BSc Management (Accounting and Finance)

The Employment Relations and Human Resource Management course unit examines work, employment and the management of people within its wider social and economic context. A core focus in the course will be the British experience of these issues but wider European and global developments will also be assessed. The central theme of the course is the employment relationship, with a focus on the academic and practical nature of employment relations and human resource management (HRM), including the objectives and methods of the actors within employment relations and HRM; workers, trade unions, management/employers and governments/the state. The development of and relationship between employment relations and HRM, and the tensions between the two academic fields and areas of practice, will be assessed to develop theoretical knowledge of the study of the employment relationship. The approach is both descriptive and analytical, and draws on some concepts that students will have encountered in first-year foundation courses.

None

The course unit aims to develop students’ knowledge and understanding of work, employment and human resource management within its wider social and economic context, combining strong academic foundations with practical insights of relevance to future careers involving the management of people.

• Introduction to the fields of employment relations and HRM 
• The changing nature of labour markets, employment relations and HRM  
• The role of the state in the employment relationship  
• Management, HRM and the employment relationship   
• Changing trade union influence, membership levels and union ‘renewal’  

20 hours lectures; 10 hours Seminars. 
Independent study: 170.  
Notional hours of learning: 200 hours

• Identify the factors which shape the nature and content of the employment relationship, e.g. management strategies; HRM policies and practices; government policies; trade union activities; economic and labour market conditions. 
• Appraise the nature of the objectives and methods adopted by the various parties who seek to influence the content and dynamics of the employment relationship (employers and HR managers, trade unions, employees and the state). 

• Analyse and critically assess the policies and practices of various interest groups (e.g. employers, unions and the state) e.g. HRM; collective bargaining; state regulation of employment rights; union-management partnership; union organising; industrial action. 
• Examine and critically assess current trends and issues in employment relations and HRM. 

• Use of library, electronic and online resources

• Demonstrate ability to independently gather, sift, synthesise and organise material from various sources (including library, electronic and online resources), and to critically evaluate its significance.

Formative:
Essay– optional formative assignment

Summative:
Individual Essay (100%)

Formative:
An individual feedback form will be returned to each student and this can discussed one-to-one prior to the final summative essay deadline

Summative:
As per school guidelines on summative written work 

Bingham C. Employment Relations : Fairness and Trust in the Workplace . Second edition. SAGE; 2023. https://read.kortext.com  

Williams S. Introducing Employment Relations : A Critical Approach . Fifth edition. Oxford University Press; 2020.  

Farnham, D. (2015) The Changing Faces of Employment Relations: Global, comparative and theoretical perspectives. Palgrave.  

Colling T and T. Work, the Employment Relationship and the Field of Industrial Relations. 3rd ed. (Terry Mike, ed.). Wiley; 2010. 

Pre-requisites: None
Co-requisites: None
Dependent courses: None

Programme Restrictions: BSc Management / Management (specialism), IM and Accounting

Core to BSc Management (Human Resources) specialism

 

Tuition fees for home students will be £10,050 for the 2027/28 academic year. In England and Wales, tuition fees for home undergraduate students are subject to the Government fee cap, which the Government has announced will be £10,050 for the 2027/28 academic year.

Government policy is to increase the fee cap on an annual basis to reflect inflation (i.e. increasing costs), and the tuition fee home students pay in subsequent academic years will reflect any increases in the Government fee cap (which we will communicate to you as soon as we can in advance of the relevant academic year).

Tuition fees for international students will be £35,300 for the 2027/28 academic year. For subsequent academic years, the University reserves the right to increase the tuition fee by up to 7% each year, including to reflect rising costs associated with delivering our education and wider student experience.

For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

We know that student finance can be complicated. The links below provide further information to help guide you.

Learn more about student finance options for UK students.

Learn more about fees and finance for international students.

As an international student you may be eligible for our Global Futures Scholarships . This is open to students starting their studies in September 2027.