Studying for the PHR Exam-Week 8

Last week, with all of the festivities, I was not able to study as often as I would have liked. My wife wrangled me into doing home improvements for the weekend, so the computer (and the practice exams) were not available. However, I was able to catch up over the weekend with almost all of the chapter on Employee and Labor Relations in the PHR/SPHR Study Guide. As strange as it may seem, I really enjoyed reading this chapter! I was reading it like it was an exciting story that I just couldn't put down.

A New resource

With the general busyness of the week, I didn't have much time to do outside research. However, I stumbled across hrVillage a while back and didn't have time to check it out. I looked it over this morning, and it seems to be chock full of information on just about every conceivable human resources topic! The "About" page at hrVillage says their mission is "To become the premier Internet portal for human resources professionals and businesses seeking human resources information and support."

I really like their book recommendations for the different categories of human resources. At the book recommendation link, they show their top choices of books for each functional area of the human resource professional's body of knowledge. After I finish with my PHR studies, I would like to check back and purchase some of the books here to supplement my overall knowledge of human resources concepts.

Just the Facts, Ma'am

This week I studied Employee and Labor Relations. Employee and Labor Relations makes up about 22% of the total PHR exam weight. In the Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI) PHR practice test, I scored 50% on this section.

According to the PHR study guide, the Total Rewards section of the PHR exam tests the human resources professional's knowledge of:

1) Applicable federal, state and local laws affecting employment in union and nonunion environments, such as antidiscrimination laws, sexual harassment, labor relations, and privacy (for example, WARN Act, Title VII, NLRA)

2) Techniques for facilitating positive employee relations (for example, employee surveys, focus groups, dispute resolution, labor/management cooperative strategies and programs

3) Employee involvement strategies (for example, employee management committees, self-directed work teams, staff meetings)

4) Individual employment rights issues and practices (for example, employment at will, negligent hiring, defamation, employees' rights to bargain collectively)

5) Unfair labor practices (for example, employee communication strategies and management training)

6) The collective bargaining process, strategies, concepts, and human resources' role

My Take on the Material

At this point in my PHR study sessions, it looks like I have abandoned my human resources management textbook in favor of the more comprehensive and subject-relevant PHR Study Guide. I was afraid that I would be focusing too much on information that wasn't useful in my study sessions for the professional in human resources certification exam, because the human resources management textbook was not written solely for the purpose of preparing the reader for the PHR exam.

As I said before, I really enjoyed reading the Employee and Labor Relations section of the PHR study material. That is somewhat surprising, because the topic can be as dull as watching paint dry (and after a few days of painting, I finally know just how bad that really is). However, in my formal human resources education, I took a class called Labor Management Relations that I enjoyed very much.

My professor had spent time in management working in human resources as a barrier to union organization in the company. He was an expert in the area of employee and labor relations management. After retiring from the private sector and joining the public sector as an educator, he joined the National Education Association (a union organization). He laughed about the issue, because he had become a part of something that he had worked tirelessly to prevent earlier in his life.

When I had to study the topic of unions in college, I came to my own conclusions about their necessity and effects on business in our country. At first, they were necessary to correct imbalances in power due to overbearing management and bad business policy. However, over time, they have grown more and more powerful, and they now are squeezing the life from the companies they are supposed to be working with (Big Three, anyone?). While they were once a necessary component of the business world, they are now outdated. Something else to keep in mind: unionization is now higher in the government sector than in any other.

Do That "HR Thing"

I'm really enjoying this study of human resources (and I hope I continue to after the PHR exam goes by)! I have more than a half dozen people email me for information, tips, or suggestions about studying for the PHR exam, and I was more than happy to answer each one of them personally. If anyone else has something they would like to ask about the PHR exam or human resources in general, please feel free to comment. I am rapidly getting more and more knowledgeable about the entire PHR study process, and I know more about human resources and human resources management now than I ever have.

Next week I wrap up this little section with Employee and Labor Relations Part 2 of 2. Stay tuned!