employees, peers and draw inter store comparisons. There is no clear-cut strategy for assimilating information on employees, their satisfaction levels and ways to gauge their performance at work. All this and more in the long run can create some damaging effects to the organisations performance as a whole. The following report is to create an understanding and balance between problems, issues and executable solutions so that the company can align the employee/staff goals with the organisation objectives. Literature Review Michael Armstrong (2001), in his book, ‘New dimensions in pay management’ talks about new systems and processes in reward management and pay structures. It also talks in length about the factors, which need consideration when planning a new pay structure in an organisation. It also covers methods of developing; introducing and evaluating new pay structures. Organisations in towards era have to move at a fast pace while adjusting to the changes in the internal and external environment. These pressure make these organisations react indifferent manners, it could be delayering, project based, flexible or continuous. The emphasis is on continuous improvements in terms of performance management, reward management, personnel appraisal, quality control and customer service. The quality of human resources within an organisation is considered a significant advantage and differentiating factor. The focus should also be on business strategies and using systems like reward management and performance appraisal to bring about change in organisations. The reward concept is a focused effort of various forms of rewards, base pay, variable pay, benefits and non-financial rewards. The significance of pay revolves around motivational strategy, attracting and retaining employees in their job roles to build a more effective organisation. The non-financial rewards include more recognition, praise, and training options, responsibility and although more studies on organisational behaviour have revealed that it’s the non-financial rewards, which have more scope for retaining employees. It was in the year 1990 that Ed Bawler spoke about the limitations of using this approach, â€Å"The starting point for any reward system design process needs to be the strategic agenda of the organisation. Thus the first step in designing the reward system for an organisation is to focus on the individual and organisational behaviours that are needed in order for the organisation to be successful†. Bawler further enhanced and improvised on this belief to cover all organisations, â€Å"The business strategy, in particular, serves as a crucial guide in designing organisational systems because it specifies what the company wants to accomplish, how it wants to behave, and the kinds of performance and performance levels it must demonstrate to be effective†. [Michael Armstrong (2001), cap 1-15] Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989) in their books ‘Personnel Management’, talk about how most organisations design their pay and wage packages based on the hierarchy. Another big difference is that blue-collar jobs are usually at an hourly rate, the wages are paid weekly or monthly basis and the salary earners are the ones who are Gina middle or senior management position. The differences are not limited to the salary; they also extend to the additional perks and benefits, which are offered to the employees. The objectives of a policy towards making a payment could be described as to ‘remain competitive for labour whilst rewarding good performance and adopting a position on pay which is felt to be fair by all employees.’ [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-211] The distinction that companies enjoy while treating different job roles with different salary structures is a matter of internal personnel philosophy. There are certain important criterions, which needs to be considered while planning a salary and wages structure – If the company wishes to afford large salaries and pay packets to employees then they are working with the strategy of getting maximum output and high standards of quality and work from the employees. The effort to keep the standards high has to be sustained through time. If the company wishes to offer other benefits and perks like travel allowance, car, mobile phones, laptops, inflation proof pension etc., the other way of doing this could be by giving the flexibility to the employee to decide what structure would be most appealing to him or her in terms of salary spend. Another option is to trade off these benefits against wages. The most important factor to be seen by organisations remains retaining employees. They need to understand what appeals to the employees, what motivated them to work harder and perform better. Employee retention is a big problem and a lot of organisations are trying to tackle this through financial perks, raising salaries and other perks. There are options like profit share benefits and bonus schemes which also need to be worked through the system. This does not call for direct employee participation and might not prove to be a great motivational tool. There are policies on variation of pay frameworks, what needs consideration from management and organisations is whether pay is the main incentive and motivational tool for employees. They also need to understand the kind of employee evaluation scheme, which needs to be adopted and run. The organisations which operate from more than one location need to understand the repercussions of giving more autonomy to its line managers in terms of drafting salary structure and pay frameworks. The other option would be to draft a company wide policy and run it across all departments and locations irrespective of size, force and structure. The last step would be the pay reviews and how often one needs to undergo one at a certain location. The evidence, which is needed to corroborate what, the employee is saying and how the performance has been in the past. [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-215] In the same way when one needs to approach the way wages are offered to the resources, the basic flat rate is what is paid to the employee based on the amount of work he or she has put in a specific time frame.ased on this principle the employee can actually generate more income by completing more pieces of workloads and assignments. A differential piecework is what in other words means ‘time allowed ‘system of piecework, other than the amount of bonus one earns, which is further shared between the company and the employee. There are then small group incentive schemes as well as long-term large group incentive schemes. Given that this paper is about a large sized retail organisation, a long term large group scheme should be a more worthwhile option to discuss although one does need to consider the number of revolving labour one is faced with at retail outlets. The big difference between these schemes is that they have a long-term goal to achieve, apply through the whole organisation/factory structure and try and involve the employees in the organisation structure and future objectives. Given the large rotating base of employees at large retail outlets, we will consider the author’s views on small group incentive schemes. The advantages of these schemes are that they draw in the people and their tendency for bringing about a norm, which is acceptable and comfortable. This in turn leads to a team spirit, which does help while building a positive atmosphere at a store/outlet/organisation. In terms of paper work, these schemes are much easier to monitor and control. The cost savings in terms of money, manpower, effort is less considering the monitoring required, less inspection and savings onetime study periods. There are indirect workers who can also participate in these schemes, the workers, cleaners; store assistants can enjoy the same benefits and perks. There is a larger amount of flexibility and teamwork amongst the work force; the people themselves are keen to get rid of hurdles and bottlenecks in the work process to help provide better work environment. There are disadvantages to these schemes too; there might be impacts of group pressures on workers who are not as efficient as the others. The holidays and sickness leaves will easily upset the system; there would be a need to carve out special arrangements to tackle the holidays. Here could be problems with production, supply chain management that could in turn affect the performance of the employees. In retrospect this could create a substantial amount of disillusionment with the scheme. Coming back to the long-term schemes, there are many variations, which might apply to these. The Scan long plan (1947) was a suggestion plan as well as a collective incentive scheme. The suggestion scheme is what one comes across in a lot of production and manufacturing environments. The employees are asked to come up with suggestions on how to improve the efficiency levels and reduce time at work; these ideas are then enhanced and improvised by the management and the union. The bonus calculation in these cases is then based on the improvements shown in reducing the cost of good produced as well as improvements in the actual output, manpower per hour. Another set of work rules would be if there is a reduction in the sales revenue then the e employees would be deprived of a bonus irrespective of how hard they have worked. In long term view there is absolutely no motivational quality attached to this variation in pay structure. The other plan was introduced by Trucker(1955), which entailed the use of ‘productive value’ or added value. This was based on a collective bonus scheme. The value in this variation is the difference between the sales revenue and the cost of raw materials and supplies. This approach is very fragile with regards to the effects market forces might have on this scheme. The advantage of these long-term large group schemes is that it will provide the incentive for long-term earnings. The employee participation helps overcome the most frequently seen sentiment to them versus us. The level of involvement with the management and production base is stronger than in other cases. This helps build trust and stability. Here is more scope of a wider base of applications, which can be used in the business, and the working of the organisation. The value added schemes are being adjusted to the changing conditions the company might be undergoing. [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-220] There is however disadvantages to this long term, large group schemes. If these are actually applied across the whole production line, it might dissolve the sentiment of teamwork. These schemes need to have some form of bonus for the employees else it will have no incentive for them to perform better or to increase productivity. The larger the number of employees covered through this scheme the less the percentage which goes to each employee, hence in the final turn of events it reduces the usefulness. Another question rather doubt which arises is whether the individuals see their own efforts helping towards the final cause and long term goals of the scheme and production value. Here is a list of variables which can cause damage to the production process – change in personnel, supervision, customer requirements, machinery, external environment changes. Michael H. Bottomed (1983), in his book, Personnel Management, talks about job satisfaction, motivational tools, compensation package sand benefits which are all integral factors affecting the performance of an organisation. The writer brings an interesting fact to the forefront; the compensation package for employees had grown more complex in the past years. A simple break down of the framework seems like a complex thing to do. It is now important to design frameworks, which suit the individual requirements and needs of the employees. Any organisation has to get the mix right for them to address issues like retention, attrition, motivation and performance. While designing the pay framework for an organisation, it is important to note the background of the corporation, individuals job roles and what they entail, individual pay systems and the after effects on the performance and reaction of the employees. The external factors, which affect the way organisations can design pay packages, is because of government taxation rules and pay restraints. A lot of writers have written on the total compensation package, perks and inducements. â€Å"Simon (1958) refers to inducements as payments made by the organisation to its participants in return for contributions. Thomason (1981) identifies a level of consideration necessary to attract labour. Lupton (1975) suggests that the rules of a pay system say how effort is to be related to reward.†[Michael H. Bottomed (1983), p 80 – 90] An interesting factor, which needs consideration, is the effect of compensation on behaviours. Two of these theories, which have surfaced, are those of expectancy and reinforcement. The critical component of the expectancy theory is the way people relate to compensation with the reward package offered as a result of providing a service. In an important study conducted by Schwa and Heneman (1975), this form of sentiment and perception was found strongest in workers with individual incentives schemes. The reinforcement model finds its origins in Skinner’s (1969) writings. The process defines and develops the patterns, which are experienced while pairing good behaviour with rewards and bad behaviour with punishment. The way this sort of conditioning takes place is through a learning process. The conditioning in this case is so deep and inherent that when an individual is faced with a similar situation, he/she reacts in similar manner as they have done before. [Michael H. Bottomed (1983),p 80 – 95] There are various types of payments and rewards, which can be introduced as part of the main structure. One the popular schemes are the bonus scheme, in effect the system of payments is through a bonus. There is a need to create a specific background before introducing this scheme; the management needs to be committed to the scheme. A big factor towards failure of most of these payment frameworks is the lack of ownership on part of the management. If the cost attached to the transition is not going their way, the management finds it easy to stop the process midway. The employees need to be part of any new scheme, which is in the offing; they need to know the implications, benefits, disadvantages and time frame needed for a successful introduction. The measures, which define productivity, are always a contentious issue and so the management and employees need to be on the same page. A feedback system needs to be in place through which all are informed of the progress made and how the employee stands in terms of rewards towards work input. Communication is essential while implementing any new system or process, the best route would be to discuss the progress, the ways the productivity can be increased and how can all gain the most. The work productivity measure is more or less decided based on the following methodologies – The job role of the employee and the time input needed to complete the job at a satisfactory level The actual physical production of goods/commodities and the time taken to do so The actual physical production of goods/commodities and the cost of production An additional value achieved or the cost of labour The cost of materials used for production, cost needed to get a production going Another way of sharing benefits is through the profit sharing scheme. Good example for this would be NatWest, which introduced this scheme. The staff does reach a point of identification and self-achievement when the results are grouped. The employees feel a greater sense of loyalty and commitment towards the job and the organisation. The performance is not in isolation and with regards to personal achievements; the employees also begin to see the bigger picture and what it means to have greater financial success. At the end all businesses are about profit, the biggest sense of achievement is to derive a balance between employee cost and the profitability. The three common ways to determine how much to pay in the profit sharing scheme are as follows – The amount of profits before tax The directors at their own discretion decide how much to pay the employees under this scheme The amount of profits accumulated after a certain limit has been reached Andrews (1975) talks about reasons, which are critical to the introduction of compensation and pay benefits. As mentioned before by many other writers, the employee base and staff are important resources, it is important for any business/organisation to retain and attract staff to meet the current and future objectives of the company. The staff at all times needs to feel that their efforts in the organisation are noticed and rewarded accordingly. There has to be encouragement and identification of interests, which match those of the employees with regards to reward management. The employees and staff need to be motivated and propelled to perform better and take on more responsibility during the course of their work. There is a need for asset criterion for differentiating between different job roles and titles, each one has its own set of complexities and leverage, this needs to be considered while preparing a compensation package. The company also needs to see some value in the amount of remuneration and rewards being given to the employee. All organisations need to have clear structure for career progression for all employees; they need to know what the future holds for them in the organisation hierarchy. All employees need to have some stability and ways to maintain their standard of living. [Michael H. Bottomed (1983), p 80 – 100] Clive Fletcher and Richard Williams (1992) in their book Performance appraisal and career development talk about appraisal schemes, equal opportunity employment, future challenges and opportunities in this sphere, persisting issues, maintenance and evaluation. The appraisal systems are an effective tool, which has helped a lot of organisations to collect information from the staff and employees about pays and promotions. An increase in the bonus scheme and other incentives, this was a motivating mechanism as well as a productivity enhancer. The management to further develop and plan the welfare of the personnel used the information collected. The appraisal system also acts as process line up for re visiting the initial recruitment decisions also place to decide the promotion schemes and incentives on offer. This can also be an effective communication channel, for introducing new training and development schemes for the personnel; the same can also be used for succession planning. There is an inherent change in the way managers think in current times, pay and rewards are important but appraisal systems will also show that family and time off work is as crucial, else there is bound to be high stress levels and chances of complete burn out. Gorier and Philpot (1978, p 2-5) in their paper point out the following, â€Å"Whilst managers are concerned about their careers, they are equally concerned about their home and family life. Numerous comments on the difficulties of finding time for family and leisure activities whilst coping with a demanding job indicate the potential for conflict between these two areas of their life†. The career concept has undergone an immense amount of change and managers are realising this while planning their internal performance management schemes. Work is no more in isolation, its involves the family and home life as well, else there will always be a carry overload syndrome from home to work and vice versa. An interesting quote in this direction of thought comes from Evans and Bartolome (1980, p7-10), â€Å"Professional life affects the quality of private life on a day to day basis. But the reverse is not true; private life only affects the quality of professional life in extreme situations. The effect of private life on professional life is through its influence on major career and life decisions†. Another issues which organisations now need to consider with stringent measures is that of equal employment opportunities. Equal opportunities could be based on gender, skills, nationality or religion among other factors. Organisations need to revisit their policies and regulations to ensure that they are not breeding grounds for lawsuits on various discriminatory grounds. A big reason why women have not moved too far with context to organisational skills is due to systematic barriers imposed by organisations, the attitude of the management and also partially due to their own behaviour and attitude towards career progression. If we consider the implications of the above issues with regards to retail stores like Matalan, there is a lot of temporary staff and permanent staff; a majority of the temporary staff comprise women. Organisations like Matalan need to consider the implications of treating the part timers and temporary employees as part of the larger picture, one that manages the day-to-day operations at the stores. These employees and staff need to be made part of an appraisal system too to ensure that there can be room for career development opportunities along with the full timers. Much of what has been said about women applies to members of different ethnic backgrounds and racial groups too. Their representation in management and as part of the professional roles is discriminatorily low. Although there have been steps taken to curb this partial reaction, there are still large gaps in the way these people have been treated by line managers. The performance appraisal training needs to consider the attitude and aptitude of these minority groups so that they can be pushed towards a better role when an opportunity arises. All the authors in the literature review have managed to cast important information regarding pay structures, motivation, career development, training and development, equal opportunity, discriminatory pay, appraisal systems to counter balance the changes organisations need to make in personnel management. This will help one understand better in terms of the changes Matalan needs to introduce to mitigate the problems they are currently facing. Methodology The Techniques used for data collection are both qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative research is exploratory; Quantitative research on the other hand involves statistical surveys to quantify factors previously exposed in qualitative research. Van Mane (1983, p9) defines qualitative techniques as ‘an array of interpretative techniques which seek to describe, decode, translate and otherwise comet terms with the meaning, not the frequency, of certain more or less naturally occurring phenomena in the social world’. The data collated for this paper has been primarily through desk research using the internet, online journals, books, reports and the Matalan website. Given the time frame and the confidentiality regarding information on the existing pay framework being used by the Matalan stores did not leave much room for secondary research. The data collated was ample to find out patterns in changes, which had taken place at the stores and the way the staff had reacted to them. It is also reflective of the management involvement and how prompt they are to react when a problem arises at the stores. The organisation culture also came in play while researching this paper, though there is autonomy in job roles, they need to curtail that freedom to ensure that uniform pay framework exists at all stores across job levels. Pay frameworks don’t need to be dictated only by the internal conditions prevailing in the organisation, the existing market structure would also have some bearing to what is being offered to the employees and staff. Some authors have validated the authenticity and importance of personal interviews even though it is a more time consuming tool for data collection. The importance of interviews is summarised by Burgess(1982, p 107): ‘the interview is the opportunity for the researcher to probe deeply to uncover new clues, open up new dimensions of a problem and to secure vivid, accurate inclusive accounts that are based on personal experience’. Jones (1985, p 45) comments that, ‘between these two extremes is an abyss of practice and therefore theory about the purpose and nature of the qualitative interview’. In her view the main reason for conducting qualitative interviews is to understand, ‘how individuals construct the reality of their situation formed from the complex personal framework of beliefs and values, which they developed over their lives in order to help explain and predict events in their world.’ Though due to time constraints and confidentiality factors, interviews were not possible, we have taken information from testimonials and case studies presented by employees at Matalan about the existing framework. Through the course of the research, there was some data collated from testimonials and case studies published on the Matalan corporate website. Though each shows Matalan in a very positive frame, there is no doubt that the company website wont carry information on grudges the employees and staff might have with the way the organisation operates, the management issues and the unsatisfactory pay frameworks. The grounded analysis by Glaser and Strauss (1967) provided major benefits while understanding how the data collected from the testimonials and information from desk research had been analysed. It needs feel and intuition, there is no logical sequence one needs to follow to decipher results, there is constant sifting through, comparison with what has been found, and eventually there are some patterns, themes and categories, which emerge giving way to concepts.[Smith Easter-by Mark, Thorpe Richard and Lowe Andy (2003), p 100 – 130] Data Collection and Findings A report into the Matalan Store Pay framework shows that there areissues and ample grounds for legal proceedings. The way the paystructure is as of now can be the cause for a potential equal pay claims or a sex discrimination pay. The management considers the progress more through the level of jobs instead of the level of responsibility. There is no clear strategy for internal recruitment at the moment. There are reasons for dissatisfied Pay Framework and Store Management of Matalan Retail Pay Framework and Store Management of Matalan Retail The following paper is a report about the introduction of an innovative pay framework at the Matalan stores. The company is relatively new in the market since its inception in the year 1985. Though the progress has been staggering and the company has moved forward while imbibing some of the best management practices seen in corporate history, there is a slack in the current pay structure practised at Matalan. Though they had a formal structure in the past, at the moment each store has its own recruitment policies and salary structures. Thesis causing problems within the human resource department at each store due to the discrepancy in maintaining similar levels of pay structure. The company would need to undergo change and create a new pay framework, which imbibes all the concepts of equal pay to avoid any legal proceedings in the future. At the same time the paper also takes into consideration factors, which are important while trying to create pay frameworks for organisations – motivation, communication channels, training and development, equal opportunities and similar non financial rewards which have proven to go a long way in improving performance at the work place. The report goes through a series of different headings which come together to weave a structure which best explains the problems, founding issues and a possible solution. Introduction Matalan is one of UK’s leading clothing and home furnishings retailer. The quality of clothes and home ware is relatively high with an affordable price tag. It was John Hargreaves who founded Matalan; he initially discovered the concept of out of town selling at lower prices in the US markets. The learning process was enough for him to know that this could turn out to be a very successful retail strategy in the Upmarket. The first Matalan store was opened in Preston in the year1985. By 1995, the company had made tremendous progress and had 50 stores to their credit across UK. The year 1997 was one with multiple changes in the business strategy and management practices, since the company was growing at a phenomenal pace; the head office was moved to Skelmersdale to be in a better position to oversee company growth and management issues. The success was reinstated in the market with company floatation in the year 1998, at the moment Matalan trades from 5 million square feet in over 170 stores. For the consumers the opportunity to shop at Matalan is very satisfying since they get unrivalled quality at unsurpassed prices. The strategy Matalan follows is to buy from the manufacturers and having out of town less costly stores, which enable them to pass on the cost benefit to the customers. Please refer appendix 2 for more information about Matalan’s positioning the UK market in comparison to other clothing retailers. A visit to a Matalan store reveals the complete family range the store has on offer, there is something for everybody. On an average the store size is an approximate 30,000 sq. ft. per store, the product range is comprehensive combination of home ware, clothing line for men, women and children. Each clothing line has a further divide in range and styles – formal, informal, sporty, seasonal, modern basics to some very classical styling, other than having their own labels on display there are also other brands on offer – Wrangler, Flamer, Lee Cooper, Wonder bra and Wolsey, this gives the customers a more balanced profile to choose from. The head office provides immense functional support tall stores across UK – be it buying, merchandising, marketing, HRM,finance, operations or property management. To get a better understanding of what each store entails in terms of human resources, we have the following line up. Store Manager Deputy Manager Sales Manager Ladies wear Sales Manager Men swear Sales Manager Childrens wear Sales Manager Home ware Full and part time General Sales Assistants At the same time, there are flexible changes in the way roles might be managed in a store, in smaller stores the home ware and children ‘swear departments are overlooked and managed by a one sales manager instead of two which is a norm in bigger sized stores. Matalan prides itself on some very progressive practices in all departments; the management believes that what they have on offer for employees is a fast track progressive career path, which is completely matched with one’s personal ambitions to succeed. [www.matalan.co.uk] The pay framework at Matalan includes the following benefits and perks. Highly competitive Salary Bonus Scheme Discounted Share Save scheme Life assurance policy Private Health Care 10% discount at all stores Generous holiday entitlements [http://www.inretail.co.uk/pages/content.asp?PageID=311] The above is an insight into what Matalan Retail has to offer its employees and staff across the stores. There are problems with the current pay structure, some of the new recruits are paid with regards to market rates and this is not in sync with what is paid to the old recruits in similar roles. The local HR offices have been exercising autonomy in recruitment and salary structures, which might, create friction between employees, peers and draw inter store comparisons. There is no clear-cut strategy for assimilating information on employees, their satisfaction levels and ways to gauge their performance at work. All this and more in the long run can create some damaging effects to the organisations performance as a whole. The following report is to create an understanding and balance between problems, issues and executable solutions so that the company can align the employee/staff goals with the organisation objectives. Literature Review Michael Armstrong (2001), in his book, ‘New dimensions in pay management’ talks about new systems and processes in reward management and pay structures. It also talks in length about the factors, which need consideration when planning a new pay structure in an organisation. It also covers methods of developing; introducing and evaluating new pay structures. Organisations in towards era have to move at a fast pace while adjusting to the changes in the internal and external environment. These pressure make these organisations react indifferent manners, it could be delayering, project based, flexible or continuous. The emphasis is on continuous improvements in terms of performance management, reward management, personnel appraisal, quality control and customer service. The quality of human resources within an organisation is considered a significant advantage and differentiating factor. The focus should also be on business strategies and using systems like reward management and performance appraisal to bring about change in organisations. The reward concept is a focused effort of various forms of rewards, base pay, variable pay, benefits and non-financial rewards. The significance of pay revolves around motivational strategy, attracting and retaining employees in their job roles to build a more effective organisation. The non-financial rewards include more recognition, praise, and training options, responsibility and although more studies on organisational behaviour have revealed that it’s the non-financial rewards, which have more scope for retaining employees. It was in the year 1990 that Ed Bawler spoke about the limitations of using this approach, â€Å"The starting point for any reward system design process needs to be the strategic agenda of the organisation. Thus the first step in designing the reward system for an organisation is to focus on the individual and organisational behaviours that are needed in order for the organisation to be successful†. Bawler further enhanced and improvised on this belief to cover all organisations, â€Å"The business strategy, in particular, serves as a crucial guide in designing organisational systems because it specifies what the company wants to accomplish, how it wants to behave, and the kinds of performance and performance levels it must demonstrate to be effective†. [Michael Armstrong (2001), cap 1-15] Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989) in their books ‘Personnel Management’, talk about how most organisations design their pay and wage packages based on the hierarchy. Another big difference is that blue-collar jobs are usually at an hourly rate, the wages are paid weekly or monthly basis and the salary earners are the ones who are Gina middle or senior management position. The differences are not limited to the salary; they also extend to the additional perks and benefits, which are offered to the employees. The objectives of a policy towards making a payment could be described as to ‘remain competitive for labour whilst rewarding good performance and adopting a position on pay which is felt to be fair by all employees.’ [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-211] The distinction that companies enjoy while treating different job roles with different salary structures is a matter of internal personnel philosophy. There are certain important criterions, which needs to be considered while planning a salary and wages structure – If the company wishes to afford large salaries and pay packets to employees then they are working with the strategy of getting maximum output and high standards of quality and work from the employees. The effort to keep the standards high has to be sustained through time. If the company wishes to offer other benefits and perks like travel allowance, car, mobile phones, laptops, inflation proof pension etc., the other way of doing this could be by giving the flexibility to the employee to decide what structure would be most appealing to him or her in terms of salary spend. Another option is to trade off these benefits against wages. The most important factor to be seen by organisations remains retaining employees. They need to understand what appeals to the employees, what motivated them to work harder and perform better. Employee retention is a big problem and a lot of organisations are trying to tackle this through financial perks, raising salaries and other perks. There are options like profit share benefits and bonus schemes which also need to be worked through the system. This does not call for direct employee participation and might not prove to be a great motivational tool. There are policies on variation of pay frameworks, what needs consideration from management and organisations is whether pay is the main incentive and motivational tool for employees. They also need to understand the kind of employee evaluation scheme, which needs to be adopted and run. The organisations which operate from more than one location need to understand the repercussions of giving more autonomy to its line managers in terms of drafting salary structure and pay frameworks. The other option would be to draft a company wide policy and run it across all departments and locations irrespective of size, force and structure. The last step would be the pay reviews and how often one needs to undergo one at a certain location. The evidence, which is needed to corroborate what, the employee is saying and how the performance has been in the past. [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-215] In the same way when one needs to approach the way wages are offered to the resources, the basic flat rate is what is paid to the employee based on the amount of work he or she has put in a specific time frame.ased on this principle the employee can actually generate more income by completing more pieces of workloads and assignments. A differential piecework is what in other words means ‘time allowed ‘system of piecework, other than the amount of bonus one earns, which is further shared between the company and the employee. There are then small group incentive schemes as well as long-term large group incentive schemes. Given that this paper is about a large sized retail organisation, a long term large group scheme should be a more worthwhile option to discuss although one does need to consider the number of revolving labour one is faced with at retail outlets. The big difference between these schemes is that they have a long-term goal to achieve, apply through the whole organisation/factory structure and try and involve the employees in the organisation structure and future objectives. Given the large rotating base of employees at large retail outlets, we will consider the author’s views on small group incentive schemes. The advantages of these schemes are that they draw in the people and their tendency for bringing about a norm, which is acceptable and comfortable. This in turn leads to a team spirit, which does help while building a positive atmosphere at a store/outlet/organisation. In terms of paper work, these schemes are much easier to monitor and control. The cost savings in terms of money, manpower, effort is less considering the monitoring required, less inspection and savings onetime study periods. There are indirect workers who can also participate in these schemes, the workers, cleaners; store assistants can enjoy the same benefits and perks. There is a larger amount of flexibility and teamwork amongst the work force; the people themselves are keen to get rid of hurdles and bottlenecks in the work process to help provide better work environment. There are disadvantages to these schemes too; there might be impacts of group pressures on workers who are not as efficient as the others. The holidays and sickness leaves will easily upset the system; there would be a need to carve out special arrangements to tackle the holidays. Here could be problems with production, supply chain management that could in turn affect the performance of the employees. In retrospect this could create a substantial amount of disillusionment with the scheme. Coming back to the long-term schemes, there are many variations, which might apply to these. The Scan long plan (1947) was a suggestion plan as well as a collective incentive scheme. The suggestion scheme is what one comes across in a lot of production and manufacturing environments. The employees are asked to come up with suggestions on how to improve the efficiency levels and reduce time at work; these ideas are then enhanced and improvised by the management and the union. The bonus calculation in these cases is then based on the improvements shown in reducing the cost of good produced as well as improvements in the actual output, manpower per hour. Another set of work rules would be if there is a reduction in the sales revenue then the e employees would be deprived of a bonus irrespective of how hard they have worked. In long term view there is absolutely no motivational quality attached to this variation in pay structure. The other plan was introduced by Trucker(1955), which entailed the use of ‘productive value’ or added value. This was based on a collective bonus scheme. The value in this variation is the difference between the sales revenue and the cost of raw materials and supplies. This approach is very fragile with regards to the effects market forces might have on this scheme. The advantage of these long-term large group schemes is that it will provide the incentive for long-term earnings. The employee participation helps overcome the most frequently seen sentiment to them versus us. The level of involvement with the management and production base is stronger than in other cases. This helps build trust and stability. Here is more scope of a wider base of applications, which can be used in the business, and the working of the organisation. The value added schemes are being adjusted to the changing conditions the company might be undergoing. [Shaun Tyson and Alfred York (1989), cap 210-220] There is however disadvantages to this long term, large group schemes. If these are actually applied across the whole production line, it might dissolve the sentiment of teamwork. These schemes need to have some form of bonus for the employees else it will have no incentive for them to perform better or to increase productivity. The larger the number of employees covered through this scheme the less the percentage which goes to each employee, hence in the final turn of events it reduces the usefulness. Another question rather doubt which arises is whether the individuals see their own efforts helping towards the final cause and long term goals of the scheme and production value. Here is a list of variables which can cause damage to the production process – change in personnel, supervision, customer requirements, machinery, external environment changes. Michael H. Bottomed (1983), in his book, Personnel Management, talks about job satisfaction, motivational tools, compensation package sand benefits which are all integral factors affecting the performance of an organisation. The writer brings an interesting fact to the forefront; the compensation package for employees had grown more complex in the past years. A simple break down of the framework seems like a complex thing to do. It is now important to design frameworks, which suit the individual requirements and needs of the employees. Any organisation has to get the mix right for them to address issues like retention, attrition, motivation and performance. While designing the pay framework for an organisation, it is important to note the background of the corporation, individuals job roles and what they entail, individual pay systems and the after effects on the performance and reaction of the employees. The external factors, which affect the way organisations can design pay packages, is because of government taxation rules and pay restraints. A lot of writers have written on the total compensation package, perks and inducements. â€Å"Simon (1958) refers to inducements as payments made by the organisation to its participants in return for contributions. Thomason (1981) identifies a level of consideration necessary to attract labour. Lupton (1975) suggests that the rules of a pay system say how effort is to be related to reward.†[Michael H. Bottomed (1983), p 80 – 90] An interesting factor, which needs consideration, is the effect of compensation on behaviours. Two of these theories, which have surfaced, are those of expectancy and reinforcement. The critical component of the expectancy theory is the way people relate to compensation with the reward package offered as a result of providing a service. In an important study conducted by Schwa and Heneman (1975), this form of sentiment and perception was found strongest in workers with individual incentives schemes. The reinforcement model finds its origins in Skinner’s (1969) writings. The process defines and develops the patterns, which are experienced while pairing good behaviour with rewards and bad behaviour with punishment. The way this sort of conditioning takes place is through a learning process. The conditioning in this case is so deep and inherent that when an individual is faced with a similar situation, he/she reacts in similar manner as they have done before. [Michael H. Bottomed (1983),p 80 – 95] There are various types of payments and rewards, which can be introduced as part of the main structure. One the popular schemes are the bonus scheme, in effect the system of payments is through a bonus. There is a need to create a specific background before introducing this scheme; the management needs to be committed to the scheme. A big factor towards failure of most of these payment frameworks is the lack of ownership on part of the management. If the cost attached to the transition is not going their way, the management finds it easy to stop the process midway. The employees need to be part of any new scheme, which is in the offing; they need to know the implications, benefits, disadvantages and time frame needed for a successful introduction. The measures, which define productivity, are always a contentious issue and so the management and employees need to be on the same page. A feedback system needs to be in place through which all are informed of the progress made and how the employee stands in terms of rewards towards work input. Communication is essential while implementing any new system or process, the best route would be to discuss the progress, the ways the productivity can be increased and how can all gain the most. The work productivity measure is more or less decided based on the following methodologies – The job role of the employee and the time input needed to complete the job at a satisfactory level The actual physical production of goods/commodities and the time taken to do so The actual physical production of goods/commodities and the cost of production An additional value achieved or the cost of labour The cost of materials used for production, cost needed to get a production going Another way of sharing benefits is through the profit sharing scheme. Good example for this would be NatWest, which introduced this scheme. The staff does reach a point of identification and self-achievement when the results are grouped. The employees feel a greater sense of loyalty and commitment towards the job and the organisation. The performance is not in isolation and with regards to personal achievements; the employees also begin to see the bigger picture and what it means to have greater financial success. At the end all businesses are about profit, the biggest sense of achievement is to derive a balance between employee cost and the profitability. The three common ways to determine how much to pay in the profit sharing scheme are as follows – The amount of profits before tax The directors at their own discretion decide how much to pay the employees under this scheme The amount of profits accumulated after a certain limit has been reached Andrews (1975) talks about reasons, which are critical to the introduction of compensation and pay benefits. As mentioned before by many other writers, the employee base and staff are important resources, it is important for any business/organisation to retain and attract staff to meet the current and future objectives of the company. The staff at all times needs to feel that their efforts in the organisation are noticed and rewarded accordingly. There has to be encouragement and identification of interests, which match those of the employees with regards to reward management. The employees and staff need to be motivated and propelled to perform better and take on more responsibility during the course of their work. There is a need for asset criterion for differentiating between different job roles and titles, each one has its own set of complexities and leverage, this needs to be considered while preparing a compensation package. The company also needs to see some value in the amount of remuneration and rewards being given to the employee. All organisations need to have clear structure for career progression for all employees; they need to know what the future holds for them in the organisation hierarchy. All employees need to have some stability and ways to maintain their standard of living. [Michael H. Bottomed (1983), p 80 – 100] Clive Fletcher and Richard Williams (1992) in their book Performance appraisal and career development talk about appraisal schemes, equal opportunity employment, future challenges and opportunities in this sphere, persisting issues, maintenance and evaluation. The appraisal systems are an effective tool, which has helped a lot of organisations to collect information from the staff and employees about pays and promotions. An increase in the bonus scheme and other incentives, this was a motivating mechanism as well as a productivity enhancer. The management to further develop and plan the welfare of the personnel used the information collected. The appraisal system also acts as process line up for re visiting the initial recruitment decisions also place to decide the promotion schemes and incentives on offer. This can also be an effective communication channel, for introducing new training and development schemes for the personnel; the same can also be used for succession planning. There is an inherent change in the way managers think in current times, pay and rewards are important but appraisal systems will also show that family and time off work is as crucial, else there is bound to be high stress levels and chances of complete burn out. Gorier and Philpot (1978, p 2-5) in their paper point out the following, â€Å"Whilst managers are concerned about their careers, they are equally concerned about their home and family life. Numerous comments on the difficulties of finding time for family and leisure activities whilst coping with a demanding job indicate the potential for conflict between these two areas of their life†. The career concept has undergone an immense amount of change and managers are realising this while planning their internal performance management schemes. Work is no more in isolation, its involves the family and home life as well, else there will always be a carry overload syndrome from home to work and vice versa. An interesting quote in this direction of thought comes from Evans and Bartolome (1980, p7-10), â€Å"Professional life affects the quality of private life on a day to day basis. But the reverse is not true; private life only affects the quality of professional life in extreme situations. The effect of private life on professional life is through its influence on major career and life decisions†. Another issues which organisations now need to consider with stringent measures is that of equal employment opportunities. Equal opportunities could be based on gender, skills, nationality or religion among other factors. Organisations need to revisit their policies and regulations to ensure that they are not breeding grounds for lawsuits on various discriminatory grounds. A big reason why women have not moved too far with context to organisational skills is due to systematic barriers imposed by organisations, the attitude of the management and also partially due to their own behaviour and attitude towards career progression. If we consider the implications of the above issues with regards to retail stores like Matalan, there is a lot of temporary staff and permanent staff; a majority of the temporary staff comprise women. Organisations like Matalan need to consider the implications of treating the part timers and temporary employees as part of the larger picture, one that manages the day-to-day operations at the stores. These employees and staff need to be made part of an appraisal system too to ensure that there can be room for career development opportunities along with the full timers. Much of what has been said about women applies to members of different ethnic backgrounds and racial groups too. Their representation in management and as part of the professional roles is discriminatorily low. Although there have been steps taken to curb this partial reaction, there are still large gaps in the way these people have been treated by line managers. The performance appraisal training needs to consider the attitude and aptitude of these minority groups so that they can be pushed towards a better role when an opportunity arises. All the authors in the literature review have managed to cast important information regarding pay structures, motivation, career development, training and development, equal opportunity, discriminatory pay, appraisal systems to counter balance the changes organisations need to make in personnel management. This will help one understand better in terms of the changes Matalan needs to introduce to mitigate the problems they are currently facing. Methodology The Techniques used for data collection are both qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative research is exploratory; Quantitative research on the other hand involves statistical surveys to quantify factors previously exposed in qualitative research. Van Mane (1983, p9) defines qualitative techniques as ‘an array of interpretative techniques which seek to describe, decode, translate and otherwise comet terms with the meaning, not the frequency, of certain more or less naturally occurring phenomena in the social world’. The data collated for this paper has been primarily through desk research using the internet, online journals, books, reports and the Matalan website. Given the time frame and the confidentiality regarding information on the existing pay framework being used by the Matalan stores did not leave much room for secondary research. The data collated was ample to find out patterns in changes, which had taken place at the stores and the way the staff had reacted to them. It is also reflective of the management involvement and how prompt they are to react when a problem arises at the stores. The organisation culture also came in play while researching this paper, though there is autonomy in job roles, they need to curtail that freedom to ensure that uniform pay framework exists at all stores across job levels. Pay frameworks don’t need to be dictated only by the internal conditions prevailing in the organisation, the existing market structure would also have some bearing to what is being offered to the employees and staff. Some authors have validated the authenticity and importance of personal interviews even though it is a more time consuming tool for data collection. The importance of interviews is summarised by Burgess(1982, p 107): ‘the interview is the opportunity for the researcher to probe deeply to uncover new clues, open up new dimensions of a problem and to secure vivid, accurate inclusive accounts that are based on personal experience’. Jones (1985, p 45) comments that, ‘between these two extremes is an abyss of practice and therefore theory about the purpose and nature of the qualitative interview’. In her view the main reason for conducting qualitative interviews is to understand, ‘how individuals construct the reality of their situation formed from the complex personal framework of beliefs and values, which they developed over their lives in order to help explain and predict events in their world.’ Though due to time constraints and confidentiality factors, interviews were not possible, we have taken information from testimonials and case studies presented by employees at Matalan about the existing framework. Through the course of the research, there was some data collated from testimonials and case studies published on the Matalan corporate website. Though each shows Matalan in a very positive frame, there is no doubt that the company website wont carry information on grudges the employees and staff might have with the way the organisation operates, the management issues and the unsatisfactory pay frameworks. The grounded analysis by Glaser and Strauss (1967) provided major benefits while understanding how the data collected from the testimonials and information from desk research had been analysed. It needs feel and intuition, there is no logical sequence one needs to follow to decipher results, there is constant sifting through, comparison with what has been found, and eventually there are some patterns, themes and categories, which emerge giving way to concepts.[Smith Easter-by Mark, Thorpe Richard and Lowe Andy (2003), p 100 – 130] Data Collection and Findings A report into the Matalan Store Pay framework shows that there areissues and ample grounds for legal proceedings. The way the paystructure is as of now can be the cause for a potential equal pay claims or a sex discrimination pay. The management considers the progress more through the level of jobs instead of the level of responsibility. There is no clear strategy for internal recruitment at the moment. There are reasons for dissatisfied