CHAPTER 3

Employment Communication

Objectives

After reading this chapter, you will be able to:

1. describe the steps needed in hiring the correct people;
2. explain the five aspects of communication in the personnel selection process;
3. write a post-interview job offer letter and a post-interview rejection letter;
4. discuss motivation theories that can be used as communication tools;
5. explain why managerial reprimand should be used as a teaching tool;
6. conduct proper layoffs and firings.

Introduction

Although we call the people working in business organizations human resources, people are unlike the other resources used in the production function: material, financial, or informational. Employees can, and sometimes do, hold grudges, engage in political sabotage, idle down, do the bare minimum just to keep their jobs, and question your authority when aggravated. People can do a host of other things at work that are hard to detect and that can be devastatingly harmful to productivity. The Window into Practical Reality 3.1 is a historic depiction of how early American workers used the power of subterfuge to unify others in restricting labor output. Many early twentieth-century workers were hostile toward scientific management because of what they perceived to be a threat to their job security.

Human resource activities pose various challenges for managers. First, you will need to know how to communicate in a legally compliant way during personnel selection. Second, you will need to know how to select suitable candidates from a sufficiently large pool of applicants, and then communicate and coordinate with others to actually hire the person selected. Third, you will need to know how to write effective offer and rejection messages. Fourth, when you have actually hired a person, you will need to know how to motivate the person you hired to perform well consistently. Finally, you will need to know how to conduct layoffs and firings appropriately.

People are the most important managerial resource, and the most complicated to manage because people are living, breathing entities who harbor a slew of emotions—which can be positive or negative. Using employment communication and improving human resource in your organization is your responsibility.

Improving Human Capital

Human flight, moon landings, submarine missions to the bottom of the ocean, or drilling for oil 5,000 ft below sea level would not have been possible without fully developed human capital. Peter Drucker (1954) said that enlarging human resources permits profit-seeking enterprises to prosper. Human resource is the only resource that is capable of being improved because people can grow intellectually and be developed into managers (Drucker 1954). Despite Drucker’s optimism, today’s human resources are more difficult to manage than any of the other resources. Managing human resources is—and always will be—predicated on two-way communications and relationship building. The manager’s job is to use good communication to improve on human capital by making people more productive. Incidentally, Drucker (1974) appears to be the first business philosopher to use the phrase “managerial communication.”

Successful employment communication begins when a manager has grasped the elements of employment communication responsibility. Thus, hiring and retaining excellent people is paramount in improving human capital.

Hiring the Right People

Hiring a new person involves four aspects (1) adhering to equal employment opportunity laws, (2) being familiar with essential and preferred job qualifications for the posted position, (3) conducting productive and legal interviews, and (4) writing effective job offers and rejection messages.

Equal Employment Opportunity Laws

Before any of the aspects of personnel selection can happen, you need to be aware of the equal employment opportunity laws enforced by the federal government, which is essential knowledge for crafting the job description and conducting the interview. Knowledge of the equal employment opportunity law is required to protect the organization against complaints and litigation about discrimination. In the United States, the organization responsible for investigating and enforcing these laws is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This government body has a broad range of authority and can investigate complaints against employers brought against them by former or current employees. The equal employment opportunity laws enforced by the EEOC are shown in Figure 3.1.

After the EEOC has investigated a complaint, it can issue the complainant a letter called a Right to Sue Letter. Once issued, in many cases, a former or current employee, who believes that he or she has been the victim of discrimination (when at least one of the laws enforced by the EEOC has been violated), can bring a cause of action against the employer in the appropriate court of jurisdiction. A Right to Sue Letter strengthens the legal arguments for a party or parties bringing forth a cause of action claiming discrimination; nevertheless, these lawsuits can be expensive for both parties and take many years to be resolved.

The EEOC can also file an independent lawsuit against an employer on behalf of workers it deems to have suffered from disparate treatment or disparate impact. According to the EEOC (2018), 84,254 workplace discrimination charges were filed with the federal agency nationwide during fiscal year (FY) 2017, and $398 million were secured for victims in the private sector and state and local government workplaces through voluntary resolutions and litigation. The reputation and image of the accused organization is always hurt when discrimination lawsuits become public knowledge, as illustrated in the Window into Practical Reality 3.2.

Job Qualifications

As a hiring manager, you will have to be familiar with the necessary job qualifications, a set of skills essential for success in the job, so that you can conduct a productive and legal interview, and eventually hire a qualified applicant. The job description and the job specifications are composed after analyzing a job. The job description is the detailed explanation of what a person in that position actually has to do. The job specifications are the listings of mental and physical skills and abilities required to perform the job, that is, educational level, certification, training, and so on. When a job opening is posted, it will normally include both the necessary and preferred qualifications.

The interviewing manager should have a written job description that clearly lists the responsibilities of the position. The job description items can also be used when composing the advertisement for the position. Current law requires that hiring managers select only those candidates for interview who possess all the necessary qualifications listed in the advertised position pertaining to what the employee will be doing, and their tasks, and responsibilities. This requirement is an effort to make hiring practice more systematic and fair among all employers. Under EEOC guidelines, it is illegal to invite a candidate who does not have all the advertised necessary qualifications for an interview.

The manager should also have knowledge of the preferred job qualifications: an optimal set of skills desired by an employer of a job applicant, but not required for an interview. Organizations often utilize search committees, whose job it is to write and place the advertisements, review the applications, invite the candidate in for an interview, and recommend hiring or not hiring the individual. In some instances, the search process is managed in the HR department, while in others the search process is more decentralized and may occur in the department where the opening exists or in conjunction with HR personnel. Current EEOC guidelines do not require managers to select candidates for interview, who possess all or some of the preferred qualifications listed in the advertised position. Nonetheless, a person who possesses all of the necessary qualifications and most of the preferred qualifications would stand a good chance of being interviewed. In fact, a sufficiently large group of candidates should be selected for prescreening for the position based on the stated qualifications, as some typically will be excluded or drop out of the search.

If the applicant has done his or her homework, the person has a resume that made you sit-up and take notice, a cover letter that dazzled you, good manners, and sharp interview skills. In such instances, hunting for the perfect candidate is easy. However, very few candidates will actually make your job of hiring this easy. Currently, 92 percent of recruiters say they are using social media to find the high-quality candidates they desire (Bynum 2017). This means that you as the recruiter will have to search for your candidates; they will not fall into your lap.

Conducting a Legal Interview

As manager, you must compose appropriate interview questions that are legally compliant and conduct effective and legally compliant interviews. Both the interviewer and the interviewee have objectives. The interviewer has three main goals: (1) to collect information—is the applicant qualified to do the job and will the applicant do the job, (2) to provide information—give the candidate a realistic preview of the company and job to entice them to accept the job, and (3) to check the personal chemistry or candidate’s fit with the organizational culture. The interviewer can then determine if the candidate is capable of doing the job, and if he or she has a personality that fits the organization. On the flip side, the interviewee has the objectives of (1) presenting information, (2) collecting information, and (3) checking personal chemistry to assess the personalities and styles of people with whom they might be working. Figure 3.2 provides a summary of the proper steps to take in the interview selection process.

It is important that you ask legal questions that adhere to EEOC guidelines. Inexperienced managers can cause their employers much grief and embarrassment by asking illegal and inappropriate interview questions. Figure 3.3 presents some common hiring dilemmas and provides answers and strategies to help you plan and carry out interviews more effectively.

Impression Management

Impression management is frequently used during interviews as self-focused and others-focused tactics. Self-focused tactics include exemplification, internal attributions, intimidation, professionalism, self-promotion, and supplication. Others-focused tactics include bargaining, favor rendering, appealing to higher authority, opinion conformity, other enhancement, ingratiation, and supervisor-focused tactics (Peck and Lavashina 2017). The interviewers must ask sufficient questions to be sure that the person can do what they say they can and that they fit the company’s needs.

Correspondence with Candidates

Once a decision has been reached as to whom to hire, the manager or his designated person would then write a job offer message or a rejection message to each candidate. An example of an effective offer message and an effective rejection message are presented in Figures 3.4 and 3.5.

It is important that all interviewees receive a communication from the firm as quickly as possible after the interview. Send the offer letter before you send the rejection letters and wait for a reply from the candidate that you wish to hire. A formal rejection letter should then be sent to all applicants who applied but did not get the job. While you are waiting on the response to your job offer, you may want to go ahead with sending rejection messages to those candidates whom you are certain you will not be hiring.

Motivating Human Capital

Many of the best theories in management come from applications of sociology and psychology in the management environment. Even though these fields of study have a foundation in reinforcement theory and other aspects of personal and social behavior, their business application is impossible without using good communication. No matter how a manager might view theories of motivation, keeping employees motivated means that managers will need to observe and talk to their employees to find out what types of rewards and punishments make them tick! Three theories have immediate employment communication applicability: (1) equity theory, (2) expectancy theory, and (3) the formal reprimand.

Equity Theory

An important part of a manager’s job is always to be aware of the feelings of inequity in pay or responsibilities among workers. These feelings of inequity often lead to loafing, employees doing the minimum just to keep their jobs, or high levels of unexplained turnover—meaning employees’ leaving their jobs for no apparent reason. Frustrated workers may at times abuse customers and clients as well as their fellow workers. Adams’s (1963) Equity Theory is predicated on three assumptions applicable to most employment communication situations:

• The equity norm is a social assumption that an employee will expect a fair return for the contribution they make to the job.
• The social comparison is a determination that employees make as to whether their returns for the work they do is equitable in comparison to others’ inputs and outcomes.
• When employees feel their equity is less than others’ equity, they will seek to reduce the inequity in three ways: (1) cognitively distorting inputs and outcomes known as cognitive distortion, (2) altering their inputs and outputs, and (3) quitting the organization. (Bell and Martin 2012)

External pay equity can be assessed by comparing your employees’ salaries with industry averages for pay standards. Manpower.com publishes an Annual Salary Guide free to the public available online that includes approximately 200 job titles. The United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, publishes an annual reference book, available for free online, entitled the Occupational Outlook Handbook that includes several hundred job titles with industry outlooks, earnings, and educational requirements. Also, be sure that every employee is regularly evaluated and rewarded for good work. Remember that perceptions of fairness and equity are always a two-way employment communication responsibility.

Expectancy Theory

Expectancy theory is a motivational model that seeks to explain or predict task-related effort. It assumes the making of conscious choices among alternatives. The theory suggests that motivation is determined by two individual beliefs that (1) effort and performance have a relationship, and (2) desirable work outcomes are associated with differing performance levels (Vroom 1964). Motivation is then viewed as a function of the perceived relationship between an individual’s effort, his or her performance, and the desired consequence of the outcomes of performance. The key terms to understanding the model are expectancy—a belief that effort is followed by performance; instrumentality—a mental calculation that an achieved task performed will lead to a work outcome; and valence—the value the individual places on the outcome.

Experienced managers know that the best application of this theory is in the recognition that all expectations can be shaped through good, honest communication. As a manager, do not create faulty expectations or make implied promises. Do as you say you will do. Evaluate your employees fairly. You can understand what your employees expect and value only by talking honestly with them about what they want versus what you can realistically deliver, when they perform as they said they would.

Reprimanding to Motivate

A formal written reprimand is an aversive control that can include both negative and positive reinforcements to correct undesirable employee behaviors. Reprimands deter employees from engaging in workplace behaviors that could pose a hazard to a company’s profitability in future. The ideal reprimand should stamp out unproductive workplace behaviors and endorse productive behaviors shown in detail in Figure 3.6 (Bell and Ramdass 2010).

The model shown in Figure 3.6 is a depiction of the managerial reprimanding process. In this model, managers are depicted as keen observers, judging whether employees’ behaviors are productive or unproductive, and then rewarding or punishing accordingly. Managerial reprimand in the workplace is the means by which supervisory personnel correct behavioral inadequacies and ensure adherence to established company policies. Moreover, a positive approach may resolve behavioral problems without having to reprimand. However, if unacceptable behavior is a persistent problem or if the employee is involved in a misconduct that cannot be tolerated, managerial reprimand should be used to correct the behavior. More importantly, managerial reprimand should not be used to embarrass an employee.

The managerial reprimand model can be explained as a three-step process

• Employee Behavior—first, the employee behavior is displayed in the workplace.
• Manager’s Observation—second, is the employee’s behavior as objectively observed from the manager’s perception acceptable or unacceptable?
• Behavior Reinforcement—third, if acceptable, action is taken to reinforce good behavior. If unacceptable, action can be taken to identify the unproductive behavior or policy violation, and punishment imposed if needed.

An effectively written reprimand can also be a useful teaching tool. The manager’s goal is to write a three-paragraph reprimand that will help modify the rule-breaker’s behavior, while at the same time avoiding hostility, enmity, and other forms of emotional baggages normally associated with poorly constructed and administered reprimands. Normally, a tiered system of progressive discipline (verbal warning, first-written warning, second-written warning, and dismissal) is used to punish rule-breaking behavior. For example, an employee’s failure to read the shift schedule has resulted in that employee’s tardiness—a direct violation of company policy. Let us imagine that the employee’s supervisor will reprimand the tardiness infraction. Can the reprimanding supervisor anticipate the employee’s answers to the following questions? Can the employee who has just received the reprimand answer the following questions, after the fact?

• How did my actions result in the incident leading to my being reprimanded?
• What is the managerial rationale for my being reprimanded; in other words, how did my actions pose a hazard to the bottom line (any goal the manager is trying to achieve)?
• Is there accuracy and fairness in the reprimand that I received?
• What is the consequence for my rule breaking and what is the remedy for my corrected action?

Once the manager has thought about and answered these four essential questions, the writing process can begin. It can also become a very important legal document for attorneys, if a terminated worker decides to litigate after receiving a Right to Sue Letter from the EEOC (Balloch 2010). Figure 3.7 illustrates the pattern for writing the reprimand which includes three paragraphs: the incident, the rationale, and the remedy.

Having to reprimand an employee, particularly in today’s litigious environment, is very difficult for most managers. However, putting everything down in writing and having both people sign it with a human resources representative present generally works very well. Many states have laws that deal with how you must document the infractions of employees who are not performing satisfactorily before you can fire them. While the manager’s hope is that the person will cease the actions that led to the reprimand, sometimes it does not, which then leads to a second and third reprimand letter and subsequent discussions before the person can be legally fired. Figure 3.8 is an example of a well-written reprimand that clearly states the (a) incident, (b) rationale, and (c) remedy.

Layoffs and Firings

Part of a manager’s job is layoffs of people when economic times are difficult for a company. In a layoff, employees are not allowed to continue working at the present time, but there is an option of reemployment when economic times improve for the company that laid them off. A corporation may have to downsize for a number of reasons including economics, restructuring of the organization, competitive environment, domestic or international changes, mergers, acquisitions, or divestitures. Whatever the reason, many times the workers being laid off are good employees and the circumstance causing their layoff is beyond the control of the manager having to communicate the situation.

One of the main considerations during layoffs is how to keep the rest of the employees, who are not being laid off, motivated, as well as telling those who are being laid off why they have been selected. Layoffs are like funerals: you must be clear in your choice of words; you must be sympathetic in your tone; and, above all, consistent in what you say to everyone. It is helpful if the firm has a plan. Some firms hire professional communicators to write, script, and review the messages that are to be directed to people being laid off, as well as other constituents. Of course, the first thing a company will likely do is to eliminate all contract and temporary employees before terminating the permanent ones. Be honest about your company’s situation before the layoffs so that the people are not surprised. Keeping employees’ loyalty and trust should be of utmost importance to the managers.

It is also necessary for the top management to understand that the managers who lay off people and the employees who survive the layoffs will often have feelings of guilt, fear, anger, distrust, and depression. Survivors will need a great deal of information before, during, and after reductions in the workforce. Top management and managers need to communicate to employees on all levels, which can help to minimize the confusion, panic, and rumors that typically occur during times of layoffs or downsizing. The more that management can reduce the stress through communication, the more the survivors are likely to help keep the organization healthy (Pfeil, Setterberg, and O’Rourke 2003).

Laying off an employee is a very delicate transaction. It is painful for the recipient and should be done by the immediate supervisor, and not by the human resources department. It is also difficult for the manager, however, because many times there is a long-standing friendship involved. Managers who will be doing the layoffs should be coached to be sure that they have the answers they need for the employees. It is important that the employees affected be told about their layoff before other workers or the media are made aware of the situation. After the employees involved in a significant layoff are told, the news media should be made aware of what has happened and why. Many times local, state, and federal government officials also need to be informed. For a publicly traded company, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires that large layoffs be disclosed in writing and submitted to the SEC. Notifying customers and suppliers may also be necessary (Pfeil, Setterberg, and O’Rourke 2003).

Employees should be told of their layoffs face-to-face; it is the only channel that is acceptable. Phone, e-mail, or third-party consultants should never be used. If the company can afford a severance package, it should be offered and explained at the time of the layoff. Generally, the higher the employee is in the organization, and the longer the employee has been employed, the more inclusive the severance package should be. This package tells an individual how much the company truly appreciated his or her work, and says a lot to the employees who remain. Of course, the timing of a layoff can be very important. The day preceding a holiday or the day of return from vacation are not good times to lay off workers. Some companies practice escorting the people laid off out of the building, though this can have negative consequences. Layoffs affect many lives in the organization and can be a tremendous emotional drain on the remaining employees. Try to inform all people being laid off at the same time, rather than dragging out the situation.

As with a crisis response plan and other strategic plans, having a formal layoff plan developed in advance of crisis is good preparation for the rainy day when you have to use it. Once the layoffs are completed, the managers must then cope with the remaining employees to bring stability to the workplace. Survivor’s guilt is a real phenomenon that requires appropriate response from management. Open two-way communication is essential to rebuilding and strengthening the credibility of the leadership. Taking a measure of the organizational climate after the event and pinpointing problems and handling them is very important to the future of the firm.

Firing, terminating the employment of a person for a just cause, should always be put in writing. No matter how careful we are in hiring employees, sometimes the arrangement just does not work out. Either the employee is not equipped to handle the position, or the behavior of the employee makes termination necessary.

Firing is unpleasant, which is why you must abide by the appropriate laws and have a fair, consistent policy to follow. It may be a good idea to meet with your corporate attorney or legal counsel in advance of the firing to be sure that all laws are being followed, especially when an illegal behavior has been committed by the employee. Generally, firings are preceded by reprimands. As much as is possible, all reprimands and the firing should be done through face-to-face communications. It is generally a good idea to have someone else present when the firing occurs, such as a human resource’s representative or another manager. As with a layoff, your tone of voice should be firm but empathetic, and you should explain the specific reason the firing is taking place, and state the news of the firing unequivocally. The employee should be told when he or she will receive the last paycheck and how you will respond to calls for references. The individual should be allowed to collect personal items, and you will need to collect keys, computers, cell phones, and other corporately owned objects. Following the firing, you may wish to have the individual escorted from the building.

After the employee leaves the office, squelch rumors by informing the staff of the action taken. This can be done by e-mail to speed the delivery and make sure that everyone receives it quickly. Because the details of the separation should remain private due to legal requirements, the statement may simply say that the employee is no longer with the company.

Summary

Human resources are always the most important type of managerial resource and the most complicated to manage. Employees can, and sometimes do, become disgruntled, idle down and do the bare minimum, question managerial authority, and negatively influence colleagues as well as customers and clients. Despite the negatives, when employees are properly motivated through good communication, organizations can achieve remarkable goals. Acquiring human resources requires managers to use communication appropriately in the personnel selection process; the manager’s job is to improve human capital, that is, to attract and develop people through effective communication.

The personnel selection process includes (1) knowing about equal employment opportunity laws; (2) identifying essential and preferred qualifications being sought; (3) conducting legal interviews; and (4) writing effective job offer and rejection letters.

The organization responsible for investigating and enforcing equal employment opportunity laws in the United States is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Necessary job qualifications are the written job description that clearly lists the responsibilities of the position. Current law requires that all hiring managers select only those candidates who possess all of the necessary qualifications listed in the advertised position. Preferred job qualifications being sought are not required, but they are desired over and above the necessary qualifications.

Inexperienced managers can cause their employers much grief and embarrassment by asking illegal and inappropriate interview questions. Both the interviewer and the interviewee have objectives and goals, and each is trying to determine if a good fit exists. An offer letter will be sent to the candidate selected for the job after the interview. A formal rejection letter should be sent to all the applicants who applied and were interviewed but did not get the job.

Equity theory is predicated on three assumptions applicable to most employment communication situations: equity norms, social comparison, and cognitive distortion. Expectancy theory suggests that motivation is determined by the two individual beliefs that (1) effort and performance have a relationship, and (2) desirable work outcomes are associated with differing performance levels.

The managerial reprimand is a teaching tool used as an aversive control measure for rule breakers. The managerial reprimand model represents a process in which managers’ use rewards and punishments to mold employees’ behaviors toward goals. It has three parts: incident, rationale, and remedy. While the manager’s hope is that the person will cease the actions that have led to the reprimand, sometimes it does not, leading to a second and third reprimand letter and discussion before the person can be legally fired, known as progressive discipline. Properly written reprimands should stamp out unproductive behaviors in employees.

Layoffs and firing of people present a very delicate challenge. Layoffs are difficult because good people must often be let go due to adverse situations. Firing is unpleasant, which is why you follow the laws and have as fair and consistent a policy as is possible. Firings should always be put in writing. Once layoffs or firings have occurred, management must communicate effectively with remaining employees to maintain stability in the workplace.