The advantage of outcome-based appraisal systems is that they eliminate subjectivity
and the potential for rater error.
In general, African-Americans and Asian-Americans have less educational preparation
for the workplace than members of other ethnic groups.
Tommy is examining his company’s business climate and short-term and long-term
goals as preparation for implementing a training program. He is performing a business
analysis.
Business process reengineering examines the fundamental way a company does
business by analyzing its core processes.
Union growth in small U.S. businesses has been rapid, as smaller businesses have
quickly moved from adversarial to cooperative attitudes.
As an employee’s base pay increases, it is likely that the percentage of variable pay that
he or she receives will decrease.
The use of an employee relations representative or an open door policy are the most
useful appeals procedures.
African-Americans constitute about 12% of the U.S. workforce, but approximately 15%
of the chronically unemployed in America are African-Americans.
Business owners have the right to demand a search warrant from OSHA inspectors.
Public recognition rewards are most effective and fair when a recipient’s direct
supervisor is a member of the rewards committee.
Government workers typically have less protection, in terms of privacy and free speech,
than do non-government workers.
The expansion of health-care coverage to employees’ non-married partners has become
a common practice in the United States.
The cultural relativity concept of management encourages flexibility in management
practices related to the diversity of the given workforce.
Rightsizing is synonymous with downsizing.
The EEOC investigates complaints, resolves complaints through conciliation, forces
employers to pay compensation, and issues regulations and guidelines.
Social Security and unemployment insurance benefits originated in:
A) 1971.
B) 1964.
C) 1958.
D) 1935.
Which term refers to observable characteristics that are associated with successful job
performance?
A) Ethics
B) Traits
C) Dimensions
D) Competencies
Georgio is planning on providing feedback to employees based upon a recent general
job assessment. Which of the following would be LEAST effective during the feedback
session?
A) Focusing on specific employee behaviors
B) Providing feedback immediately and privately
C) Making the feedback personal and evaluative
D) Focusing negative feedback on controllable behaviors
The standard “add-on” incentive for accepting an international assignment is ________
of base salary.
A) 15%
B) 25%
C) 35%
D) 45%
Which of the following is NOT a member of a protected class?
A) Sheena Thomas, a 25-year-old African-American woman
B) Mark Chung, a 37-year-old Asian-American with a dependent child
C) Gib Johnson, a 38-year-old Caucasian male, Persian Gulf War veteran
D) Peggy Sue Smith, a 47-year-old Caucasian female, naturalized U.S. citizen
Booker International keeps employee records, including their national origin and
gender, because the firm has overseas customers who are concerned about these issues.
This practice by Booker International is a violation of which law?
A) Equal Pay Act
B) Americans with Disabilities Act
C) Immigration and Naturalization Act
D) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Shakil is a computer programmer confined to a wheelchair due to a spinal injury. He’s
been on the job for about six weeks. None of his co-workers have invited him to lunch,
offered to car pool, or stopped by to visit. Shakil is facing a problem common among
the disabled, which is:
A) being viewed as less competent than his able-bodied co-workers.
B) being educationally disadvantaged because of his disability.
C) experiencing a lack of social acceptance for his disability.
D) competing for job opportunities with disabled minorities.
Which of the following is the best comparison of the Japanese and U.S. labor relations
systems?
A) Japan’s labor system promotes industrial democracy, while the U.S. labor system
does not.
B) The U.S. labor relations system fosters greater trust between unions and
management than does the Japanese system.
C) Japan’s unions have been decreasing in number as lifelong employment policies
become weaker, while U.S. unions in both the private and public sector are growing.
D) Japan’s labor relations system leads to close personal relationships among managers,
union leaders, and workers, while the U.S. system tends to be adversarial.
Additional Case 17.2
Golden Rod is an electronics firm based in Detroit with subsidiaries in several countries
including Indonesia, Egypt, Argentina, and Thailand. The top management positions in
these subsidiaries are filled by U.S. citizens. Golden Rod is planning on creating a new
expatriate assignment in Egypt. The firm has created a selection board of expatriates to
choose the best person for the job. In the past, Golden Rod has experienced a high
turnover rate among repatriated managers, so executives hope to solve this problem.
Refer to Additional Case 17.2. Which of the following best explains the firm’s high
turnover rate among repatriated managers?
A) Poor planning for new career assignments
B) Spouses and family suffering from culture shock
C) Inadequate compensation for cost-of-living expenses
D) Co-workers displaying a lack of cultural sensitivity
A pitfall of using relative judgments for performance appraisal is that they:
A) fail to clarify how great or small the performance differences are between
employees.
B) force appraisers to make judgments based solely on performance standards.
C) focus too much on the individual rather than the individual’s performance.
D) provide inadequate information when making termination decisions.
A qualified retirement plan:
A) requires employees to pay taxes on current income, but not retirement distributions.
B) prohibits employees from paying tax on contributions to the plan.
C) favors highly compensated employees over lower-paid workers.
D) prevents employers from taking a tax deduction.
Which of the following is most likely a true statement about job motivation?
A) Lack of motivation does not affect performance when ability is present.
B) Motivation is usually quantified with a personality test.
C) Motivation is both easy to measure and easy to stimulate.
D) Motivation depends heavily on the work environment.
Which of the following countries offers employees the most vacation days after one
year of service?
A) Spain
B) France
C) United States
D) United Kingdom
Which term refers to the consistency of measurement across time?
A) Reliability
B) Validity
C) Accuracy
D) Predictability
You are the head of an HR department for a large department store. The general
manager, Frank, comes to you claiming that a pay freeze is needed in order to reduce
costs to the store. Frank wants to freeze pay for the retail staff but not for department
line managers. What would be your most appropriate response?
A) The strategy will encourage the retail staff to advance towards higher positions.
B) The pay freeze should be the same across the board.
C) A layoff would be a much better solution.
D) The firm should institute a ring of defense.
The most appropriate personal mission statements are:
A) unchanging and highly structured.
B) dependent on a work-life balance.
C) formalized by management.
D) changeable over time.
An in-basket exercise given to an employee for career development purposes would
most likely focus on:
A) providing feedback to the worker.
B) comparing the worker to managers.
C) measuring the worker’s past performance.
D) identifying the advancement potential of the worker.
The process of providing information to decision makers wherever they are is called:
A) lateral communication.
B) communication feedback.
C) information dissemination.
D) upward communication.
Most professional, administrative, executive, and outside sales jobs fall into the
category of ________.
A measure of how safe and satisfied employees feel with their jobs is referred to as
________.
More firms are basing performance assessments on ________, which are observable
characteristics that are associated with successful job performance.
________ is an action taken to accommodate the known disabilities of applicants or
employees so that disabled persons enjoy equal employment opportunity.
Discuss the major issues for African-Americans in the workplace and identify two
major problems they face.