What are employee relations?

Employee relations (ER) are the efforts that employers make to maintain a positive relationship with their employees. Commonly, an organisation’s human resources (HR) department is responsible for managing such employee relations within the workforce.

Effective employee relations management uses structured processes and best practices to ensure consistency, compliance and risk mitigation.

This includes formal strategies, policies and processes you put in place, which are communicated to your employees. Organisations may continually develop their employee relations strategies to adapt to changing workforce needs.

How employee relations began as industrial relations

‘Employee relations’ was formerly referred to as ‘industrial relations’. The latter term is still used to describe the relationship between the employee and employer through their trade union. However, today, employee relations often refers to the management of work and the relationship at work between employees and their employer.

Since the decline of trade union memberships over the last four decades, the term ‘industrial relations’ has become less common. This decline has had a significant impact on UK employees, particularly in shaping the legal and industrial relations landscape.

How can employee relations help businesses?

Because employee performance sustains a business, healthy work relationships are central to a company’s overall wellbeing. Without a happy or motivated workforce, businesses may struggle to function. In this section, we explore the benefits that positive employee relations can bring.

Increased employee retention

With positive ER, employees may be less inclined to leave their jobs. Employees often leave because of poor management rather than a dislike of their jobs. Therefore, improved employee relationships, along with other perks and employee benefits, may lead to improved employee retention.

Increased motivation

A positive relationship between employees and their employer may motivate employees to work harder and be more innovative. If employees feel valued and their relationships with management are actively managed, motivation levels may increase, along with productivity. Positive relationships also foster career development and performance management, further motivating employees to grow within the organisation.

Fewer workplace conflicts

A strong ER strategy reduces workplace conflict, which is often a byproduct of poor relationship management. Resolving workplace conflicts effectively helps show your employees that you care about their wellbeing and improves ER.

Improved culture and workplace experience

Workplace culture may be one of the main attractions for candidates seeking a new role, so improving your existing culture may help with recruitment. Creating a supportive work environment and focusing on employee feedback can help you to build a positive company culture. Consider listening to and acting on the perks, benefits and career progression paths your employees are looking for.

Improved employee engagement

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee makes to a business and its goals. A well-nurtured relationship between workers and employers, including fostering employee voice, could potentially improve your team’s engagement levels.

Improved employer branding

Your reputation for handling employer-employee relations may help to improve your employer branding. When candidates view your organisation as a good place to work, you may attract quality talent.

Demonstrating a clear commitment to employee wellbeing through your company ethos is one way you can achieve this. By demonstrating these commitments internally, you can also encourage employees to share positive comments about your company to other prospective employees.

How can you manage employee relations?

Having an employee relations strategy can help you better manage employee relations and proactively address issues.

Organisations may have to be proactive in managing employee relations to mitigate risk, foster a positive work environment and resolve conflict effectively. Businesses can take steps to prevent conflict and work on employment relations. A few effective ways to maintain positive employee relations are:

Create a coherent employee relations strategy

Following regulations and reaching successful employee-employer negotiations can be made easier with a well-structured employee relations strategy. You could start during the onboarding process by introducing new employees to company policies, along with their rights as an employee working at your organisation. Use your company policies to highlight any specific industry regulations employees must follow.

Throughout the employee lifecycle, maintain consistent and transparent communication with all employees. Accessible management policies can help provide employees an opportunity to voice concerns about safety, career progression opportunities and pay negotiations.

Your employee relations strategy could also include providing a clear compensation structure for your employees. You could use a job evaluation process to ensure that employee pay is equitable.

Set clear company goals and visions

If the organisation has clearly defined goals, employees will know what they are working towards and how they fit into the organisation’s overall vision. HR managers are responsible for ensuring employees understand the organisation’s goals and policies.

Have a transparent ER policy

This can include:

• Company ethos
• Values
• Guidelines
• Regulations
• Statements
• Rules

Having this kind of policy helps to set clear boundaries from the beginning, and the policy itself could be included in the employee handbook. HR departments and HR managers are responsible for informing and ensuring employees understand their rights and the organisation’s policies.

Be honest and upfront with your employees

It’s important to communicate with your employees when any changes to job status, roles or responsibilities occur. Your HR team could supplement this with regular communication and team updates, learning to communicate organisational change effectively. Informing employees about organisational changes helps ensure employees are engaged and aware of their roles and responsibilities.

Management training in employee relations

Line managers and employee relations managers play a significant role because they interact directly with your workforce daily. Consider training them in handling employees’ concerns on a daily basis, mediating conflicts and working closely with HR to resolve conflicts and manage ER issues.

Create an effective conflict resolution process

Having straightforward processes for resolving both grievances and disciplinary actions can make it easier to resolve employee issues more effectively. Recording evidence during formal or informal conflict resolution can be vital if a case reaches an employment tribunal.

Consider beginning the conflict resolution process informally first. More serious cases may require formal disciplinary procedures, such as in the case of dismissals. For more information, please visit the UK government website.

Encourage employee voice

Employee voice can also be a central part of ER. By providing anonymised employee feedback options, as well as having accessible management, you may encourage employees to speak up about their concerns. Employees may be more likely to voice their opinions if they feel they will not be punished for doing so.

Your line managers typically have a responsibility to listen to employees’ concerns and respond appropriately. This could include reporting any health and safety issues that their team raises, as well as any instances of bullying and harassment.

Employees may have an employee representative who speaks on their behalf and shares any collective opinions of the workforce.