Quick Quiz 2
1. A(n) _____ is a temporary work visa granted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) for people who work in specialty occupations.
2. A person can work for a U.S. employer as an H-1B employee for a maximum continuous
period of _____ years.
3. (True or False) Any work done at a relatively high cost in the United States may become a
candidate for offshore outsourcing.
4. (True or False) The primary rationale for outsourcing is to lower costs, but companies also
use it to obtain strategic flexibility and to keep their staff focused on the company’s core
competencies.
V. Whistle-Blowing
1. Define whistle-blowing as an effort to attract public attention to a negligent, illegal,
unethical, abusive, or dangerous act by a company that threatens the public interest.
2. Explain that in most cases, whistle-blowers act ethically in an attempt to correct what they
think is a major wrongdoing, often at great personal risk.
3. Point out that the whistle-blower usually has personal knowledge of what is happening
inside the offending organization because of his or her role as an employee of the
organization.
A. Protection for Whistle-Blowers
1. Explain that there are no comprehensive federal laws to protect all whistle-blowers from
retaliatory acts; rather, there are numerous federal laws and each protects a certain class
of specific whistle-blowing acts in various industries.
amount for which the government was defrauded. They can also be fined civil penalties
of $5,000 to $10,000 for each instance of a false claim. A qui tam plaintiff can receive
between 15 and 30 percent of the total recovery from the defendant, depending on how
B. Whistle-Blowing Protection for Private-Sector Workers
1. Under state law, an employee could traditionally be terminated for any reason, or no
reason, in the absence of an employment contract. However, many states have created
laws that prevent workers from being fired because of an employee’s participation in
“protected” activities.
C. Dealing with a Whistle-Blowing Situation
1. Use this section to highlight key issues that a potential whistle-blower should consider.
Assess the Seriousness of the Situation
1. Explain that before considering whistle-blowing, a person should have specific
Begin Documentation
1. Note that an employee who identifies an illegal or unethical practice should begin to
Attempt to Address the Situation Internally
1. Point out that an employee should next attempt to address the problem internally by
providing a written summary to the appropriate managers. Ideally, the employee can
expose the problem and deal with it from inside the organization.
Consider Escalating the Situation within the Company
Assess the Implications of Becoming a Whistle-Blower
1. Explain that if whistle-blowers feel they have made a strong attempt to resolve the
problem internally without results, they must stop and fully assess whether they are
prepared to go forward and blow the whistle on the company. Depending on the
Use Experienced Resources to Develop an Action Plan
1. Note that a whistle-blower should consult with competent legal counsel who has
Execute the Action Plan
1. Point out that a whistle-blower who chooses to pursue a matter legally should do so
based on the research and guidance of legal counsel. If the whistle-blower wants to
remain unknown, the safest course of action is to leak information anonymously to the
press.
Live with the Consequences
1. It is important to note that whistle-blowers must be on guard against retaliation, such
as being discredited by coworkers, threatened, or set up; for example, management
VI. Green Computing
1. Explain that to manufacture a truly “green PC,” a hardware company must also reduce the
the end of their useful life.
2. Point out that electronic devices such as personal computers and cell phones contain
hundreds or thousands of components. The components are composed of many different
3. Introduce that EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) is a system
4. Point out that under EPEAT, products are ranked in three tiers of environmental
performance.
5. Mention that in Europe, a law called the Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive,
which took effect in 2006, restricts the use of many hazardous materials in computer
manufacturing.
Teaching
Tip
Ask the students how they would go about safely disposing of obsolete
computers. Are there manufacturer or government programs to assist them?
VII. ICT Industry Code of Conduct
1. Introduce that the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) was established to
promote a common code of conduct for the electronics and ICT industry.
2. Point out that the EICC has established a code of conduct that defines performance,
Quick Quiz 3
1. (True or False) Violators of the False Claims Act are liable for ten times the dollar amount
for which the government was defrauded.
2. The _____, also known as the _____, was enacted during the U.S. Civil War to combat fraud
by companies that sold supplies to the Union Army.
3. _____ is a system that enables purchasers to evaluate, compare, and select electronic
products based on a total of 51 environmental criteria.
4. _____ actions can be based on a variety of charges, including mischarging for services,
product and service substitution, false certification of entitlement for benefits, and false
negotiation to justify an inflated contract.
Discussion Questions
1. Are jobs in the IT industry the only jobs that are outsourced offshore? Are there jobs in the
IT industry that cannot be effectively outsourced offshore?
2. When a similar trend toward outsourcing in the manufacturing industry occurred in the
1980s, the response was that workers should be retrained. Should IT workers in the U.S. be
retrained, and if so, for what jobs?
Additional Projects
1. The trend toward outsourcing in the IT industry and its effect on the IT industry has been
compared to the trend toward importing automobiles in the 1980s and its effect on the auto
industry. Write a paper discussing the similarities and differences.
2. Write a paper explaining the effects on the economy of offshore outsourcing.
3. Using a highly publicized case of whistle-blowing (such as the Enron accounting scandal
and the whistle-blower Sherron Watkins), demonstrate the steps the whistle-blower took to
resolve the situation.
Additional Resources
Key Terms
Coemployment relationship—a relationship between two employers such that both
employers have actual or potential legal rights and duties with respect to the same group of
employees
Contingent work—a job situation in which an individual does not have an explicit or
implicit contract for long-term employment
Due diligence—the investigation of all areas of an organization prior to agreeing to a
merger or other important transaction
Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)—a system that enables
purchasers to evaluate, compare, and select electronic products based on a total of 51
environmental criteria
Employee leasing—a business arrangement in which an organization (called the
subscribing firm) transfers all or part of its workforce to another firm (called the leasing
firm), which handles all human resource-related activities and costs, such as payroll,
training, and the administration of employee benefits. The subscribing firm leases these
workers, but they remain employees of the leasing firm.
False Claims Act—a law enacted during the U.S. Civil War to combat fraud by companies
that sold supplies to the Union Army
Green computing—term applied to a variety of efforts directed toward the efficient
design, manufacture, operation, and disposal of IT-related products
H-1B visa—a temporary work visa granted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) for people who work in specialty occupations, jobs that require a four
year bachelor’s degree in a specific field, or equivalent experience
Offshore outsourcing—a form of outsourcing in which the services are provided by an
organization whose employees are in a foreign country