In some states, vocational training is included in workers’ compensation rehabilitation
benefits.
In team environments, experts recommend eliminating individual performance
evaluation to avoid creating rivalries within teams.
Profit sharing is best used in small to medium-sized firms, while gainsharing works in
any size company.
Under negligible hiring laws, employers can be held responsible for their employees’
violent acts on the job.
Work simplification is most effective in a changing environment where customers
demand customized, high-quality products.
Employee statutory rights are those rights employees are guaranteed by law.
Job compensation directly affects how much labor costs detract from or contribute to
business profitability.
Although employers are not allowed to ask a job candidate’s HIV status, employers are
able to test individuals for HIV after making a job offer.
State workers’ compensation laws have no mandates or safety regulations, but do give
employers a financial incentive to create safe working environments. Employers with
lots of accidents pay higher workers’ compensation insurance costs.
Yolanda tends to appraise all workers in her department at the high end of the
measuring scale. This may be due to a severity error.
An employee’s right to privacy is absolute and guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
To enable employees to meet future company expectations, HR should implement
employee development.
Reverse brain drain refers to the trend of foreigners applying for visas to work in the
United States.
Speak-up programs and open-door programs are formal programs designed to
encourage upward communication.
A company that focuses on providing job security and long-term employment is likely
to devote a small portion of its compensation dollars to benefits.
European and Asian firms are more successful than U.S. firms with expatriate
assignments.
The benefits portion of an employee’s pay averages 42% of the total compensation
package.
Which of the following is true about employee privacy rights?
A) Private employers are not as limited in their ability to invade employees’ privacy as
are governmental employers.
B) The Crime Control and Safe Streets Act permits employers to listen in on employee
phone conversations at work.
C) The Privacy Act of 1974 extends an almost absolute right to privacy to all
employees.
D) The right to privacy is a constitutional right.
Which of the following is the most important question that must be answered prior to
establishing a training program?
A) Are the training facilities adequate?
B) Can the firm provide global training?
C) Will training participants be motivated?
D) Are the training goals clear and realistic?
What is the riskiest labor relations strategy?
A) Union acceptance
B) Union suppression
C) Union substitution
D) Integrative bargaining
Which of the following is the most significant separation cost for employers?
A) Search firm fees
B) Lost productivity
C) Outplacement assistance
D) Compensation
Working on his HR strategic plan, Jose is thinking about whether to recommend
specific job descriptions or broad job classes, and detailed or loose work planning. Jose
is considering the HR strategic choice related to:
A) performance appraisals.
B) staffing.
C) work flows.
D) employee separations.
According to a 1991 government study on the “glass ceiling”:
A) women were excluded from formal recruitment efforts.
B) employers failed to provide formal career development programs.
C) women and minorities were held back from lower-level management positions.
D) minorities and disabled workers were excluded from upper-level management
positions.
Foreign-born individuals make up ________ of the U.S. population.
A) 6%
B) 14%
C) 19%
D) 25%
Which of the following is an example of a situational factor affecting employee
performance?
A) Al arrives late to work every day.
B) Beth lacks adequate job knowledge.
C) Carter receives poor supervision.
D) Dana shows symptoms of burnout.
Retirement benefits are primarily an effective employee retention tool because they:
A) provide valuable tax savings to employers.
B) decrease in value when an employee job-hops.
C) increase over the time that an employee works for a firm.
D) offer employees the opportunity to take early retirement.
Additional Case 11.2
Richland Manufacturing uses an individual-based pay-for-performance plan for
employees.
Manager input in the form of performance evaluations primarily determines individual
employee rewards. Performance appraisals at Richland are used for multiple purposes
including compensation, training, and work planning. Since implementing the plan,
many managers have noticed that employees tend to play it safe by setting modest
rather than challenging goals for themselves. Employees have also been avoiding
important tasks, such as satisfying the needs of customers and keeping work areas neat.
In addition, most employees express disbelief that pay and performance are actually
linked. As a result, Richland is considering making modifications to the system.
The HR Director wants a system that will reward all employees based on the entire
company’s performance because he wants to increase employee commitment. The VP
of Operations wants to reward specific productivity and quality improvements with a
simply structured system that considers labor costs as well as other production
expenses. The VP of Operations also believes that labor and management should work
together to allocate the rewards.
Refer to Additional Case 11.2. Which of the following would most likely improve the
success of Richland’s current incentive plan?
A) Limiting the use of performance appraisals to compensation purposes
B) Offering team-based pay in addition to individual bonuses
C) Providing Scanlon plans to all employees
D) Encouraging employee competition
The best diversity management strategy for helping women balance careers and
children is:
A) providing the help of mentors.
B) accommodating family needs.
C) establishing diversity training.
D) developing support groups.
If a company uses a committee to sort job descriptions into grades without using a point
system, the company is most likely using a ________ system for its job evaluation.
A) ranking
B) factor comparison
C) classification
D) policy capturing
Workers of companies with over 100 employees are entitled to ________ if they are not
given 60 days advance warning in cases of a mass separation.
A) 30 days income
B) 60 days income
C) 90 days income
D) continuing health benefits
An individual-based pay policy works best in which of the following situations?
A) Employees may have many opportunities to learn new skills.
B) Employees are expected to move up “through the ranks.”
C) Employee turnover is low and jobs don’t change often.
D) Jobs are standardized within the industry.
Perry wants employees with unique skills and backgrounds to be able to tackle common
projects. Flexibility in work assignments is also very important to his firm. Perry’s best
choice of an incentive program, based on these factors, would be a(n):
A) individual-based plan.
B) team-based plan.
C) plantwide plan.
D) corporate-based plan.
Discrimination on the basis of pregnancy was explicitly prohibited by the:
A) 1964 Civil Rights Act.
B) Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978.
C) 1991 Civil Rights Act.
D) Sexual Harassment Act of 1988.
Which of the following is a true statement based on the work adjustment theory?
A) Clear, specific, and challenging goals motivate employees to perform at high levels.
B) All employees are motivated and challenged by hygiene and maintenance factors.
C) Employee motivation depends on personal needs and job characteristics.
D) All employees want to be involved in the decision-making process.
Yan is the only Japanese employee at All American, Inc. (AAI), which has a small
minority of Asian employees. She wants to start a small weekly meeting for the Asian
employees of AAI in order to encourage a nurturing climate for others who may feel
alienated from the rest of the employees. In HR terms, Yan is hoping to organize a:
A) social network.
B) support group.
C) diversity audit.
D) retention program.
Job performance dimensions are:
A) a way to eliminate rater bias in the performance appraisal.
B) aspects of performance that determine effective job performance.
C) the relative judgments that a rater makes about an employee’s job performance.
D) job appraisals conducted in businesses that are greatly influenced by organizational
politics.
What is the primary reason for the rising importance of HR at firms over the last four
decades?
A) Market globalization
B) Workforce diversity
C) Employment laws
D) Technology
An informal social and business network of high-level male executives that typically
excludes women and minorities is called a(n) ________.
________ is discrimination against a nonprotected-class member resulting from
attempts to recruit and hire members of protected classes.
A federal law that requires employers to provide a safe and healthy work environment,
comply with specific occupational safety and health standards, and keep records of
occupational injuries and illnesses is the ________.
A creativity training technique in which participants are given the opportunity to
generate ideas openly, without fear of judgment is referred to as ________.
Review the major challenges at the individual level and offer ways HRM can assist
organizations in meeting these challenges.
________ is a company-maintained record of employees’ abilities, skills, knowledge,
and education.
Job analysis is a key HR function. Provide an overview of the job analysis process,
including tools and brief descriptions of key job analysis techniques. How can an HRIS
improve the job analysis process?
________ is a stress syndrome characterized by emotional exhaustion,
depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment.