Employee Development - Essay Example

As a result, employee development policy is necessary to ensure that employees are highly skilled and benefit to the organisation. According to the University of California, Los Angeles' Campus Human Resources, Training and Development, employee development policies for un-represented employees provide access to training and personal development programmes, and reduce fees for university classes to employees who are admitted to the university. The purpose of employee development policy for the University of North Carolina at Greensboro is to develop and train employees through university-sponsored workshops, lectures, symposia, educational assistance and tuition waiver programmes, and the general equivalency diploma programme.

The opportunity for professional and personal growth of employees allows the university to satisfy its general education mission. With the responsibility to provide programmes, the Department Human Resource Services (HRS) supports and improves the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for employees to perform assigned functions. HRS educates employees regarding university policies; encourage personal growth; and helps the university comply with state and federal laws. Programmes are available to any individual in any capacity employed by the university in a permanent position, which includes full-time, part-time, probationary and trainee employees.

Other types of employee development policy include providing skills for employees, not through training but through growth in the job and increased responsibility; performance management systems with a combination of appraisal reviews and target-setting, performance feedback and merit pay; increasing personal discretion in tasks and empowering employees to make decisions that affect daily work. With the increasing number of part-time and temporary employees, it would be in the best interest of the organisation if skills were developed in the same way as full-time employees.

Data from the Employment in Britain survey, performed in 1993 by the Policy Studies Institute indicate that part-time employees are less likely than full-time employees to rate themselves above average on output or quality. This is also true for temporary employees and fixed-term contract employees. Part-time employees have less access to development and temporary employees as well are not included in continuing development. Contract employees are much better integrated into continuing development systems because they receive higher pay for their services.

However, for improvement, continuous development practices by personnel and human resource (HR) specialists are imperative. The Fife Council has committed to a competent and fully trained workforce and to a programme of development, which benefits employees and the organisation. The purpose of their employee development policy helps to ensuring that the vision outlined in the Council's Aims and Values is make possible for all employees. The Council supports and encourages appropriate personal development and needs of the individual and the organisation.

Other principles of their employee development policy seek to ensure equality of opportunity and access for employees to in-house and external development and