HN2130 Article Review, Fall 2019

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College of the North Atlantic
Article Review
Recruitment & Selection HN2130
Linda Brown
9-14-2019



Article 1- Not Believing in Bias Leads to Bias by Sarah Dobson
September 11th, 2019
https://www.hrreporter.com/recruitment-and-retention/41003-not-believing-in-bias-leads-to-bias/
This article briefly discussed a study that was conducted by the University of British Colombia to address the existence and impact of biases among hiring committees. Specifically, they hoped to find empirical evidence of a common observation—that men were the preferred gender for hiring committees, whether implicitly or explicitly. Through a series of scientific studies, including an implicit association test, it was determined that both men and women favour male applicants and view them as more hireable. Furthermore, during a study based on hiring committees in France, it was discovered that committees that do not believe biases exist tended to exhibit more of that biased behaviour than people who acknowledged the existences of biases.
This study brings light to an issue that affects all human resource professionals—how our own biases, learned assumptions and misconstructions can, unbeknownst to us (even when we have the best intentions) cloud our judgement. We can fall victim to these perceptual biases and behave in an unfair manner, and in fact, we are oftentimes socialized to be that way. This study helps give weight and validity to the notion that awareness around our own biased behaviour does help dismantle those biases, and that ignorance of these biases assists in further perpetuating them. As HR professionals we can take from this that it is important to always questions your learned assumptions and behaviours and practice (often uncomfortable) self-reflection as a means to understand and undo our biased programming, so we can hire and manage our teams equitably, professionally and productively.
Article 2- ‘Perks’ Most Popular Query by Jobseekers: Report
June 7th, 2019
https://www.hrreporter.com/recruitment-and-retention/40314-perks-most-popular-query-by-jobseekers-report/
            This article discusses the most popular search terms found on online job-search platforms. With majority of millennials getting well into their career-building ages, the values and attitudes toward career life is changing. This generation places high value on work-life balance, social responsibility, job security, and marketable skill building. As can be observed through the data collected by software that processes information entered in to job searches, there is a large increase in queries for job perks, ethics, bullying, harassment and diversity. According to Mary Barroll, president of Talent Egg in Toronto, we also see more graduates looking for careers that have opportunities for training and development.
All these emerging attitudes and values of the millennial generation will have an impact on how HR personnel conduct recruitment and selection processes, and these values will translate more and more into the organizations that these employees occupy. It will be important for organizations to invest their focus on enhancing their businesses in ways connect with the values of millennial workers. Engaging in corporate social responsibility initiatives, having strong anti-harassment and equity policies and practices, creating opportunities for continued learning and development for employees, offering health benefit packages and full-time, long-term stability in jobs, and empowering diverse workforces are all components of a career life that this generation gives precedence to, and that HR professionals and other management teams will have to consider, invest in, and navigate in order to stay current and successful in the present professional climate.
Article 3- 'Aggressive' Discouraging Descriptor to Job Candidates: Report
July 17th, 2019
https://www.hrreporter.com/recruitment-and-retention/40707-aggressive-discouraging-descriptor-to-job-candidates-report/
            A massive analysis of data obtained from LinkedIn’s 630 million user data points, as well as a study based on 12,000 employees and 3000 employers, lead to the publication of a report titled the “Language Matters Diversity Report”. In this study it was concluded that 50,000 job descriptions on LinkedIn included the word “aggressive”, and through their quantitative analysis of applications, terms, input, and the billions of data points collected, that word could discourage almost half of all prospective female employees from applying.
            This study speaks to the importance of language to enhance diversity in recruitment. In order to create job descriptions that equitably encourage and invite ALL applicants (regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, ability, etc.) HR professionals must have an understanding about how language and word choice can affect the quality of the job description. It has been proven in many studies that diverse workforces are better—socially and economically. So, it is in the company’s best interest to ensure the job ads it places, and the recruitment procedures used, do not unintentionally discourage or alienate certain demographics.


Article 4- Welcomnig Wage Increases by Sarah Dobson
July 8th, 2019
https://www.hrreporter.com/columnist/editor2/archive/2019/07/08/welcoming-wage-increases/
            This article looks at how the notion of reducing/flattening wage increases is not the effective for employers who value employee engagement, employee well-being and financial wellness. These are important components of recruitment and retention that impact the bottom line, and it would be well-vested for organization heads to prioritize these aspects as part of their overall recruitment and hiring operation.
            Our Canadian economy is facing tight labour markets, which, intuitively, would assume that wages would be increasing more substantially and more quickly than they have been. However, organizations are still hesitant to invest more in human resources. Studies show that pay is the top contributor to job unhappiness. 80% of employees report being, at least, slightly stressed about financial issues, while 22% is extremely stressed. 27% of respondents reported they believe their organization does not care about their financial well-being.
            These factors are important for human resource professionals to be aware of when creating jobs (planning positions, deciding on compensation, creating job advertisements) as well as throughout a employee’s career with a firm. We must keep up with current literature and studies in order to make smart decisions about compensation, and while many professionals are urging a tempering of wage increases, the statistics show that this will hurt company bottom line by fuelling a hostile employee-employer relationship.


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