HR

Salary increment and working condition improvement requests
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Institution

Salary increment and working condition improvement requests
Dealing with employees demands that are based on salaries or working conditions can be quite challenging especially when the company has no plans of improving one or both sectors. When the requests are not dealt with cautiously, it might result into an unwanted loop of issues such as confrontations or even resignation by the workers; all these have a negative impact to the performance of the company. In such an instance, one of the response is meeting the workers and explaining the current situation of the organization such as the firm facing hard times and therefore not able to meet their needs. The explanation may motivate the workers to go back to work hoping the situation will change in the future and their demands will be met. The ethical issue in speaking to the workers is making them understand the state of the company and why this might hinder granting their requests.
The other option is doing nothing and waiting to see it the situation will fix itself; the ethical issue achieved by this method is based on the aspect that, talking to the employees might be feeding them with false hopes which might have more severe effects on the company when things do not change as expected. In this situation, the workers are given an opportunity to makes choices without the interference of the management.
Various arguments support talking to the employees.

Speaking to the workers is an indicator that the management team treats the demands with respect. The staff members must have considered all the consequences before asking for the salary increments. Therefore, it is essential to address their requests with respect. The first reaction, regardless of whether the company can meet the demands or not is to engage the workers in a conversation as to why they think they deserve the increments in wages or improvement of the working conditions. By asking the workers to tell the management more about their demands, the employees are assured their requests are not ignored. Also, it provides more information about the situation the workers are facing (Gallo, 2016). The purpose of speaking is gathering enough information that can be used to assess the appropriateness of the demands.
After listening to the workers, managers have a duty of maintaining honesty in the responses they provide. If the company cannot implement a plan to meet the demands, the + to disappoint people. Getting rejected for a salary increment or improvement in working conditions can prove to be very demotivating to the workers. In situations where the company does not have the money required to support the requests from the workers, it is a noble for the managers to motivate workers through providing alternatives offers that do not need capital for implementation. Such non-monetary perks include factors such as providing more flexible working hours.
Speaking also helps in giving hope to the workers. Instead of leaving the workers discouraged by rejecting their wishes, the manager should provide them with a reason to work harder as a way of achieving their desires (Ladimeji, 2014). One of the ways to accomplish this is through outlining some development and performance goals that if reached will not only make them valuable to the company but also equip them with the necessary skills and experience required to gain promotions within the firm or skills needed in securing jobs in other organizations that might be offering better wages. Implementing this type of respectful approach in turning down the request of the workers can be useful in transforming rejected demands into an opportunity for providing career guidance. The discussion can give the employees renewed vigor making it possible to direct them in a more profitable development path.
The other option is doing nothing; this is the easiest option. However, it has various disadvantages. The role of the managers is to respond and provide the way forward for any issues that affect the workers. Opting not to address payment increments and improvement in the working conditions requests indicates negligence by the management team; this affects the employee morale negatively. Lack of feedback creates an opportunity for the employees to form their perceptions about the managers which might include forming negative opinions of the leader’s ability to lead. Doubts from one worker about their leader will have an impact on other workers working under the same leader; this may lead to poor performance in one department which may spread to other departments if the requests of workers in those units are ignored.
Lack of a response to concerns by the manager may also lead to increased turnover rates. If the workers feel that no matter what they do nothing will be done, the next step they are likely to take is quitting their job. Hiring new workers has adverse effects on a company since it requires money and time used in conducting recruitments processes. Also, some workers might need training.

References
Gallo, A. (2016). How to Respond When Your Employee Asks for a Raise. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 26 January 2018, from https://hbr.org/2016/02/how-to-respond-when-your-employee-asks-for-a-raiseLadimeji, K. (2014). How to Say No to a Raise Request without Destroying an Employee’s Morale. Recruiter. Retrieved 26 January 2018, from https://www.recruiter.com/i/how-to-say-no-to-a-raise-request-without-destroying-an-employees-morale/