Case study - CANADA POST
Canada Post Corporation employs 67,000 workers, which makes it one of Canada's largest employers. In 1997, it revised its job evaluation system for postmasters and assistants. The old system, which had been in place since 1976, did not take into account changes that had arisen since 1981, when Canada Post became a Crown corporation.
An HR consulting firm, Watson Wyatt Worldwide, was hired to assist with the entire process. According to Linda Tremblay of Organization Planning and Development, Canada Post, the job evaluation system was revised to incorporate employee input, to be responsive to federal pay equity legislation, and, most importantly, to reflect corporate culture and values.
The new job evaluation system measured the content and relative value of jobs. The system evaluated jobs according to their "typical" or "normal" components-that is, tasks that were done on a regular basis. These compensable factors were a function of the job itself, not of the performance of the person doing the job.Thefour factors considered and their relative weights were as follows:
A: Responsibilities-What type of responsibilities does the job entail? 60 percent
B: Skills-What particular skills are needed to accomplish the job? 25 percent
C: Working conditions-What working conditions apply to the job? 11 percent
D: Effort-What amount of effort does the job require? 4 percent
An Example of An Item under C: Working Conditions
This factor measures the surroundings or physical conditions under which work must be done and the extent to which they make the job disagreeable. Consider whether elements such as those listed are present and the relative amount and continuity of exposure:
Place a checkmark beside all those that apply listed are present and the relative amount and continuity of exposure:
Place a checkmark beside all those that apply:
• Adverse weather conditions
• Confined work
Dirt/dust
Fumes
Inadequate lighting
• Lack of privacy
• Noisy conditions
• Temperature extremes
• Verbal abuse/public harassment
• Other
Job evaluation criteria, such as in the above example, were used in each of the four areas and aresummerised below.
JOB EVALUATION CRITERIA
Compensable Factors Components
Responsibilities -Internal andexternalcontacts
Decision making
Supervision of employees
Responsibility for property maintenance
Responsibility for rural routes, suburban stage service
Points of call
Responsibility for contractor invoices
Responsibility for a till and/or authorized allowance
Skills -Knowledge areas (such as budget process, collective agreement,
- contacted services in mail operations or property management,
- financial practices, procedures knowledge, product knowledge,
- primary sortation, Final sortation, sales and customer service
- Job-related Experience
Working conditions - Physical work environment
- Travel
Effort -Physical effort
- Multiple demands
Employees completed the job evaluation questionnaire for their own jobs. The completed questionnaires were reviewed by supervisors, managers, and HR staff. Total points were then allocated to each job, which corresponded to one of six job bands. Collective agreement negotiations were used to set the rates of pay for each job band.
Questions-
1. What type of job evaluation did Canada Post use?
2. What are the advantages and limitations of this system?
3. Is you were asked to review both the questionnaire and the process used to obtain the job information, what recommendations for
changes would you make?