SA Journal of Human Resource Management

ISSN: (Online) 2071-078X, (Print) 1683-7584

Page 1 of 14 Original Research

Exploring the use and influence of human resource

policies within South African municipalities

Orientation: There is a gap between the administrative expertise held by the human resource (HR)
function and the delivery of services.
Research purpose: The purpose of this article was to explore the perceptions of both the HR
managers
e Management, Faculty of Economic Management Sciences, and employees,
North-West on how HR policies
University, Potchefstroom, are communicated and experienced, respectively, within
South Africa
South African municipalities.
Motivation for the study: To help policy users within the South African municipalities gain deeper
awareness and understanding of the influence their use of HR policies has on employees’ morale and
performance within the workplace.
Research approach/design and method: This qualitative study utilised an interpretivist paradigm
and a qualitative descriptive strategy. A convenience, quota, purposive and inclusion criteria sample
comprising three HR managers (n = 3) and 12 employees (n = 12) was used. Semi-structured, face-to-
face interviews were conducted and analysed by employing thematic analysis.
Main findings: The findings of the study indicated that HR managers experience a lack of clear
guidance
an resource policies within South African municipalities. from
SA Journal draft recruitment-and-selection
of Human Resource policy and draft learning-and- development policy, and
ur, 19(0), employees experience challenges with regards to the lack of communication on performance
management.
Practical/managerial implications: This study promotes fairness and equality during the use of the
three mentioned HR policies in order to provide all employees with the necessary developmental
censed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.
opportunities within municipalities.
Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the body of knowledge concerning the
establishment of a municipal culture that values human capital, prioritises the growth and well-being
of employees and understands the valuable link between human resource management and service
delivery.
Keywords: human resource policies; South African municipalities; recruitment and selection;
learning and development; performance management; AMO theory.

Introduction
Municipalities are a sphere of the government body situated closest to the people (Schwella, Botha, Brand,
Engelbrecht, & Eijbergen, 2015). Swift transformations within South African municipalities over the past
25 years have placed strong emphasis on employees within these organisations to be capacitated with the
necessary skills and competencies that help them meet the vast demands of South African citizens (Cloete,
Eigelaar-Meets, Fortuin, & Sewell, 2016). However, in order for this intention to realise, human resources
(HR) within municipalities have to be managed efficiently (Cloete et al., 2016). Human resources are a
complex and important resource within organisations. Therefore, HR should be managed in close
relationship with the organisation’s strategy to gain a clear and structured competitive advantage (Rees &
Smith, 2017). Effective human resource management (HRM) and development can help improve the
municipality’s organisational performance, thereby ensuring quality service delivery to its communities
(Cloete et al., 2016).

Human resource policies coordinate knowledge in the interplay of the employee, job and the organisation
(Legge, 1995). In a well-managed organisation, the performance management system holds managers
Read online:
accountable for applying the principles of the organisation (Meyer, 2016). Tinti, Venelli-Costa, Vieira and
Scan this QR
code with your Cappelloza (2017) argued that HR policies are necessary to manage people at work, specifically in
ad online: smart phone or functions such as hiring, training, evaluation, remuneration and the provision of a sound and secure
mobile
an this QR code with your smart phone or device environment
mobile device to read online. for company employees. Investments in HR
to read online.

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 Page 2 of 14 Original Research

policies such as recruitment and selection, training and 2010). Khambule (2018) concurred by stating that weakening
development (TD) and performance management have clear gains. institutional ability and arrangements within municipalities take
Such policies boost the pro-environmental behaviour within the place through political interference, lack of efficient bureaucracy
organisation, thereby benefiting the reputation and financial and gross corruption. The consequences of inefficient service
performance of the firm (Pham, Tuckova, & Jabbour, 2018). delivery are profound. Therefore, it is important that the causes of
such deficiency should be understood (Siddle & Koelble, 2012). A
However, there are administrative dysfunctions and deficiencies prominent issue faced by local government is the lack of capacity.
within the municipalities, which have resulted in protest marches The main issue that is a concern for municipalities is appointing
and damage to property within communities (Thornhill & Cloete, unqualified staff, particularly at a senior level. The associated
2014). Consequently, municipalities, as nodal points of service problems are cadre deployment, staff retention and incompetent
delivery, find it challenging to manage the growing demands by staff. Local government is unable to meet citizens’ demands
communities for improved services. Public servants are tasked to because of inherent incapacities to plan for development with
make and implement public policy, which would deliver sufficient major inabilities attributed to the lack of capacity within
services to the public; however, current management research municipalities. Moreover, insufficiencies in the skills of
appears far removed from the world of practice, being overly practitioners, lack of understanding of local economies and a lack
theoretical and abstract (Cloete et al., 2016). Therefore, the present of integration between local authorities, communities and the
study aims to gain an understanding of HR policy implementation business community further perpetuate the administrative
through the views of both managers and employees, in hopes of dysfunctions within municipalities (Mashamaite & Lethoko,
promoting commitment, accountability and effective use of HR 2018).
policies within South African municipalities.

Strategic human resource

Research purpose and objectives management
The purpose of this article was to explore the use and influence of
HR policies within municipalities. The objectives of the study Human resource management is described as the management of
were to (1) ascertain how HR policies (recruitment and selection, work and people to attain desired outcomes. As a consequence of
learning and development [L&D], and performance management) their drive to act more strategically, organisations have focused on
are communicated to employees by the HR department within the strategic HRM (Rees & Smith, 2017). Although the definition for
municipalities, strategic HRM is more complex, HR strategies aim to align the
(2) determine the challenges experienced during the organisation’s objectives, HR policies and programmes with
implementation of these HR policies, (3) determine how strategic business unit plans (Rees & Smith, 2017).
employees are informed about these implemented HR policies, (4)
ascertain the experience of employees on the ways these HR According to Greer (1995), strategic HRM can be perceived as the
policies are implemented within municipalities and (5) determine endeavour to link HR policies and practices to an explicit strategy,
what challenges employees experience as a result of which subsequently connects to the organisational strategy.
management’s implementation of these HR policies. Strategic HRM, consequently, entails long-term, top-level
management decisions and actions about the organisation’s HR
architecture. The latter is constructed and executed in a way that
Literature review is integrated fully with the organisation’s overall general strategic
South African local government management (Swanepoel, Erusmus, Van Wyk, & Schenk, 2003). It
can therefore be surmised that strategic HR is an approach that
South Africa is regarded as a developmental and democratic state centres on longer-term resourcing of organisational goals as well
that builds its legitimacy on its capacity to encourage concurrent as progressive essence of work, whilst integrating other HR
production and economic activities as well as economic growth. strategies into the overall business strategy (CIPD, 2019a).
The aim is to reduce poverty and improve the living conditions of
its people (National Capacity-building Framework, 2008). In order
to achieve this, local government is given the critical role by the Human resource policies
Constitution to develop South African citizens’ living conditions According to the Makhuduthamaga Municipality (2008),
through quality service delivery (Constitution of the Republic of municipalities have over 30 HR policies, which are grouped in
South Africa, 1996). However, despite immense responsibility terms of several HR functions. These policies regulate aspects
placed on South African local government, in many respects, such as employment equity, leave, recruitment, selection and
municipalities are failing to fulfil this responsibility (Siddle & retention as well as employment benefits and conditions. The
Koelble, 2012). policies also focus on issues such as education, training and
development (ETD), health and welfare as well as labour relations.
The performance of numerous municipalities across the country However, the CIPD (2019b) encourages organisations to focus
has demonstrated huge deficiencies in fulfilling both their more on an adapted policy mixture, in order to create
constitutional and legislative obligations (Koma,

http://www.sajhrm.co.za Open Access

sustainable and successful relationships between employees and South Africa’s socioeconomic development and growth (DHET,
the particular organisation, instead of what has worked for other 2010). Despite the previously mentioned benefits, organisational
organisations. The present study focused particularly on three HR actors (line managers, HR department and employees) continue to
policies, namely recruitment and selection, L&D and performance work in silos instead of collaborating, thereby preventing
management. municipalities from meeting their defined development objectives
(Cloete et al., 2016). This results in low employee empowerment
Recruitment and selection and inadequate incentive structures. To rectify these deficiencies
seems to be a significant point within the HRD agenda for policy
Recruitment and selection can be defined as the process of implementation (Umashev & Willett, 2008).
encouraging people to apply for jobs in an organisation in order to
establish a pool of suitably qualified and experienced applicants
from whom one or more employees can be selected (Hunter, Performance management
2012). Demo, Neiva, Nunes and Rozzett (2012) view such policies Performance management has a strong component focusing on
as organisational propositions to seek out employees, stimulate training and developing employees. General performance
them to apply and select them and then harmonise the person’s management allows managers to focus on the key tasks and goals.
competencies with the characteristics and demands of the Such management provides a systematic basis for identifying and
organisation. A number of factors affect the manner in which the solving related problems and encourages the development of
recruitment and selection policy is applied within and outside the people in the organisation (Hunter, 2012). Performance
organisation. The actual content and statement of intent of such a management policies aim to implement strategy within the
policy dictate the recruitment efforts within the organisation (Nel organisation. Such a strategy is a vehicle for cultural change and
et al., 2011). Legislation affects the implementation of these provides input to other HR systems such as development and
policies. For example, the South African Labour Acts prohibit remuneration (Nel et al., 2011). Literature on HR policy and
discriminating against applicants on the basis of factors such as development highlights the need for an integrated approach to
race, religion or age. Therefore, organisations should consider manage performance as a critical factor in the successful
these regulations closely when drawing up job advertisements improvement of any service delivery (Harris, 2005). It is crucial
(Hunter, 2012). A company with a favourable reputation for to establish integrative and well-understood performance processes
practising fairness and equality, and providing a supportive that encourage a ‘whole-system’ approach. Such an approach
working environment, attracts a higher quality pool of employees identifies organisational priorities, and provides clarity about
(Kleynhans, Markham, Meyer, Van Aswegen, & Pilbeam, 2009). required actions and the meaning for individuals at different levels
of the organisation (White, 2000). Therefore, it is important to
Learning and development understand how performance management policies are used within
organisations (Bhuyan, Jorgensen, & Sharma, 2010; Mthethwa,
Learning and development is an organisational strategy that 2012).
communicates the organisation’s mandatory workforce
capabilities, skills or competencies, and how these components
can be developed to ensure a sustainable and successful The use of human resource
organisation (Hunter, 2012). The term ETD (or TD) is used to
describe the practices that directly and indirectly promote and policies
support learning, whilst human resource development (HRD) Policy implementation refers to the mechanisms, resources and
refers to the various processes, systems, methods, procedures and relationships that link policies to programme action (Mthethwa,
programmes an organisation employs to develop its human 2012). Implementation, more specifically, means the carrying out,
resources, thereby equipping its employees and helping them accomplishing, fulfilling, producing and completing of a given
contribute to the organisation’s performance (Meyer, 2016). The task (Mthethwa, 2012). It is often assumed that once a policy has
link between these concepts is that ETD provides short- and been formulated, it will be implemented readily. Such an
medium-term interventions to ensure that the long- term goals of assumption may be valid for First World nations, but not for
HRD are achieved (Meyer, 2016). Several governments prefer the policies formulated in many Third World nations. In the latter
term ETD for their HRD practices. However, consistent with countries, governments tend to formulate broad, sweeping policies
international trends, the South African private sector has embraced where governmental bureaucracies often lack the capacity for
the term L&D to denote the work of their training department. implementation (Smith, 1973). Implementing agents often fail to
Skills development through education and training interventions is notice that the policies are inconsistent with their own
a robust lever that increases both individuals’ opportunity and organisation’s interests and agendas (Firestone, 1989). Studies
the institution’s prosperity (Nel et al., 2011). demonstrate similar trends in which misunderstanding about
implementation can be attributed to lack of effort, incomplete buy-
The objective of HRD is to strengthen South Africa’s HR base to in or employees’ explicit rejection of the reform ideas (Spillane,
deliver skilled and capable employees who can support Reiser, & Reimer, 2002). This means that planned learning
structures are critical, allowing stakeholders to interpret the policy
and its
implications for the organisation’s specific behaviours (Spillane et
al., 2002). Consequently, it is important to understand the nature
of policy implementation. Such resources can help ensure that
Research design
employees are capacitated by policies that guide exhaustive Research approach
recruitment and selection, as well as training activities, and The research study followed an interpretivist paradigm and
provide employees the opportunity to participate within the qualitative approach. Interpretivism helps explore every- day
organisation (Beltran- Martin & Bou-Llusar, 2018). Human practical concerns to determine how people develop and construct
resource policies shape individual and aggregate characteristics of their own interpretations based on their experience of certain
employees. These policies enhance employees’ ‘ability to phenomena (Cammarata, 2012; Liamputtong, 2013; Silverman,
perform’, ‘motivation to perform’ and ‘opportunity to perform’ 1994; Van Manen, 1990). The mentioned method moves beyond
(Purcell, Kinnie, Hutchinson, Rayton, & Swart, 2003). The ability- merely describing data. Instead, the aim is to interpret the findings
motivation- and-opportunity (AMO) framework is discussed in the without deviating too widely from the literal description as such
following section. (Bradshaw, Atkinson, & Doody, 2017).

Ability, motivation and opportunity as The qualitative approach is used to describe, understand and
theoretical framework capture the essence of a specific complex phenomenon from the
participants’ viewpoint (Edmonds & Kennedy, 2013; Leedy &
The model describing abilities (A), motivation (M) and Ormrod, 2014; Merriam, 2009). The reason is that the researcher
opportunities (O) provides a comprehensive theoretical framework sought an in-depth understanding about the use of HR policies
that integrates complex relationships (Cummings & Schwab, from the managers’ perspectives and the influence of these
1973). The AMO theory influences performance in employees’ policies as experienced by the employees of South African
ability, motivation and opportunity to participate within the municipalities (Burns & Grove, 2009; Malagon-Maldonado,
organisation (Appelbaum, Bailey, Berg, & Kallegerg, 2000). The 2014). Through this, the researcher sought an in-depth
theory emphasises the importance of considering the competencies understanding of individuals’ experiences. The focus was on the
of individuals, their motivation as well as their opportunity to literal descriptions and understanding of the use and influence of
participate and apply their skills, knowledge and ideas in the HR policies as phenomenon.
workplace through various defined roles (Cloete et al., 2016). It
advocates that the management system within any organisation
should be designed to meet employees’ needs for developing skills Research strategy
and motivation. The research strategy utilised in this study is a qualitative
descriptive strategy. The use of a qualitative descriptive strategy is
Katou and Budhwar (2010) found that ability is linked to particularly relevant where information is required directly from
skills, motivation to attitudes and opportunity to behaviour. The those experiencing the phenomenon under investigation, where
AMO theory offers a base from which to build a functional time and resources are limited (Neergaard, Oleson, Anderson, &
HRM system within an organisation (Hall, Pilbeam, & Sondergaard, 2009). Through this approach, the researcher sought
Corbridge, 2013; Paauwe, 2009). As mentioned in the an in-depth understanding of individuals’ experiences. The focus
methods section, the objective of the present study was to was on the literal descriptions and understanding of the use and
explore the extent to which the use of HR policies influences influence of HR policies as phenomenon. This understanding was
employees’ abilities, motivation and opportunities to participate reached by analysing and interpreting meaning of events as
and contribute to their performance at work. The further ascribed to by the participants (Bradshaw et al., 2017).
objective was to operationalise the AMO theory in order to
explain how effective line managers implement HR policies
within their organisations (Bos-Nehles, Van Riemsdijk, & Research method
Looise, 2013). Cheema and Javed (2017) supported the use of Research setting
the AMO model, noting that it could be used in helping decide
the concerns of management in Green HRM. The AMO Permission was granted by three South African municpalities
theory is common in conceptualising how HR management situated in North West, Guateng and Eastern Cape provinces. The
practices influence performance (Rayner & Morgan, 2018). study was conducted amongst emplpoyees from the
Sterling and Boxall (2013) used the AMO framework to analyse abovementioned provinces to provide an overview of the use of
variations in what knowledge workers acquired and how they HR policies from multiple provinces instead of only one. The
acquired it, within the context of workplace learning. In their provinces were chosen through convenience sampling, providing
study, McCarthy and Milner (2020) found that the AMO the researcher easy access to municipal offices. Interviews were
framework could be used in examining managers’ coaching conducted with full-time municipal employees comprising HR
ability, their motivation to coach and whether or not they had managers and employees from a cross-section of occupational
the opportunity to coach. office levels within South African municipalities. Interviews were
conducted in the boardroom facilities and private offices of the
respective municipalities for a duration of 45 min per interview.
Entrée and establishing research roles managers and employees) had most of the characteristics that best
The researcher’s roles included planning the research project, represented the purpose of the study (Gerrish & Lacey, 2010;
serving as an instrument for data collection, transcribing and Grinnell & Unrau, 2008).
analysing the data as well as report writing. Access to the research
setting was undertaken by obtaining permission from the municipal
managers of the respective municipalities. Once permission was Data collection methods
obtained and interview dates scheduled, participants were The interviews were semi-structured and one-on-one. According
reassured of confidentiality and interviews were conducted in to Dicicco-Bloom and Crabtree (2006), semi- structured interviews
English. In addition, participants were issued with a consent form, are often used in qualitative research and are organised generally
which made it clear that participation in the study was voluntary. around a set of predetermined open-ended questions, with
The data collected by the researcher were transcribed and additional questions emerging from the dialogue between
analysed. The data were analysed through thematic analysis. interviewer and interviewee. The open-ended questions are posed
Thematic analysis provides a structure of themes that serve as in a systematic way and interviewees are encouraged to provide
groups of codes that are repeated through similarities and their own views (Struwig, Struwig, & Stead, 2013). The present
connections to one another in terms of patterns (Buetow, 2010). study made use of these types of interviews, which helped the
Finally, the researcher remained objective throughout the study researcher explore and describe the participants’ experiences about
and therefore did not become biased or emotionally involved past and present events with a view of reaching the goals of the
(Ritchie & Lewis, 2003). study (De Vos, Strydom, Fouché, & Delport, 2011).

Research participants and sampling methods The interview questions that follow were divided into two sets.
The first set of questions focused on HR managers, and the second
The methods used for the present study were convenience, quota set on employees from a cross-section of occupational office levels
and purposive sampling techniques. In convenience sampling, within South African municipalities. The questions were few and
participants are chosen based on availability, and easy accessibility open-ended, which allowed the researcher to probe, follow up and
and willingness to cooperate (Foxcroft & Roodt, 2013). Although clear up any leads that occurred during the allocated interview
the present study adopted a convenience sampling method, period (Bryman, 2016). The questions posed during the interviews
participants still had to comply with certain criteria (Struwig & are represented in Figure 1.
Stead, 2001) – for example, full-time employment, a municipal
manager at a municipality within the Eastern Cape, North West Prior to posing these questions, a broad example of HR policies
and Gauteng Provinces. According to Corbin and Strauss (2008), was given to the participants only when they indicated they did not
qualitative research allows the researcher to understand the points understand the question. This helped ensure that the questions
of view of participants in a way that the responses are unbiased by were answered to the best of their ability.
extant research. The researcher reported the data as provided by
the research participants, with the aim to stay neutral throughout
the study and still capture the unique viewpoints of the individual Recording of data
participants. The participants’ unbiased viewpoints were important A recording device was used to collect, analyse and transcribe the
for the present research as they allowed for plausibility. data. The data on the tape recorder were transferred to a USB drive
and secure cloud storage, and subsequently the inteviews were
Quota sampling selects according to the characteristics of transcribed and imported into an excel sheet. To comply with the
candidates, where the researcher decides how the quotas are ethical requirements of confidentiality,
assigned (Struwig & Stead, 2001). The reason for choosing quota
The following interview questions were focused on human resource managers

1. How are human resource policies (recruitment and selection, learning and development and performance management) being communicated to em

2. What do you find challenging when implementing the human resource policies within your organisation?
The following interview questions were focused on employees from a cross-section of occupational office levels

1. How
2. has
Whathuman resources
is your informed
experience of howyou
theabout
humanthe human policies
resource resourceare
policies
being being implemented
implemented withinwithin your organisati
your organisation?

3. What challenges have you experienced in how the human resource policies are implemented by management?
sampling in the present study was that participants were selected FIGURE 1: Interview questions.
in proportion with the organisational structure, comprising three
HR managers (n = 3) and 12 employees from a cross-section
of occupational office levels (n = 12). This included one HR
manager and four employees from each of the respective
municipalities. In purposive sampling, participants are chosen for
a specific purpose according to the researcher’s own judgements
(Leedy & Ormrod, 2014). The inclusion criteria were further used
during the sampling process. Inclusion criteria are predefined
characteristics used in identifying subjects who will be included
within a research study (Salkind, 2010). The reason for choosing
purposive sampling and the inclusion criteria was primarily that
the participants (municipal HR
all the interview data (tape recorded and transcribed sheets) were
placed in a secure location, in the office of the researcher’s Phase 6: Producing the report
supervisor. This phase began once the researcher had a set of fully worked-out
themes and involved the final analysis and write-up of the report
(Braun & Clarke, 2006). Each of these descriptions was provided
Data analysis its own table, with relevant themes and characteristics. Finally, the
Thematic analysis is used to analyse qualitative descriptions. researcher analysed the data to extract themes, used different
Through the thematic analysis, the researcher can identify, analyse approaches to examine the information and followed the
and report patterns, ensuring the results are as accurate as possible guidelines for reflecting on these themes. In this regard, the data
(Braun & Clarke, 2006). The researcher reflected on the yielded an explicit structure of the meaning from the lived
relationships, categories, themes and concepts from the data, as experiences of the participants regarding the usage and influence
part of a continuous process (Henning, Van Rensburg, & Smith, of HR policies.
2004). The successive phases of thematic analysis are discussed in
the following subsections. Strategies employed to ensure
Phase 1: Get acquainted with the data quality data and integrity
The researcher familiarised herself with the collected data by The qualitative research approach adheres to four criteria for
reading through the interview questions and the written notes. trustworthy data, namely credibility, transferability, dependability
Acquaintance involved ‘repeated reading’ of the data as well as and conformability (Lincoln & Guba, 1999).
searching for meaning and patterns within the data (Braun &
Clarke, 2006). Credibility (internal validity) is a procedure according to which
participants of the study identify with the research findings (De
Vos et al., 2011). A strategy of prolonged engagement was done
Phase 2: Generating initial codes by ensuring that both the researcher and the co-coder analysed and
In this phase, the researcher produced initial codes from the data coded the data (Schurink, Fouche, & De Vos, 2011).
(Braun & Clarke, 2006) by compiling general and overarching
ideas that would lead to specific categories (codes). Codes were Transferability (external validity) refers to whether individuals
determined by the interview questions posed to the participants. from different settings can relate to the particular research
For the present study, the researcher utilised Microsoft Excel to findings. The data of the present study could be transferred only to
analyse, reduce and interpret the data. employees working within municipalities; therefore, transferability
was achieved through rich descriptions of the data.
Phase 3: Searching for themes
Once the data were coded and collated, the overarching themes Dependability (reliability) refers to the consistency, structure
were developed for each code. This was done by separating and documentation of the research findings. Consistency is
meaningful items into categories of central themes. This technique preserved by describing the data sufficiently, triangulation and
allows researchers to review themes and classify these into smaller audit trails (De Vos et al., 2011). The researcher documented the
sub-themes with the assistance of co-coders. research process in a logical and well-structured manner to
achieve dependability (Schurink et al., 2011).
Phase 4: Reviewing themes Conformability (objectivity) is the level of objectivity the
This phase began once a set of possible themes had been devised researcher reaches in the research findings (De Vos et al., 2011). It
and thereafter refined (Braun & Clarke, 2006). During this phase, is therefore the researcher’s responsibility to uncover reality in a
it became evident that certain identified contents were not true manner that is objective, unbiased, unprejudiced and impartial.
themes; other themes had to be broken down into separate units, This ensured the researcher adhered to quality processes of
whilst others collapsed into each other (Braun & Clarke, 2006). evaluating the data. Furthermore, the researcher remained neutral
Furthermore, the researcher read through the themes again to throughout the study and did not manipulate the findings.
confirm the correct coding and that the themes represented the
entire dataset.
Ethical considerations
Phase 5: Defining and naming themes Approval from both the Industrial Psychology and Human
Resource Management School’s Scientific Research Committee
In this phase, the themes captured from the analysis were defined and the EMS-REC (Economic and Management Sciences
and refined. It was important that, at the end of this phase, the Research Ethics Committee) (NWU-01400-19-A4) was granted
researcher distinguished clearly between the relevant themes for for this study. The considerations for the research study were based
the study (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The researcher then allocated on ethical principles. Ethics can be defined
names to the themes, which reflected the true content of the data.
as ‘the morality of human conduct’ that is followed in social
research. Thus, ethics ‘refers to moral deliberation, choice and Induction
accountability on the part of researchers throughout the research A participant explained that the communication of these HR
process’ (Mauthner et al., 2005). According to Creswell (2013), policies takes place during the induction of newly appointed
when planning and designing a qualitative study, the researcher employees who receive a collection of relevant policies (bundle)
must consider the ethical issues that may surface during the for the particular municipality (Manager 3).
process and plan how to address these matters. For the present
study, the researcher was mindful of culture and individual Website
differences amongst people. She also avoided discrimination One participant reported that the mentioned three HR policies are
against any person based on factors such as race, gender, age or communicated through the municipality’s website, where they also
status. are available to the public (Manager 3).

Results Management-level discussions and consultations

The present study’s research findings consisted of different According to a participant, the performance-management policy is
categories, themes and responses, with direct quotations to support discussed and consulted at the management level (Manager 3):
the results. The categories were divided according to the five ‘We are having intense discussions and consultations at management
questions that were posed during the interviews. The first two level regarding the performance-management policy.’ (Manager 3,
questions were directed specifically towards HR managers within Acting, Manager: Human Resource Management, 21 Jan 2020)
municipalities. The last three questions focused on permanent
employees from a cross-section of occupational office levels Local labour forum
within South African municipalities.
A participant mentioned that HR policies are communicated
through the local labour forum within the municipality (Manager
Category 1: How human resource policies 1).
are being communicated to employees
within municipalities Category 2: Challenges in implementing human
Category 1 provides the six broad themes indicating how the three resource policies within municipalities
mentioned HR policies are being communicated to employees Category 2 presents the 13 broad themes describing the challenges
within municipalities, from the HR managers’ perspectives, as
HR managers experience when implementing the mentioned three
well as based on the verbatim original responses that were
HR policies within the municipalities. The themes include the
analysed.
verbatim original responses that were analysed. The different
meanings of the themes are discussed in the following subsections.
The different meanings of the themes are discussed in the
following subsections.
Low employee morale
Partial communication One participant identified that low morale amongst employees
poses a challenge to implementing these HR policies (Manager 1).
Participants reported that, most times, employees tend to be
overlooked. There is a lack of communication with them about
these HR policies; especially the performance- management Lack of participation
policy is not communicated well within their municipalities: A participant pointed out that employees are currently not
‘The one that is not well communicated and not a lot of people are
participating in the implementation of the skills audits for the
asking about is the performance-management policy.’ (Manager 1, 48, learning-and-development policy, which is a challenge (Manager
Male, manager: training and development; Manager 2, 55, Manager: 1).
Skills development; Manager 3, 53, Male, Acting manager: Human
Resource Management) Lack of trust
One participant acknowledged that employees do no trust
Workshops management, particularly after the amalgamation of the
Participants pointed out that the mentioned three HR policies are municipality with another. The distrust poses a challenge to the
communicated through organised workshops in which these implementation of these HR policies (Manager 1).
policies are highlighted and applicable questions are answered:
‘Ok, the … we normally organise workshops; ja … and that is where Lack of communication
we take our employees through to whatever HR policies that we Participants pointed out that their municipalities currently find it a
have.’ (Manager 2, Manager: Skills development, challenge to organise the entire institution in order to
12 Dec 19; Manager 3, Acting manager: Human Resource communicate the HR policies:
Management, 21 Jan 20)
 ‘Currently it’s a challenge to organise the whole institution when we
communicate the HR policies.’ (Manager 1, 48, Male, manager: Earmarked comrades
training and development; Manager 2, 55, Manager: Skills According to a participant, political comrades who have been
development) earmarked for vacant positions pose a challenge for the
recruitment-and-selection policy (Manager 3).
No clear guidance
Participants explained that for the draft recruitment-and- selection Downsizing of budget
policy as well as the draft learning-and-development policy, A participant mentioned the downsizing of the budget for training
managers follow their instincts and interpret issues differently. interventions, which would result in rearranging of the annual
This lack of clear guidance is currently a challenge within their training plans, as a challenge when implementing the learning-
municipalities: and-development policy (Manager 3).
‘Recruitment-and-selection area and learning and development,
because of the absence of these policies because everyone wants to
interpret issues the way they want to, ja, because there is no clear Union resistance
guidelines that are approved by the municipality.’ (Manager 1, One participant reported that resistance from trade unions is the
Manager: Training and Development, 6 Dec ’19; reason why the performance-management policy is not cascaded
Manager 2, Manager: Skills Development, 12 Dec ‘19) to occupational levels other than senior managers. This is a
challenge when implementing the performance- management
Employee dissatisfaction policy (Manager 3).
A participant mentioned that employees are unhappy and therefore
the municipality is receiving numerous grievances that present Category 3: How has the human resources
challenges to implement the recruitment-and- selection policy department informed employees about human
(Manager 2). resource policies that are implemented within
municipalities?
Implementation regarding section 56 and 57 managers
Category 3 presents the 11 broad themes explaining how
Participants pointed out that the performance-management policy, employees have been informed about the mentioned three HR
implemented only for directors, poses a weakness, and its policies implemented within municipalities. This includes the
implementation for other occupational levels within their original responses that were analysed. The applications of the
municipalities is a challenge: themes are discussed in the following subsections.
‘Performance-management policy is the most challenging, like I said
it’s only … focuses on employees who are … the directors, let me say. Training
Section 57 in terms of the Municipal Systems Act, those who report
Participants mentioned that they normally are taken to training,
directly to the municipal manager.’ (Manager 2, Manager: Skills
where they are informed of the mentioned HR policies
Development, 12 Dec ‘19; Manager 3, Acting Manager: Human
Resource Management, 21 Jan ‘20)
implemented within their municipalities:
‘We were taken to training and we were told there, then we came back
and worked here at the offices. I went once to this training in 2016 and
Paying performance bonus we were told about these policies.’ (Employee 1, Receptionist, 6 Dec
One participant reported that financial constraints within the ’19; Employee 7, IT practitioner, 12 Dec ’19)
municipality make it difficult to pay senior managers their
performance bonuses in accordance with the performance- Not informed
management policy (Manager 3).
Participants reported that the HR department has not informed
them about these policies:
Political interference
‘Actually no, from my side, HR has not informed me of these HR
Certain participants reported that politicians’ interference makes it policies since I have been employed, no.’ (Employee 2, Community
difficult to implement policies, especially the recruitment-and- services Clerk, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 4, Labour
selection policy: Relations practitioner, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 9, Finance
‘With the recruitment-and-selection policy, the difficulty in Administrator, 21 Jan ‘20; Employee 10, Finance Senior Clerk, 21
implementing that one is the old elephant in the room, political Jan ’20; Employee 12, LED Senior Clerk, 21 Jan ‘20)
interference, because we always have to fight them off.’ (Manager 1,
Manager: Training and Development, 6 Dec ’19; Manager 3, Acting
Manager: Human Resource Management, 21 Jan ‘20) Induction
The participant explained that the HR department provided
Training drop-out rate information on the mentioned policies during the induction
process, after they were appointed to the municipality (Employee
A participant mentioned that candidates who drop out from
training interventions before completing the course pose a 1).
challenge to implementing the learning-and-development policy
(Manager 2). Union participation
A participant confirmed that information on the HR policies was
communicated through the trade unions (Employee 6).
Meetings ‘On performance policies, no … at the moment we don’t have any
Participants reported that they were informed about the experience of that.’ (Employee 2, Community services Clerk, 6 Dec
implementation of HR policies through meetings held at the ’19; Employee 4, Labour Relations practitioner, 6 Dec ’19;
library and the municipalities (Employees 5 and 7). Employee 9, Finance Administrator, 21 Jan ‘20; Employee 12, Local
Economic Development Senior Clerk, 21 Jan ‘20)
Emails
Positive experience
Participants pointed out that, normally, the implementation of HR
policies is communicated to them through individual and group Certain participants mentioned that they had a pleasant and
emails (Employees 5 and 6). positive experience regarding the implementation of the
recruitment-and-selection policy as well as the learning-and-
development policy:
Road show
‘My experience? Well, my recruitment was a good experience, I
A participant mentioned that the implementation of the learning- thought it was fair. So, that’s how I feel about the recruitment- and-
and-development policy was communicated during a road show selection policies.’ (Employee 1, Receptionist, 6 Dec ’19;
(Employee 9). Employee 11, HR Practitioner, 21 Jan ’20)

Newsletter or memo Compliance checklist

A participant reported that the training department sends memos One participant pointed out that the mentioned HR policies were
or newsletters through email whenever training is needed in their used as a check-list for those implementing the policies on which
municipality (Employee 10). to comply (Employee 12).

Uncertainty Corruption
Certain participants mentioned they are uncertain of the ways the One participant mentioned that they experience corruption during
HR department informs them about the implementation of the appointments, when implementing the recruitment- and-selection
performance-management policy (Employees 9 and 10): policy (Employee 9).
‘You know the performance policy, I cannot dwell too much on that
because it’s for senior management, which is section 56, so, I don’t No training opportunities
have to say much about performance policy, I’m not sure.’ (Employee
9, Finance Administrator, 21 Jan ‘20; Employee 10, Participants reported that they are not afforded the chance to
Finance Senior Clerk, 21 Jan ’20) attend training interventions at the expense of the municipalities:
‘I haven’t been included by that. I have not gone to a training.’
Workshop (Employee 2, Community services Clerk, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 4,
Labour Relations practitioner, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 7, IT
Participants indicated that they are informed of the recruitment-and- practitioner, 12 Dec ’19; Employee 8, Legal services practitioner,
selection policy as well as training-and- development policy by 12 Dec ‘19)
attending workshops, which focus specifically on communicating HR
policies (Employees 8 and 11).
Attended training
Certain participants pointed out the learning-and- development
Website
policy, which provides training programmes and learnerships:
A participant reported that information on HR policies is posted on
‘For training and development, I did experience it because I was
their municipality’s website and made available to the public once in training whereby I developed so many skills, neh.’
(Employee 11). (Employee 3, Directorate Secretary, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 4,
Labour Relations practitioner, 6 Dec’19; Employee 5, clerk, 12
Category 4: Experience of how human Dec ‘19)
resource policies are being implemented
within municipalities Lack of supervision
Category 4 provides 11 broad themes indicating employees’ Regarding the performance-management policy, participants
experiences of the way the three mentioned HR policies are being explained that they experienced the absence of managers and
implemented within municipalities. These themes are confirmed supervisors, who should be monitoring their performance within
by the verbatim original responses that were analysed. The the municipalities:
different meanings of the themes are discussed in the following ‘We don’t see the managers because they are in the other town most of
subsections. the time, so there’s never staff meetings … there’s nothing. You just
come to work and you do whatever you find to do.’ (Employee 2,
Community services Clerk, 6 Dec ’19;
No experience Employee 3, Directorate Secretary, 6 Dec ’19; Employee 12, Local
Participants reported that they have had no experience of the Economic Development Senior Clerk, 21)
performance-management policy being implemented:
Implementation bias
Incomplete training
One participant mentioned that during the implementation of the
One participant reported that they were unable to complete a
recruitment-and-selection policy, they had a disagreement with an
training programme because the municipality discontinued the
HR official. As a result, employees were excluded unfairly from
course. This challenge concerned the implementation of the
the process to fill a vacancy (Employee 9).
learning-and-development policy (Employee 3).

Selective implementation
No performance evaluation
Participants reported selective and inconsistent implementation of
Participants found that the lack of performance monitoring and
the recruitment-and-selection policy, particularly during
evaluation is a challenge regarding the performance- management
placement:
policy:
‘When they do this placement you sometimes find that there are
inconsistencies.’ (Employee 2, Community services Clerk, 6 Dec ’19; ‘There is a challenge again with performance management because I
Employee 6, Procurement clerk, 12 Dec ’19; Employee 12, don’t know what I am doing, is it right or wrong.’ (Employee 7, IT
practitioner, 12 Dec ’19; Employee 9, Finance
LED Senior Clerk, 21 Jan ‘20)
Administrator, 21 Jan ‘20; Employee 10, Finance Senior Clerk, 21
Jan ’20; Employee 12, LED Senior Clerk, 21 Jan ‘20)
Unpleasant experience
One participant found the implementation of the three mentioned No training
HR policies to be an unpleasant experience (Employee 6).
A challenge the participants pointed out regarding the learning-
and-development policy is that they have not been taken to any
No job description training programmes:
A participant singled out the implementation of the recruitment-
‘My challenge with the training policy implementation is that I
and-selection policy, indicating employees do not know their job complete a skills questionnaire every year and still I don’t see myself
description or who they currently report to within the municipality taken to any training.’ (Employee 2, Community services Clerk, 6 Dec
(Employee 2). ’19; Employee 9, Finance Administrator, 21 Jan‘20)

Category 5: Challenges experienced in the Irrelevant training

way management implements human One participant identified a challenge with the implementation of
resource policies the learning-and-development policy. Whenever they are taken to a
Category 5 presents the broad 11 themes that indicate the training initiative, employees find that the training is irrelevant to
challenges employees experience in the way the three mentioned the work they do (Employee 12).
HR policies are implemented within municipalities. This includes
the verbatim original responses that were analysed. The different No upward mobility
meanings of the themes are discussed in the following subsections. A participant identified a challenge in the implementation of the
mentioned HR policies, that is, being employed in the same job
No challenges position for years without upward movement within the
Certain participants reported that they did not experience any municipality (Employee 12).
challenges in the way these HR policies are implemented within
municipalities (Employees 1 and 11): Lacking human resource policy knowledge
‘I did not have any challenges in recruitment and selection For another participant, the challenge is a lack of knowledge about
implementation. With training and development, I was taught to do my these mentioned HR policies (Employee 10).
work and also to answer the phone, there were not challenges with that
policy. It helped me.’ (Employee 1, Receptionist, 6 Dec ’19; Employee
11, HR practitioner, 21 Jan ‘20 Management investment
A participant reported a challenge regarding the learning-and-
development policy, where training is provided only to politicians and
Lacking contract of employment managers within the municipality (Employee 2).
A participant mentioned that working for 3 years in the
municipality without an employment contract was a challenge
regarding the recruitment-and-selection policy (Employee 2). Micro-management
One participant mentioned a challenge in implementing the
performance-management policy, namely being micro- managed
Application inconsistencies
by the supervisor (Employee 12).
A participant indicated further challenges that employees
experience, namely inconsistencies in applying the mentioned HR
policies (Employee 6). Discussion
Outline of the findings
The results indicated that most participants reported partial
communication with employees about the mentioned HR
policies. The responses indicate that specifically the performance- procedures to staff effectively (Clear HR Consulting, 2019). In
management policy is not communicated well within the
terms of their experiences, the most common finding from
municipalities as it is discussed and consulted at the management
level. According to literature, organisational communication often participants was that they have no experience of the performance-
has two goals: firstly, to inform employees about policies and their management policy being implemented. On the other hand, the
tasks; and secondly, to create community within the organisation responses show that participants had a pleasant and positive
(Elving, 2005). Communication is vital for the effective experience regarding the implementation of the recruitment-and-
implementation of any potential change to the organisation, selection policy as well as the learning-and-development policy.
brought about by HR policies (Bos-Nehles et al., 2013; Elving, Literature encourages this trend, as training and staffing policies
2005). One participant reported that communication of the three and practices help foster an organisation’s human capital (Beltran-
mentioned HR policies takes place during the induction period of Martin & Bou-Llusar, 2018).
newly appointed employees. During that period, employees
receive bundles of the municipality’s relevant policies. Literature Participants also reported challenges where the mentioned three
encourages this practice, as the most successful organisations of HR policies are applied inconsistently. It is therefore necessary to
the future will be distinguished for their ability to encourage avoid individual judgement and potential bias within the HR
inclusion of all employees and make decisions to gain new policies and its interpretation by clearly defining the way HR
knowledge on the organisation’s policies (Brynard, 2009; activities are performed in practice (Bos-Nehles et al., 2013). A
Dragomiroiu, Hurloiu, & Mihai, 2014). specific challenge was highlighted regarding the implementation
of the learning- and-development policy. Whenever employees
The findings of this study indicated that the most reported are taken to a training initiative, they find that the content is
challenges by participants are: (1) no clear guidance, (2) political irrelevant to their work. This finding is in line with literature, as
interference and (3) implementation regarding section 56 and 57 there is evidence that few organisations provide formal and
managers. Regarding the lack of clear guidance, certain systematic training (Brewster, 2000; Harris, Doughty, & Kirk,
participants reported that recruitment and selection as well as 2002). Bos-Nehles et al. (2013) found in previous research that
L&D are still draft policies; managers follow their instincts and
numerous managers have recognised that differences in applying
interpret issues differently. According to literature, the absence of
HR policies may result in different outcomes, a factor that may
coordination and clear definition of policy objectives and
responsibility amongst policy implementers may lead to be negative for the organisation.
challenges in implementation (Ahmed & Dantata, 2016).
Regarding political input, participants mentioned interference In conclusion, as reported by all HR managers, it is clear that all
from politicians in terms of appointments, which leads to three HR policies (recruitment and selection, L&D and
challenges when implementing the recruitment-and-selection performance management) are currently communicated within
policy. Previous literature confirms this tendency, as politicians do municipalities. However, in certain instances, the challenges
influence HR policy outputs and outcomes at local organisational experienced by employees are that the policies are partially
level (May & Winter, 2007). Furthermore, political interferences communicated. In other instances, employees experienced a lack
have no doubt a far-reaching influence on the effective in the communication of the performance management policy.
implementation of HR policies (Ahmed & Dantata, 2016). Certain Furthermore, employees reported both positive and negative
participants reported that the performance-management policy is experiences of these three HR policies.
only implemented with regards to directors, which poses a
challenge in its implementation for other occupational levels
within the municipalities. However, literature states that numerous Practical implications
managers have recognised that differences in the application of As a consequence of their participation in this study, local
HR policies may bring different outcomes, which may be negative government realises the importance of annually training the HR
for the organisation (Bos-Nehles et al., 2013). managers and evaluating their performance, as custodians and
implementers of HR policies, on their effective communication
The present research findings indicate that most participants and implementation of the three investigated policies. This
reported they have not been informed by the HR department about communication and implementation of the policies should benefit
the implementation of these HR policies: ‘Actually no, from my employees across occupational levels within the municipality.
side, HR has not informed me of these HR policies since I have Municipalities, in collaboration with their HR managers, should
been employed, no’. According to Postmes, Tanis and De Wit communicate all learning-and-development interventions to the
(2001), employees become more committed when they obtain relevant occupational levels, on a quarterly basis, through the
adequate information. Furthermore, the communication of municipalities’ intranet, emails and the noticeboard. The aim must
information influences feelings of community and belonging be to inform as many employees as possible regularly and make
within the organisation (Elving, 2005). Therefore, according to them aware of the available training opportunities.
literature, it is important that management knows how to
communicate policies and
Limitations department and its policies hold the administrative expertise to
effect real change within the workplace and should, on that
The sample was restricted to HR managers and office-based account, be extensively used and implemented.
employees within South African municipalities. The study did not
include the municipalities’ water and sanitation plant-based
workers and roads workers. Therefore, the study may be limited in Acknowledgements
the generalisation of its results to all municipal employees. From a
methodological point of view, a small sample was used. This Competing interests
sample size cannot be extended to a wider population with the The authors declare that they have no financial or personal
same degree of certainty as a larger sample. The present study was relationships that may have inappropriately influenced them in
conducted in the Eastern Cape, North West and Gauteng writing this article.
provinces; therefore, the results cannot be generalised to other
parts of the country. However, the study was applied in only three
of the nine provinces in South Africa. Authors’ contributions
L.M. collected, captured and analysed the data and wrote the
Recommendations manuscript. N.D.P.M. supervised the study, and assisted with the
data analysis and provided feedback on the manuscript.
For future research, the study can be extended to include
municipal employees holding positions within the water and
sanitation plant as well as the roads department. A larger sampling
Funding information
population can be used, which incorporates participants from all This research received no specific grant from any funding agency
nine South African provinces. Following up the present study with in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
quantitative research would allow for the generalisation of the
research (Bryman, 2016). Such an expanded study will enable Data availability
accurate generalisations on the use and influence of HR policies
within South African municipalities. Raw data sets are available upon request from the corresponding
author.
Municipalities, in collaboration with the directorate and political
councillors, should prioritise the renewal and timeous adoption of Disclaimer
the three mentioned HR polices. Such measures will help avoid
ambiguity and uncertainties in the interpretation and L.M. and N.D.P.M. hereby declare that ‘Exploring the use and
implementation of these policies. Management should implement influence of human resource policies within South African
motions to cascade the performance-management policy. municipalities’ is their own work. The views and opinions
expressed in this work are those of the authors and do not
Municipalities should plan biannual HR policy roadshows catering
necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any affiliated
to all municipal employees. During such contact sessions, the
agency of the authors.
three mentioned HR policies can be communicated effectively to
employees, and questions posed and answered. The HR
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