Five types of employment
Match the employment type to how much and how regularly work is needed. Full-time works full hours for core, ongoing roles; part-time works fewer hours for flexibility and lower cost; casual works irregularly with no guaranteed hours; temporary is a fixed, limited period such as a seasonal peak; freelance is self-employed and not on the payroll. So full-time and part-time set how MANY hours, temporary and casual how LONG or regularly, and a freelancer is not an employee.
The four recruitment documents
Four documents run recruitment. A job description sets out the ROLE — its title, tasks, duties and responsibilities. A person specification sets out the PERSON — the skills, qualifications and qualities an applicant needs. An application form is a standard form set by the business, so all applicants answer the SAME questions and can be compared fairly. A CV is the applicant's own summary in their own layout, so CVs are harder to compare.
Internal vs external; legal controls
A vacancy can be filled internally (promoting an existing employee) or externally (from outside). Internal is cheaper and quicker and motivates staff, but leaves another vacancy and brings no fresh ideas. External gives a larger pool and new skills, but costs more, is slower and needs induction. Legal controls also apply — contracts, anti-discrimination, health-and-safety and minimum wage law — which protect workers but can raise costs and cut flexibility.
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Circular definition of a document
On a Define question the examiner wants the document's PURPOSE, not its name reworded. Weak and usually unmarked: "a job description is a description of a job". Secure: "a document setting out the title, tasks, duties and responsibilities of a role". If the word being defined appears inside your answer, rewrite it as the actual purpose.
November 2024 Paper 2 Q1(b): asked to define "job description", many gave a vague circular answer rather than the purpose, and only about half gained the mark.
Outline: reason not developed
An Outline wants TWO linked points in context — a reason PLUS a development applied to the firm. One mark: "an application form lets the business compare applicants". Both marks: "it asks every applicant the SAME questions, so the owner can quickly and fairly shortlist for the counter role". Naming the firm is not context; add a specific detail and link your point to it.
November 2024 Paper 2 Q3(b) (application form) and November 2024 Paper 1 Q3(b) (dismissing an employee): a valid reason was identified but not developed and applied, so the second mark was lost.
Temporary is not the same as part-time
Temporary and part-time describe different things. Temporary is about how LONG the job lasts — a fixed, limited period such as a seasonal contract. Part-time is about how MANY hours — fewer than full-time, but the job can be permanent. A part-time cleaner employed all year is permanent; a temporary worker may work full hours for a fixed spell. They are not interchangeable.
Freelancer treated as an employee
A freelancer is self-employed and hired for a specific task or project — for example a designer brought in to create a logo. They are NOT an employee and not on the payroll, so the business gives them no staff contract, paid holiday or regular wage. Saying "a freelancer is just a part-time employee" is wrong — the key point is self-employment, not the hours.
Internal recruitment means from within
Internal recruitment means filling a vacancy from the business's OWN existing employees, usually by promoting someone already on the staff. It does NOT mean hiring from the same industry: anyone from outside the business, even a rival in the same trade, is EXTERNAL recruitment. The test is whether the person already works for THIS business.
Explain: develop one reason, not a list
An Explain question needs NO context but DOES need development: give ONE reason, then develop it with a chain of linked points. Only one reason is credited, so listing several wastes time. Weak: naming three reasons a firm employs people with disabilities. Secure: one developed — "it widens the talent pool, so the firm hires the best person, so output rises".
June 2024 Paper 2 Q2(c) and Q2(e): explain-type recruitment items were answered well, but marks were lost by giving more than one reason or no development.
Job description vs person specification
Two mix-ups lose marks. A job description is about the JOB — the tasks of the role; a person specification is about the PERSON — the skills and qualities needed. Asked what someone must DO, use the job description; what they must HAVE, the person specification. An application form is the business's standard form; a CV is the applicant's own, harder to compare.
November 2024 Paper 2 Q1(b): weak definitions of "job description" show candidates do not clearly separate the document that lists the role's tasks from the one that lists the person's qualities.
Analyse builds a chain; Evaluate judges
Match the command word. Analyse (AO2+AO3) wants a developed chain of cause and effect applied to the firm, NOT a judgement. Only Justify and Evaluate carry AO4, where you reach a supported decision. Do not add a verdict to an Analyse, or stop at description on an Evaluate.
Reach AO4 on internal vs external
On the Justify and Evaluate questions on internal vs external, the marks lost are the AO4 ones. After applying and analysing each method for THIS firm, reach a supported judgement on WHY one outweighs the other — not a two-sided list of pros and cons, which stays mid-band.
State/Outline need a context detail
State and Outline items carry an AO2 mark, lost unless you add a specific detail from the extract — a product, task, worker type or scenario fact. Naming the business, or repeating the question, is NOT context. Tie your point to a specific fact about THIS firm.
Justify: one option or both is fine
A Justify answer may cover just ONE option or both — both are accepted. The top band is not lost for choosing one; it is lost when there is no reasoned, case-specific judgement. End with a clear conclusion on which is better for the firm and why.
| Type | What it means | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time | works the business's normal full hours (often around 35 to 40 a week) | core, ongoing roles |
| Part-time | works fewer hours than a full-time worker | flexibility and lower cost |
| Casual | works irregularly, only when needed, with no guaranteed hours | unpredictable, short-notice demand |
| Temporary | employed for a fixed, limited period | seasonal peaks or covering absence |
| Freelance | self-employed, hired for a specific task or project | one-off specialist work |
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