The
demand for labour is derived from production and distribution activities
in the goods and service sectors (Bloom & Humair, 2010). Its size
and shape are sensitive to what happens in the national economy
(Dabalen, Oni & Adekola, 2000). Onwioduokit (2008) explained that
the demand for labour is a derived demand since labour is demanded
because of a demand for goods. Demand for labour is directly affected by
the cost of labour and the productivity. There is an inverse
relationship between the demand for labour and the wage rate. Law of
diminishing marginal product states that as successive units of one
input (labour) are added to a fixed amount of another input (capital), a
level of total production is reached beyond which the marginal product
of labour declines. The short-run demand for labour is determined by the
marginal revenue product for labour curve. According to Onwioduokit
(2008), the economic theory postulated that labour demand, in the long
run, is driven by output, the (relative) cost of labour and capacity
utilisation. When output increases, more units of the inputs have to be
used. If the production structure is fixed, inputs will grow at the same
rate as output, so that each input remains a constant ratio to output.
Additionally, employment can also be determined by the (relative) price
of the labour and capacity utilisation. Although an increase in output
is usually linked to an increase in inputs, this is only necessary but
not sufficient condition.
In a well-functioning labour
market, the demand of labour is inversely related to its price. The
higher the price of labour, the lower its demand, the relative price of
labour (the price of labour relative to that of other inputs such as
capital), can also change the demand for labour by inspiring the more
concentrated use of the relatively cheapest input. In other words,
relatively cheap capital will prompt firms to be more capital-intensive
while relatively cheap labour will necessitate more labour-intensity.
Labour demand is a derived demand when hiring labour is not desired for
its own sake but rather because it aids in producing output which
contributes to an employer's revenue and hence profits. The demand for
an additional amount of labour depends on the Marginal Revenue Product
(MRP) and the marginal cost (MC) of the worker. The MRP is calculated by
multiplying the price of the end product or service by the Marginal
Physical Product (MPP) of the worker. If the MRP is greater than a
firm's Marginal Cost (MC), then the firm will employ the worker since
doing so will increase profit. The firm only employs however up to the
point where MRP=MC, and not beyond, in economic theory (Onwioduokit,
2008).
On the other hand, labour demand is termed as
synonymous to manpower requirement. Manpower requirement, according to
Cole (2005), is the number of people required to do a certain job.
Folayan (2006) submitted that manpower requirement is estimating future
needs for people and competencies by reference to corporate and
functional plans and forecast the future activity levels. It is the
process of calculating approximately the future numbers of essential
manpower and the likely skills and competencies they will need. Louis
(2005) opined that manpower requirement is a process to determine how
many and what type of workers the organization need to achieve its
objective. The number of manpower needed in an organization according to
Heinz (2006) depends not only on its size but also on the complexity of
the organization structure. Numbers of manpower required in an
organization are not only the point but also the qualification of
individual positions must be identified so that the best manpower could
be chosen. Cole (2005) and Folayan (2006) identified various ways of how
manpower requirement can be carried out. These include;
1.
managerial judgment: This implies that the manager sits down, think
about the future organization, work-loads and then decide how many
people they need. Therefore, every manger in the light of his knowledge
of events, personnel as well as his own managerial responsibility draws
up and estimates requirements before submitting to senior personnel for
review.
2. work study techniques: This can be used when it is
possible to apply work measurement to calculate how long operation
should take and the number of people required. Folayan (2006) suggested
that this has to do with task that are capable of realistic measurement
such as manuals and clerical operations.
3. statistical technique:
This technique is usually the concern of research organization and
government statistician. However, many organizations make use of
analyses of labour turnover and labour stability.
Louis
(2005) referred to manpower supply as the availability of workers with
the required skills to meet the firm labour demand. According to Folayan
(2006), manpower supply is the source of filling the requirement
establishment skills, inventory, management inventory and anticipated
changes in presently employed personnel and their forecasted status is
analyzed and compared with the gross manpower requirement. Cole (2005)
expressed that in assessing the supply of labour available to an
organization, there are two areas to be reviewed which are the existing
workforce and the supply of potential employees. In analyzing the supply
of manpower, answers need to be sought to questions such as;
(i) What categories of staff do we have?
(ii) What are the numbers in each category?
(iii) What about age and sex distribution within the categories?
(iv) What skills and qualification exist?
(v) How many staff are suitable for promotion or re-deployment?
(vi) How successfully are we in recruiting particular categories of staff? (p. 42)
When considering the existing supply of manpower available to the
organization, it is not just considering the numbers and categories at a
particular point in time. It is also considering the organization’s
ability to continue to attract suitably recruits into its various
operations and the rate at which employees are leaving the organization.
Drawing up plans to balance manpower required and manpower supply is
very essential to meet future manpower needs. This begins with an
assessment of present capabilities they build on and what is available
to achieve this manpower inventory (Folayan, 2006).
Academic Qualifications
According to European Parliament and Council of the European Union
(2008), qualification is a formal outcome of an assessment and
validation process which is obtained when a competent body determines
that an individual has achieved learning outcomes to a given standard.
Also, qualifications are carriers of information and value (currencies)
extensively influencing the way individuals and education or training as
well as labour market institutions interact with another (Cedecop,
2009). A qualification is expressed in a formal document (certificate,
degree, diploma or award) which is based on norms and specifications
applying to the following aspects of qualifications;
(a)
occupation standards may specify the main jobs that people do,
describing the professional tasks and activities as well as the
competences typical of an occupation. Occupation standards answer the
question ‘what do the students need to be able to do in employment?’
(b)
education standards may define the expected outcomes of the learning
process, leading to the award of a qualification, the study programme in
terms of content, learning objectives and timetable as well as teaching
methods and learning settings, such as in-company or school-based
learning. Educational standards answer question ‘what does the student
need to learn to be effective in employment?’
(c) assessment
standards may specify the object of assessment, performance criteria,
assessment methods and the composition of the job entitled to award the
qualification. Assessment standards answer question ‘how do you know
what the student has learned and is able to do in employment?’
(Mansfield, 2001: 11).
The term qualification helps to clarify
what can be considered as the separate building blocks of a
qualification as follows;
(a) learning outcomes: a qualification
must clarify what the holder is expected to know, be able to do and
understand. A qualification’s relevance to future recipients depends on
its ability to signal learning outcomes clearly.
(b) assessment
and validation process: a qualification must be based on reliable and
valid assessment procedures which are able to capture the essence of the
knowledge, skills and competences held by an individual learner;
(c)
need for standards: standards are critical to qualifications as they
define what a learner is expected to know, be able to or understand.
Standards can be seen as the reference point around which the entire
qualification process turns. Standards are also critical for relevance
of the qualification to future users (for example, in labour market) as
they define the level and profile to be achieved.
(d) recognition
process: a qualification is a ‘paper of value’ and its currency depends
on a formal stamp of approval or recognition. Recognition can be seen as
the final step in the qualification process confirming that the process
has been appropriately carried out and that the qualification can be
trusted (Cedecop, 2009: 9).
The qualification enables its
holder to prove competences, skills and experience and it gives the
recipients, the employer, a trusted basis on which to judge the
qualified person’s labour market value. This means that a qualification
is not seen as characteristic of a person in the sense of competence but
is seen as the tangible outcome of a qualification process. In this
sense, qualification represents a kind of currency accepted with what
has been called a ‘zone mutual trust’. Qualification standards are
powerful coordination mechanism for improving the match between demand
and provision of education, training and learning (Cedecop, 2009).
Qualifications are situated at the interface between the worlds of work
and of education. They are awarded as the result of a learning process
to be used on labour market. Accordingly, the award of a qualification
can be based on regulation of the learning process or on labour market
requirement.
Area of Specialization
Area of specialization is
expressed as academic discipline aimed at limiting the freedom of
individuals and as a way of constraining discourses (Bridges, 2006).
There is more to the discipline than the subject taught in an academic
setting. Bridges (2006) enumerated a whole list of criteria and
characteristics which indicate whether a subject is indeed a distinct
discipline or not. Thus:
(a) disciplines have a particular object of research (Law, Society, Politics, Education, Management and so on);
(b)
disciplines have a body of accumulated specialist knowledge referring
to their object of research which is specific to them and not generally
shared with another discipline;
(c) disciplines have theories and concepts that can organise the accumulated specialist knowledge effectively;
(d)
disciplines use specific terminologies or a specific technical language
adjusted to their specific research requirements and
(e)
disciplines must have some institutional manifestation in the form of
subjects taught at universities or colleges, respective academic
departments and professional associations connected to it (p. 268).
