Within any type of training there should be no discrimination. All workers regardless of their background or what they choose to believe in should be discriminated in any way. Equal opportunity can be expressed in ways other than just in the workplace in relation to race or religious beliefs. When training the employees there shouldn’t be some employees being treated differently, everyone should get the same amount of time to train in order for the company to be able to survive also William Hill have to obey the law to be competitive and have a respectable to them which include the:
- Race Relations Act 1976
- Sex Discrimination Acts 1975 & 1986
- Disability Discrimination Act 1995
- Equal Opportunities Commission
- Positive Discrimination
Training and development consist of different procedures, which are listed below.
Induction
This is the training provided for new employees and in this program they will learn the following:
- Where everything around the workplace is such as the essentials which are fire exits, toilets, staff canteen, basically they will get a guided tour of their place of work.
- They will go through the employee’s hour of work, who their manager is, name tags, uniform and training which will be provided for them in the future.
- Booklets will handed out concerning sickness procedures, perks, grievance procedures, health and safety regulations and William Hill’s mission statement.
All new recruits are taken through induction program at William Hill which is designs to give employees a broad understanding of the business in different contexts because it is a way in which William Hill can communicate and develop a relationship with employees and ditto with customers. This also ensures customer care due to its importance it will enable William Hill to keep their customers loyal. A booklet named ‘You and William Hill’ is an outline of what is expected of each employee and information concerning your uniform which is either a black or navy blue trousers or skirt and a white shirt /top with a William scarf and name tag.
Training
William Hill use various training methods listed below but there some which could be considered by them.
Mentoring involves the trainee being paired with a more experienced employee. This is a good way to train employees as they are able to carry out the tasks that they would be performing if they were really doing the job. The mentor is there to assist the employee if they have any problems. William Hill can implement this type of training as a means for the employees that feel less confident within the workplace to gain a higher self esteem level. Having someone they feel comfortable with would make them work better and they can adapt interactive skills with that person, enabling them to use it on others. William Hill would be encouraging a more cohesive environment if this was one of their training methods.
Coaching/Sitting next to Nellie a coach may guide a trainee through procedures that they may carry out in the future. Sitting next to Nellie is a traditional type of on the job training. “Nellie” is the experienced worker there to guide you along your way. However this may cause complications for the company as the quality of the training depends on the ability of the trainer. William Hill could use this as they could teach employees about what goes on in the business. It’s a lot easier for the employee to ask questions about things that they may feel they don’t understand and have them answered there and then. Also being able to have areas demonstrated in a practical format would benefit the employee.
Apprenticeships provide people with broad based training along with key skills. After they complete the course they graduate and become an employee. They aim to give a number of people undergoing training who achieve NVQs of at least level 3 for technical, craft and junior management skills. In my opinion WH Smith might not use this as they would probably just have part time workers, e.g. students wanting part time jobs in summer.
On the job training is done within the premises. Some jobs require no experience so the training will be done on arrival. This is appropriate in areas like Shop floor workers learning how to use the till, or a new clerical assistant will need to understand the filing system. William Hill will use this as they could train new employees how to interact with others. Shop floor workers can see first hand how workers that are more experienced than them handle customers, whether they’re nice or difficult.
Off the job training is done off the premises. This may take place in another branch or as a college course. This is done to widen the employee’s skills and develop the ability that the individuals already have. Depending on the position that the employee has William Hill can send the worker on a course to develop his/her skills. Managerial positions may require this as their role is much more intense, e.g. dealing with employees or customers that may not be happy with the performance of employees.
Transferable skills are skills that once they are learnt they can be used in many situations. Key skills of Application of Number, Communication, and Information Technology are used to develop a technique you already have. I would assume that William Hill use this as it would be appropriate in their type of industry. The development of the skill that the employees possess would be needed if they were to move to another company for employment. Granted that all the skills can’t be used within all industries within the same field the basic knowing of what to do in a certain predicament would be needed by the employee. William Hill providing this for them would improve their image.
Non-Transferable skills these skills are specific to the job at hand. The skills you learn can only be used in a particular situation. William Hill wouldn’t use this as the workers can become more productive if they learn different skills. Rotating them around would motivate them to help others and if they are to be relocated into another branch then they wouldn’t need to adapt very much to they way of working.
GNVQ’s are a work related alternative to GCSE and A level. This is basically the digestion of knowledge of what some companies may do. The aim is to provide education to students that want to enter a particular area of work. To progress from this area would be to move into work where an NVQ may be taken, or to move to another level (e.g.) level 2 to level 3 or level 3 to higher education (university). William Hill doesn’t use this as training as the company isn’t in this type of industry. If they chose to send their employees off the job for training, in a college they may prepare the employees for the basic knowledge they would need. However I don’t think it would be like this.
They are also have a legal training module which teaches employees about the do’s and don’t of the company, these training modules are essential for the company as they are in a competitive environment, by giving them training the business will run more efficiently.
Development
This is to enable individuals within William Hill to realise their potential for growth in the organisation. There are many ways you can measure individuals potential, such as appraisal, an analysis of employee’s performance or a system of assessment centres. There are also many ways an employee can be rewarded for their potential, such as promotion, job rotation, job enlargement and job enrichment. William Hill offer all staff all the opportunity to develop themselves, that is why if one has the ability can progress to management level and then given the opportunity will have to go through management induction program, this will aid William Hill as workers will be more motivated as they will gain a sense of achievement which leads to greater employee retention.
Training is very important for William Hill as well staff because well trained workers will be more productive and this will enable the company to meet objectives set which will increase profit. This is also good for employees especially concerning performance related pay because a higher dividend is given. It will help save cost as there will be less waste due to fewer mistakes made also the corporate image will be enhanced because the work force are better skilled and motivated. Training and development can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty indirectly as work will be done more efficiently and they will be more motivation to keep customers happy also it can make William Hill more competitive as they will be performing better at work
