Mutryce A. Williams BBA CTM

 There are many ills that plague the workplace. I often wonder about the percentage of people in St. Kitts-Nevis, even the Caribbean region who are actually satisfied with their jobs. I often question the percentage of individuals who actually look forward to going to work at mornings. It is my contention that the ills that plague the workplace are as a result of employers treating their employees (human assets) as if they are a liability.  I think that like the entrepreneurial spirit the human resource management era continues to evade the employers in St. Kitts-Nevis and the Caribbean region.

As a fairly new discipline, in the 1960s the Human Resource Department was considered the picnic and party department. There is still the misguided belief that Human Resource Management is just about making the employee happy. There is the belief that once the employee is provided with free juice, biscuits and a fifteen-minute coffee break that the employee would automatically be loyal to the organization. There is the belief that once you hold an annual Christmas party, send a wreath to a relatives funeral, have a few picnics and give a little hike in salary that this would create a more productive worker and foster a more cohesive and conducive work environment. There is the belief that these things would make the employee happy.  There is the belief that this would prevent tardiness and decrease the level of absenteeism that plagues the workplace. There is the misguided belief that this would reduce tension in the workplace and reduce employee conflict. There is the concept that because an employee is the most efficient or effective worker in his or her department at performing a designated task the individual should perform the same repetitive task year after year because he or she is the good at it.

No thought is given to job enrichment, job rotation or job enlargement. No thought is given to adequate training and development of the employee. No thought is given to adequate health care and employee benefits. No thought is given to providing a safe and hazard free work environment. No thought is given to motivation. No thought is given to the needs of the employee. No thought is given to the fact that each employee is an individual with his or her set of mores, beliefs, experiences that he or she brings to the work place.

Thought should be given to fact that one is employing the total person not just a typist or economist. Thought should be given to the fact that one may be employing a mother of five who may be late every morning because she has to get all five little ones ready for school. This is a frustrating experience. When approached by her manager in a rude manner she may explode and take all her frustrations out on him. She may get suspended for being insubordinate, because the manager doesnt know about her familial problems. No thought is given to the fact that Human Resource Management is not an exact science, that each situation and individual has to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis because one is dealing with different personalities. Each employee has his of her set of needs. Each employee has expectations of the job and the workplace.

Employers question why there is high turnover in the workplace. They question why individuals leave the organization and seek jobs elsewhere sometimes taking a drastic cut in salary. They question why employees distrust management.  It is simple there is no job satisfaction and grave injustices in the workplace. Employers question why there are so many disgruntled employees in the workplace. Employers question why employees arrive at exactly 8:00 a.m. and leave at exactly 4:00 p.m. They question why employees are not willing to go above and beyond the call of duty for the organization.

A friend of mine who was a manager at company X took to me to dinner and stated with regards to his employee who worked part time at the hotel, I cant understand why Lily is always late, hardly comes to work and when she comes just do what she has to do and thats it, as 4:00 o clock she run off to her next job, I cant believe how pleasant she is here, laughing and thing eh. Imagine that she so stupid, she take more pride in this than she office job. I looked at him smiled and thought to myself  you are the stupid one.  As a manager he had failed. He did not possess the characteristics to make his employee feel better about her office work.

I thought that the restaurant manager was a genius and maybe he was the one with whom I should have been having dinner. The young lady took a lot of pride in what she did.  It was evident that she enjoyed her job at the hotel. A few days later I deliberately dropped by my friends workplace to observe the young lady in her other work environment. There was a forlorn look on her face. I looked at her and remarked, Dont you work at Hotel Y? She beamed and proudly answered. We conversed. I found out that the young lady hated working at company X because she was not treated good and that employees were not valued. She revealed that after working at company X for five years, she was overlooked for a promotion. Someone who had worked for the company for only one year and wasnt more qualified than she was given the position. She went on to say that the young lady got the position because she had played office politics. I then understood the young ladys plight and her demeanor. She stated that employees were constantly threatened on the job. There was no job security. She stated that at the hotel she was made to feel as if she was an asset. As if the hotels success rested upon her shoulders. She said that her manager at the Hotel was a people person and that her manger at company X was harsh and brash.

  Like the entrepreneurial spirit the Human Resource era continues to evade us in St. Kitts and Nevis. I applaud and support the Promotion of Management and Labour Corporation (PROMALCO) initiative, however when I analyzed it I realized that even though the Governments of the region have come together with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the US Department of Labour to correct the ills in the workplace the challenge is getting the employers to comply. The challenge is getting employers to value their employees.  The challenge is getting the employer to see the employee as an asset and not as liability. I would not characterize the job market in St. Kitts and Nevis as sparse and varied. There is actually a greater demand for jobs than supply. The employer in the Caribbean sees the employee as begging a work. The mind set is that the employee needs the employer and not the other way around. The employer is granting the employee a favour by having him or her on the payroll.

According to Douglas Mc Gregors Theory X, the employer sees the employee as lazy, needing to be coerced to work. It doesnt dawn on the employer based on Mc Gregors Theory Y concept that the employee is willing to work, enjoys work and wants to be fulfilled by a meaningful job. It somehow evades the employer that there is a role to be fulfilled other than providing the employee with a check at the end of the week or month. Employees need a sense of belonging. Employees need to play a role in company decision-making. In some organizations changes are made that affect the employee without consulting the employee. The employee is expected to comply. The employee is reminded, we are doing you a favour here, so keep your mouth shut and dont challenge me or you will lose your job.  Employers need to realize most importantly that employees need to play a role in decision-making as it affects his or her faith in the workplace. An employer cannot transfer Jill from department A to B without consulting her or asking her input on the issue and expect Jill to be as productive or not affected by this move.

There are some employees who have the attitude, Me, I just doing what I got to do, as 4:00 I gone, they could do with me as they please. I am going to do for them! It is disheartening to hear this exclamation. Employer you should be scared. In St. Kitts we might not be at the point where employees are entering the workplace with guns. A dissatisfied or unmotivated employee is the worst ill in any organization. This individual ends up costing the employer a lot more than the actual salary that is being paid on a weekly or monthly basis. This individual cost the employer time. We all know the famous saying that time is money. Employers think of the cost not only in overtime but the time it would take to redo shoddy work. The company could possibly lose business because of the manner in which your disgruntled employee greeted a potential a customer, the inefficiency, the work that piles up or the other employees who would have to be burdened by the work left from an employee who is consistently absent from work.  

Many organizations are going with the trend of establishing a Human Resource Department. The question must be asked what does the organization hope to achieve by establishing the department. Does the organization want a more productive, committed and motivated employee? Or is the department being established for the wrong reasons, that is to enforce managements misguided belief of what HR ought to be, that is coercing employees to produce by any means necessary. When selecting the HR manager, the question is does this individual know how crucial his or her role in the organization is? Does he or she knows that how he or she performs can make or break the organization. Does this individual know that his/her responsibility comprises of recruiting, selecting, maintaining and mostly importantly motivating the employees. This individual should be like an extension of the Labour Department in the organization. This individual should be championing the cause of the employee not fighting the employee. This individual should be working hand in hand with the employee and management to achieve the organizations goal. It is not necessary for one to have a degree in HRD to perform the function effectively or efficiently. One must know people. One must like to work with people. The HR Manager has to be personable and approachable. It is essential. The HR manager should not be harsh or brash. The individual must be trustworthy, as confidentiality is key? Is he or she a people person? What is this persons experience in conflict resolution? Does this person have what it takes to be impartial? To establish an HR department where the job fit is wrong, that is where the individual running the department is not performing the job effectively or efficiently is a waste of the companys resources. It is actually worst than not having a department. It gives HR a bad name. The objective of the department is to recruit, select and maintain employees.

 In our region there is the saying, It is who you know not what you know that gets you in the door. This is true. This contributes to some of the ills that plague the work place because sometimes who you know is not always the best person for the job. Dont get me wrong networking proves to be beneficial when the person is the right fit for the job and that individual adds value to the organization. There is also the concept of workplace politics, which is if you, smooze the boss you get ahead, as opposed to someone who refuses to get caught up in the politics.

We hear employers tell employees, If you dont like it here, GO, it is that simple. Do you know the message you are sending to your employees? It sends the message we dont care. You are a cost. You are a liability. We do not value you. No matter how hard you work your efforts wont be acknowledged. Employers value your employees, empower your employees, and motivate your employees. YOUR EMPLOYEES ARE ASSETS NOT LIABILITIES.