A labour market can be understood as the mechanism through which human
labour is bought and sold as a commodity and the means by which labour
demand (the number and type of available jobs) is matched with labour
supply (the number and type of available workers). As such, the labour market
constitutes the systematic relationship that exists between workers and work
organisations. In order to achieve its strategic objectives, a fundamental
concern for an organisation is to ensure that it has the right people with the
right skills, knowledge and attributes in the appropriate positions. The previous
chapter outlined two competing approaches a firm might adopt to acquiring
required labour: ‘make’ or ‘buy’ strategies. The former refers to configuring
HRM activities to fulfil a firm’s human resource requirements by developing
existing employees and retaining their services over the long-term.