The liberalisation of economic activities has an impact upon the nature of work of an organisation, employment, labour markets and employee. It is evident that MNCs has opened production sites at various locations around the world and these production sites can be relocated easily according to the company's objectives. This relocation of production sites of multinational companies affects the employee and HR practices.

The multinational companies are thought agents of change. They bring new information's and thinking for the local organisations and the latter follow these ideas and standard in the field of HR.

Traditionally, retailing even wholesaling is considered as a localized sector, which means composed of small-scale operations. The introduction of various laws that encourage free

trade or lessen trade barriers through international treaties has made commerce vital to attain economic growth resulting in lesser barriers in worldwide employment.

Huge multinational or national retail chains are considered among the largest businesses in many developed countries, and accounted for a huge share of the approximately US$6.5 trillion in international commercial transactions in 1997.

There are various contributing factor for this phenomenon. Leading among them are the technological advancements (including electronic commerce for instance) introduced, the international movement of enterprises and quickly spreading competition-driven changes such as just-in-time production and sales. Ironically, these are considered both the cause and result of an increasingly integrated and highly competitive global market that deeply affect the organization and human resource strategy of commercial organizations. Despite its development and dynamism, deterioration of employment and working conditions are also getting prevalent causing concern among business organizations.

The trends of regionalization and the effects of global operations have heightened the need to set up HRD strategies to acquire and retain competent workforce for them to maintain competitive market positions. The skill shortages often pertain to managerial and professional skills, clerical and production workers and an overall shortage of IT skills for all economies.

It is important to keep the capabilities of both managers and workers presently working for the business at the same time introduce structural changes to allow a smooth transition to higher value-added industries. The solution for the multi-national companies as well as local companies in production sites and strategic regional centers could be in better forecasting of HRD needs, a cost-benefit training framework, better labor market policy-making, and quality vocational and training programs that are jointly conducted by the government and the private sector.

The free market makes people all over the planet to become connected to each other, creating world that is turning into a huge “global village.”

It is necessary to recognize the fact that this unprecedented modern phenomenon is actually based on an old ideology. This is the ideology of the free-market which stipulates that there is absolute truth and desirability of unregulated global capitalism. Globalization is based on an interpretation of the classical liberal social philosophy of Adam Smith, which anticipated universal human progress through free trade.

Four basic arguments are developed with respect to the impact of financial globalization. First, globalization has increased the capital available to developing countries, which has the potential of attaining faster growth than if they had to rely exclusively on their own resources. This has produced competitive pressure among local and multi national companies for capital, labor and materials - the three important factors in any organization.

Not all capital inflows however could contribute to growth. Short-term flows and the purchase of existing assets are less valuable than acquiring investments in new facilities. At the same time, the increasing movement of bigger capital can also lead to greater instability which could have negative effects for growth.

Second, capital flows are not distributed equally by region and country, thus twisting the patterns of growth. Even within a country a noticeable uneven distribution of capital by geographic area, sector, type of firm, and social group are created. This creates division within the country's organizations particularly between winners and losers. Locally-based organizations with less capital often find themselves in the losing side.

Finally, policy changes at the global, regional, and national levels could lead to confusion among organizations in the country. Having clear policies however could solve the problems.

As competition pressure intensifies, and swift changes in market conditions are introduced, policymakers have to respond accordingly to develop new talents and the necessary human resources. To prepare the workforce for the huge structural transformations, individual economies have created and adopted specific strategies that make effective use of public resources, update labor market policies and provide education and training to help people become more employable, productive and internationally competitive. It is a common

concern to secure effective and efficient means of capacity building for sustainable economic development. Human resource policies are at the forefront of these changes.

• Demographics

  This refers to the characteristics of a population or workforce where the organization is situated. Examples of this include age, gender or social class. This type of trend may have an effect in relation to pension offerings, insurance packages, employee benefits and others.

• Diversity

  The differences within the population/workplace. Recent changes can be seen in the number of women working in the organisations compared to decades ago. With the advent of globalisation, organisations become more culturally diverse and working patterns change to part-time, casual, seasonal positions to be able to handle the societal and the global market changes. Human resource has to make necessary adjustments to be able to take into consideration the different ethic and legal implications of their decisions with regards to HRM policies intended to protect employees. Employers have to contend with various issues that affect its employees such as rise in discrimination, unfair dismissal and sexual/racial harassment cases in recent years. These cases could have negative effects to employees in particular and the organisation in general. Anti-discrimination legislation over the past 30 years has provided a foundation for an increasing interest in diversity at work which is “about creating a working culture that seeks respects and values difference.”

• Skills and Qualifications

  As industries move from manual to more managerial professions in nature, there is a growing shift for more highly skilled graduates. If there are few skilled laborers in the market, employers are forced to compete by offering financial rewards, community investment etc.

Recruitment methods are broad and different, it is important that the job is described correctly and any personal specifications stated. Job recruitment methods can be through job centres, employment agencies/consultants, headhunting, and local/national newspapers. It is important that the correct media is chosen to ensure an appropriate response to the advertised post.

This may come as a huge surprise then that in the latest survey of 2000 UK employees commissioned by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) revealed that relationships between employers and employees in a number of workplaces are described as having poor communication, trust is at low levels which leads to underperformance, low productivity and high staff turnover.

In a book called Working Life: Employee Attitudes and Engagement 2006 written by Catherine Truss, Emma Soane and Christine Edwards from the School of Human Resource Management at the Kingston Business School, Kingston University and Karen Wisdom, Andrew Croll and Jamie Burnett from Ipsos MORI. The authors believe that the main problem in HR practices in UK revolves around communication and trust. In so many ways, it is similar to a marriage under stress:

"We just don't talk anymore" Almost one-third of employees (30 per cent) say they rarely or don't get performance feedback; 42 per cent are not privy to organizational plans; only 37 per cent feel satisfied with the communication process.

"You just take me for granted" One-quarter (25 per cent) of employees feel their work is not appreciated; only 38 per cent feel appreciated by managers.

"You really get me down" Around 44 per cent of employees feel under intense stress at least once or twice a week; 22 per cent overall while 32 per cent of managers feels high levels of stress.

"The magic is gone" 43 per cent of employees are not satisfied with their relationship with their manager; 26 per cent don't want to go to work.

"I just can't trust you" 32 per cent of employees are dissatisfied with the management ; only 37 per cent shows confidence in the management and 34 per cent trust their senior managers.

"I want out" 26 per cent of employees feel dissatisfaction in their job; 47 per cent are searching for another job or thinking of leaving their current job.

Mike Emmott, CIPD employee relations adviser, said: "Lack of communication means many employees feel unsupported and don't feel their hard work is recognized. As a result the A

sparkle has gone out of the relationship, damaging productivity levels in many UK businesses."

Other key survey findings include:

Public sector

• 26 per cent of those working in the public sector feel very or extremely stressed (18 per cent only in the private sector)
• 43 per cent says their senior managers have a clear goals for the organization (compared to 52 per cent)
• 32 per cent shows confidence in senior managers and 29 per cent trust them (compared to 41 per cent and 39 per cent respectively)
• 28 per cent experience form of bullying and harassment (compared with 21 per cent in the private sector)

Mike Emmott commented: "Leaders in the public sector are under continuous pressure to meet efficiency targets and cut costs. But they will fail to deliver high levels of performance and customer service unless they also focus on the people management issues. Line managers need training to support their staff in order to help gain their trust and commitment."

Gender

• 44 per cent of women and 18 per cent of men are contracted to work fewer than 35 hours a week
• 58 per cent of women and 52 per cent of men are happy with their work-life balance
• 29 per cent of women and 19 per cent of men experience some form of bullying or harassment
• 41 per cent of women have confidence in their senior managers and 38 per cent trust them (compared to 34 per cent and 32 per cent of men)
• Women are more likely to act as advocates for their organizations - 73 per cent say they would be proud to tell people who they work for, compared to 68 per cent of men

Age

• Workers aged 55 and over are considered more engaged and less likely to take sick leave than younger employees (those under 35 are the least engaged age bracket of all those surveyed.)
• 47 per cent of employees under the age of 25 say they trust their senior management compared to just 29 per cent of those aged 45-54 and 31 per cent aged 55 and over

Despite its advanced technologies and more efficient human resource system, for human resource management in the United Kingdom to succeed some adjustments must be made in the employer-employee or employee/management-employee relationships by taking steps and making enough effort to establish a happier work environment.

Some companies are still experiencing birthing pains even after years of operation. There are a number of obstacles particularly in the field of improving and managing the human resource effectively. Human resource management situation could be far from being excellent in some companies. In some private local companies, HR department is present but not fully functional. The multinational companies sometimes fare better in the human resource department because they have management tools perfectly in place.

The past human resource practices needs to be re-examined particularly unskilled qualified man power and unproductive organizations. The issues or problems surrounding the human resource management all falls under the functions of HRM discipline. The issues confronting HR revolve around several aspects such as:

Job Analysis and Design:

This function of HR needs constant monitoring as every day has new performance implications. In some companies, the job descriptions and specifications are not properly outlined and explained. Many times people found themselves performing overlapping tasks. This creates a problem since overlapping tasks does not make the person more productive and worse, it would not lead to the achievement of the goal of the job for which the position is created.

Work Flow Process:

Work process are sometimes not given greater emphasis and not implemented well. Accomplishing a task takes longer to complete than the usual. Some processes that are not necessary to the accomplishment of the task are also done. Consequently, people end up doing more work that does not lead to the achievement of their goals. It also makes the management process seemed more complicated and time-consuming.

Recruitment and Selection:

Recruitmentcould get better with the introduction of a number of new procedures and formats for hiring and selection but it's progress could be hampered by nepotism and malpractices. Hiring should be based on the qualifications of the applicant. The person they will hire needs to come up with certain performance standards to be able to remain in the organization.

Work Environment:

Office environment should meet health and sanitation standards. In some work environment the office does not provide a hospitable working environment that encourages productivity such as lack of proper seating arrangements in rooms and ignoring cleanliness.

Hierarchy:

Hierarchy in the government sector could be a factor. In some countries, expressing the point of view to the manager can cost the employee his job. The officers in higher positions demand following of protocols complete with paraphernalia which costs money for the government. In the private sector, it is the opposite, hierarchy is sometimes ignored which results in frustration to the manager.

Performance Appraisal:

Performance appraisals can either make or break careers. Sometimes, it is not unusual to see bending or distorting of appraisal to make the report more favorable to the employee. One report could spell a huge difference in a person's career such as job promotion. Performance effectiveness often means not showing excellent performance but closer ties with the boss. The person in the higher position often does not bother to socialize with subordinates because they do not give feedback to the boss.

Reward System:

Money is often seen as the only motivator even if employees are not compensated well. The reward system could possibly motivate people or be a real "reward system" if excellent performances is recognized by being promoted in the job or incurring a higher salary. Just as bad performance should incur disciplinary measures for the employee.

Aside from these pressing issues facing the sustainable advancement of human resource, there are more issues that need to be dealt with by HR such as:

• The need to use Cost benefit analysis in management decisions to determine the feasibility of a certain project or undertaking
• The education policies should be applicable to the industrial requirements
• Choosing the right people for the right jobs
• Poor leadership
• Lack of opportunities for growth
• Low motivation
• Passive behaviors
• Management by Objectives (MBO) is not in place
• Multitasking is not practiced among employees
• Pay is not based on performance level of an employee
• Commitment level is very low
• Lack of specialists in some subjects
• Deficient research in the area
• Improper Communication with in the organization
• Inflexibility
• Wrong perceptions
• Many organizations don't have a vision on where the company is heading
• Short term vision

The former employee walks away questioning what went wrong? He or she may not have felt at peace with the administration's answer. They may have been vague about their reasons are extremely detailed. All the while, he or she may be thinking what went wrong? Questioning whether his or her actions were that bad for it to come to this. Others may feel as if there was a conspiracy to get rid of them all along. Despite the reasons, it is now an unwelcoming reality that one has to face. Therefore, how does one move on past the upset and on with looking for another job?

First, find a place of solitude after you have received the bad news. Take control of every negative emotion you must be feeling, before you share it with anyone. You do not want to discuss the recent events upset, emotional and confused. Tell yourself, “Everything happens for a reason, although I may not know exactly why, somehow I am going to make the best of this.”

Second, make a phone call to meet with a confidant. This will provide you with the opportunity to vent, get what is off your chest. He or she may be a good listener and advisor, consider what he or she is saying. State how you feel, but don't wallow in your anger, sadness or any other emotion for too long. You don't need your situation to dominate a good time with a friend and consider he or she may have their own frustrations they may want to talk about. While you are venting, there will be the temptation to say something about your former employer that even your closest confidant may have to scold you for and that is the last thing you will want to hear is an admonition or what seems to be well meaning advice. The reality is they are not experiencing what you are going through and your situation is not up for debate or criticism. Avoid people who you know have been unsupportive in the past no matter how desperate you are to make contact with someone. This is not the time to defend your thoughts, or get angry with the person whom you are confiding in that will only result in a heated argument. Later, you may feel even worse for blowing up at your confidant and will have to apologize. Remember you may need this person to help you financially, physically and/or mentally in the future; therefore watch what you say and how you say it.

Third, after you have confided in everyone you have chosen, you may be tempted to wallow in your firing. You may not start looking for a job immediately; instead, you may want to take a needed break. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that if you are doing something productive other than sitting on the couch thinking about the job, calling up former co-workers gossiping or mentioning the event every time someone makes contact with you. Utilize this time to apply for unemployment, catch up on all doctor's appointments (before your insurance runs out), meet with family and friends you haven't seen in awhile, take a class in your career field or in one you may desire. Consider taking up a hobby such as reading books, writing, singing, dancing, painting, watching TV (if you haven't been doing much of that in the past), aerobics, hiking, running and many others. However, if you aren't ready for the intense physical activity, then browse stores, walk the beach, tour museums and other places to take your mind off of things. Noticed shopping was not listed, because spending money is only a temporary fix and since you have no income coming in the last thing you need to do is have money going out. Be sure to take care of your necessities and save as much money as you can, because unemployment doesn't last forever and can be cut off before you know it.

During this time of rest and relaxation, your motivation to get back in the workforce will be challenged. Who wants to return back to work, when someone is helping you financially, the beach keeps calling your name and you have enjoyed waking up without an alarm clock? As nice as all of this sounds, it is only temporary and if you don't want your free time to come to a crashing halt, dedicate hours each day, like you would working a part-time job, applying for jobs. However, before you begin your search you will need to know whether you would like to stay in the same career field, switch to another or just find a job that is not challenging in the least and will only provide you with a paycheck.

Find out how much others are making in your occupation, what are the latest skills in demand, create your cover letters and tailor your resume for each job that isn't in your career field. Too often people will send the same general resume to every employer and wonder why no one is calling them back. You may have too much information on your resume for what is required or not enough. Consider the following as you job search checklist:

• Have different resumes for different career fields.
• Join online databases that send employment classifieds directly to your email.
• Sign up for a subscription to a newspaper.
• Register with a temporary agency.
• Check with family and friends to see what they know.
• Purchase office supplies such as ink for your printer and/or fax machine, mailing labels, impressive envelopes and quality white paper, and stamps.

Create a mailing list of employers that may or may not be hiring. Print addresses on mailing labels. Send a letter along with your resume requesting that they consider including you in their database for a future job opening. Of course, you can always pick a great location nearby your neighborhood and work one or two part-time jobs. The advantage to this is you will not be stuck at one location everyday, more money can be made this way, and some stores offer great perks.

Depending on how much money you have in savings, you may think about starting a business from home. A successful business doesn't become that way if you don't have the necessary tools to make it happen. Spend the time reading about what type of business you would like to start, how to develop a business plan so that you will know what to expect in the future, where you can get additional money to get it started, and any other information that will help you make a determination on whether this is a good time to start it or not.

Lastly, while you wait for responses from employers, be sure that you can be contacted. If you have a single phone line with no call waiting, you may want to have your cell phone number and email address on every cover letter, resume and/or business card you send out. Don't become discouraged when week three passes by and you still haven't heard from anyone. Instead, you will need to change the way you have been marketing yourself. Request a person knowledgeable in cover letters and resumes to review yours. Search the Internet, ask for comments from a job headhunter, or purchase a book that will provide you with tips on how to best edit it. Asking a family member or friend isn't the best way to get an unbiased opinion; therefore don't request their opinions unless they know about your industry. Be sure that you have tried every way to market yourself. Have you posted a classified of the services you can offer to your community? Have you sent a mass mailing out to employers rather than just two or three resumes? Did you include yourself in a variety of databases both on and offline such as visiting temporary agencies also known as headhunters? Did you send copies of your resumes to people who would be willing to help you market yourself? When did you last follow up with an employer about your resume (are you keeping record)? Are you allowing yourself to be reachable?

When you do hear from a prospective employer, be sure that you are prepared! You have the business attire picked out that you will be wearing, updated copies of your resume (error free and readable,) list of references, a social security card and an updated id or driver's license, copies of any necessary certification or medical information, samples of your work that is related to the position, and a nice briefcase or similar business accessory.

Think about the kinds of questions you may be asked during the interview, and turn every negative event you have ever had at any job into a positive one. For instance, when asked what would you consider one of your weaknesses? Your answer may be, “Not knowing when to go home, I become very engrossed in my projects and my former bosses have had to cut the lights off on me.” The employer will be watching for signs of mental stability, whether you are responsible, truthful, positive, professional, goal oriented, loyal, and many other attributes that will convince them that you will be an asset to their organization. Put your best foot forward!