Do you know your ATS from your LMS? Unsure what an EAP is? The HR sector is full of unusual acronyms. Whether you’re thinking of working in HR for a company or you’re a self-employed business owner thinking of hiring employees, it could be useful to know a few of these acronyms. Below are 30 common HR acronyms decoded so that you know the lingo.
ACAS
Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service
ACAS is a public body in the UK dedicated to helping resolve workplace disputes and improve relations between employees. Employers are able to use ACAS to help seek legal advice on how to deal with employee issues, while employees can also use this service to seek out their own free impartial consultancy.
ATS
Applicant Tracking System
An ATS is a type of software used by employers and recruiters to track candidates during the hiring process. This software can help automatically screen resumes for keywords, as well as helping to organize candidate information and send emails to applicants (such as interview request emails and rejection emails).
CHRO
Chief Human Resources Officer
The head of a HR department is sometimes referred to by the title CHRO (Chief Human Resources Officer). This senior employee is in charge of all HR matters including putting into place recruitment strategies and managing benefits packages.
COSHH
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health
COSHH is an area of health and safety law that requires employers to put in place certain measures to protect employees against the risk of hazardous substances. This includes chemicals, fumes, dusts, bacteria, viruses and fungi. Examples of COSHH measures that employers need to take include making sure indoor air quality is healthy and providing PPE.
CV
Curriculum Vitae
In recruitment, CVs are documents provided by applicants that outline their education and employment history. The word ‘CV’ and ‘resume’ are sometimes used interchangeably – although resumes are usually more focused towards a specific job, whereas CVs are more general.
D&O
Directors & Officers
D&O (Directors & Officers) is a type of insurance cover that provides compensation if certain staff members within your management are sued for negligence. It protects your company from lawsuits and it protects your senior staff members. Larger companies with several management staff can benefit from it more than smaller companies.
DEI
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
DEI is a legal framework used to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. This involves promoting fair opportunities and treatment for people of all ages, races, religions, genders and sexual orientations.
EAP
Employee Assistance Program
An EAP is an employer-paid scheme that gives employees 24/7 access to support – including professional and personal advice. Employers will typically use a third-party service to provide this EAP. This can help to protect the wellbeing of your employees by always having someone available to talk to about issues.
ECHR
European Convention of Human Rights
The European Convention of Human Rights is an international treaty that all countries in the country of Europe must abide by. It protects various human rights and includes several employment regulations like Article 8 – which forbids employers from monitoring employees with CCTV or monitoring software without their permission.
EL
Employer’s Liability
Employer’s Liability is a type of insurance that all employers are legally required to take out. This insurance cover protects employees if they get injured or sick as a result of work, providing financial compensation to them.
EPS
Employer Payment Summary
An EPS is a type of report that employers submit to HMRC. It is used to report changes in an employee’s pay that could affect their tax liability as well as being used to reclaim statutory payments like maternity pay and sick pay. This post explains more as to what an EPS is.
HCM
Human Capital Management
HCM stands for Human Capital Management. It is an expanded version of HR that also includes finding ways to use human resources to add value to the company. HCM software can be used to help with this field.
HR
Human Resources
Do you know what HR itself means? HR stands for human resources and covers almost all employee-related matters in business with the exception of using staff to make a return (which is what HCM covers).
HSE
Health and Safety Executive
HSE is the national regulator for workplace health and safety in the UK. As an employer, it is important to keep track of law changes introduced by HSE, as well as reporting workplace injuries to HSE.
KPI
Key Performance Indicator
KPIs are various metrics that are used to measure performances in all areas of business. Some KPIs you may encounter in HR include cost per hire, revenue per employee, employee satisfaction and employee turnover. KPIs are heavily used when managing sales teams.
LMS
Learning Management System
A learning management system is a type of software that employees may use for online learning and training. Employees may be expected to complete such training via a website or possibly an app in their free time. It is typically used alongside physical training and may include online quizzes, videos and instructions.
LOA
Leave of Absence
LOA is the amount of time an employee takes off from work while employed. HR software can often help track LOA to ensure that employees are not taking too much time off.
NIC
National Insurance Contributions
Employees earning over a certain amount must pay NICs alongside income tax payments. NICs go towards funding pensions and benefits like maternity allowance. The amount of NICs an employee has to pay is relative to their salary.
P45
A P45 is a document that is issued by an employer when an employee leaves work. It should be given to an employee before they receive their final payslip. You can find P45 draft forms online.
P60
A P60 is a document that is given to all employees at the end of the tax year to summarise their total pay and deductions for the year. P60s provide proof that an employee’s tax has been paid. You must give each employee their P60 by 31st May.
PAYE
Pay As You Earn
PAYE is a popular system used to collect income tax and NICs from employees. It involves deducting tax and NICs from each payslip throughout the year rather than one large sum at the end of each tax year. Payroll software can help with this.
PIP
Performance Improvement Plan
A PIP is a formally written document to address an employee’s unsatisfactory performance. It is used to help employees meet performance standards and may be issued following an employee review or when an employee is clearly falling behind. Issuing a PIP first can also be important before taking disciplinary action in many cases.
PPE
Personal Protective Equipment
To protect employees from injuries or sickness, some workplaces may issue PPE. This includes equipment such as facemasks, ear defenders, safety goggles, hard hats, gloves and aprons. PPE may be required by law in some cases.
PTO
Paid Time Off
Employers must provide a certain amount of PTO per employee. This includes paid holiday and paid sick leave. If an employee exceeds the PTO limit, you have the option to stop paying them while absent. HR or payroll software can help track PTO.
RPO
Recruitment Process Outsourcing
Many companies outsource a recruitment agency to handle the recruitment process. This is sometimes referred to as RPO. It can be useful for companies that have limited time and resources to dedicate to recruitment.
RIDDOR
Reporting of Injuries, Disease and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations
RIDDOR is a UK law that requires employers to all report work-related injuries, sickness and accidents to HSE. A RIDDOR report must be filed online immediately after such an incident occurs.
RTW
Return To Work
A RTW discussion may be held if an employee has been absent for a long period (possibly due to sickness or pregnancy/parenthood) and you want to introduce them back to the workplace. This may include discussing retraining and roles.
SSP
Statutory Sick Pay
SSP is payment that an employee receives if they are too ill to work. The employer is legally required to pay SSP if an employee has been off work for four consecutive days. You can read more about SSP here.
TUPE
Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment
TUPE is a legal framework that protects employees’ rights to work for a company when a business is taken over by a new owner. Understanding TUPE law is vital if you are taking over a company with existing employees and want to know your rights.
WFH
Working From Home
Finally, we have WFH – which is commonly used in writing as a shorthand for ‘working from home’.
Conclusion
Some of these acronyms may not come up in conversation much. And you may find that it’s easier to simply use the non-abbreviated forms when talking to certain people. However, it is still useful to know these acronyms in case you stumble across them. They could be particularly useful when reading into HR topics or when talking to HR experts who may throw around these buzzwords more frequently. Ultimately, you’ll feel more equipped to negotiate the world of HR.
