人力资源会计【外文翻译】 .doc

本科毕业论文（设计）外 文 翻 译外文题目 Human Resource Accounting 外文出处 International Advances in Economic Research 外文作者 Carme Barcons-Vilardell, Soledad Moya-Gutierrez, Antonio Somoza-Lopez, J-osep Vallverdu-Calafell, Carlos Griful-Miquela 原文：Human Resource AccountingHuman resources is an old field of research in economics,as reflected by accounting treatments.This paper reviews this contribution from accounting literature and the European legal framework.Different institutional attitudes toward this topic were collected from such organizations as the Financial Accounting Standards Board 1984,1993 and the American Accounting Association 1970.After that,a detailed revision is made of the main costs related to human resources: training and selection costs and exit costs.This analysis is made from the points of view of external and internal (or managerial) accounting and from historical costs and opportunity costs.Finally,no unique solution to this problem is given, but all possible alternatives are evaluated and open for discussion.(JEL J40)1 Introduction Human resource accounting is not a new issue in economics. Economists consider human capital as a production factor, and they explore different ways of measuring its investment in education,health,and other areas. Accountants have recognized the value of human assets for at least 70 years. Research into true human resource accounting began in the 1960s by Rensis Likert Bowers,1973. Likert defends long-term planning by strong pressure on human resources'qualitative variables,resulting in greater benefits in the long run. The American Accounting Association 1970 defines human resource accounting as "the human resources identification and measuring process and also its communication to the interested parties." There are two reasons for including human resources in accounting Ripoll and Labatut,1994.First,people are a valuable resource to a firm so long as they perform services that can be quantified.The firm need not own a person for him to be considered a resource.Second,the value of a person as a resource depends on how he is employed.So management style will also influence the human resource value.2 BARCONS VILA ELL ET AL.: HUMAN RESOURCE ACCOUNTINGConceptual Frame Human resources,like any other asset,bring with them several costs (Table 1). Using criteria to determine elements that can be recorded Financial Accounting Standards Board,1984,1993; International Accounting Standards Committee,1989,1994,Table 2 shows the possibilities of considering human resources as an asset Financial Accounting Standards Board,1984,1993 and as a current expense.TABLE 1The Costs of Human Resources Costs Definitions Original Financial flows originating when hiring and training becomes necessary.Substitution Incurred today to substitute resources used in a determined activity.Oppourtunity The value of human resources in its most favorable, alternative use. Source: Flamholtz, 1976.TABLE 2Assets and Expense of Human Resources Assets Expense 1. In the future, the enterprise will 1. Reasons for considering humanprobably obtain profits. Zubiarre resources as an asset come from1995 states that profit generation avoiding the problems whenis a subjective item. considering them as an asset. 2. Asset costs must be measured easily. This is determined through a simple external, not an internal, operation. 3. This is good for human resource control. The firm does not own human resources like it owns other assets. Legal Frame Following the fourth directive of Community Economical European 1978,no party that is referred to human resources is considered in the different balance sheet models, and only in the profit and loss account are the costs most directly related to them, such as salaries and staff welfare expenses (including pensions).The number of employees classified in categories is mentioned only in the explanatory report, he same as the board of directors' payment. In Spain, the treatment followed by the Plan General de Contabilidad Ministerio de Economy Hacienda,1990 is more or less what has just been shown,which implies a continuation of the Plan General de Contabilidad Ministerio de Economy Hacienda,1973.3 Training and Selection Cost Analysis Concept No doubt,when a firm invests in human resources by acquisition and training,it anticipates a future generation of profits and services that will be produced by these assets.Referring to training,the Asociaction Espafiola de Contabilidad y Administraction (AECA) 1994 states that one of the techniques showing a greater capacity to stimulate efficiency is based on the idea that an employee who is induced to get to know his job better is more productive and quicker on the job.Training in firms is an activity that develops the worker's capacity to improve efficiency and job quality,therefore,the enterprise increases its profitability.The training concept is generally used to define three different issues which,in practice,are difficult to distinguish:capacitation,training,and development Guzmin et al., 1996.Capacitation is the worker's acquisition of knowledge and skills necessary for his job.Training better adapts the worker to the job,and development focuses on promotion to higher job levels. Even though there are different training classifications,the one proposed by Marqu6s 1974 reports several criteria:1) When does training take place?It can be at the contracting moment or any moment during employment. 2) How long is the training period?It can take from one or two days to one or two weeks. In some cases, it can take six months, one year, or more. 3) Does this training relate to the nature of the job by updating an employee's knowledge and teaching new techniques or does it open doors to new skills not related to the worker's professional activity? 4) Is there internal or external training taking place? The criteria based on the job's nature is also proposed by AECA 1994 in its managerial accounting document Number 6 where it distinguishes between creative training and competitive strategy training.Therefore,creative training comes from the firm's planning process and makes personnel capable of doing their job.On the contrary,competitive strategic training maintains the firm's competitive level.Inside creative training,three different actions can be distinguished that will incur some expenses Robleda,1994.Those training expensesare related to jobs and profession evolution,improvements in global services, and innovation or change in projects.In any case,expenses derived from creative training are considered long-term because they increase the firm's added value.In other words,with creative training,the firm becomes more competitive and increases its income.Expenses derived from competitive strategic training will be considered as current expenses since they appear as a consequence of short-term actions that maintain the firm's competitive level,even though its absence may lead to a decrease in the employee's qualifications.Treatment from a Financial Accounting Perspective Following the definitions already explained,as long as future benefits are expected to come from these training costs,they can be treated as assets.However,this does not hold true in reality.As Cea Garcia 1990 states: "There is a clear absence of correspondence between the real assets in the present firms and those recognised in the balance sheet. In fact,assets are too related to its juridical conception (that is,owned by the firm.), in front of a pure economic approach where asset is every instrument or way that can be used in the production-distribution firm's process or,in general,every category of economic value which can be transformed into goods or service or any instrument at the service of the firm or that the firm uses, regardless of its juridical state.and also all those goods and rights that the firm does not own now but used to own or will own later on,by virtue of collateral contracts or agreements which may induce it." So,a diagnosis is reached about the predominant asset concept.This situation can be explained by two important problems that are met when referring to intangibles: Identify the assets cost and estimate the period in which the asset should be amortized. In international accounting,besides clearly recognizing some items as assets (cash,stock,machinery,and so on) there is great debate whether certain other items are considered capitalization.These are known as deferred charges in English accounting literature Hendriksen,1992.It can be said then that not only are the limits unclear between intangible,fixed assets and deferred charges,but also which elements are considered assets and which elements are considered expenses.Treatment from a Managerial Accounting Perspective Personnel working for a determined enterprise is actually participating in a value-creation process.That is,any economic activity makes the firm incur costs. One traditional classification takes into account the cost categories of raw materials,industrial plants,and personnel.When adding income flow to an organization's market goods and services,if it is superior to the cost flow, it becomes added value.This value is a consequence of the interaction between material and human resources in production.Because it is difficult to know and measure value,accounting has used substituted measures such as acquisition cost,substitution cost,and even opportunity cost Marqties,1974. Historical Costs When referring to training costs, historical costs means the sacrifice necessary to hire and train people.Determining training costs is difficult when training takes place inhouse,considering teachers' and organizers' dedication,occupied rooms,salaries and staff welfare expenses with no remuneration,general expenses,and so on.It is much easier to have external training.Ortigueira Bouzada 1977 divides all these costs into the groups of acquisition costs and learning costs.Table 3 further divides acquisition costs, and Table 4 further divides learning costs.TABLE 3Acquisition Costs Costs Definitions Recruiting Originates with the search for human resources.Included in this is publicity,mailing,and so on.Costs corresponding to rejected applicants are applied to the contracted applicants.Selection Corresponds to the selected personnel.Its most important components are derived from the candidate's interview (traveling,hotels,and so on),elaboration and organization of exams,and other selective tests. As with recruiting costs,total selection costs are applied to those contracted applicants.Contracting Begins once personnel is elected.This refers to formulating the contract,travel expenses,and similar concepts.Placing Includes a variety of administrative costs,produced by the necessity of situating the new employee in his job. TABLE 4 (CONT.) Costs Definitions Orientation This is hardly estimable and refers to familiarizing the new employee with the personnel policy, products and services of the enterprise, and the organization in general.This cost generally includes adapting the person to the organization as a whole and not to a particular job.Promotion Originates every time an employee changes his job whether in the same category or another.This normally is a relevant part of the total cost.Improvement Maintains and improves the real potential capacity of every employee.This cost constitute an important item in historical costs. From the management accounting point of view,an accurate estimation of the learning factor is essential to obtain a good prediction of the product cost and is also important in the labor force.On the other hand,the enterprise can make decisions about its human resource investments if it knows which benefits will be reported.In this sense,the learning factor or experience curve provides information for decisionmaking and resolution of problems regarding the rising costs of the labor force where new fabrication processes or specialized jobs are important.In both cases,the cost will decrease as long as employees get to know their jobs better. Substitution Costs Likert Bowers,1973 imagines an extreme situation for the firm's management:"Suppose that tomorrow all the jobs are empty,but you still have available all the rest of the resources:buildings,factories,industrial plants,patents, stocks,money,and so on;except,of course,for the personnel.How much time would it take you to recruit the necessary personnel,train it until they are able to assume all the existing functions at the present competitive level and integrate it in the organisation in the same way they now are?" The mental exercise necessary to rebuild an organization is an excellent way to attract attention to human resources,which is now seen in a new light.Certainly,Professor Likert's fiction includes the implicit posing of human resource valuation under substitution (or replacement) cost criteria. Even though Likert's proposal is very unlikely, it enables calculating the cost of totally substituting (or replacing) human resources.To calculate substitution cost,figure in the cost of sacrifice to replace a human resource that is already employed.This cost includes exit costs of the leaving employee and recruiting and training of the replacement.Opportunity Costs Some authors consider that opportunity costs are not the alternative to historical costs nor substitution costs,but estimates these costs without mistake.Opportunity costs are considered as "an asset value when they