HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT POL SCI 341 ST FRANCIS XAVIER UNIVERSITY MARCH 2013

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Managing Government’s Most Important Resource Until recently, the “poor cousin” of public and private management Politically sensitive – merit vs. patronage; equity and democracy; accountability Waves of Change – technology, citizen expectations, service quality, budget cutbacks Emphasis on renewal, and on values

FIVE HR PROCESSES 1.Job Classification 2.HR Planning 3.Staffing 4.Training, Development, Learning 5.Performance Evaluation

HR RESPONSIBILITIES Treasury Board  Overall government organization  Job classification  Negotiations with unions Public Service Commission  Supervises recruitment  Manages selection process  Training Public Service Staff Relations Board  Regulates union-management process

HR MANAGEMENT …2 Line Departments:  Determine staff needs  Advise on job classification  Participate in selection process  Apply personnel evaluation

1990S EROSION OF HR VALUES Loss of talent due to downsizing Years of low recruitment skew the demographics Morale low due to public criticism Pay freezes, lack of job security Private sector poaching

RESTORING HR RESOURCES Improved pay and working conditions (especially in the federal PS) New recruitment and generational planning Greater flexibility in departmental hiring rules (federal) Continued emphasis on equity hiring: women, aboriginals, visible minorities, disabled

CONFLICTING NEEDS ? Organizational Needs  Innovation  Service  Quality  Teamwork Human Resource Needs  Empowerment  Career planning and development  Better labour-management relations