How Much Is Your Employee Worth?

Experts say the demand for skilled workers is rising. As a result, companies may have a harder time recruiting talent in the future, and they may have to increase their compensation packages to attract viable candidates.

Economic trends help human resources professionals forecast how the hiring market and compensation may change in the coming years, even though trends vary by industry and occupation. Labour-market Research & Salary Review company provides a multitude of resources that help human resources professionals break down economic information in order to reach accurate salary ranges for specific jobs. Some of these resources include:

• Wage and compensation information providing breakdowns by area, occupation, industry and labor costs Includes information about specialized topics such as collective bargaining and statistics of earnings broken down by categories such as age, race, sex, education level and more.
• The Occupational Outlook survey has details on the earnings of specific occupations and a forecast of the rise or decline of specific jobs.
• The Occupational Employment Statistics provides employment numbers and wage estimates for over 800 occupations.

After evaluating the economic climate using data, you can zero in on a specific industry or occupation by turning to resources offered by professional and trade organizations or labor unions. Third-party organizations assist their members by offering training, guidance and job resources, and they survey their members frequently to collect information about the current job market, including salary information. As a result, they are likely to have up-to-date figures and statistics for your own locale. Some of the data may be available online, but if you are unable to find the details you're looking for, try calling a local branch office for more information or further resources.

Naturally, the industry and market statistics can only take you so far in evaluating the dollar worth of a position. Even within the same industry and geographical region, two employees with similar job titles at different companies may have vastly different jobs in terms of duties, responsibilities and contributions to their organizations. Therefore, it's important to review a range of factors when determining an appropriate salary for a position.

There are also useful survey tools that can be highly customized to assess the appropriate salary for an employee. Among many factions, these surveys take into account the following:

• Job title
• Job duties
• Benchmarks by industry or sector
• Total compensation package
• Geographical region
• Candidate's experience and qualifications
• Candidate's salary history

Many candidates are also very well educated about what type of salary they can expect, as a good deal of information is available from governmental and online publications. To remain competitive in the marketplace, it's essential to put careful research and consideration into the salary and raises you offer your employees. If you pay a salary below market value, your employees may be less satisfied, and you risk a higher turnover. In the long run, this can cost the company a good deal in lost productivity and time hiring and training. However, if the salary you offer is far above the industry benchmark, you may attract the highest qualified candidates but still lose money. Your employees are one of your most valuable investments, so plan your hiring so that you receive an optimal return on your investment in terms of productivity, customer satisfaction and the satisfaction of your employees.

By www.hrworld.com