Discrimination in the training process occurs frequently because EEO regulations and
anti-discrimination laws do not apply to employee training and development.
Senior mentoring and apprenticeships are two tools used by corporations to improve
diversity and the understanding of diversity.
Business unionism focuses on improving the economic well-being of workers.
Former employees are generally a poor choice for rehiring due to strong resentment
against the employer.
Web-based exit interviews are used by firms that assume former employees may prefer
to avoid face-to-face interaction.
In order to reassure surviving employees of recent layoff information, they should be
informed of the reasons for the layoff and how it occurred.
Yao-Huan is reviewing the rate at which employees have been leaving his firm. He is
reviewing the firm’s turnover rate.
The costs to replace a departing employee primarily include: recruitment, selection, and
long-term health care benefits.
Workers’ compensation laws are intended to encourage employers to invest in safety
and to minimize litigation.
Succession planning is more important at large organizations than at small firms.
Long-term incentive plans are linked very closely with executive performance.
A job description should contain four key elements: identification information, a job
summary, job duties and responsibilities, and job specifications and minimum
qualifications.
Job-search assistance and emotional support are two functions of a firm’s job design
services.
Unionized companies face a competitive disadvantage against nonunionized rivals
because of wage constraints.
Most managers accurately estimate the cost of making accommodations for disabled
workers.
Initial career development efforts focused on the individual. As the field advanced, it
integrated career development into organizational needs.
The most extensive type of cross-cultural training is the affective approach, which
focuses on providing expatriates with the psychological and managerial skills they will
need to perform effectively during a moderate-length assignment.
The rates that employers pay for workers’ compensation are based on: the severity of
injuries sustained by the company’s workforce, the risk of injury to employees, and the
benefit level provided for specific injuries.
According to job characteristics theory, higher levels of autonomy and specific
managerial feedback will improve employee job satisfaction and motivation.
When an employer does not routinely offer career development programs, there is very
little individual employees can do to take control of their own development.
Job-based compensation systems have a number of disadvantages or drawbacks, such
as being:
A) difficult to administrate.
B) subjective and arbitrary.
C) too flexible for managers.
D) biased against managerial jobs.
Bob wants to focus this year’s employee assessment interviews on discussing the traits
each employee displays. You should most likely tell him that trait-based appraisal tools:
A) can be beneficial but are more expensive than other methods.
B) have a tendency to make employees defensive.
C) are illegal according to EEOC guidelines.
D) are helpful in boosting employee morale.
Which of the following is commonly used to lower labor costs by firms in stages 3, 4,
and 5 of internationalization?
A) Exporting
B) Decentralization
C) Outsourcing
D) Codetermination
A common-law rule that allows employers the right to terminate employees at any time
for any cause is best known as:
A) due process.
B) an implied contract.
C) employment at will.
D) a good faith contract.
A ________ provides employees with minimal economic security and the ability to
“purchase” additional benefits of value to them.
A) core-plus option plan
B) modular plan
C) flexible spending account
D) health savings account
Which of the following best describes the current trend in international HR policies?
A) Implementing a singular global policy in all local cultures
B) Adapting the host country’s policies to the home country
C) Balancing global policies with local cultures
D) Developing local rather than global policies
For diversity training to be successful, programs should most likely:
A) strive for deep recognition differences between groups.
B) encourage a narrow view of diversity.
C) focus on individual strengths and weaknesses.
D) focus the training on white males.
When it comes to managers dealing with ethical issues, it is most safe to say that:
A) what is ethical or unethical is seldom clear cut.
B) issues clearly resolve themselves into right and wrong choices.
C) ethical codes have significantly helped managers with ethical issues.
D) employee expectations of ethical managerial behavior are rapidly declining.
Once a firm has decided to reduce its workforce through voluntary means, its next
choice is:
A) whether to discharge employees.
B) if it should downsize or rightsize.
C) what outplacement services to offer.
D) if any alternative strategies are available.
Which of the following is a true statement about employee training and the law?
A) No clear precedent exists for litigation about discriminatory training practices.
B) More litigation is related to employee training than employee selection.
C) Training processes are too difficult to prove as discriminatory.
D) Equal opportunity laws apply to employee training.
Effective employee benefits packages:
A) help firms train and motivate their employees.
B) maximize traditional insurance coverage.
C) help firms recruit and retrain employees.
D) replace the need for unemployment insurance.
Chrystal is VP of a small computer business. Chrystal’s son Todd and another
employee, Lacy, were both considered for a management position. Though Lacy had
better credentials, Todd was hired at the insistence of his mother. This is an example of:
A) downward communication.
B) information dissemination.
C) nepotism.
D) fratricide.
Additional Case 16.2
John is the newly hired director of HR at Richmond Manufacturing, and he is in the
process of learning about the firm’s HR policies and procedures and determining what
areas need improvement. John learns from his staff that the firm’s workers’
compensation rates have risen dramatically in recent years due to rising claims. The
firm has not received any OSHA citations, and most claims have been related to
employee mistakes. Many HR staff members suspect that burnout, substance abuse, and
depression are the primary causes of worksite accidents at Richmond. Although
Richmond established a safety program two years ago, workplace accidents continue to
occur at a significant rate. John is considering the idea of establishing an EAP at
Richmond.
Refer to Additional Case 16.2. If Richmond develops an EAP, it will be most important
for managers to realize that they should:
A) review employees’ medical histories before referring them to the program.
B) offer financial incentives for employees who regularly participate in the program.
C) refer employees to the program based on work-related performance issues.
D) make employee referrals to the program at the first sign of emotional instability.
Additional Case 14.1
You are the HR director at Catalina Manufacturing. The firm is considering random
drug testing for employees at its California, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas
facilities. Management believes that the assembly of high explosive devices and a
recent rash of drug-related accidents make drug testing imperative.
Refer to Additional Case 14.1. Generally speaking, random drug testing in Catalina’s
various facilities will most likely be:
A) permitted by Supreme Court rulings.
B) guided by the court rulings of each state.
C) meeting EEOC guidelines of disparate treatment.
D) challenged in court due to employee privacy rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
Additional Case 10.1
Brighton Manufacturing is reviewing its compensation system. The CEO wants
employees to be paid wages and benefits comparable to Brighton’s competitors. He
wants a system that allows for maximum flexibility in reassigning workers to different
jobs without requiring compensation adjustments each time. The Finance VP suggests
that the company link compensation costs more closely to productivity and profit.
When profits are down, compensation costs should be reduced as well. The Finance VP
also believes that employees should be paid for what they produce, not for their time,
and the compensation program should apply to all employees equally. The VP of HR
suggests that the key to the company’s success is their employees and advocates an
individual-based compensation plan. People should be paid for their skills or
knowledge, not just because they are fulfilling certain jobs. The VP of HR also feels
that it would be simpler to implement a compensation system by level rather than by
job.
Refer to Additional Case 10.1. The CEO, VP of HRM, and VP of Finance would most
likely agree on a(n):
A) elitist pay system.
B) egalitarian pay system.
C) below-market pay system.
D) individual-centered pay system.
Franklin Manufacturing is concerned that the UAW may try to organize its production
workers. To eliminate this possibility, managers have offered the employees job security
policies, profit sharing, and open-door policies. Franklin Manufacturing is most likely
practicing:
A) union acceptance.
B) union suppression.
C) union substitution.
D) integrative bargaining.
Employers can most likely avoid charges of negligent hiring by:
A) requiring honesty tests.
B) using panels of interviewers.
C) conducting background checks.
D) requesting applicant medical records.
________ communication allows managers to influence employees and to implement
decisions they have made.
A) Downward
B) Lateral
C) Two-way
D) Upward
A goal of development is to:
A) develop key skills.
B) improve performance on the current job.
C) prepare employees for future work.
D) address knowledge deficiencies.
As an HR manager, how would you implement a skills training program? How can job
aids enhance skills training?
The identification, measurement, and management of human performance in
organizations is referred to as ________.
What types of environmental and organizational challenges face corporations today?
What HR strategies help firms handle some of these challenges to achieve and sustain
competitive advantages?
________ is a pay concept or doctrine that calls for comparable pay for jobs that require
comparable skills, effort, and responsibility and have comparable working conditions,
even if the job content is different.
What types of plantwide incentive plans are available to firms? What are the primary
disadvantages of such plans?
Why are employee relations important to a firm? How do communication channels
affect employee relations? What types of programs are available to organizations that
want to facilitate employee communications?
In international business, a foreign branch owned fully by the home office is referred to
as a(n) ________.
The government agency that provides plan termination insurance to employers with
defined benefit retirement programs is referred to as the ________.
An occupational injury that occurs from repetitive physical movements, such as
assembly-line work or data entry, is called ________.
What is an employee assistance program? How do EAPs benefit both employers and
employees in regards to worker safety and health?