Employee Relations Specialist Responsibilities

Employee relations specialist typically functions for the welfare of the employees and their well being. Employee relations specialist responsibilities include investigation of the employees' complaints and issues, resolving the concerns of the employees that may affect their performance at the workplace, providing professional counseling, developing action plans to motivate and build the morale of the employees, thereby strengthening the employee and employer working relationship to help in the growth of the organization.

Key Responsibilities of an Employee Relations Specialist

The employee relations specialist needs to perform a variety of duties, which typically include working for the welfare of the employees by resolving their issues, designing new policies and procedures, helping to build the morale, recruiting and training of new employees, etc. Let us see in detail the key responsibilities that need to be performed by an employee relations specialist:

1. Employee relations specialist conducts interviews with various levels of employees to understand their problems
2. To investigate the factors that are adversely affecting the performance, morale, and productivity of the employers
3. To evaluate the work related problems by taking appropriate measures and discussing with the management to design plans of action
4. To inform and guide the employees on the rules and regulations of the company and the procedures that need to be followed to ensure their compliance
5. To counsel and advise the employees on their personal and professional problems
6. To conduct surveys and gather information from the employees for developing and creating a conducive work environment

In addition to the above responsibilities, they need to prepare reports related to the employees' concerns, the action plans that have been taken, and their effects on the employees. They guide the employees regarding insurance and retirements benefits. They identify the strengths and weaknesses of the employees and enroll them in various developmental programs. They attend various meetings, seminars, and conferences to improve the working relationship between the employees and the management. They makes sure that all the facilities like lunch room, library, recreational activities, etc., are made available, ensuring compliance with the standards of the organization. Thus, they help in boosting the morale of the employees and stimulate interest in their minds to work towards achieving the goals and objectives of the organization.

Essential Skills And Abilities

The essential skills that make a successful employee relations specialist are as follows:

• Strong communication skills are absolutely essential to effectively communicate with the employees
• Should have good listening skills and ability to understand, counsel, and advise on the grievances of the employees, either personal or professional, and provide them with a comforting environment
• Should have the ability to monitor, review, and plan different action plans that would facilitate better productivity and conduct training programs that would help in increasing the productivity of the employees
• Should have good problem solving ability and should be able to think and implement innovative plans for employee welfare
• Should be able to maintain and update different kinds of records
• Flexibility to work with a diverse range of people and establish effective, healthy, and professional working relationships

Educational Qualifications

If you are aspiring to be an employee relations specialist, you must have at least a bachelor's degree in human resource, personnel administration, psychology, labor, or industrial relations. A master's degree in a similar field would definitely be preferred.

Salary Details

The salary varies normally depending on the size and type of the organization. It equally depends on your academic background, skills, and the kind of experience you have in that particular field. The average annual salary falls in the range of $49,000 to $53,000.

Work Schedule

The work hours normally last for thirty five to forty five hours per week, Monday through Friday, in a normal office work environment. On some occasions, they may need to work overtime, whenever there are some meetings or conference or any other issue that needs to be solved on a priority basis.

Career Prospects

Nowadays, more and more employers are taking care to retain their best employees. The future for employee relations specialist is, thus, very bright and holds great chances for the advancement to managerial and supervisory positions.

The employee relations specialist, thus, plays a significant role in relieving the stress of the employees by communicating effectively with them to ensure better working environment, yielding improved productivity and performance.