419. A(n) __________ is a financial incentive a firm offers to encourage employees to accept an
early retirement offer.
420. A reason workers tend to receive fewer promotions than in the past is that:
421. Which of the following statements about early retirement is most accurate?
422. One of the reasons many firms have chosen to use temporary employees rather than
rehire full-time employees is that:
423. A firm would implement a policy of holding exit interviews if it wanted to:
424. Frank has thirty years of service as a manager for his company. He remembers when
managers had almost complete freedom to fire workers. Frank thinks this is only fair. “After all,”
Frank points out, “workers quit whenever they get a better offer. Shouldn’t managers have as
much freedom to fire workers as the workers have to quit?” Frank’s comments suggest that he
believes in the doctrine of:
425. The Krandall Corporation wants to reduce its labor force, but is concerned about the
impact downsizing will have on its remaining employees. One policy that might allow Krandall to
reduce its labor force without adversely affecting morale is to:
426. While talking with a group of family and friends, Jeanne mentions that she was offered an
impressive golden handshake by her employer. Which of the following statements is she most
likely to make next?
427. Janie worked in the student bookstore of a community college. The store was quite large
and offered a variety of items besides books and school supplies. Although she liked the retail
atmosphere, there was little opportunity for advancement because the three persons in
management positions were doing well in their jobs and not planning to retire very soon. When
the college opened a new branch, Janie seized the opportunity to be reassigned to the new
location and manage the smaller operation. Her change was not a promotion, it was considered
a(n) ____________; however, it served to improve her morale because she was performing more
tasks and had greater responsibility than at the previous bookstore.
428. The creative director at Image First Promotion Company got word yesterday that the firm
lost the Hottie Potatee account. As Hottie was its second best customer, the director must
quickly perform damage control and unfortunately dismiss two creative writers and one web
development content provider. As he prepares to call each of them to his office and perform the
dismissals, he decides to make one final call to the company HR manager to make certain that he
is doing and saying the right things. The HR manager will disagree with which of the following
statements?
Mini-Case
Dee Pozitt had been the assistant HR director at Fleesum Financial Services for a bit more than a
year when the company’s HR director was injured in a sky-diving accident. Because of his
injuries the director would be unable to work for several months. Howie Fleesum, the company’s
CEO, decided to name Dee the acting director of human resources. Though she had been at the
firm for a shorter period of time than most other managers, he felt that her position as the
director’s assistant had given her insights into the company’s human resource issues that the
other managers lacked. He also was very impressed by the glowing performance appraisal Dee
recently received from the director, her peers, and even subordinates. Before accepting the
position as acting director, Dee made sure that Mr. Fleesum recognized her authority to
implement some major changes in policies she and the director had been planning before his
accident. The changes were intended to make the company more responsive to the needs of
employees, thus improving morale and reducing worker turnover. Although Dee was sorry the
director was injured, she was pleased that Mr. Fleesum had confidence in her and was willing to
give her the authority to implement important new programs. The only aspect of her opportunity
that worried her was the resentment and hostility she sensed from a few of the older, more
experienced managers. One of the most hostile coworkers was a fellow named Mort Gage. Dee
decided she had better talk to Mort and find out why he was so upset.
429. Before the director’s accident, Dee had worked with him to devise a plan that would allow
each employee to select the fringe benefits he or she wants up to a certain dollar amount. The
type of plan Dee and the director developed is known as a(n):
430. Dee wants to give Fleesum’s employees more freedom to schedule when they begin and
end their work days. Her plan still requires employees to work eight hours per day, but allows
them to start as early as 7:00 a.m. or as late as 9:00 a.m., and leave as early as 4:00 p.m. or as
late as 6:00 p.m. Her plan also requires all workers to be on the job between 9:00 a.m. and noon,
and between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. The type of plan Dee wants to implement is known as a:
431. Dee’s performance appraisal allowed the director to evaluate her performance, but also
allowed peers and subordinates to provide feedback as well. This type of appraisal is called a(n):
432. Fleesum recently began using cross-functional teams. Dee wants to make sure the teams
collaborate effectively, but also wants to avoid stifling individual initiative. One method she could
use to achieve this goal would be to:
433. Dramatic changes in the U.S. labor force will make the work of human resource managers
more interesting, and more difficult, in the future. Identify and describe three trends that will
challenge future human resource managers.
434. Identify and describe three common methods of training and developing employees.
Students can choose from the following possibilities:
435. What is the purpose of a performance appraisal? What are the major steps involved in
the performance appraisal process?
436. What are the key features of flextime plans, compressed workweeks, and job sharing
plans? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these approaches to scheduling
employees.
437. What are the main provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and how have these
provisions affected human resource management in American companies?