In view of the increasing size of our transport business
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we have it in mind to appoint a person to be responsible for the personnel function. He would be responsible for preliminary interviewing and staff selection, setting job specifications, dealing with training and also be involved with industrial relations in looking into productivity schemes, wage rates and so on. The person we have in mind is already on our staff but he obviously needs further training. What do you recommend?
ASuccess in this important function
depends as much on tact and experience as on any other quality, and you must realize that your new man cannot acquire these on a training course. But there is a vast amount of literature and training available on the subject particularly since the Industrial Training Act and Industrial Relations Act went on the Statute Book. As you are in transport the obvious place to start is with the Road Transport Industry Training Board, which provides two courses likely to be of interest to you.
A three-day course on recruitment and selection is available at the RTITB's Motec which, on completion, should enable the trainee to be able to produce personnel specifications based on job descriptions and be competent to conduct employment interviews.
A much longer course is available for training officers which prepares the trainee for carrying out training analysis, instructional lecturing, using training aids, interviewing and so on.
The Department of Employment can also provide useful literature on labour relations, as can the TUC.
If a professional qualification is desired there is an institute of Personnel Management, which claims to be the professional body "for all concerned with managing the human resources of organizations-.
Details of the RTITB courses can be obtained from the Board at Capitol House, Empire Way. Wembley, Middx. and of the Institute at 5 Winsley Street, Oxford Circus, London WIN 7A0.
There are, of course, many text books on personnel management available from libraries and bookshops.
n I believe a document has been published giving details of some of the transport provisions agreed at various meetings of European Ministers of Transport. Can you tell me what this document is? A You are probably referring to European
Rules Concerning Road Traffic Signs and Signals which is an explanation of the provision contained in the Convention of Road Traffic and the Convention on Road Signs and Signals, Vienna, November 8 1968, and the European Agreements supplementing these conventions, Geneva. May 1971.
The text of the booklet is in two parts covering road traffic regulations and road signs and signals. Under the former section are covered such items as recommended driving techniques — passing, speed and distance between vehicles, position on the road etc — audible and luminous warnings, loading of vehicles, accident procedures, lighting, vehicle registration, driving permits and technical requirements for vehicles. The section on road signs illustrates and explains all the road signs in use together with directions as to where such signs should be placed. This is of less interest to transport operators.
The publication is issued by the European Conference of Ministers of Transport together with many other booklets on various aspects of European transport policy. An annual report and resolutions of the Council of Ministers is also published. The secretariat of the ECIV1T is at 33 rue de Franqueville. Paris 16.