Employee relations involve the actions an organization takes to build and sustain a positive working relationship with its employees.
Human Resources (HR) plays a key role in employee relations by focusing on two main tasks: resolving and preventing conflicts between staff and management, and developing and implementing fair, consistent workplace policies.
Building positive relationships and interactions between employers and employees is the focus of employee relations, which also, on a larger scale, promotes a feeling of community inside a business. This could be promoting open communication in the workplace or helping staff members with their mental, emotional, and physical well-being. The ultimate objective of employee relations is to foster a favorable working relationship between employers and employees, which will boost productivity, satisfaction, and retention.
Vertical Employee Relations: This refers to relationships between an employee and his or her superiors (e.g., management, executives, administration).
Horizontal Employee Relations: This term encompasses all same-level employee-to-employee relationships, including employees who are working together on a project or employees who are simply sharing a chat during break time.
An employee relations manager typically serves as a bridge between employees and management, helping to address concerns and shape policies related to workplace matters. Their responsibilities often involve advising on or developing policies that cover:
• Fair pay
• Valuable employee benefits
• Healthy work-life balance
• Appropriate working hours
Focusing on effective employee relations offers several key benefits for organizations, such as:
Higher employee morale and engagement
Greater productivity
Better employee retention
Lower absenteeism
Reduced costs from less turnover
A stronger, more positive workplace culture
When employees feel appreciated, supported, and listened to, they’re more motivated and committed—leading to better performance, higher company profits, and a stronger reputation.
Encourage Cross-Team Collaboration: When the company is developing special projects, build teams that include a mixture of employees from several departments to foster collaboration and a sense of shared purpose across the organization.
Offer Mentorship Opportunities: Mentoring promotes leadership development and a culture of learning within an organization, and may even help with retention. In fact, a case study of Randstad’s improved mentoring program found that participation in the program correlated to a 49 percent decrease in employee turnover.
Celebrate Birthdays and Work Anniversaries: Recognizing employee birthdays and workplace anniversaries makes employees feel valued, which strengthens their connection and commitment to their employer.
Advocate a Healthy Work-Life Balance: Erratic hours and workloads will lead to employees being dissatisfied and feeling undervalued by their employer.
Maintain Regular Communication: Create organizational goals and regularly communicate any updates. Employees need to understand what they’re working toward and how it aligns with the company’s broader mission to feel fully engaged.