Article Critique- 2 pages
Read the article “Key Trends in Workforce Management and New Challenges for HR.” located in the Business Source Complete database of the CSU Online Library by clicking the link below:
Moschetto, M. (2013).
Key trends in workforce management and new challenges for HR
. Employment Relations Today, 40(4), 7–13. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=93926433&site=ehost-live&scope=site
After reviewing the article, write a critique that addresses and offers your opinion in the following areas:
- What are the key findings regarding compliance with laws and regulations as a component of workforce management?
- How does the employer-employee relationship factor into legal compliance with workforce management laws?
- Reflecting on the unit reading and lesson, does this article consider the various employer-employee relationships as it discusses workforce management? Can the author’s opinions be universally applied to the workforce? Support your position by identifying various types of employers, employees, and employer-employee relationships.
Begin with an introduction that defines the subject of your critique and your point of view. You will first need to identify and explain the author’s ideas. Include specific references that support your description of the author’s point of view.
You should then defend your point of view by raising specific issues or aspects of the argument. Offer your own opinion. Explain what you think about the argument. Describe several points from the article with which you agree or disagree. What evidence from the article, your textbook, or additional sources supports your opinion?
Conclude your critique by summarizing your argument and re-emphasizing your opinion.
Your article critique must be at least two pages, not including the title and reference pages. You must use at least one source other than the above article to support your critique. Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
This
Article Critique Example
provided by the CSU Writing Center shows this type of formatting.
If you would like additional information on writing article critiques, review the tutorial
Article Critiques
from the CSU Writing Center.
Human Resources business
MHR 6401, Employment Law 1
Course Learning Outcomes for Unit I
Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:
1. Discuss the legal significance of the employer-employee relationship.
1.1 Identify the regulation of employer-employee relationship through applicable law and judicial
decisions.
1.2 Recognize types of workers and employers, and recognize when an employment relationship
exists.
Course/Unit
Learning Outcomes
Learning Activity
1.1
Unit Lesson
Chapter 1, pp. 3–34
Unit I Article Critique
1.2
Unit Lesson
Chapter 2, pp. 37–67
Unit I Article Critique
Required Unit Resources
Chapter 1: Overview of Employment Law, pp. 3–34
Chapter 2: The Employment Relationship, pp. 37–67
Unit Lesson
Whether through discussion in the workplace or through your academic work, you likely have heard of the
concept of employment at-will. At its most basic level, being employed at-will means that your employer can
terminate you without cause at any time. Likewise, you can resign your employment at any time for any
reason. The vast majority of employment relationships in the United States are at-will. When jobs are plentiful
and good workers are scarce, it is advantageous for the employee to be able to move freely to a better
position with another employer. This is a common occurrence when the economy is strong. In these
conditions, employers often compete for the most skilled and experienced workers with higher compensation,
stock options, and other benefits.
During times of economic downturn and recession, the at-will concepts benefits employers, who can pare
down their workforces or even shut their doors. At-will employees have little protection from these actions and
may end up unemployed. At-will employment allows the employer to respond to economic problems swiftly
and efficiently. Rather than having to keep employees when there is little to do, employers can control costs
and work toward a recovery. At-will employment, therefore, is clearly an integral part of our economic system.
As we will see, the concept of at-will employment is not an absolute. Employment laws that confer rights on
employers and impose obligations on employers modify employment at-will. This unit introduces the range of
employment laws that we will explore in more detail in future units. As you read the text for this unit, consider
whether we as a society have gone too far in regulating the employer-employee relationship. Are there gaps
or outdated regulations that need addressing? Consider also whether the remedies for violations of
employment laws are sufficient to rectify the wrong and deter future violations.
This unit also introduces the types of workers, a timely topic in today’s workplace. The many varieties of
employees—full-time, part-time, temporary, seasonal, and subcontracted—expand the options available to
UNIT I STUDY GUIDE
Introduction to Employment Law
MHR 6401, Employment Law 2
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
employers. Moreover, the continual evolution of the concept of “work,” combined with the growth in
technology, has given rise to the “online gig” economy, where work is done when, where, and as needed,
outside of a traditional ongoing employment relationship (Dokko, Mumford, & Schanzenbach, 2015).
Consider the status of an Uber driver
requested through an application on a
smartphone or device. In the current regulatory
system, the driver is either an employee or an
independent contractor, a distinction important
in many ways that determines the applicability
of wage and overtime rules, benefits eligibility,
rights of protection from discrimination, and
other rules.
Actual cases involving Uber drivers
demonstrate the difficulty of forcing these new
types of workers into one of two legal
classifications. A group of Uber drivers brought
a class action lawsuit alleging they were
misclassified as independent contractors and
legally are employees. The court determined
that the arbitration agreements drivers signed at the outset of providing services for Uber were
unconscionable and unenforceable because they forced drivers to settle disputes in individual arbitration
rather than as members of a class (Fisher, 2016). Having approved the class action to move forward, the
court found that there was enough evidence of control by Uber over the drivers that the case could proceed to
a jury for decision. Later, the court found that a proposed $100 million settlement covering 300,000 drivers in
California and Massachusetts, under which the drivers would have remained independent contractors, was
not fair, adequate, or reasonable (Nagele-Piazza, 2016). This was primarily due to the potential penalties
under California law that could be imposed if the drivers were found to be employees versus the amount of
the proposed settlement (Fisher, 2016). Then, on appeal, the federal appeals court in California reversed the
lower court ruling that the arbitration agreements were unenforceable, making it difficult for the class action to
proceed, but leaving questions about the appropriate legal classification of Uber drivers.
The key battlegrounds in employment law are class actions, the use of arbitration agreements, and worker
classification. The Uber case begs the question of whether the economy, aided by technology, is creating
workers that do not fit into any of the established categories but have characteristics that confound neat and
traditional classification. Is it time for the legal system to recognize that workers do not always fall into one of
these two categories and that other categories may be appropriate? Should our laws be evolving at the same
pace our workforce is evolving?
In the meantime, the lines between types of workers and even workers and employers continue to be
increasingly blurred, and human resource (HR) professionals face the challenge to draw on knowledge of the
legal definitions and ability to assess risk to advise management on important business decisions. While most
questions of proper classification of workers like the Uber case do not involve the company’s business model,
worker classification is a critical and often complex issue for organizations.
Human resources organizations recognize the importance of legal knowledge for HR professionals. In 2016,
the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the leading professional organization for HR
practitioners, published the SHRM Competency Model to define what it means to be a successful HR
professional. The SHRM Competency Model consists of nine competencies in four areas, the first of which is
technical competency, or HR knowledge. According to SHRM (2016), HR expertise or knowledge is critical to
success in job performance by HR professionals. It is the knowledge needed by HR professionals to design,
enact, evaluate, and maintain sound human resource management practices. HR professionals must acquire
comprehensive knowledge concerning policies, principles, laws, regulations, and practices (SHRM, 2016).
A necessary building block to a position that designs and develops organizational policy is knowledge and
understanding of the laws and regulations that govern the workplace. The goal of this course is not to teach
everything you will ever need to know about employment law but to present and explain the foundational
concepts that make up the law of the workplace and provide the tools to follow and apply the inevitable
Image of Uber smartphone application
(TruthVoice, 2016)
MHR 6401, Employment Law 3
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
evolution of employment law. The most important skill is being able to spot the legal issues in an existing or
potential situation. Once you learn to perceive where the landmines are or could potentially be waiting, you
can garner resources and research to manage around them.
One thing is clear: It is an extremely exciting time for employment law and human resources. There is much
to learn and know, as the employment law and HR landscape is constantly changing. Having solid
foundational knowledge and staying abreast of current issues and laws is the key to being able to develop
human resource strategy in these challenging times. As you work through this course, keep in mind that the
concepts covered are concepts that can and will apply to daily human resource practice. Consider how the
legal concepts apply to your experience and how they will enhance your future experience. Soon, you will
become more capable of hearing facts and seeing situations in a different way, one that involves spotting
legal issues and thinking of solutions, the hallmark of a successful HR professional.
References
Dokko, J., Mumford, M., & Schanzenbach, D. W. (2015). Workers and the online gig economy: A Hamilton
Project framing paper. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press.
Fisher, D. D. (2016, September 7). Appeals court deals blow to Uber class actions, holding arbitration pacts
enforceable. Forbes. Retrieved from
https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc
t=true&db=bth&AN=117944918&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Nagele-Piazza, L. (2016, August 22). Federal judge rejects Uber’s $100 million settlement with drivers.
Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/state-and-local-
updates/pages/uber-settlement-rejected.aspx
Society for Human Resource Management. (2016). The SHRM Competency Model. Retrieved from
https://www.shrm.org/LearningAndCareer/competency-
model/PublishingImages/pages/default/SHRM%20Competency%20Model_Detailed%20Report_Final
_SECURED
TruthVoice. (2016, November 2). Ride-chicago [Image]. Retrieved from http://truthvoice.com/2016/11/this-
small-startup-wants-to-kill-uber-and-this-is-their-plan/ride-chicago/
Suggested Unit Resources
In order to access the following resources, click the links below.
The following PowerPoint presentations are supplements to the textbook chapter readings and are provided
for further knowledge and review of the unit materials.
Chapter 1 presentation (PowerPoint) or Chapter 1 presentation (PDF)
Chapter 2 presentation (PowerPoint) or Chapter 2 presentation (PDF)
Learning Activities (Nongraded)
Nongraded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit
them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.
At the end of each chapter of your textbook, scenario-driven questions provide legal issues and realistic
situations that relate to employment law. Exploring these questions allows you the opportunity to further your
understanding of the concepts in each chapter and prepares you for similar situations you may encounter in
your workplace.
https://online.columbiasouthern.edu/bbcswebdav/xid-117128050_1
https://online.columbiasouthern.edu/bbcswebdav/xid-117128049_1
https://online.columbiasouthern.edu/bbcswebdav/xid-117128052_1
https://online.columbiasouthern.edu/bbcswebdav/xid-117128051_1
MHR 6401, Employment Law 4
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
Review the Chapter 1 questions in your textbook on pages 35–36.
Review the Chapter 2 questions in your textbook on pages 68–70.
7© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI 10.1002/ert.21428
By its simplest definition, workforce man-agement refers to all of the processes
and activities needed to maintain a produc-
tive workforce. As a business discipline,
workforce management comprises several
distinct areas, including time and attendance
tracking, staff scheduling, absence and leave
tracking and compliance, employment-law
compliance, and the emerging area of fatigue
risk management. Although workforce-
management transactions have been automated
for decades—dating back to the once-
ubiquitous punch-clock—the discipline has
evolved dramatically in recent years and is
now used in savvy organizations and HR
functions to measure and improve labor
effectiveness and efficiency.
As workforce-management technology
becomes more advanced, it enables organiza-
tions to automate a larger portion of critical
labor activities, freeing up time for other
strategic initiatives. In addition, the detailed
information provided by these software solu-
tions gives employers much greater visibility
and insight into their workforce processes,
which enables them to operate more nim-
bly and make better-informed decisions
based on actual data. The employers that
move beyond the long-standing “punch-in/
punch-out” approach to workforce manage-
ment and implement the tools and processes
that enable them to better align employee
schedules, activities, and costs with business
objectives are the most likely to see measur-
able gains.
In light of factors such as an increas-
ingly aggressive regulatory environment and
increased global competition, organizations
have been forced to reevaluate their work-
force-management systems and strategies
with an eye toward more robust automation
and greater coverage for compliance require-
ments. One notable regulatory expansion is
the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which has
already been a catalyst for some workforce-
management process redesign and system
investment.
Several trends define the ways in which
organizations are shifting their approach
to these pressing issues. To identify and
explore these trends, WorkForce Software
and Workforce conducted an extensive sur-
vey of HR professionals in organizations of
all sizes, industries, and geographic distribu-
tions. Released on October 7, 2013, some of
the significant findings from the “Workforce
Management Trend Survey 2013–2014” are
summarized here.
HR’S GROWING INFLUENCE
One of the biggest shifts in workforce man-
agement today revolves around who actu-
ally owns the discipline. Although workforce
management touches nearly every depart-
ment within an organization, a growing
Key Trends in Workforce Management and New Challenges
for HR
Marc Moschetto
Employment Relations Today
8
Marc Moschetto
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
INCREASING WORKLOAD IN ENSURING
COMPLIANCE WITH NEW LAWS AND
REGULATIONS
Another emerging challenge for those
responsible for workforce management is
the constantly growing workload associated
with ensuring compliance. Continuing an
upward trajectory noted in last year’s find-
ings, respondents were 13 times more likely
to report an increase in compliance-related
work than a reduction. The study found two
main reasons for this increase: (1) the rapidly
changing laws and regulations and (2) the
task of demonstrating compliance that is so
crucial to reinforcing employee trust, confi-
dence, and morale.
When asked about the most significant
concern regarding their ability to handle the
burgeoning compliance workload, 71 per-
cent of respondents cited keeping pace with
changing laws and regulations as their biggest
challenge. Not only must HR adhere to these
numerous and intricate policies, but they must
also make sure employees are made aware of
them, which can be particularly challenging
for an employer operating in multiple coun-
tries with distinct compliance demands.
In addition, more than a quarter of respon-
dents (28 percent) indicated that labor-law
compliance is primarily an employee morale
and engagement concern, as responses to
labor laws directly influence employee atti-
tudes. For instance, the reclassification of
employees in regard to the ACA employee
mandate has created anxiety about total
hours, wages, and perceived value among
employees, as well as skepticism about the
reasons behind employer policy changes. This
raises legitimate concerns for companies and
their ability to maintain employee engage-
ment. Lean compliance staffing has also
number of companies are consolidating their
workforce-management strategies under HR.
According to WorkForce Software’s research,
68 percent of organizations surveyed house
workforce management in HR, representing
an increase of 12 points from 2012. Not only
does this increase illustrate that organizations
are taking a more holistic view of employee
activities, but it also highlights the growing
awareness of using workforce management
to support employee morale, retention, and
performance.
In addition to common talent-related top-
ics, HR teams are also increasingly tasked
with ensuring their companies operate in full
compliance with the many different wage,
hour, and leave regulations at the local and
national levels. A plurality of survey respon-
dents (40 percent) indicated that the task
of managing labor compliance has become
much more difficult over the last year.
Despite the growing challenges associ-
ated with ensuring compliance, doing so has
emerged as one of the most significant busi-
ness priorities for today’s employers. The
risks of noncompliance are numerous and
can generate substantial costs as well as a
drag on performance. Although the dollar
expenses of the fines and penalties result-
ing from noncompliance are a top concern,
as ranked by 53 percent of respondents, an
almost equal number (52 percent) suggested
the impact of noncompliance with labor
regulations can impair the company. This
highlights the close relationship between
workforce management and employee morale
and retention. A positive corporate brand is
a key feature in a company’s ability to con-
tinually attract new talent and retain its best
employees, further emphasizing why work-
force management is increasingly handled
by HR.
Winter 2014
9Key Trends in Workforce Management and New Challenges for HR
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
general, and the high-volume and low-duration
nature of intermittent leave is even more
difficult to track. Moreover, in environments
in which the HR department lacks a formal
mechanism for being alerted to a new leave
case, requests may be received at the last
minute with inadequate time to review eligi-
bility, provide supporting forms, or otherwise
ensure the proper steps have been followed.
IMPACT OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
Considered to be the most significant piece
of domestic legislation in decades, the imple-
mentation of the Affordable Care Act will
have a significant impact on a large number
of employers with operations in the United
States, including 65 percent of survey partici-
pants who will be affected by the employer
mandate. In a positive sign, most organizations
are taking a proactive approach to managing
their upcoming ACA obligations. Overall, 60
percent of respondents claim to have a good
understanding of the Act, while only 13
percent indicated that they do not have a
strong understanding of how the ACA will
affect their workforce-management processes.
The sense of active preparation is further
supported by the number of organizations
reporting that they are committed to execut-
ing on the ACA strategy they had in place
before the delay on the employer mandate.
Although organizations now have until 2015
prompted fears that employees will receive
fewer communications and be left in the dark
about why policy changes are taking place
and how they will be affected.
GROWING CONCERNS REGARDING LEAVE
MANAGEMENT
While the emergence of new laws, changes
to existing laws, and employees who may not
be clear on the purpose of these changes are
challenging enough, specific changes to leave
entitlements have raised additional concern.
The sheer number and variety of leave enti-
tlements available to employees has grown
at a historic pace in recent years. As a result,
employers operating in the United States can
now be responsible for adhering to more than
300 state regulations from coast to coast, as
well as mandatory sick-time ordinances in
certain major cities and the leave policies
specific to the organization. Companies with
global employee bases face even larger hur-
dles as they must also maintain compliance
with those international policies.
Among the numerous difficulties in admin-
istering leave, one of the most common
challenges is the gaps in the communications
process. In fact, informing HR about leave
in a timely fashion is a top concern, with
nearly half of all respondents (45 percent)
ranking last-minute communication between
managers and HR as a significant challenge.
Another major factor was that leave-related
workloads are often too large for available
staff, as cited by 43 percent of respondents.
Further difficulties include tracking intermit-
tent and reduced-schedule leave.
Taken together, the top challenges affect-
ing leave management reinforce each other.
Overburdened HR professionals may have
limited time to dedicate to managing leave in
Employers operating in the United States can
now be responsible for adhering to more than
300 state regulations from coast to coast, as
well as mandatory sick-time ordinances in cer-
tain major cities and the leave policies specific
to the organization.
Employment Relations Today
Marc Moschetto
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
10
Time and attendance management is the
function most likely to have some degree of
automation, with 40 percent of respondents
using in-house systems, 33 percent relying on
commercial systems, and only 18 percent still
tracking employee time manually. Although
in-house systems tend to be the method of
choice and can be custom-built to meet the
unique needs of the organization, they do
present some limitations. For instance, they
do not always integrate well with other sys-
tems or receive updates as commercial sys-
tems do, and they are typically less ready for
rapid shifts in functionality to accommodate
new regulatory pressures or changing busi-
ness models.
The study also showed a significant and
growing correlation between overall user
satisfaction with the various systems and
approaches being used. Unsurprisingly, man-
ual administration and a mix of disparate sys-
tems proved to be the two least satisfactory
approaches to workforce management. Com-
mercial and outsourced approaches received
the best reviews, while in-house systems for
staff scheduling were rated highly as well.
This suggests that scheduling practices are
more fundamentally distinct by industry and
company than other workforce-management
functions.
The study found that one of the big-
gest factors contributing to dissatisfaction
with workforce-management systems is the
amount of manual work still required, with
more than half of all respondents (52
percent) saying there is still too much manual
work involved. The other major concern
was poor integration with other systems,
as noted by 40 percent of respondents. As
workforce-management functions continue
to be brought under HR’s leadership, more
attention is being paid to how a unified view
to ensure ACA compliance, 63 percent of
respondents suggested they are pressing on
with their plans.
The survey also revealed that most orga-
nizations with US operations are concerned
with how the ACA will affect their busi-
ness, particularly in terms of their part-time
or contingent workforces. The biggest fears
regard how complications affecting the hours
of part-time workers can damage employee
satisfaction and retention. This is especially
important for organizations in which contin-
gent workers make up a large portion of their
workforces. Some respondents noted that the
ability to offer flexible work schedules is a
central recruiting tool, and as such, compli-
ance with the ACA’s employer mandate will
have a deep impact on their contingent-labor
practices. Regardless of the extent to which
organizations are affected by the ACA, it is
clear that most employers are ready to make
the investments in more capable workforce-
management solutions to address the labor
regulations they currently face.
AUTOMATING MANAGEMENT PROCESSES
Although workforce management continues
to be consolidated under the HR function,
and is increasingly viewed as a pillar in
achieving employee engagement and opera-
tional efficiency, organizations still report
lackluster results against those goals. A pri-
mary reason for the delta between ambition
and achievement in these areas is a lack of
sophisticated workforce-management tools
in place at most organizations. Despite the
rapid evolution of workforce management
and the growing number of tools available to
automate those key processes, the majority
of organizations rely primarily on in-house
systems or manual processes.
11Key Trends in Workforce Management and New Challenges for HR
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
Winter 2014
of labor data can support effective deci-
sions. This is confirmed by the number of
large organizations indicating that the biggest
shortcoming of their workforce-management
systems was not manual labor but poor inte-
gration. And, as many organizations continue
to use distinct, internally developed systems,
integration continues to be a serious obstacle.
EMPLOYEE FATIGUE AS AN INCREASING
RISK FACTOR AND GROWING MANAGEMENT
CONCERN
The study also explored the causes, impacts,
and business responses to employee fatigue.
As overworked and overtired employees are
more prone to accidents, employee fatigue
is and continues to be a major concern for
safety-intensive organizations. However,
research shows that fatigued workers are less
productive and more prone to make mistakes
in any setting, not just those environments
and industries where personal and coworker
safety are at risk. The survey confirms the
growing concern for employee fatigue, with
more than half of all respondents indicating
that workers are more fatigued than in previ-
ous years. In addition, 71 percent of organiza-
tions reported fatigue as having a moderate to
major impact on employee performance.
When asked about the specific risks posed
by employee fatigue, the answers varied by
industry type. Those in the manufacturing,
energy, and health-care fields cited safety
concerns as their top fatigue-related issue,
but business and professional services organi-
zations cited negative business outcomes and
poor performance.
There are several concerns regarding
employee fatigue consistent across different
industries as well. Leading the pack among
the top concerns for both safety-focused and
performance-focused industries is employee
morale. This can be explained by the link
between employees being overworked or
inadequately rested and feeling less enthusi-
astic about their jobs. One potential result is
unplanned turnover, and the resulting costs
and impacts can cause major deterioration of
business performance.
Given the significant repercussions and
costs associated with fatigue, the survey
aimed to reveal the biggest barriers to suc-
cessful fatigue management. The most com-
monly cited obstacle was budget constraints,
which indicates that organizations recognize
the problems posed by employee fatigue but
lack the adequate resources to comprehen-
sively address it.
Still, for many organizations, the challenge
is in understanding how fatigue affects the
business, as they do not realize that if left
unchecked, fatigue can lead to additional
time off due to sickness, accident, injury,
or attrition due to overwork or stress. This
correlation emphasizes the interconnected
nature of workforce-management functions,
as the areas of scheduling, attendance poli-
cies, and absences each contribute to and are
affected by employee fatigue.
Strategies for Mitigating Fatigue
Although many organizations report insufficient
resources to address fatigue holistically, a large
portion of survey respondents report at least
some level of prevention strategy at work today.
As workforce-management functions continue to
be brought under HR’s leadership, more atten-
tion is being paid to how a unified view of
labor data can support effective decisions.
12 Marc Moschetto
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
Employment Relations Today
work-life balance training, schedule bal-
ancing, and office-relaxation programs and
activities, with health and wellness programs
receiving the greatest number of mentions.
The survey also found differences in the
use of fatigue-management practices based
on an organization’s size and geographic
footprint. For instance, globally distributed
companies tend to favor adjusting schedules
(52 percent) rather than using flextime. This
difference indicates some challenges organi-
zations may have with implementing flextime
on a larger scale, or perhaps the regulatory
or cultural obstacles regarding flextime in
certain regions. In addition, highly distrib-
uted organizations are more likely to utilize
telecommuting (32 percent) as a strategy for
addressing employee fatigue. As communi-
cation and collaboration technologies con-
tinue to improve, telecommuting will likely
become a more popular option for mitigat-
ing employee fatigue risk and increasing
employee engagement.
THE FUTURE OF WORKFORCE
MANAGEMENT
The survey points toward a maturation of
workforce-management infrastructure under
way among employers of all sizes, with large
organizations more apt to be ahead of the
curve. One catalyst for this evolution is the
need for increased visibility into, and analyt-
ics about, an organization’s workforce due to
new market and regulatory conditions. This is
especially important given the uncertainty and
confusion faced by many organizations and
their employees in light of the ACA implemen-
tation. However, the greatest takeaway may
be the increasingly strong linkage between
workforce management and employee engage-
ment, satisfaction, and morale.
Among the numerous methods of addressing
employee fatigue, the most widely used strategy
is flextime, with more than a third of partici-
pants (35 percent) indicating the use of this
practice. Another effective strategy for mitigat-
ing fatigue risks is schedule adjustments, which
are used by 34 percent of respondents.
It is important to note that these two prac-
tices are not mutually exclusive, as they share
a common dimension: added complexity for
the scheduler. This highlights again the eleva-
tion of advanced workforce-management
techniques, as both flextime and scheduling
adjustments are rooted in an understanding
of hours worked, essential skills, and avail-
able personnel. The use of these strategies
also underscores the need for sophisticated
scheduling systems to make fatigue-related
adjustments easier for managers to admin-
ister in real time. Despite the fact that more
organizations aim to mitigate employee
fatigue, almost a third (32 percent) reported
that they currently do not have a strategy
in place, further indicating how many orga-
nizations still lack the resources to address
fatigue appropriately.
In addition to flextime and schedule
adjustments, participants indicated that they
use a wide range of strategies to mitigate
fatigue, including the implementation of tele-
commuting policies, providing stress-
management training, and relying on con-
tingent labor. Less-utilized methods are the
provision of health and wellness programs,
As communication and collaboration technolo-
gies continue to improve, telecommuting will
likely become a more popular option for mitigat-
ing employee fatigue risk and increasing
employee engagement.
13Key Trends in Workforce Management and New Challenges for HR
Employment Relations Today DOI 10.1002/ert
Winter 2014
Although the processes that comprise
workforce management, such as schedul-
ing, timekeeping, and leave management, are
geared toward saving time, reducing errors,
and boosting profitability, the operational
gains are only part of the story. Each of these
activities touches on matters that are sen-
sitive and deeply personal for employees:
when they work, how they work, and their
rights when they take leaves. As such, more
organizations have recognized the importance
of workforce-management functions, process
refinements, and new-solution purchases and
their role in making the organization a more
desirable place to work.
The other major takeaway from the survey
is the growing interest in analytics platforms
and leave-management automation that can
deliver new workforce-based efficiencies
to mitigate lost productivity. Still, the need to
increase operational efficiencies and raise
employee engagement is not in conflict;
they just highlight the growing demand for
workforce-management programs that are
transparent and fair, while delivering more
timely, reliable, and actionable data for cen-
tralized analysis. Increased expectations
about what workforce management can and
should deliver have led to higher rates of dis-
satisfaction with manual processes. As such,
a workforce-management strategy shaped by
people but built on the right tools can mean
the difference between measurable improve-
ments and breakthrough results.
Marc Moschetto brings more than two decades of technology marketing experience
to his role as the vice president of marketing at WorkForce Software. He has delivered
his insights on technology and business needs, outsourced employee-benefits admin-
istration, and workforce management in articles in various publications, webcast
presentations, blogs, and social-networking sites, as well as traditional seminars and
presentations. Previously, he was the director of industry marketing and corporate
communications at Workscape and has held senior marketing roles at human capital
management providers Infor/Workbrain and SmartTime as well as General Electric. He
may be contacted at mmoschetto@workforcesoftware.com.
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