Wednesday - 19 November 2008
Analysis 

HR staff on the rise

Published: 02 April 2008  Author: Colin Cottell  

The increase in employment law over the past few years has meant that now smaller companies see the need for HR staff. Colin Cottell looks at the effect on HR recruiters

HR recruiters are reaping the benefits as the increase in employment legislation has lead more small and medium sized organisations to take on HR staff.

As Michelle Kane, an HR recruitment consultant at Manchester-based The HR Practice, says: "Smaller companies used to have a line manager who did the HR, but now because of all the employment law they usually need an HR person, and sometimes an HR team. I would say there's definitely been a change."

In recent years, there has been a rash of new employment legislation; for example, extending the discrimination laws to include sexual orientation.

Rob Bascombe, sales director of Proactive HR, agrees that more small and medium companies are taking on HR staff. Bascombe told Recruiter: "It's a trend that has been going on for around three years." However, he says this can take different forms.

Smaller headcount companies of between 10-100 employees often can't afford to take on someone on a permanent basis, says Bascombe. Many of these companies choose to take on an HR expert on an interim basis instead, he says.

Another strand is family run firms who 'have been stung' by some sort of Employment Tribunal. These firms look for people who can give them guidance on their employment policies and procedures to stop this happening again, says Bascombe.

Smaller family-run companies also turn to his company for expert help because their "friendly approach" often comes unstuck in a culture which has become increasingly litigious, he says.

Mark Ions, managing director of North-East based Exclusive Human Resources, says that while in the past HR was predominantly the domain of the large business, companies with as few as 30 staff are now keen to take on HR staff on a permanent basis. He says that two companies with around 30 employees recently took on HR managers.

Similarly, he says that SMEs with 100-200 staff have a much larger HR presence. And while four or five years ago it was common even for companies with between 400-500 employees not to have any HR staff, this is much less widespread, he says.

Other family run companies require HR staff in order to advise their managers on disciplinary procedures, or on how to interview job candidates.

As Bascombe explains, certain questions such as "are you married?" can get companies into hot water. Bascombe says that one 15-person company recently took on someone to help produce a handbook of procedures.

Clients pay between £300 and £800 a day for the services of an interim HR expert depending on their experience, Bascombe adds.

Ions says that the type of HR personnel required depends on the size of the company.

A company of 300-400 staff will usually recruit an HR manager or an HR administrator, he says, whereas some small family businesses will have an HR manager and others an HR adviser.

Salaries in small companies are not necessarily lower than in bigger companies, but depend on experience, adds Kane.

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