The distributive justice model of pay equity holds that the wage rate for a given
occupation is set at a point where the labor supply and labor demand are equally
distributed.
The Federal Register publishes proposed new occupational standards.
Compensation policies can create conflict. If locals compare their compensation to the
expatriate’s, they may feel they are being treated unfairly.
Typical awards for age, sex, or disability discrimination range from $50,000 to
$300,000 depending on the size of the employer.
The training process is composed of two phases: (1) needs assessment and (2)
development and conduct of training.
Most Americans feel that pay is the most important consideration in accepting or
staying at a job.
A firm’s current customers are a convenient and cost-effective employee source.
A firm that terminates employees during a laborer surplus suffers no consequences
under federal law.
The cost of employee benefits has risen to nearly 50% of an employer’s payroll costs.
One advantage of pay-for-performance compensation systems is the relative ease of
accurately assessing an employee’s actual contribution to the company.
A 401(k) is a tax-deferred individual contributor retirement plan.
Additional Case 1.4
Crowe, Inc. has been a powerful steel producer for the last 15 years and predicts a
profitable future. Crowe has a very secure position within the steel industry and does
not plan to expand into different industries. Top managers exercise significant control
over the firm. Crowe strives to develop new products and technologies. The company
offers employees long-term career development and grooms employees for promotions
through a highly structured HR system. In the past, the company’s atmosphere has been
very congenial and cohesive at all levels of the organization.
Recently, there has been a noticeable shift in employee attitudes. Lower-level
employees have expressed discontent about schedules, compensation, and training
opportunities. Several employees have been fired, and many others have threatened to
quit.
Refer to Additional Case 1.4. Which of the following questions is most relevant to the
situation at Crowe?
A) What tasks are outsourced by the firm?
B) What is the firm’s current rehiring policy?
C) How frequently do managers receive performance appraisals?
D) How is work flow structured and communicated by managers?
In the opening case in Chapter 10, an experienced computer programmer complains that
the starting salary for new hires at Sigma, Inc. is 15% more than his current salary. Dr.
Smith’s answer reveals that Sigma’s compensation system is built on a(n) ________
compensation model.
A) balanced equity
B) labor market
C) free market
D) egalitarian
Indirect compensation in a pay mix typically includes:
A) hourly wages for overtime.
B) health insurance and vacation time.
C) special perks based on status in the company.
D) incentives and bonuses periodically paid to an employee.
Additional Case 5.2
You are the HR director for a large company. Production has implemented a very
successful TQM program, and the firm has a reputation for innovation and quality.
Money is tight due to aggressive expansion and marketing efforts, but the firm is doing
well. The firm has a diverse, well-balanced workforce. The CEO prefers to reward
performance through promotion from within. However, if an employee chooses to leave
the company, he or she is not eligible for rehire.
The firm’s MIS managers have requested that you identify 10 candidates for newly
created computer programming jobs. These are entry-level jobs in MIS that require a
bachelor’s degree. Expansion plans in production have also created a number of new
entry-level jobs and two new first-line supervisor jobs.
An upper-level management position is open as well. This is a key position, and the
longer it remains open, the more likely it is that the company will begin to lose market
share. There are a number of excellent candidates for this job. “Fit” with the
organization is one of the top criteria for the selection. The CEO wants both peers and
subordinates to be involved in the process, but the CEO will make the final decision.
The CEO wants your advice about the best selection tool. The CEO wants to narrow the
field quickly and work with the data as he goes along, rather than obtain all the
information on each candidate first.
Refer to Additional Case 5.2. The first-line supervisor jobs would best be filled by:
A) current employees.
B) employee referrals.
C) employment agencies.
D) college recruiting.
All of the following are characteristics of supervisors who manage performance
effectively EXCEPT:
A) solving problems for employees.
B) focusing attention on the causes of problems.
C) directing communication at performance.
D) developing an action plan with employees.
An effective safety program:
A) requires a safety director to attend meetings with OSHA representatives.
B) includes a safety committee made of employees from all departments.
C) lets safety be its own reward for employees’ safe performance.
D) enforces safety rules randomly and with flexibility.
The quality-of-work-life program at Ford is an example of a:
A) self-managed work team.
B) problem-solving team.
C) quality circle.
D) special-purpose team.
Managers most likely use work flow analysis in order to:
A) recombine a specialized task into one more complex and satisfying job.
B) simplify jobs by breaking them into individual component tasks.
C) understand the overall environment in which a job operates.
D) quantify the tasks involved in a specific position.
What is the primary HR challenge of outsourcing?
A) It raises labor costs because of overtime requirements.
B) A firm is still accountable for the actions of its subcontractors, but it exercises less
control over them.
C) Subcontractors tend to take on less work than they can handle, which means that the
firm needs to hire additional workers.
D) Customers tend to be more satisfied with subcontractors than with regular
employees, which creates conflict in the workplace.
Melanie is determining what benefits mix will work best for Bob’s Building Corp.
Which of the following questions is LEAST relevant to Melanie during this process?
A) What are the firm’s objectives?
B) What benefits are legally required?
C) What benefits do competitors offer?
D) What are the characteristics of the workforce?
You are talking with a manager about one of his employees, Tom. The manager
describes Tom as a person who has a strong desire to do the best possible job and put in
the maximum effort to perform his assigned tasks. The manager is describing Tom’s:
A) abilities.
B) capabilities.
C) motivation.
D) productivity level.
Which of the following is NOT true of the Internet Revolution as it relates to HRM?
A) Writing skills are essential to effective e-mail communications.
B) The recruiting, screening, and hiring process is streamlined.
C) Online corporate training is surpassing classroom training.
D) Cross-cultural understanding is less important.
Additional Case 15.1
Billiards, Inc. makes collapsible pool cues and other billiard products. Tegau, the
general manager, has called a management team meeting with Tammy, the director of
HR; Gary, the VP of operations; Ramonia, the employee relations specialist; and Ryan,
a labor relations consultant.
Tegau wants ideas from her management team about what to do concerning the possible
unionization of their workers. Tammy suggests that they do nothing, let the union
conduct its vote, and if certified, treat it as a legitimate worker representative of the
workers. Gary says the firm should begin aggressively opposing union organization. He
thinks first-line supervisors should be brought in and told that if workers in their areas
vote for the union, the supervisors will lose their jobs and the company might sell off
the unionized part of the business. Ramonia suggests that Billiards, Inc. tell the
employees about their current plans to upgrade employee benefits and working
conditions’”a project she’s worked on for the last six months.
Management decides to mildly oppose the union but the union is certified anyway.
Tegau is now in her first contract negotiation. Ryan explains to the union that if they
will accept flexible work rules, the employees can have more fulfilling jobs, the
company will save money which it can spend on benefits, and the union will start with a
positive relationship with the company. The union representative says “No way. We go
on strike in ten days.”
Refer to Additional Case 15.1. Gary’s suggestion:
A) violates the Wagner Act.
B) is permissible under the Taft-Hartley Act.
C) violates the Landrum-Griffin Act.
D) is a standard management practice in these situations and is legal.
Which type of organizational structure would be most appropriate for a company with a
defender strategy?
A) Flat
B) Boundaryless
C) Differentiated
D) Bureaucratic
Which of the following is a selection cost of employee replacement?
A) Advertising
B) Outplacement
C) Search firm fees
D) Reference checks
Which of the following is a common problem with early retirement programs?
A) Insufficient management participation
B) Short-term cash flow issues for the firm
C) Excessive unplanned health-care costs
D) Too much participation by eligible employees
Which of the following is an environmental challenge faced by modern HR managers?
A) Job insecurity
B) Decentralization
C) Globalization
D) Self-managed work teams
A critical ethical issue for HR managers related to technology use in work environments
is the:
A) increase in authoritarian management.
B) right to privacy.
C) misuse of technology by self-managed work teams.
D) overly close supervision of technology users.
Studies show that making reasonable accommodations for disabled applicants and
employees:
A) bankrupts most small companies.
B) adds nearly 10% to product costs.
C) requires no money in 20% of all cases.
D) generally costs $5,000-$10,000 per employer.
A job interview based on a thorough job analysis, applying job-related questions with
predetermined answers consistently across all interviews for a job is called a(n)
________.
As a manager, how would you make meetings more effective?
What are the four perspectives on employee motivation? What are the key elements of
each perspective? What are the weaknesses of each perspective? How can job design
affect employee motivation?
What is the purpose of Employee Assistance Programs? What steps are involved in
establishing an EAP? How can an EAP enhance employee relations?
Hiring an employee with a history of violent or illegal behavior without conducting
background checks or taking proper precautions is referred to as ________.
________ is an ongoing and formalized effort that focuses on developing enriched and
more capable workers.