Workforce Solutions To Talent Shortage - Analysis

Identification of the human resource issue and its relation with the theories and models

Discuss about the Work Force the Solution to the Talent Shortage.

This report emphasizes on the human resource issue described in the news article named ‘Is the ‘retired’ work force the solution to the talent shortage in Australia’. There is a presence of shortage of skilled workforce in Australia. The news article emphasizes that majority of the workforce consider that the ageism factor is the obstacle in their career development. From the survey carried out with 4500 global job seekers for the purpose of gaining knowledge regarding the attitudes of the candidates towards job search and career progression, it is found out that Australians consider ageism as the major obstacle in career progression in comparison to Americans and British candidates. Approximately 37% of Australians consider ageism as a key barrier which has to be overcome for the purpose of progress of the professional career of the candidates (HCA, 2016).

Although, age is considered as a key barrier among candidates in a global context but among Australians, it is a major barrier in the progress of the career of the candidate. Besides this, the companies which consider broad spectrum of age to provide job to candidates are able to attain competitive advantage over other players in the market (Freyens, 2010). Majority of the companies in Australia has put a barrier to provide job to a candidate who is old and have large experience as there is a requirement to fulfill the diverse needs of diverse workforce. This results in making required changes in the organization which is prohibited by the executives of different firms (Tarique & Schuler,2010).

There is a presence of large number of unretirees or boomerang workers that can fill open positions in the businesses which helps in prevention of the problem of limited talent in the country. These people helps in achieving the common goal of the business in an effective manner as they have experience to carry out different business operations in an effective manner. Providing employment to such people will help in overcoming the problem of talent shortage in the country. Employers should also gain knowledge regarding the preferences of the workforce due to presence of generational gap between the employees (Dychtwald, et al.2006).

This is because employers try to fill the vacant positions in the organizations by employing old people. The companies which make necessary adjustments in the business practices and culture can gain benefits from providing employment to old and experienced people in the business. Companies resist making and implementing changes in the work environment as per the needs and requirements of old people due to which they restrict the selection of the older people in the organization (Burke,2015).

Recommendations

Identification of the human resource issue and its relation with the theories and models

The main issue faced by the companies in Australia is the shortage of talent in the country. Employers in Australia find difficulty in filling of the job vacancies due to presence of limited skilled labor in the country. The main reason behind is that there is a presence of lack of experience, available applicants and hard skills in the candidates due to which, companies fid difficulty in filling of the vacant positions. In order to fill the positions, companies restrict the selection of the retired or old people in the company as there is a presence of inter generational differences which has to be eliminated by the leaders of the organization to gain competitive advantage over other players in the market. In addition to this, rapid changes have been taking place in the business environment for which there is a need to upgrade the skill set of the old employees for which there is a need to provide training to them (Stanley, 2010).

In context to this, Maslow’s need theory is appropriate. This is because the Maslow has categorize the needs into five categories which has to be fulfilled by the employers in order to gain high level of employee satisfaction. Fulfillment of the needs results in increasing the level of motivation of the employees in the organization. The five categories of needs include physiological needs, safety needs, love or belonging needs, self esteem needs and self actualization needs. In case of retirees and old people the basic and psychological needs are fulfilled but they are willing to fulfill their esteem needs which include gaining recognition and feeling of accomplishment (Heilmann, 2010).

Besides this, old people and retirees are willing to fulfill their self fulfillment needs which include achievement of full potential of themselves. In addition to this, employers are unable to fulfill the self actualization needs of the older people as there is a requirement of providing training to them for the purpose of upgrading their skills in order to attain competitive advantage in the market. Employers find difficult in reducing the intergenerational gap that exists between retirees and young people. The main reason behind it is that the businesses have to implement change in the organization in various aspects such as procedures and policies. Besides this, the country also facing difficulties in filling of the job vacancies through young people as there is a lack of required skills in young people such as hard skills, soft skills, and lack of experience (Dychtwald, et al. 2006).

There is also an occurrence of age discrimination at every facet of Australian society. The companies are required to fill the job positions by selecting old people as it results in increasing the productivity of the companies. In addition to this, companies are also reducing the number of older workers due to which older employees find it difficult to re-enter the workforce as they are unable to maintain their previous standard of living. The main reason behind it is that they are under paid in the organization. This the reason that the country is facing the situation of the talent shortage. Once the old employee left the job then it finds difficulty in gaining employment at the same rewards as in the previous workplace due to which, they find difficulty in fulfilling their physiological needs and are less motivated to provide high productivity (Smith, 2008).

Employees invest money in keeping them younger as they have the fear that the employers regarded them as older at young age and retire them from the job. Thus, they find difficulty in getting other job with same benefits. Besides this, the other theory which is appropriate in this context is Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory. This theory states that there are certain factors which are responsible for satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the employees from the job. In Australia, the employees are selected on the basis of their age due to which older people are dissatisfied by their jobs due to certain factors such as salary, security, company policies, relationship with peers and supervisors and so on (Phillips & Roper, 2009).

In order to overcome the problem of talent shortage in the organizations there is a need for the employers to give emphasis on selecting and providing jobsa to old people whoi have experience and knowledge relevant to the job. As per the theory, the factors responsible for satisfaction and dissatisfaction are separate from each other (Burke, 2015).

It is recommended that the companies should provide employment to retirees as they have knowledge and experience relevant to the job positions which results in increasing the productivity and profitability of the companies. In addition to this, for the purpose of mitigating the problem of talent shortage in the country, it is requisite for the businesses to collaborate with the universities and educational institutions in order to gain skilled employees who can help in increasing the productivity of the organizations. Besides this, organizations should also provide training to the employees for the purpose of upgrading the skills of the existing employees. In addition to this, the companies should bring changes in the policies and programs in order to provide friendly environment to employees by reducing the intergenerational differences (Beechler & Woodward, 2009).

The company should provide fringe benefits to the employees in order to attract more and more candidates towards the organization. In order to fulfill the shortage of talent in the organization through selection of the retirees and old people, it is requisite to revise the hiring and screening processes and establish different policies such as retirement and benefits policy in a careful manner. It is also requisite for the companies to provide supportive work environment to all its employees which facilitates in increasing their motivation level and commitment towards the organization (Pillay, Kelly & Tones, 2010). This helps in increasing the productivity of the companies and help in attaining a competitive edge over other players in the market. In addition to this, provision of effective training sessions helps in spreading awareness regarding the workforce discrimination occurred in the organization. Such training sessions help in improving the behavior of the employees towards the situation (Ashiedu & Ladd, 2012).

References

Burke, R.J. (2015). The Multi-generational and Aging Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Dychtwald, K. et al. (2006). Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills And Talent. Harvard Business Press.

HCA. (2016). Is the ‘retired’ work force the solution to the talent shortage in Australia. Retrieved February 3, 2017, from https://www.hcamag.com/hr-news/is-the-retired-workforce-the-solution-to-the-talent-shortage-in-australia-226920.aspx

Beechler, S. & Woodward, I.C. (2009). The global “war for talent”. Journal of international management 15, 273-285.

Phillips, D.R. & Roper, K.O. (2009). A framework for talent management in real estate. Journal of Corporate Real Estate 11(1), 7-16.

Smith, S.D. (2008). The global workforce shortages and the migration of medical professions: the Australian policy response. Australia and New Zealand Health Policy 5(7).

Heilmann, P. (2010). To have and to hold: Personnel shortage in a Finnish healthcare organization. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 0, 1-6.

Stanley, D. (2010). Multigenerational workforce issues and their implications for leadership in nursing. Journal of Nursing Management 18, 846-852.

Tarique, I. & Schuler, R.S. (2010). Global talent management: Literature review, integrative framework and suggestions for further research. Journal of World Business 45, 122-133.

Freyens, B.P. (2010). Managing skill shortages in the Australian public sector: issues and perspectives. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources 48(3), 262-286.

Ashiedu, J.A. & Ladd, B.D.S. (2012). Understanding teacher attraction and retention drivers: addressing teacher shortages. Australian Journal of Teacher Education 37 (11), 16-35.

Pillay, H.K., Kelly, K. & Tones, M.J. (2010). Transitional employment aspirations for bridging retirement : implications for training and development. Journal of European Industrial Training, 34(1), 1-27.