Human resource policies

Human resource policies are systems of codified decisions, established by an organization, to support administrative personnel functions, performance management, employee relations and resource planning.
Each company has a different set of circumstances, and so develops an individual set of human resource policies.
HR policies allow an organisation to be clear with employees on:

• The nature of the organisation
• What they should expect from the company
• What the company expects of them
• How policies and procedures work at your company
• What is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour
• The consequences of unacceptable behaviour

The establishment of policies can help an organization demonstrate, both internally and externally, that it meets requirements for diversity, ethics and training as well as its commitments in relation to regulation and corporate governance. For example, in order to dismiss an employee in accordance with employment law requirements, amongst other considerations, it will normally be necessary to meet provisions within employment contracts and collective bargaining agreements. The establishment of an HR Policy which sets out obligations, standards of behaviour and document displinary procedures, is now the standard approach to meeting these obligations.

HR's objective & Function

Management:
Human resource management's objective, on the other hand, is to maximize the return on investment from the organization's human capital and minimize financial risk. It is the responsibility of human resource managers in a corporate context to conduct these activities in an effective, legal, fair, and consistent manner.

Human resource management serves these key functions:

1. Recruitment & Selection.
2. Training and Development (People & Organization).
3. Performance Evaluation and Management.
4. Promotions.
5. Redundancy.
6. Industrial and Employee Relations.
7. Record keeping of all personal data.
8. Compensation, pensions, bonuses etc in liaison with Payroll.
9. Confidential advice to internal 'customers' in relation to problems at work.
10. Career development.