HR Dictionary

Behavioural interview - an interview technique that uses a three staged question to try to gauge the usual behaviour of the applicant in a particular circumstance i.e. "Can you tell me about a time when you had competing priorities and you had to find a way to manage all the tasks within the alotted time period. How did you do it and what was the result?"

Closed ended questions - questions that get 'yes' or 'no' answers

Compassionate leave - formly known as bereavement leave, compassionate leave is presently allowed in relation to the death of immediate family member or household for 2 days per occassion. NB. Compassionate leave policy is available at the HR Shed

Contractor - Independent contractor is employed to perform a specific job or work for a specific length of time as opposed to an employee who has a permanent employment contract. Contractors may choose to take or decline a job

Contractor safety - Contractors have a right to be safe and free from harm on work sites. The employer has a duty of care to provide a safe and healthy work environment as far as reasonably practicable to contractors and should also assess the OHS understanding and safety processes of contractors that work on their sites.

Cover letter - A letter that is sent with a resume or CV from an applicant. The letter should address selection criteria listed in the advertisement and be a brief overview of why the applicant believes they are suitable for the role.

Disengagement - where an employee may bad mouth the employer, be disgruntled, act in contempt or against company policy and really not want to work in the position or company that they work in

Employee Engagement - where an employee values, feels enjoyment for and believes in the work that they do and the organisation they work for

Flexibility - flexibility in the workplace may mean allowing changes in hours of work, patterns of work, location of work to meet the needs of those who require flexible working conditions. The government introduced Flexible Working Arrangements as part of the National Employment Standards in 2010

Job Offer - employers will make a job offer either verbally or in writing to a successful applicant. The applicant should always get the verbal offer in writing to make sure the offer is what they have agreed to. NB. Letter of Offer template is available at the HR Shed

Maternity Leave - this leave became parental leave several years ago as either the father or mother are able to access unpaid parental leave if they meet the conditions under Australian law. Paid parental leave is coming in 2011 NB. Parental leave policy is available at the HR Shed

Orientation/Induction - the process of introducing the new employee to the workplace. Orientation should include a health and safety induction to ensure the employee understands how to do their job in a safe manner. NB. Online induction programs are part of the HR Intranet

Parental leave - see maternity leave above

Recruitment - the process of attracting, screening and selecting suitable employees to work for the organisation

Redundancy - when a position is made redundant in that it is no longer needed within the organisation, whether that be for financial, operational or restructuring reasons. It is best to check that you meet the Genuine Redundancy guidelines when making a position redundant. These can be found at http://www.fairwork.gov.au

Reference letter - a letter provided by the employer after termination (by either party) of employment. A reference letter should outline the key capabilities of the employee, the time frame they worked for the company and the name of the position they worked in

Resignation - when an employee resigns from their job. NB You should always get a resignation in writing to ensure no follow up legal action is taken by an employee claiming unfair dismissal

Shortlisting - the process of creating a short list of suitable candidates to interview. This is usually done by assessing applications against selection criteria (either formally written or assumed)

Termination - this used to be known as 'firing' an employee. Termination refers to the conclusion of an employees employment with the organisation. It can be due to poor performance or a position being made redundant