Recognizing Employee Contributions Due Week 10 And Wo 317937

Recognizing Employee ContributionsDue Week 10 And Worth

You are the HR manager of a relatively new retail company that has both retail stores and Internet sales. Your company is steadily growing in revenue and profitability. The company realizes that in order to retain the solid, highly productive workforce it currently has in place, it is important to enhance the base compensation and benefits package offered to the employees. The company currently offers a basic compensation program and only federally mandated benefits. Employee surveys suggest the compensation and benefits program may be out of date.

Employees are beginning to consider leaving the organization. Write a six to eight (6-8) page paper in which you:

• Propose two (2) methods an HR professional could use to determine incentive pay. Specify the principal manner in which the proposed methods take into consideration individual, group, and company performance. Justify your response.
• Examine the core legal requirements affecting employee benefits in today’s competitive environment.
• Determine the legally mandated benefits that the company must currently offer to its employees. Recommend at least four (4) additional benefits that the organization should consider providing to its employees.
• Suggest at least three (3) important concepts that a company must consider when designing benefit plans. Provide a rationale for your response.
• Assess the efficiency of common techniques for effectively communicating compensation and benefit plans to employees. Support your answer.
• Suggest two (2) ethical risks of making incentive pay a large portion of employees’ total compensation. Propose two (2) recommendations for ways the company might mitigate or reduce these risks.

Use at least four (4) quality academic (peer-reviewed) resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

Paper For Above instruction

Effective employee compensation and benefits strategies are essential for organizations aiming to attract, motivate, and retain talented employees in today’s competitive market. As the human resources (HR) manager of a growing retail company, developing a comprehensive approach to incentive pay and benefits is crucial. This paper explores various methods for determining incentive pay, examines legal considerations regarding employee benefits, proposes additional benefits, discusses effective communication strategies, and analyzes ethical risks associated with incentive pay.

Methods for Determining Incentive Pay

Two widely used methods for determining incentive pay are performance-based pay systems and profit-sharing plans. Performance-based pay involves linking compensation directly to individual or team performance metrics. For instance, individual commissions or piece-rate systems reward employees based on the quantity or quality of their work. Group-based incentives, such as team bonuses, foster collaboration and collective achievement. These methods highlight individual contributions while also encouraging teamwork, thereby considering individual, group, and organizational performance.

The second method, profit-sharing plans, distribute a portion of the company’s profits among employees. This approach aligns employees' interests with the overall success of the organization and encourages employees at all levels to work towards common financial goals. Profit sharing naturally considers company performance as a primary determinant of employee incentives. When the organization performs well financially, the shared rewards motivate continued high performance and loyalty.

Both methods justify their effectiveness through their alignment with organizational objectives and their capacity to recognize different levels of contribution. Performance-based incentive methods directly motivate individual excellence, while profit-sharing fosters a sense of ownership and collective effort, ultimately driving the organization’s success (Milkovich, Newman, & Gerhart, 2014).

Legal Requirements and Employee Benefits

Legal statutes significantly influence employee benefits, ensuring fair treatment and protection. Key legal requirements include the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). ERISA mandates minimum standards for private retirement plans, ensuring fiduciary responsibilities and reporting requirements. The FMLA grants eligible employees unpaid leave for specified family and medical reasons, protecting their employment status. The ACA mandates employer-provided minimum health coverage and prohibits discrimination based on health status. The FLSA establishes minimum wage and overtime standards, which impact compensation structure and benefits.

Besides legally mandated benefits, organizations should consider additional offerings such as health and wellness programs, flexible work arrangements, employee assistance programs (EAPs), and retirement planning services. These benefits enhance employee well-being and can improve organizational productivity and morale (Brewster & Chung, 2019).

Designing Benefit Plans

Three critical concepts to consider when designing benefit plans are cost management, accessibility, and alignment with organizational culture. Cost management ensures the sustainability of benefit offerings without compromising organizational financial stability. Accessibility focuses on making benefits easily available and understandable to all employees, promoting usage and satisfaction. Alignment with organizational culture ensures that benefit plans reinforce organizational values and attract talent aligned with company goals. For example, a company emphasizing work-life balance should incorporate flexible scheduling and remote work options (Kaufman, 2016).

Effective communication of these plans is vital. Techniques such as personalized benefit counseling, detailed written materials, interactive digital platforms, and regular informational sessions can foster understanding and utilization. Clear communication reduces misconceptions and enhances employee engagement with benefits programs (Larkin, 2019).

Ethical Risks and Mitigation Strategies

Making incentive pay a significant portion of employee compensation introduces ethical risks such as excessive risk-taking and short-term focus at the expense of long-term stability. Excessive risk-taking may lead employees to engage in unethical or risky behaviors to achieve short-term targets, compromising organizational integrity. A primary concern is that employees may prioritize incentives over customer satisfaction or ethical conduct.

To mitigate these risks, companies should implement balanced incentive systems that incorporate long-term performance metrics and ethical guidelines. Furthermore, establishing a strong corporate culture emphasizing integrity and ethical behavior, along with regular training and ethical audits, can reduce the likelihood of misconduct related to incentive-driven motivation (Coughlan & Coughlan, 2002).

Conclusion

Developing effective incentive pay and benefit strategies is fundamental for retaining and motivating employees in a competitive environment. By selecting appropriate incentive methods, complying with legal requirements, thoughtfully designing benefit plans, and communicating transparently, organizations can foster a motivated, loyal workforce. Addressing ethical considerations proactively ensures that incentive programs promote sustainable and ethical organizational growth.

References

• Brewster, C., & Chung, C. (2019). Global Human Resource Management. Routledge.
• Coughlan, A. T., & Coughlan, S. (2002). Ethical conflicts in incentive compensation arrangements. Journal of Business Ethics, 41(4), 375-391.
• Kaufman, B. E. (2016). The evolution of strategic HRM and organizational change. In J. Storey (Ed.), Human Resource Management (pp. 45-65). Routledge.
• Larkin, I. (2019). Communicating employee benefits: Strategies for success. Harvard Business Review.
• Milkovich, G. T., Newman, J. M., & Gerhart, B. (2014). Compensation (11th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
• United States Department of Labor. (2020). Summary of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Retrieved from https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/flsa
• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2021). Legal protections for employee benefits. Retrieved from https://www.eeoc.gov
• Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. §§ 2601–2654 (2018).
• Affordable Care Act, Pub. L. No. 111-148, 124 Stat. 119 (2010).
• Erisa, Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001–1461.