JOB EVALUATION

DEFINITION

Job evaluation may be defined as a process of determining the relative worth of jobs, ranking and grading them by comparing the duties, responsibilities, requirements like skill, knowledge of a job with other jobs with a view to fix compensation payable to the concerned job holder.

Job Evaluation is a technique of personal management, concerned with assessing the value of one job in relation to another, and it is a necessary adjunct to the process of wage settlement by collective bargaining, for it is only when each job has been properly evaluated that a sound wage structure can be built up. In Industry it is accepted that a job which is more difficult, or which involves responsibility, effort, skill or hazard, should be paid a higher wage than one in which these demands are less exacting.

Objectives of Job Evaluation

To gather data and information relating to job description, job specification and employee specifications of various jobs in an organization. To compare the duties, responsibilities and demands of a job with that of other jobs To determine the hierarchy and place of various jobs in an organization To determine the ranks and grades of various jobs To ensure fair and equitable wages on the basis of relative worth or value of jobs. I.e. Equal wages are fixed to the jobs of equal worth or value. To minimize wage discrimination based on Sex, Age, Caste, Region, Religion, etc..

PRINCIPLES OF JOB EVALUATION PROGRAMME

Rate the job but not the employee. Rate the elements on the basis of job demands The elements selected for rating should be easily understood Employees concerned and the supervisors should be educated and convinced about the program Supervisors should be encouraged to participate in rating the jobs Secure employee cooperation by encouraging them to participate in the rating program

PROCESS OF JOB EVALUATION

1. A thorough examination of the jobs 2. The preparation of a job description and usually an analysis of job requirements needed for its successful performance. 3. The comparison of one job with others 4. The arrangement of jobs in their correct sequence in terms of value to the firm 5. The relation of the sequence to a money scale.

JOB EVALUATION TECHNIQUES

Types of Job Evaluation Methods

Quantitative

Non- Quantitative

Points Rating Method

Factor Comparison Method

Ranking Method

Job Grading & Classification

NON QUANTITATIVE METHODS

CLASSIFICATION METHOD This starts with the determination of grades and wage levels. Then a written description of the types of work which should come into each grade is prepared. After that the actual jobs are examined, and each is fitted into its appropriate grade.

CONTD..

Under this system, a number of pre-determined grades or classifications are first established by a committee and then the various jobs are assigned within each grade or class. After formulating and studying job descriptions and job specifications, jobs are grouped into classes or grades which represent different pay levels ranging from low to high. Contd.

Common tasks, responsibilities, knowledge and experience can be identified by the process of job analysis. Certain jobs may then be grouped together into a common grade or classification.
General Grade descriptions are written for each job classification, and finally these are used as a standard for assigning all the other jobs to a particular pay scale.

Advantages
1.Simple to understand 2.Provides an opportunity for a systematic organization structure 3. Pay grades are better and appropriate for comparison with those of other organizations

Disadvantages
1.Classification judgments may be subjective. 2.The standard used for comparison may have built in biases that would affect certain groups of employees ( females or minorities ) 3.Some jobs may appear to within more than one grade.

RANKING METHOD

This method is one of the simplest to administer. Jobs are compared to each other based on the overall worth of the job to the organization and all jobs are arranged or ranked in the order of their importance from the simplest to the toughest, or in the reverse order. The worth of a job is usually based on judgments of skill, effort ( Physical & mental ), responsibility and working conditions.

Types of Ranking Method

1. Simple Ranking Method One Job is compared with the other based on duties, responsibilities and the jobs are ranked from the most important to the least important.

2. Ranking the Key Jobs This involves, Identifying the key jobs Ranking the key jobs and rank all other jobs.

3. Paired Comparison
Under this method, the evaluator ranks each job against all other jobs to be appraised, so that a series of paired rankings is produced. This method is more comprehensive, logical and reliable compared to the simple ranking method. 4. Single Factor Ranking Method The single most important task to be performed in a job is identified and compared with the single most important task to be performed in other jobs.

Advantages

Disadvantages
* Difficult to administer as the no. of jobs increases * Rank Judgments may be subjective * Since there is no standard used for comparison, new jobs would have to be compared with the existing jobs to determine its appropriate rank. In essence, the ranking process would have to be repeated each time a new job is added to the organization

* Simple

* Very effective when there are relatively few jobs to be evaluated ( less than 30 ) *Appropriate for ranking the top managerial personnel in Large orgns.

QUANTITATIVE METHODS

POINT METHOD

Under this method, Factors which cover all the jobs must be decided Typically the factors include the major categories of 1. Skill 2. Responsibilities 3. Effort 4. Working Conditions CONTD..

These factors can then be further defined

1. Skill * Experience * Education * Ability 2. Responsibilities * Fiscal * Supervisory 3. Effort * Mental * Physical 4. Working Conditions * Location * Hazards * Extremes in Environment

Each factor is given a maximum point value.

Each job is then analysed and points allocated within the allowable range according to the degree of importance of that factor in the make-up of the job.
The points can then be added to give the value of the job and its value translated into terms of money on a predetermined formula.

Advantages

Disadvantages

The value of the job is expressed in monetary terms & manipulation is not possible Can be applied to wide range of jobs Can be applied to newly created jobs

The pay for each factor is based on judgments that are subjective.

The development & installing of the system calls of heavy expenditure

It is a time consuming process.

FACTOR COMPARISON METHOD

This is similar to the points system in that each job is

analysed into common factors like

Mental Effort Skill Physical Effort Responsibility & Working Conditions.

After a survey of all the jobs, a number of key jobs are chosen to represent various wage levels and they are analyzed to show the proportions of the total wage paid for each factor. All other jobs are then compared with these key jobs, factor by factor, to determine their relative importance and position in the scale of jobs, thus determining their money value.

ADVANTAGES

DISADVANTAGES

The pay for each factor is based on judgments that are subjective. Can be applied to wide The development & installing of the range of jobs system calls of heavy expenditure Can be applied to It is a time consuming newly created jobs process.

The value of the job is expressed in monetary terms

ADVANTAGES OF JOB EVALUATION

It is a logical and to a certain extent an objective method of ranking and grading the jobs. Hence, employee grievances, doubts and complaints would be at the lower ebb. It helps to fit the newly created jobs in the existing structure. It satisfies the principles of fair wage, wage equity, uniformity in wages, etc.. It also helps to redesign the jobs by reallocating the easy and difficult tasks equally among various jobs.

PROBLEMS OF JOB EVALUATION

1.

Job Evaluation is not exactly scientific 2. There may be wide fluctuations in compensable factors in view of changes in technology, values and aspirations of employees, etc. 3. Employees, trade union leaders, management, and the program operators may perceive differently in selecting the compensable factors, in giving weightages 4. The results of job evaluation may not exactly coincide with social evaluations which in turn result in employee dissatisfaction. 5. Job evaluation is only one among several factors in determining wage level. Sometimes other factors like Government Policy may dominate the job evaluation.