Ateneo de Manila University

John Gokongwei School of Management

Finance and Accounting Department
A.Y. 2015-2016

Human Resources Accounting: The Problem of

Cost-Value Reconciliation

Human Resources Accounting Research Paper with Recommended

Preliminary System Incorporating Human Capital and Human Asset

In fulfillment of a requirement for

an Accounting 30 Class under Dr. Venus C. Ibarra

Dianne Ashley Tan

Sherwin Uy
Patricia Rivera

2 BS Management-Honors

Submitted on:
April 12, 2016

Introduction
The dramatic increase in market competition causes companies to find themselves in
an arms race to acquire more capital and technological advancement. Better machinery and
more efficient methods in production equate to enterprise development and profit generation.
Countless organizations have been pursuing a lifelong goal of globalization, sourcing their
resources and inputs from advanced countries that provide high-end technology. In a society
obsessed with technique, companies maintain a certain level of competitiveness by providing
their customers the best products and services that they can offer. Aside from all these
however, there is another widely recognized factor that contribute to the overall success of an
organizationpeople.
In our investment-driven economy, companies are aggressively tapping into human
capital, recruiting talented young people and training them to become better workers or
leaders in the firm. Known to be the most valuable asset of an enterprise, human capital
consists of a companys labor force. What really keeps a company going are not the shiny,
automated machines in a factory nor the tall buildings that house the executives, but the
employees and people behind the development of an organization. They are the ones who
make good use of the resources available and produce the results of a well-managed
company. Human capital is at the forefront of knowledge-based management and ventures,
and this knowledge comes from the people hired in a firm (Rylander & Peppard, 2005).
Since people are considered as the most important asset or investment of a company,
a certain type of accounting method emerged in order to give credit to the value of human
capital. As defined by the American Accounting Association in 1980, human resources
accounting refer to the process of identifying and measuring data about human resources
and communicating this information to interested parties (Hossain, Islam & Bhuiyan, 2014).
Human resources accounting is not a new topic in economics, and the emergence of human
resources accounting in the 1960s was attributed to the prevalent notion that conventional
accounting methods fail to recognize people as a significant resource among other tangible or
intangible assets (Ganta & Geddam, 2014). The main problem in current accounting methods
is that it overlooks the apparent mismatch of revenue and expenses in relation to employee
training and performance since good performance of an employee (that is, a revenue) is rarely
attributed to the training expense incurred in the past years (Elias, 1972). Due to various
limits and problems in human resource accounting, only a few companies have followed its
practices as a norm in their own accounting office.

The Limits and Problems of Human Resources Accounting

While human resources accounting expands the view of an accounting system and
provides a fuller picture of a companys activities, there are various difficulties being faced
which led to having this type of accounting as merely an extension from normal practices.
First, labeling people in monetary terms and objectifying them as assets of a
company are behaviorally unacceptable in terms of cultural norms. Second, each individual
has his own KSAs (knowledge, skills, and attitude) that would be extremely complicated to
quantify in accounting terms. Human resources accounting entails a standardization of
processes and methods without sacrificing accuracy in order for it to be adapted well despite
the vast differences in management styles among companies. Third, human resources
accounting sheds light on an entirely different perspective on human capital and other related
accounts. For example, according to Ilona, Aionel & Dumitru (2010), wages and salaries are
normally considered as expenses to the company rather than an investment in human capital
on the ground that wages are incentives to employees and are meant to motivate or improve
performance.
All these require a tremendous effort to radically change the perspective of accounting
practitioners and companies. Moreover, including employees as assets or investments would
largely distort the picture painted by a companys normal operating activities since
expending people would be very misleading on a financial statement. Therefore, in the near
future, the influence of human resources accounting could only go so far as a tool for
managerial analysis and decision-making.

Review of Related Literature

Most literature have stressed on the importance of human resources accounting in the
modern world. As society becomes more advanced and knowledge-based, the value of
intangible assets such as human capital continues to grow; thus, a more accurate
representation of human capital on financial reporting and management control is necessary
(Stanko, Zeller & Melena, 2014). For the sake of understanding more about the influence of
human resources on current accounting systems and what other researchers and practitioners
have experimented to bring forth a method of measuring the value created by human capital,
this paper have studied and evaluated the relevant literature that have discussed the said topic.

The Significance of Human Resources Accounting in Investment Decisions

In the experiment of Elias (1972), he tries to prove the significance of human
resources accounting in external financial reporting. As companies become more knowledgebased, there is an inclination toward hiring the right, talented and skillful employees; thus,
presenting the productivity level of a firms human capital would play a big role in helping
investors with their financial and investment decisions.
Following sound accounting principles, Elias (1972) focuses on historical costs
incurred as expenses of the company for its employees. In conventional accounting systems,
costs are usually recorded at the monetary value at the time of purchase or expense; thus,
recording historical costs is the normally accepted accounting method.
Toward the end of his experiment, he found a statistically significant relationship
between investor decision (participants were CPAs and accounting students) and the
incorporation of human capital information in financial statements. Though he also notes that
while there is a relationship, other data show that the relationship is rather weak due to
certain factors and limitations.
While the results are not weighty, several parts of the article point toward the benefits
and possibilities that human resources accounting can bring to a company. For example, the
comparative balance sheets provided by the experiment only included a general human
asset account with no further details or information. Should there have been more data that
could help paint the whole picture of the firms human capital, then it would most probably
produce a different result in the experiment since the experiment itself did show a
relationship between investor decision and human resources information because of an added
human asset account.
This article by Elias (1972) showed the potential of human resources accounting in
the development of current accounting systems and this has been agreed by countless
literature (Pyle, Brummet & Flamholtz, 1968; Stanko, Zeller & Melena, 2014; Ganta &
Geddam, 2014). There is an outcry of a need to account for human asset in financial
accounting, but the main problem remainssetting a monetary value on an employee that
shows his productivity. Numerous researches were undertaken by professionals and
practitioners, and many models were created, but they were not widely accepted due to their
limitations and possible misrepresentations.

The Cost Perspective of Human Resources Accounting and Its Limits

In Barcons-Vilardell et al.s journal article Human Resources Accounting, they
analyzed how various elements of human resources can be incorporated into the accounting
system. Rather than providing a specific solution to the problem, the article merely points out
the related costs incurred in the human resources department and explained how these costs
are significant in light of the juridical definitions of accounting terms (such as assets).
Barcons-Vilardell et al. introduces human resources accounting by starting with the
resource theory which states that a companys survival in a market depends not on its
duplicate assets but on its specific assets, the employees (Conner, 1991, as cited in BarconsVilardell et al., 1999). In this case, it would be important to measure the value of each
employee in order to gauge the real productivity level of a firm in relation to human resources
and make use of these measurements for internal control.
After establishing this point, the authors proceeded to enumerate the different types of
costs incurred in human resources and discussed how these alternatives can be incorporated
into the accounting system. The bulk of the article primarily focuses on three types of costs:
general costs, training and selection costs (divided into acquisition and learning costs) and
exit costs. Much of the paper argues about whether a particular expense should be capitalized
or not, turning these into assets that appear on financial statements. The authors conclude that
general costs and training and selection costs can possibly be capitalized and amortized over
a certain period under the notion that these costs do bring about long-term benefits and
returns in the future through the productivity of the personnel. Long-term value-adding
expenses or costs become the basis of capitalization. However, for exit costs, staying true to
the prevalent juridical concept of an asset, exit costs (indemnities for a resigning/leaving
employee) are considered mostly as current expenses because the company is not purchasing
an asset or investing on anything.
While the article has laid out numerous costs related to human resources, the main
question of what to do afterwards remains unanswered. The article has recognized two
pervasive problems with human resources accounting: identifying the relevant costs to be
capitalized or to be recorded as current expenses and setting the period of amortization.
Along with these problems, a framework is needed to incorporate human asset account titles.
Human Resource Accounting Cost Models
The main difficulty with human resource accounting is that there is no definitive way
to assign value to an employee. With this, human resource accounting has developed

different methods for the valuation of human assets. In this section, we will discuss some of
the most dominant models utilized in human resource accounting: the Historical Cost model,
the Replacement Cost model, the Discounted Cash Flow model, the Adjusted Discounted
Future-Wages model, and the Opportunity Cost model.
Historical Cost Model
The Historical Cost Model aims to ascertain the firms investments made in human
assets, and measure of the value of a firms human resources. This model gives emphasis on
human resources being classified as business investments on account of their futuritytheir
ability to provide potential economical benefits in the future.
The model takes note of four general types of expenditures involved in acquiring
human assets: recruiting, hiring, training, and development. These include all (direct and
indirect) expenses incurred in searching and selecting the individuals needed to fill the
personnel requirements of the organization; moving, placing, and establishing the employees
initial records; training the employee through formal or informal sessions; and providing the
employee with the necessary avenues for the development of his skills and growth. All of
these are summarized by employee and amortized over the expected employment time span
for each employee.
The two main advantages of this model is that it is reflective of current accounting
procedures because the acquisition cost recorded is the price actually paid by the firm; and
that the system is simple, and entirely feasible to install within a reasonable time frame. This
does not limit the firm to simply reporting tangible assets in its financial statements, and
reflect a more accurate representation of the firms value. While this method is aligned with
current accounting principles, it may be outdated and could not account for the true market
value of the investment. Carper (2002) believes that this model may be substantially
misleading because the values listed in financial statements would be economically incorrect.
The value of the employee may not correlate well with the investment, as individuals can
greatly appreciate in value and this may have little to do with costs or expenditures. Aside
from that, there is much difficulty in the determination of a universal write-off period, as the
method undertaken can be up to the firms discretion. It is necessary to take the prior period
investments into account, and this does not take account for the different rates at which
employees assimilate the knowledge and skills gained from their training programs;
therefore, making this model incompatible with the comparison of human-resource values.

Replacement-Cost Model
The Replacement-Cost Model involves the calculation of the estimated costs of
replacing a firms current human resource. Replacement costs provide better managerial
information because they are more current, and are market-price oriented. This model
assumes all related costs needed to reinstate the human assets of a firm to the point of
existing employees in a situation where the firm retains all its assets. These include the
necessary acquisition, learning, and termination costs needed to reinstate the firms human
resources in a level of competence similar to the existing employees. The model takes note of
the direct and indirect expenses incurred in searching and selecting individuals to replace
those already in the organization and the cost of bringing new employees up to the level of
competence or standard of the people replaced. The possibility of promotion within the
organization still exists, as not all positions necessarily have to be filled from the outside. The
comparison of the costs of promotion with the cost of replacement from outside the
organization may help in making key managerial decisions as the lower of these values would
be the acquisition replacement cost. Lastly, Ripoll and Labatut (1994) classifies the
termination costs, expenditures necessary upon separation of an employee from the
organization, into three categories: lost efficiency prior to separation, job vacancy cost during
the new search, and termination pay. While lost efficiency is hard to quantify, this can be
based from each employees productivity. There is also a need to quantify how much the firm
ceases to gain because of the vacant position. Termination pays are usually regarded as
indemnities in accounting systems. The classification of an indemnity as either an
extraordinary expense or operating cost is dependent on the rate of personnel turnover in the
firm. For organizations with high personnel turnover, indemnities become a frequent issue
and should be included in a firms operating expenses. For firms that need to cancel contracts
in order to survive, indemnities become extraordinary expenses because they do are not part
of the typical activities of the firm and are not supposed to happen frequently.
The main advantage of this method is that it is reflective of the market value of human
resources in the economy and takes account of the effect of inflation on asset values. It must
be noted, however, that this approach is not consistent with current accounting methods, as
this prevents human asset valuation from being comparable with other assets in the financial
statements. The Replacement Cost Model may not denote the true economic value of
individuals and groups within the organization because of subjective estimates necessary for
computation. In fact, it is possible that certain individuals cannot be replaced without
disruption of key behavioral relationships.

Discounted Cash Flow or Compensation Model

Lev and Schwartz (1971) developed a model which considered the use of the
economic concept of human capital for organizations, which is now the most popularly used
model for human resource accounting across the globe. Using the model, they attempted to
accurately predict the future earning employees will generate, by discounting these cash
flows to the present, a valuation for human assets is produced.
This is based on the premise that an asset can be said to be an economic resource and
we acquire these resources to utilize them, then it is the future benefits and costs we are
concerned with, not past outlays or even present expenditure (Savich et al., 1976). Based on
Irving Fishers human capital theory, Lev and Schwartz conclude that capital is defined as a
source of income stream and its worth in the present value of future income discounted by a
rate specific to the owner of the source. This approach uses an individuals earning profile,
probability of termination, and minimum desired rate of return. The earning profile is a
mathematical representation of the income stream generated by a person. With this, a general
earning profile first increases with age as a persons skills and capacity to learn develops and
eventually declines due to technological obsolescence and health deterioration. An
individuals economic value, therefore, is the summation of all estimated annual earnings
from acquisition up to termination, which is discounted at a rate specific to the organization.
Firms usually construct average earning profiles for various groups within the organization.
These are then compiled to represent the total human capital associated with the firm.
Adjusted Discounted Future-Wages Method
Hermanson (1964) proposed a model that involved the discounting of future
compensation with an adjustment using an efficiency ratio to determine the value of an
individual. Here, discounted future wages are adjusted by an efficiency factor intended to
measure the relative effectiveness of the human capital of a given firm. The efficiency ratio is
then computed as the summation of the ratio of the return on investment of the firm relative
to other firms in a given economy for a particular period.
This model, however, has limited use as a predictor because the values acquired are
historically based. The model also leaves no allowance for other unowned assets, as this
assumes that human resource is the total of all unowned assets.
Opportunity Cost or Market Value Model
Developed by Hekimian and Jones (1967), the Opportunity Cost Method measures the
human resources of a firm with respect to an economists concept of opportunity cost, which
is the value of benefit foregone by putting all assets to present use. The model follows a

situation wherein talents and skills within the firm suddenly become scarce and the individual
departments must bid on existing employees in the organization. The valuation is achieved
through competitive bidding, where managers bid for any scarce employee.
In this model, there is no opportunity cost for employees that are not scarce. This
model assumes that only scarce people should comprise the value of human resources. As a
result, this model excludes the type of employees which can be hired readily from outside the
firm and is only concerned with individuals that possess special skills and knowledge.
Despite the development of various account models throughout the decades, no model
of human resource accounting is accepted by accounting bodies from all over the world.
Therefore, development in the human resource accounting system because of the lack of
implementation and further research. Human beings, in a strict sense, are also hardly
recognized as assets by tax laws because of the inability of firms to actually own human
beings.
Cost vs. Value Approach
The cost models discussed in the literature are all models that would fit BarconsVilardell et al.s definition and accounting terminologies for human resources. The
perspective laid out in the research of Barcons-Vilardell et al. however, only show a
dimension of human resources accounting. It does not encompass the equally significant
counterpart of costs or expenses, and that is how to recognize revenue. In another article
entitled Human Asset Accounting and Measurement: Moving Forward by Stanko, Zeller &
Melena (2014), they criticized one of the most prevalent (though flawed) human resources
accounting approachthe Cost Approach (Historical Cost Model and Replacement Cost
Model fall under this umbrella concept). In contrast to Barcons-Vilardell et al., their main
criticism on the Cost Approach lies in its prejudice toward emphasizing the cost rather than
on value, that the worth of an employee is the sum of all the costs incurred to recruit, train
and develop the employee. It fails to recognize his contributions to the company. For
example, when the article discussed the history of human resources accounting, they traced it
back to the Medieval Ages where the decision on keeping or killing an enemy prisoner
depended on the cost of keeping and the potential earning in the future, should they decide to
keep him. In our current case however, employees are more than just decorations to the
company; they are active members of a firm and constantly contributing to value-creation.
Barcons-Vilardell et al. on the contrary, overlooked this point and focused more on

distinguishing costs rather than on identifying relevant revenue or return on investment

generated by the respective employees in relation to the expenses (matching principle).
Stanko, Zeller & Melena have also highlighted in their study the various Value
Approaches that were proposed by other authors. These approaches included Lev & Schwartz
Model, Jaggi & Lau Method and the Economic Value Model. In this case, while it
encompasses the value aspect of human capital, it is still lacking and not all-inclusive, as
described by the authors. A better way for accounting cost, value and investment remains to
be the primary concern of many practitioners and researchers on top of the issue that it is
extremely complicated to label a monetary value on a complex human being.
Measurements of Human Resources Accounting
In another article, attempting to solve the problem of matching the employees
individual performance to the benefits it gives to the company, Andrew Mayo discusses the
different measures that can be used in human resources accounting. A major point tackled in
his article, The Human Value of an Enterprise is a dilemma of several companies: because
workers who should also be deemed as assets are difficult to quantify as compared to other
financial assets, they become quite challenging to manage.
Mayo introduces a few people-related measures which he believes may play a positive
factor in dealing with management problems, the first being workforce analytics which
focuses on the return on investment for people initiatives and programs. Mayo himself came
up with a Human Capital Monitor as well, which stresses that the performance of laborers
may be highly involved with how they are managed, their determination, and their working
environment. Moreover, the author also reviewed a formula that researchers W.J. Giles and
D.F. Robinson developed to compute for HAW (human asset worth). The HAW is solved by
multiplying employment cost and the individual asset multiplier and then divided by 1000.
The individual asset multiplier involves elements that make a worker creditable such as
potential, skill, and productivity, put on a relative scale (estimated by the company) to get a
numerical value.
In summary, Andrew Mayo talked about the possible human capital measurements in
his paper with the aim of showing that there are indeed frameworks and systems to quantify
human capital. He observes that corporations tend to overlook this and fail to recognize how
essential employees could be and emphasizes that it is imperative to continuously use
measures in valuing employees in order to administer them well and ensure their progress.

Various literature included in this section all point toward the possibilities and
breakthroughs that human resources accounting could bring if an appropriate system is
created. However, this proves to be a hard task since many factors come into play when
assigning certain values on a companys human asset reserve.

Methodology
A number of literature and experimental human resources accounting systems focus
too much on costs and expenses, leaving the impression that an employees value is limited
by the training and selection costs incurred. However, the value of an employee should be
based on the profit and benefits he generates for the company in relation to the expenses. In
order to address this situation, this paper has created a preliminary accounting system that
would tackle the limitations of various literature covered in the previous section of this paper.
Also, for the sake of understanding more about current accounting methods being used by
various companies in the Philippines, this paper has surveyed 11 corporations/companies and
used these data as basis for analyzing conventional practices and creating an accounting
method for human capital.
Surveys given consisted primarily of questions regarding how companies usually
record expenses and other account titles related to human capital and how much they knew
about human resources accounting which is normally not used in the country. A
hypothesis/presumption for this paper is that most of the interviewed corporations are not
fully aware of the idea of practicing human resource accounting as this system is still not
extensively utilized in the Philippines.

Analysis and Discussion

A variety of corporations were interviewed (trading, manufacturing, real estate etc.) in
order to ensure that their answers will not be too similar. Before the researchers conducted
the survey proper, the interviewees were given a short explanation of what human resources
accounting is first. HR Accounting was briefed to them as a system that deals with costs
incurred by companies to select and train employees as well as judges the economic value of
the laborers to the organization by seeing them as assets in their book of accounts. Questions
that were asked involved how these corporations view their employees in their accounting
system, how they treat the wages workers, and the account titles they use to handle their
human capital. Below is a summary of the results of the survey:

CORPORATION

HUMAN RESOURCES ACCOUNTS

Carmens Best Ice Cream

Salaries and wages (expenses)

Employees benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Trainings such as seminars (expenses)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Direct labor; salaries of factory
employees (inventory/production cost)
Salaries and wages (expenses)
Employee benefits (expenses)
Development cost; salaries of workers
(inventory/production cost)

Newest Insurance Agency

(Insurance Corporation)
Tomkimco Auto Supply
(Trading Corporation)
Centron Energy Savings
(Trading Corporation)
Sto. Nino Prosperity
(Farming Corporation)
Jalminelle
(Real Estate Corporation)
Jlu Holdings Incorporated
Powertrac
(Trading Corporation)
Fastpace
(Trading Corporation)
Nutreza
(Manufacturing Corporation)
Primeworld
(Real Estate Corporation)

AWARENESS
OF HR
ACCOUNTING
No

No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No

No

As evidenced by the results gathered, most of the companies surveyed reported that
they use traditional accounting practicesthat is, recording all costs related to human capital
as expenses such as salary, advances, uniforms, benefits, government-mandated contributions
(e.g. SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-Ibig.), sick leaves, vacation leaves, trainings and seminars,
benefits and the list goes on. Although the corporations responded by explicitly saying that
they treat their employees as assets in a sense that they view their human capital as beneficial
to their company, these laborers do not appear as assets in their financial statements. This is
to be expected since human resources accounting is not a widely-used method for financial
reporting.

A number of corporations shared how they evaluate their employees and what
compels them to promote their workers. All of the surveyed corporations provide benefits to
their workers such as meals and medical support. Most of the interviewees also reported that
they do send their laborers to seminars in order to improve the skills (both technical and
interpersonal) of their human capital. These training costs, benefits and salaries are all treated
as expenses in the financial statements of the corporations. Because of their responses, all of
the interviewed organizations may be deemed unaware of human resources accounting. In
fact, several of the companies were surprised to discover that treating employees as assets by
perhaps assigning a monetary value to them is actually doable. It is evident that Philippine
corporations tend to be quite conventional in terms of their accounting as they do not
capitalize their human assets in their books.
However, due to the nature of some surveyed firms such as Primeworld (real estate
corporation) and Nutreza (manufacturing corporation), it is also important to take note that
they do capitalize some of the expenses that relate to their employees. Primeworld is a
company that builds houses and buildings for rent and thus the corporation incurs
development costs in its books. These development costs pertain to the salaries of workers
and laborers who are directly involved in the construction and they are capitalized as an asset
since they are accounted for as inventories. This labor cost is used as part of the value that
they attribute to their constructed structures. Similarly for Nutreza, a company that
manufactures edible products such as candy and chocolate, the wages for the employees in
the process of making the specific goods are treated as direct labor which forms part of the
production cost, the inventoryan asset account. In these cases however, capitalizing salary
only serves to transform it into an additional cost to their goods, increasing production costs.
These cases do not necessarily view it as an investment on human capital as opposed to the
main idea of human resources accounting.
The responses of the other 9 interviewed corporations were rather alike regardless of
how they operate, as they regard all of the costs of their employees as expenses (salaries
expense, benefits expense, training expense). From the survey and the literature covered in
this paper, it can be seen that corporations and practitioners tend to be more concerned with
expenses or historical costs since these are the easiest to quantify. As a result, conventional
accounting practices paint a rather monotonous, cost-based idea of development, leaving
aside value-based growth.
Different companies have different management styles and how a company would
present its human capital would rely heavily on how the company administers and manages

its employees, but in the Philippines, there is no accounting method for human capital. From
the analysis of the survey conducted, local corporations highly focus on costs incurred by
their laborers as expenses and do not view employees as assets or investments in their
financial statements and hence affirms the hypothesis of the researchers.
Preliminary Accounting System: Human Capital Productivity Model
As a recommendation for future practitioners, the researchers have created an
accounting system that addresses the lack of concern for the productivity level of the human
capital when juxtaposed with its expenses and costs. The main objective of this model is to
reconcile cost-investment with the returns generated by the employees to calculate the net
worth of the human assets.
Basic Accounting Titles and Description for Human Capital
Human (Asset) Capital, Nude Value

Nude Value or Base Value pertains to the

initial value of an employee and will not be
amortized throughout the working life of an
employee (starting salary as indicator)

Human (Asset) Capital, Productivity

This is the revenue or profit (or monetary

value of the project led by the employee)
generated by the employee

Human Capital, Learning Cost

Capitalizing training and learning costs

(Contra-Equity Account)

Human Asset, Learning Cost

Learning costs are deducted from the human

asset to imply expectation of better
productivity in the future (Contra-Asset
Account)

Human (Asset) Capital, Benefits

Capitalizing benefits for employees

Salary Investment Payable

Salary as investment to motivate employees

(Liability Account)

Salary Investment

Salary as investment to motivate employees

(Contra-Equity Account)

ACCOUNTING SYSTEM
Step 1: Recruitment Stage
Identify all costs related to recruitment as expenses of the company
Research on employee background Attributed to salary (companys discretion)

Recruitment Costs:
Acquisition/Recruitment Expense
Cash

XXX

XXX

When admitting a new employee, there are certain recruitment costs that will be
incurred, but these costs will not be capitalized because they are regarded as small, short-term
expenses that only help a company acquire or select a pool of people. While some may argue
that they can be seen as an investment, for the sake of simplification, developing human
capital will start after the acquisition and not during or before it.
Nude Value of Employee (Increase in Human Capital):
Admission of Employee:
(Individual) Human Asset, Nude Value
(Individual) Human Capital, Nude Value

XXX
XXX

Starting Salary
Starting Salary

Nude Value describes the base worth of an employee when he is admitted. As he is

admitted, he brings along all that he knows and all that is personal to him such as education,
health, socio-economic background, work experience, and so on. In other words, the Nude
Value pertains to the value of an employee at the time that he enters the company, and this is
approximated by the company through a starting salary. There can be many ways to assign a
base worth for an employee, but using a starting salary would have a better grasp on
determining the value of the employee in relation to his job description. For example, an
employees educational background plays a big role in determining salary level because
normally, a person who has gone through higher education is more intelligible than someone
who has not (Ganta & Geddam, 2014). While there are exceptions to this (such as natural
talent), it is generally accepted as an indicator of valuable employees.
The Nude Value is not amortized across the working life of the employee because it
represents his base worth. Amortizing it would mean that his KSAs for example, diminishes
across his life which is not necessarily the case. Even if a person is completely unproductive
and brings no benefit to the company, he must at the very least have a certain level of worth.
Salary Investments (Decrease in Human Capital):
Start of Work:
Salary Investment
Salary Investment Payable


*Annual worth of salary

Payment of Salary:

XXX*

XXX*

Salary Expense
Cash

XXX

Salary Investment Payable

Salary Investment

XXX

XXX

XXX

Salary or wage is conventionally recognized as an expense to the company, but as

argued by numerous literature, it should not be. Salaries are incentives and motivations for an
employee to perform well in his job, thus these have to be recognized as an investment in
human capital.
However, eliminating salary expenses would come out to be an unpopular choice if
ever this method will be adapted since doing so will increase net income and report higher tax
expenses for the company; thus, in order to minimize the effects on the income statement,
this preliminary system will retain the expense entry, but add an additional entry that relate to
investment.
At the start of the year, a salary investment contra-equity account is opened. This
salary investment will be the average annual earnings of the employee. As salary investment
is debited, a salary investment payable is credited. The logic behind this is that an employee
works for a company, expecting to be paid and an obligation on the part of the company
arises. At each salary payment, the salary investment payable and salary investment account
is decreased, eventually reaching a net of zero at the end of the year, but refreshed anew at
the start of the next fiscal year.
Rather than accumulating the earnings of an employee for his entire stay in the
company, this system has opted to work on an annual basis due to two main reasons: 1) it is
much easier to account for salary investments in shorter periods and 2) starting with an
extremely large liability and contra-equity value will misrepresent financial reports.

Step 2: Training Stage

Training Costs:
(Individual) Human Capital, Learning Cost
(Individual) Human Asset, Learning Cost

XXX

Training Expense
Cash

XXX

XXX

XXX

Training equips employees with the right skills and knowledge to do their job. Seen as
a contra-equity account, this means that it is a cost to human capital. Increase in productivity

will then be the offsetting figure in order to raise human capital since it is logical to expect
higher productivity with more training. Training expenses will still be recognized.
Regarding amortization, there are two different implications: 1) that the effects of
learning expire within a long period and 2) that the effects of the learning stay with the
employee forever as he assimilates whatever he has learned. In the first case, amortization is
encouraged, but in the latter case, it would be otherwise. For this preliminary system, learning
costs will not be amortized on the ground that these costs are permanent in effect and are
accumulated in order to track the difference or the return on these learning costs.

Other Benefits:

Benefits Expense
Cash

XXX
XXX

(Individual) Human Asset, Benefits

(Individual) Human Capital, Benefits

XXX
XXX

Similarly for benefits/welfare costs, additional entries will be made to recognize these
expenses as investments. Benefits are regarded as an investment to improve the performance
of the human asset. Depending on the type of benefit, this will be amortized according to its
useful life as shown below. Health benefits for example, will be amortized in accordance to
the working life of the employee.

Expended/Amortized (Ex: If health benefits, amortized through working life):

(Individual) Human Capital, Benefits

(Individual) Human Asset, Benefits

XXX
XXX

Maternity/Paternity/Vacation/Sick Leaves:

(Individual) Human Capital, Productivity

(Individual) Human Asset, Productivity
*Amortized according to days of leave

XXX
XXX

Amortization

(Individual) Human Asset, Productivity

(Individual) Human Capital, Productivity

XXX
XXX

Temporary leaves from the office would mean a decrease in productivity; therefore,
the human assets productivity level will be decreased and will be amortized (brought back to
a net of zero from first entry) according to the remaining days of the leave.

Step 3: Productivity of Employee

(Individual) Human Asset, Productivity
XXX
(Individual) Human Capital, Productivity
XXX
Amortized according to company discretion (subjective: impact of project on company)

(Individual) Human Capital, Productivity

(Individual) Human Asset, Productivity

XXX
XXX

The productivity level of an employee will be the hardest to gauge since there are
many factors that would contribute or influence the impact of the employees performance.
Coming up with the numbers for this section will entirely be under the companys discretion.
A recommendation for this would be creating a scale or ratio according to an employees
contribution to a project. As an example:
Normally, employees are dispatched in groups to work on a particular project. As
they accomplish a P50,000 project, for example, employees can be given a forced ranking
through peer evaluation, supervisors evaluation or interdepartmental evaluations.
Calculating the weighted scores of the employees, they can assign a particular percentage for
each employee in accordance to what he has achieved. Employee A, B and C could get a
score ratio of 3:1:1 and consequently gain a productivity value of P30,000, P10,000 and
P10,000 respectively.
However, it is important to amortize such a productivity account because an
employees performance is gauged by observing his consistent effort in contributing to the
company. It is not a one-time, big-time case. Accumulating productivity points will only
overvalue the human asset; thus, it is necessary that productivity be amortized according to
the years of the projects contract life, the impact of the project on the company, etc.

Step 4: Promotions and Other Raises: Change in Nude Value and Period of
Amortization
Basic Assumption: Renewing the Employee

(Individual) Human Capital, Nude Value

(Individual) Human Asset, Nude Value

XXX

(Remaining)
XXX (Remaining)

(Individual) Human Asset, Nude Value

XXX

(Salary)

(Individual) Human Capital, Nude Value

XXX (Salary)

Salary Investment Payable

Salary Investment

XXX

(Remaining)
XXX (Remaining)

Salary Investment
Salary Investment Payable

XXX

(New Salary)
XXX (New Salary)

Raises and promotions are signs of exemplary performance of employees. In these

journal entries, the remaining Nude Value is brought to zero and is renewed with the new
Nude Value, the new salary of the employee. In effect, getting a promotion or a raise is as if
the company is renewing the employee and recognizing him as a newly developed asset of
the company. Likewise, the Salary Investment accounts are also renewed at the new annual
earnings of the employee.

Step 5: Retiring/Resigning Employee

Close all books related to employee
(Individual) Human Capital, Nude Value
(Individual) Human Capital, Productivity
(Individual) Human Capital, Benefits
(Individual) Human Asset, Learning Cost
Salary Investment Payable
(Individual) Human Asset, Nude Value
(Individual) Human Asset, Productivity
(Individual) Human Asset, Benefits
(Individual) Human Capital, Learning Cost
Salary Investment

XXX
XXX
XXX
XXX
XXX

if applicable*
XXX
XXX
XXX
XXX
XXX if applicable*

*If not at the end of year

All amortizations are in straight-line.
For a leaving employee, all books will be closed and the entire human asset/capital
will be written off in the book of accounts.

Example:
Vbarra Inc. just started last January 1, 2016. She admits one employee, Rodolfo Ang
as her assistant. Venus Ibarra estimated Rodolfos worth to be P20,000, which is his
starting salary (he pays salaries at the end of the month). To train him in his new job, Venus
Ibarra brought him to a seminar and other training sessions to better equip him with the skills
that he needs on the same day. Training costs are calculated to be P5,000. Rodolfo is

expected to stay in the company for 10 years. On April 1, 2016, because of Rodolfos
consistent performance, he is given a P2,000 raise. On July 1 2016, Rodolfo was able to seal
a deal of P 50,000, to Venuss surprise. Impact of project was known to last for 5 years for
the company because the deal would be able to help Vbarra Inc. with its expansion. Sadly
however, he has been offered a Dean position in Ateneo de Manila Graduate School, thus he
decides to resign on February 28, 2017. Venus closes her books annually at the end of the
calendar year. Out of kindness, Rodolfo Ang, now Dean Ang, will not get his salary for the
month of February.

Admission
Jan 1 Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Nude Value
Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Nude Value

20,000
20,000

Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

Salary Investment Payable

240,000
240,000

Training Costs
Jan 1 Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Learning Cost
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Learning Cost

5,000
5,000

Training Expense
Cash

5,000
5,000

Payment of Salary
Jan 31 Salaries Expense
Cash
Salary Investment Payable
Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

20,000
20,000
20,000
20,000

Raise
Mar 1 Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Nude Value
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Nude Value

20,000
20,000

Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Nude Value

Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Nude Value

22,000
22,000

Salary Investment Payable

Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

200,000
200,000

Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

Salary Investment Payable

220,000
220,000

*For ease, the new salary is multiplied by the remaining 10 months of the year.
Starting point will always be the calendar year of the company

Productivity
July 1 Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Productivity
Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Productivity

50,000
50,000

Close Books at End of Year

Dec 31 Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Productivity
Salary Investment Payable
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Productivity
Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

5,000
22,000
5,000
22,000

Salary Expense
Cash

22,000
22,000

Resignation
Feb 28 Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Nude Value
Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Productivity
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Learning Cost
Salary Investment Payable
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Nude Value
Rodolfo Ang, Human Asset, Productivity
Rodolfo Ang, Human Capital, Learning Cost
Rodolfo Ang, Salary Investment

22,000
43,333
5,000
242,000
22,000
43,333
5,000
242,000

Vbarra Inc.
Partial Balance Sheet
As of December 31, 2016
ASSET
Human Asset
Rodolfo Ang
Nude Value
Productivity
Less: Learning Costs
Total Human Capital

P 22,000
45,000
(5,000)
P62,000
EQUITY

Human Capital
Rodolfo Ang
Nude Value
Productivity
Less: Learning Costs
Salary Investment
Total Human Capital

P 22,000
45,000
(5,000)
(0)
P62,000

Salary investment at the end of the year is brought to zero which means that at the end
of the year, the employees value is at his Nude Value plus Productivity less Learning Costs.
Salary is seen as a motivation (investment) and at the same time an expense of the company.
Below is a sample balance sheet at the start of the year to show the effects of salary
investment on the company:

Company Name
Balance Sheet
As of January 1, XXXX
ASSETS
Current Assets
Cash
Accounts Receivable
Merchandise Inventory

P 100,000
500,000
250,000

Total Current Assets

Fixed Assets
Machinery & Equipment
Less: Accumulated Depreciation
Total Fixed Assets
Human Assets
Nude Value
Benefits
Productivity
Less: Learning Costs
Total Human Assets
Total Assets
LIABILITIES
Current Liabilities
Accounts Payable
Salary Investment Payable
Total Current Liabilities
Long-term Liabilities
8% Bonds Payable
Total Liabilities
EQUITY
Contributed Capital
P5 par, Common Stock (50,000 shares)
Retained Earnings
Total Contributed Capital
Human Capital

850,000
P 650,000
(100,000)
550,000
20,000
25,000
60,000
(5,000)

100,000
P 1,500,000

P 100,000
240,000
340,000
500,000
840,000

P 500,000
300,000

800,000

Nude Value
Benefits
Productivity
Less: Learning Costs
Salary Investment
*Total Human Capital
Total Liabilities & Equity

20,000
25,000
60,000
(5,000)
(240,000)
(140,000)
P 1,500,000

This balance sheet at the start of a fiscal year reports a negative balance for human
capital but a positive value for human asset. At the start of the year, an employee is expected
to perform his best in order to bring benefit to the company and he expects that he will be
paid for his hard work through the form of salary. At this point, the productivity level of the
employees is at a rather low level because salary, a cost to the company, is invested in the
employee but no significant return has been made to offset the investment of the company
yet, thus a negative balance. As salary investment reaches zero at the end of the year, human
capital equals human asset and the value of the employee (as depicted by his productivity
plus other benefits shouldered by company to improve the employee) is at its barest value. It
can also be viewed as a salary investment that has worn off at the end of the year.

Limitations and Recommendations

There are various limitations to this preliminary system (hence, preliminary). The
objective of this paper is not to provide a rigid accounting system to be adapted by
practitioners and CPAs, but to show a particular facet of human resources accounting and to
attempt to incorporate human resources in financial statements for external and internal users.
The accounts are straight-forward and reflect the productivity and cost value of employees.
This preliminary accounting system is rather flexible since it can be gauged at an
individual level or at a departmental/group level, depending on the company.
However, there are multiple repetitions in the template provided by this paper such as
the amortization processes and the accounting for raises and promotions of employees.
Training expenses can also be better improved by identifying specific learning costs because
there are some expenses that might not be as direct or relevant to an employees learning
experience. Also, another way to view learning costs is that whatever training an employee
receives increases his worth by equipping his with new skills and knowledge. This will be in
contrast to the system created since the system assumes learning costs as a cost to human
capital and as an investment on employee productivity rather than an added value to the
human asset.

The salary investment portion of this template could also be improved further and
other possible ratios can be made such as the rate of return of employees against their salaries
in order to provide a better view on how productive employees are and to eliminate possible
biases in the way companies measure their employees. Journal entries for salary here were
done twice: one for expense (income statement) and another as an investment (balance sheet).
This can be improved by looking for a way to reconcile these two into one single entry.
Limitations of the preliminary system primarily lies in its simplification of human
assets. Better ways to account for salaries, benefits and other related expenses or revenue
could be created. The system created in this paper serves only to translate human resources
perspectives and definitions to accounting terms and methods.

Conclusion
Human resources accounting is no doubt a developing discipline in the field of
accounting. More accurate ways to quantify human capital for financial reporting will be
beneficial to internal and external users of companies. As society becomes more knowledgebased, more firms are keeping an eye on their human capital, investing in employee
recruitment and training. Reviewing several literature that emphasize on the significance of
human resource accounting in the gradual transformation of how companies operate, this
paper has provided a simple framework for incorporating human asset/capital in conventional
accounting methods. Several entries and account titles were added to recognize the
investment aspect of costs or expenses. Moreover, productivity of employees were also taken
into account in approximating the value of employees.
This template is a straightforward answer to the literature covered in the paper as it
provides a recommendation to the prevailing problems in human resources accounting.
Interpreting the human resources accounts introduced in the system would require a
juxtaposition of human asset reserve, the value of the employee and the human capital which
shows the investing activities in human resources. The differences between these two serve to
give management and investors an idea of how human resources activities are contributing to
the development of human assets.
There are still various limitations to this system; however, it can still be improved by
expounding more on the different costs incurred and value generated by the department.
Nevertheless, the system discussed here serves as a preliminary to possible groundwork for a
more rigid accounting system in the future.

Appendix
Interview/Survey Answers

PRIMEWORLD - REAL ESTATE CORPORATION

Person contacted: Anthony Suva (Manager)
Generally, costs in relation to employees are treated as expenses in the book of
accounts. But in realty companies, the salaries of the workers are treated as development cost
especially during the land development stage when building subdivisions, townhouses, or
condominiums. Development cost is accounted as inventories, and therefore, in their books,
an asset account.
Primeworld says that in their accounting, training cost could be seen as the value of
the employees when all the things learned from the specific training will be applied to the
companys benefits or when the company has achieved its programs and objectives.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medicals, etc. (as expense)
3. Training and seminars- for trainings and/or schooling (as expense)
4. Development cost- for salaries of workers and laborers who are directly involved in
construction will be capitalized as an asset
NUTREZA MANUFACTURING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Yuliste Siapno (Chief Accountant)
As a company that manufactures edible products such as candy and chocolate, the
wages for the employees are treated as direct labor especially during the process of making
the specific goods. Direct labor forms part of the product cost and is likewise part of the
inventories which hence is an asset account. The corporation has yet to send its workers to

seminars and special trainings as it is still starting up and is not financially stable and ready to
do so.
1. Salaries and Wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Direct Labor- for salaries of factory employees which are directly involved in
manufacturing and production process, will be capitalized as part of inventories (asset)
FASTPACE- TRADING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Ria Ang (Manager)
Costs with regards to employees are treated as expenses in the book of accounts.
Laborers who contribute to the companys growth and success are valued by giving
promotions, additional allowances, incentives or salary increments based on their
performances after thorough evaluation. Workers are also sent to seminars and special
trainings to develop their competence as the corporations employees.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Training and seminars- for trainings and/or schooling (as expense)
POWERTRAC- TRADING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Lito Uy (Manager)
Employee wages are treated as expenses in the book of accounts. Since the corporation deals
with heavy equipment such as backhoes, forklifts and trucks, the workers, especially
mechanics, are highly encouraged to attend special trainings to better their technical skills.
Moreover, sales agents of Powertrac are also sent to marketing seminars. Laborers are not
treated as assets in the corporations accounting system.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Training and seminars- for trainings and/or schooling (as expense)
JLU HOLDINGS INCORPORATED
Person contacted: Johnny Uy (Chairman)
Since the company focuses more on investing and acquiring properties, it has very few
employees. The salaries of these laborers are still treated as expenses and are not capitalized
as assets. JLU Holdings Inc. does not see the need to send its employees to seminars yet.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
JALMINELLE- REAL ESTATE CORPORATION
Person contacted: Ronald Lim (President)
Jalminelle is a leasing company and thus it does not have many employees. The only workers
the corporation accounts for are the people who manage their residential and commercial
units for rent. The wages of the laborers are treated as expenses and the employees are not
treated as assets in the companys book of accounts.

1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)

2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
STO. NINO PROSPERITY- FARMING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Reynaldo Bosque (Manager)
The workers salaries are regarded as expenses in their income statement. As for the training
costs, the laborers of the farm were initially taught proper sanitation, waste disposal, and
specific animal care. The employees are not treated as assets in the corporations book of
accounts.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Training and seminars- for trainings (as expense)
CENTRON ENERGY SAVINGS- TRADING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Leonard Cabusas (Accounting Head)
In its accounting, salaries are considered as expenses. With regards to trainings, the
employees attend team building seminars per department. The corporation does not see its
workers as assets in its financial statements.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Training and seminars- for trainings and/or schooling (as expense)
TOMKIMCO AUTO SUPPLY- TRADING CORPORATION
Person contacted: Noel Bautista (Manager)
Wages of their employees such as salesmen and secretaries and costs incurred to
provide benefits to their laborers are treated as expenses in the companys book of accounts.
Tomkimco Auto Supply does not deal with training costs (there are no seminars or special
training sessions for their workers) and the organization does not view its employees as assets
in their accounting system.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for uniforms, meals, medical, etc. (as expense)
NEWEST INSURANCE AGENCY- INSURANCE CORPORATION
Person contacted: Houston Ng (President)
The salaries of the corporations laborers are treated as expenses in the companys
accounting. The organization also conducts seminars for all the employees (especially
secretaries) often in order to improve their competence and interpersonal skills. The workers
are not seen as assets in the corporations book of accounts.
1. Salaries and wages- for salaries and allowances (as expense)
2. Employee benefits- for medical, etc. (as expense)
3. Training- for seminars and the like (as expense)
CARMENS BEST ICE CREAM
Person contacted: Veronica Pedrasa

Their HR Department handles all human resource related accounting. It has the total
manpower of the company, including the salaries, allowances and other benefits given to the
employees. They do not regard employees as assets in their companys book of accounts.
They use the following accounts:
Salaries and OT - Salaries and Wages
Allowances - Allowances
Other benefits - Employees benefits
Seminars - Trainings and seminars

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