Project of

International
Human
Resource
Management
Assigned By: Ms. Nasira Jabeen
Employee
Relations in Telenor Pakistan

Submitted by:

• MHRM 34 Asif Ahmad

• MHRM 08 Muhammad Irfan

• MHRM 14 Muhammad Imran Haider

• MHRM 01 Naveed Ahmad

• MHRM 18 Samia Maqsood

• MHRM Rubina Zahid

 IAS, University of the
Punjab, Lahore

Contents
Contents........................................................................................................... 2
Introduction:.....................................................................................................4
Company profile:..............................................................................................4
History of Telenor: .......................................................................................4
Telenor Pakistan:...........................................................................................4
Mission, Vision and Core Values of Telenor Pakistan:.......................................5
Mission:......................................................................................................... 5
Vision:........................................................................................................... 5
Core Values:..................................................................................................5
Structure of Telenor Pakistan:.......................................................................5
People Excellence: .....................................................................................5
Hierarchy of People Excellence: ..................................................................6
Strategic Factors:.............................................................................................6
Management Philosophy:..............................................................................6
The tightness of the labor market:................................................................6
Legislation:....................................................................................................7
Organization culture:.....................................................................................7
Ethics: ............................................................................................................. 7
Moral code of conduct at Telenor Pakistan:..................................................8
Law and Employee Rights in Telenor:..............................................................8
Discrimination: .............................................................................................8
Employment at Will:......................................................................................8
Separation from the Company at will:...........................................................9
Employment contract.................................................................................9
Antidiscrimination law................................................................................9
Employment contract:.............................................................................10

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 2

 Antidiscrimination law:.............................................................................10
Types of rights in Telenor:.............................................................................11
Privacy:.......................................................................................................11
Fair treatment:............................................................................................11
Safe and healthful workplace, including freedom from sexual harassment:
.................................................................................................................... 11
Collective Bargaining:.................................................................................11
Communication and involvement in the organization:................................12
Disciplinary action:......................................................................................12
Due process:...............................................................................................13
Employer responsibility:.................................................................................13
Telenor to stakeholders:..............................................................................13
Telenor to know the law:.............................................................................14
Treating employee with human dignity:......................................................14
Responsibility to Bargain collectively:.........................................................14
Responsibility to provide Due Process:.......................................................15
Managing the problem employee in Telenor:..............................................15
Building a Good Disciplinary Climate:............................................................16
Right of Appeal:...........................................................................................16
Fair and impartial administration:...............................................................16
Self-discipline over externally imposed discipline:......................................17
SWOT Analysis:.............................................................................................. 18
Strengths:................................................................................................... 18
Weaknesses:...............................................................................................18
Opportunities:.............................................................................................18
Threats:.......................................................................................................19
Conclusion:.....................................................................................................20
References.....................................................................................................21

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 3

Introduction:
The main purpose of this particular report is to highlight one of the main
areas of human resource department ‘employee relations’ at International
level. This concept focuses on the following dimensions:

• Ethics

• Employee Rights

• Employer responsibilities

In order to see these concepts in detail we have selected Telenor

Pakistan due to its well structured and systematic policies and
procedures. Before describing these concepts in detail let’s have a
look to the company’s profile first.

Company profile:
History of Telenor:
Telenor Pakistan’s parent organization Norwegian Telegraph
Administration was founded in 1855 as a telegraph services provider.
In 1969 The Norwegian Telegraph Administration changed its name to
Norwegian Telecommunications. In 1995 Norwegian
Telecommunications changed its name to Telenor. Today Telenor is an
international provider of high quality telecommunications, data and
media communication services. It ranks as world’s 7th largest mobile
operator with a total of 164 million subscribers in its mobile operations.

Telenor Pakistan:
Telenor Pakistan launched its operations in March 2005 at that time it
was the largest direct European investment in Pakistan. It is a leading
telecom operator of Pakistan. Telenor Pakistan is the fastest growing
network in Pakistan. It provides coverage in many remote areas.

Telenor Pakistan has 2500 direct and 25000-plus indirect employees. It

has a network of twenty three sales and service centers, more than
200 franchisees and about 100,000 retail outlets.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 4

Mission, Vision and Core Values of Telenor
Pakistan:
Mission:
“Telenor’s primary goal is to create greater value for our shareholders,
customers, employees and partners, and for society in general”

Vision:
Telenor’s vision is simple: “We're here to help”

Core Values:
Telenor has four core values

• Keep Promises
• Make it Easy
• Be Inspiring
• Be Respectful

Structure of Telenor Pakistan:

There are following business units operating in Telenor Pakistan:

• CEO office
• Commercial Division
• Corporate affairs Finance
• Human Capital Division
• Information Technology
• Technical

People Excellence:
People Excellence performs HR functions at Telenor. It is a department
functioning under HCD. Functions performed by People Excellence
team are:

• Recruitment
• HR Operations
• Organizational Development
• Health Care Services
• Compensation and Benefits

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 5

Hierarchy of People Excellence:
Following is the hierarchy of People Excellence department:

• Vice President Human Capital Division

• Director People Excellence and Business Process Improvement
• Manager People Excellence
• Assistant Manager People Excellence
• People Excellence Executive
• People Excellence Officer

Strategic Factors:
The main factors that directly influence manager’s decisions about how
they will treat employees include:

Management Philosophy:
In Telenor, top management strongly believes in consolidating
employee relations and they are more likely to ensure the
compatibility between the company policy and actions respecting
these rights. The management philosophy in Telenor is to create a
relation of respect with their subordinates in a mutual way. Therefore
they have developed and communicated a set of core values that
manifest these beliefs.

The top management at Telenor is ambitious for the future, sets a

framework for the policies and procedures, and inspires staff to
imagine how they can contribute in corporate affairs, represents the
importance of employee relations.

The tightness of the labor market:

Telenor is a telecommunication company and in Pakistan the
telecommunication sector is the one which faces an extensive market
competition. However, the high profiled companies always act in the
soft terms with their key employees and have a hard approach towards
the operational staff. Despite of a tight market situation in the
prevailing intense competitive environment, Telenor gives a strong
preference to its egalitarian culture and takes a due disciplinary action
against anyone in the organizational hierarchy. Employee rights are
implemented fairly without getting any influence from the level of
management.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 6

Legislation:
In Telenor the existed legislation is vigorously enforced and employee
rights are protected. All the legislation regarding employee rights in
Pakistan has been observed and implemented by Telenor.

For example Telenor does not employ or contract child labor. “Child
labor” means any work by child or young person unless it is considered
acceptable under the ILO Minimum Age Convention 1973 (C138).
“Child” means anyone under 15 years of age, unless national or local
law stipulates a higher minimum working age or higher age for
completing mandatory schooling, in which case the higher age shall
apply.
Everyone share a responsibility to secure that persons under the age
of 18 do not perform any hazardous work, including but not limited to
exposure to physical, psychological or sexual abuse.

Organization culture:
The organization culture places great value on employees and worth of
the individual is likely defined and protected. Telenor is known as
company that fosters and nurtures its employees. An employee in
telenor is not treated as an individual rather there is a thoroughly
defined and well structured system exists that treats every employee
in accordance with predefined procedural standards.

Ethics:
In Telenor corporate ethics are about more than avoiding
contravention of any law, they are about how the employees behave
with each other and the outside world.

Everybody associated with Telenor is responsible for following the rules

and guidelines that build on Telenor's basic values and that form
attitudes. At Telenor, everyone is involved in this and help to create a
sound corporate culture based on satisfaction and security.

Telenor's guidelines for corporate ethics apply to members of the

board of directors, managers and other employees of Telenor as well
as others acting on behalf of Telenor. It is the line managers'
responsibility to make sure everybody is aware of, and complies with,
these guidelines.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 7

Moral code of conduct at Telenor Pakistan:
Every employee in the group has a duty of confidentiality by law and
written agreement. You shall keep confidential all corporate and other
matters that could provide third parties unauthorized access to
confidential information, and exercise caution when discussing internal
affairs so as to avoid being overheard by unauthorized persons. Privacy
also applies after the conclusion of employment or contractual
relationship with Telenor for as long as the information is considered to
be of a sensitive nature or in any other way confidential.

Law and Employee Rights in Telenor:

Discrimination:
Telenor is opposed to discriminatory practices and does it utmost to
promote equality in all employment practices. This can be seen in their
new project by the name of “Khudar Pakistan” in which they have
given the opportunity for employment to physically handicapped
people.

No direct or indirect negative discrimination takes place based on race,

color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, language, religion,
political or other opinions, national or social origin, property, birth or
other status.

Employment at Will:
Employment at will is the policy under which employers are free to
discharge their employees for any reason unless the discharge is
limited by contract of state or federal statue. And on an employee side,
the employee is free to break the employment relationship “at will”
unless there is written or implied employment contract.

At Telenor the policy of employment at will exists as follow:

• Your employment may be terminated at any time by either side

without assigning any reason by giving three months notice or
three months gross salary in lieu.

• TP may at any time, without giving any prior notice or payment

in lieu of notice period, terminate your employment with
immediate effect if you are found in serious breach of the terms
of your employment letter or TP policies that may be applicable
at the time of such breach.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 8

Separation from the Company at will:

When an employee decides to leave TP then he/she must intimate

his/her immediate supervisor/manager about his/her intention to leave
either by email or by a formal signed letter.

Immediate supervisor/manager approves the email or signed

resignation letter as appropriate, mentions the last working date and
forwards it to People Excellence for further processing.
People Excellence updates the People Excellence system on the basis
of approved employee resignation.

Immediate supervisor/manager is responsible for initiating the final

clearance process. For this, a “Clearance Form” (available on the
intranet or from People Excellence) will be circulated to all respective
departments for clearance.
IT, Admin, Finance and other related departments sign a clearance
form (on the intimation of immediate supervisor/manager) and ensure
that all employee benefits such as company ID card, mobile, laptop,
access rights, etc. are cleared. This clearance form is also signed by
the immediate supervisor/manager and/or Department Head of
employee and forwarded to People Excellence for further clearance
and processing.

People Excellence reviews and signs the aforesaid clearance form and
forward it to payroll representative in Finance Division for the
preparation of final settlement.

After the preparation of final settlement payroll representative

forwards it to People Excellence to ensure completeness and accuracy
of final settlement amount.

After verification and approval final settlement amount is disbursed

directly in employee bank account.
In Telenor Pakistan the policy of “employment at will” can be tempered
by two factors:

Employment contract

Antidiscrimination law

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 9

 Employment contract:
On joining day, PE presents an employee with his/her joining pack
containing documents/forms which he is required to fill and submit
back to PE.
Service starts from the day on which the employee reports for duty at
the relevant Telenor Pakistan workplace. The exact joining date is
communicated to People Excellence by the immediate
supervisor/manager on the date of joining. After confirming the joining
date People Excellence prepares two copies of employee contract in
accordance with the offer already accepted by the employee who is
then signed by the Director People Excellence & BPI.

After accepting and signing the original employment contract, the

employee retains
one original copy and forward the second original copy along with all
necessary forms (available with the joining pack) and all related
documents to People Excellence for record. People Excellence updates
the People Excellence system and files all documents in the employee
personal file.

Antidiscrimination law:

The corporate culture of Telenor is egalitarian and employees cannot

be legally dismissed from their jobs on the bases of their race, creed,
color, religious belief, country of national origin, sex, age, or physical
or mental handicap except as provided by the law.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 10

 Types of rights in Telenor:

Privacy:
In Telenor the right to privacy exists in the form that the employees
are free to work without undue interference from their employer and
the employee records are protected from examination unless a
legitimate interest exists.

Telenor's processing of Personal Data is subject to the care and

awareness which is required according to law and regulations and
relevant for information that might be sensitive, regardless whether
the data refer to customers, employees or others. Processing of
personal data should be limited to what is needed for operational
purposes, efficient customer care, relevant commercial activities and
proper administration of human resources

Fair treatment:

Telenor is a professional and positive workplace with an inclusive

working environment. Therefore, the employees are supposed to
behave with respect and integrity towards anyone who come into
contact with through their work. Telenor creates an environment free
from any discrimination, be it due to religion, skin color, gender, sexual
orientation, age, nationality, race or disability and free from bullying,
harassment or similar. It does not tolerate any behavior that can be
perceived as degrading or threatening.

Safe and healthful workplace, including freedom from

sexual harassment:
Telenor emphasizes a lot on the health, safety and environment so as
to promote high levels of satisfaction and good health. In the case of
sexual harassment the alleged employee will be immediately fired
from the job as per the company policy.

Collective Bargaining:
In Telenor the line managers of the concerned department are
responsible to raise the voice of their subordinates and they act as a

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 11

representative whenever the issues of collective bargaining are
needed.

Communication and involvement in the organization:

In Telenor employees are fully aware about the aspects of their jobs
and their employment. This right is commonly adhered by employers
who communicate with and involved their employees through
performance by periodic performance appraisals. In this way
employees are made aware and encourage having an involvement for
the organizational effectiveness.
In Telenor employees at all levels have all the right to know about the
criteria of their appraisals and they are also asked to give their level of
expectations about their performance before the actual evaluation by
the concerned supervisor. The employees are free to challenge if they
feel that they have not been evaluated appropriately.

Disciplinary action:

There are five types of disciplinary actions:

Sr. # Type Action

1 Verbal Communication between the employee

Correction and the immediate manager. The
manager verbally corrects the employee
by informing him/her of the violation
and offers guidance to correct the
problem.

2 Warning Manager prepares a written summary

letter explaining the rule violation and the
corrective action desired. The manager
may involve PE if desired.

3 Show Cause People Excellence issues a written

Notice “Show Cause Notice” to the employee,
detailing the violation and giving the
employee 3 days to reply as to why
further action should not be taken

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 12

 against him/her. Employees reply would
determine further action, which may, if
necessary, lead to inquiry, suspension
and/or dismissal.

4 Termination If the employee is unable to meet KPI’s

because of incompetence or behavior.

5 Dismissal At times dismissal becomes necessary if

the violation is extremely serious or if all
previous attempts at correction have
failed.

Due process:

Due process is highly emphasized and recognized as an employee

right in Telenor in which employee is asked to show the other side of
picture as well and all the facts related to a scenario have been
considered realistically when charged with a rule violation by a
mediator who could be someone from any managerial hierarchy.

Employer responsibility:

Telenor to stakeholders:

In Telenor Customers as stakeholders are treated with great insight,

respect and understanding. It always tries to fulfill the needs of the
customer in the best possible manner, within the guidelines for
corporate ethics that apply to the business. Customer's personal
information shall be protected in accordance with the relevant laws on
protection of personal data.

Suppliers are treated impartially and justly. Suppliers in competition for

contracts with Telenor trust Telenor's selection processes. When
selecting suppliers they must follow the group's established guidelines
and routines at all times.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 13

Telenor's competitiveness in the market is based on good products and
services at the right price. Public authorities are met in an appropriate
and open manner. Public information about the Group is supplied by
Telenor's management or by the person responsible for public
communications, unless otherwise agreed.

Telenor to know the law:

It is Telenor's policy to comply with all applicable laws and
governmental rules and regulations. It is the personal responsibility of
each employee to adhere to the standards and restrictions imposed by
those laws, rules and regulations, including those relating to
accounting and auditing matters.

Primarily it is the responsibility of people excellence department to

communicate legal requirements to the line managers of different
departments.

Telenor is one of the leading telecommunication company of Pakistan

which is operating under the guidelines of PTA. PTA is a governmental
regulatory which is overlooking all the legal matters concerning
telecommunication sector. And it is the legal obligation of all
telecommunication companies to obey and implement these
guidelines.

In Telenor there is a Regulatory and Interconnection Strategy

Department under the head of the Strategy and Corporate Affairs
Division that deals all the corporate legal issues e.g. briefing,
appointing of lawyers, maintaining database relating to court cases,
and follow up of cases etc. It is responsible for hearing the complaints,
dealing with show-cause notices, drafting and vetting of
determinations, rules, and regulations.

Treating employee with human dignity:

Telenor supports the international human rights as outlined by the UN
declaration and conventions. No one can in any way cause or
contribute to the violation or circumvention of human rights. It places
great importance on ensuring the compliance with employees' basic
human rights as outlined in the International Labor Organization’s core
conventions.

Responsibility to Bargain collectively:

Telenor recognizes the right to freedom of association and collective
bargaining in mature labor environments. In such environments
Telenor allows its employees to freely elect representatives among the
employees, unless this would represent a breach of national laws and
regulations. Such employee representatives are allowed to carry out

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 14

their functions unhindered at the work place. It shares the
responsibility to avoid discrimination against any employee
representatives.

Responsibility to provide Due Process:

Telenor accepts the responsibility to provide due process in which the
employer creates an environment of fair hearing and fair treatment for
the employees who are discharged.

Telenor is a nonunionized organization and constitutes an impartial

panel of employees and managers who hear the employee complaint
and grievance. This is done in a formal one to one meeting. If the
employee is at a location which does not have People Excellence
presence, then in the Exit Interview will be conducted via telephone.

In cases where an employee is dismissed from service, an Exit

Interview is not required; however for the record, People Excellence
representative files an Exit Interview form in the employee’s personal
file by stating that a dismissal has taken place.

People Excellence completes the “Exit Interview Form” and forwards

the findings to Director People Excellence & BPI. The completed “Exit
Interview Form” is then filed in the employee personal file for record.

Managing the problem employee in Telenor:

Following behaviors are considered as problematic behaviors in

Telenor. There are certain disciplinary actions against these behaviors
which vary upon the nature of the offence.
1. Alcohol\ drug abusers
2. Marginal \ low performers
3. Tardy\ absent employees
4. Saboteur\ thief
5. Caustic\ sarcastic\ negative attitude

The working environment at Telenor has been bifurcated upon the

nature of the tasks. Each department has its own administrative
hierarchy to identify, and evaluate negative behavior of every
employee.

The drug abusers at operational level can easily be identified by their

poor performance which has been highlighted by the automated

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 15

assessment software known as a functional assessment. The
disciplinary action against taking drugs is Dismissal.

Employees who continuously perform marginal or lower to KPI’s

receive three warnings and in the case of non improvement the final
decision is termination.

Tardy and frequent absent employees receive warning letters and if

they unable to improve their attendance they ultimately be dismissed
from their jobs.

Theft, pilferage, or unauthorized removal of property of the Company

or of others leads to immediate dismissal from the job.
Negative behavior or professional incompetence leads to warning or
termination.

Building a Good Disciplinary Climate:

At Telenor Board of Directors and Business Process Improvement (BPI)
have articulated the policies and procedures at the corporate level
which has the disciplinary action as an important aspect. There are
many policies exist to build the good disciplinary corporate climate.
The three most important are discussed below:

• Right of Appeal
• Fair and impartial administration
• Self-discipline over externally imposed discipline

Right of Appeal:
Perception of fairness and equity involves the right of appeal. Telenor
is an organization which values egalitarian working environment to
implement this core value. Telenor gives a dissatisfied employee the
right of appeal against a disciplinary decision to a person or
department. Since telenor is a non unionized organization that is why
the people excellence department constitutes a panel of professional
employees to hear the appeal initiated by the victim.

Fair and impartial administration:

After the comprehensive process of right of Appeal the final

responsibility of management is the fair and impartial administration of

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 16

the disciplinary process. This means that the decision of the panel
must be protected from the elements of favoritism and nepotism.

In Telenor employees are treated alike regardless of their relationship

to the key people, wealth or other factors.

Self-discipline over externally imposed discipline:

The best discipline is a kind that employees impose on themselves.

They do the right thing because they know it is expected and they
want to do it.

In Telenor many external control measures are imposed to ensure that

employee do the right thing but there is an emphasis on self-discipline
as well. This is done by creating a culture that fosters and rewards self-
control and self-discipline.

For example employee in Telenor who practices self- discipline is

entitled with “Conduct of the Month” at the end of the month.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 17

SWOT Analysis:
Strengths:

1. In Telenor all the matters concerning the employee’s issues with

job or in terms of relations with the corporate are all written in
the company policies and procedures in a structured manner.

2. There is a comprehensive demarcation between the moral and

legal codes of conduct which is communicated to the employees
at induction program and also written in the employee portal.
3. Employee relation and moral guidelines are an integral part of
the corporate culture of Telenor.
4. Employee rights at work place that are promulgated by the law
of the land and the rights that are prevailed in the corporate
charters both are implemented in Telenor.
5. In Telenor, employer relation with employees is highly feasible,
accessible and encouraged at all levels of organization hierarchy.
6. The special arrangement by the Telenor as the “Regulatory and
Interconnection Strategy Department” acts as a precedent to
handle corporate legal affairs.

Weaknesses:

1. In Telenor, due to the rigid shift structures, social integration

among employees is not of satisfactory level.
2. Due to the non unionization culture of Telenor the employee
representativeness is not appropriate.

Opportunities:

1. By working in Telenor an employee can have an exposure

of multinational organization where the legal and
employee rights issues are fully intact.
2. The egalitarian culture prevailing in Telenor gives an
insight to its employees a transparent and fair treatment
through which an employee can fully utilize his abilities.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 18

Threats:

1. Due to the extensive competition in the telecommunication

sector the margin of the improvement in the issues concerning
employee relations by the competitors can increase the turnover
rate.
2. To take disciplinary action against the key employees could be a
difficult action for telenor.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 19

Conclusion:
Telenor is an international provider of high quality telecommunication
and gives a high emphasis on the employee relations. Anti
discrimination and employment at will are the laws implemented
effectively. Employee’s rights are sophisticatedly protected. Telenor as
an Employer shows great concerns to its external and internal
stakeholders. It constitutes all major aspects of a healthy corporate
disciplinary environment.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 20

References
• http://www.pta.gov.pk/index.php?
cur_t=vtext&option=com_content&task=view&id=360&Itemid=
327

• http://www.telenor.com.pk
https://portal.telenor.com/servlet/ShowResource?
id=300673&view=view_resoure

• Interview to Shahzada Waqas, Executive HR at Telenor Pakistan.

Employee Relations in Telenor Pakistan 21