25 Jan Which legal issues did you identify in the “staff meeting” discussion at the beginning of Chapter 1 on page 3? What aspects of the situation are you unsure of and want to learn more about?
1. Which legal issues did you identify in the “staff meeting” discussion at the beginning of Chapter 1 on page 3? What aspects of the situation are you unsure of and want to learn more about?
2. Please compare and contrast the difference between the definition of an employee and the definition of an independent contractor.
3. In which HR practices can discrimination occur at the workplace?
4. Federal law prohibits discriminating against job seekers because of race or gender, so being asked to volunteer such information in a job application may seem odd. However, companies ask questions to collect data for the government showing they are attempting to interview and hire diverse candidates. If a company’s data-collection system is designed correctly, these details go into a database used to track sources of diversity and are not given to recruiters. Since recruiters aren’t supposed to receive this information, it shouldn’t affect your interview chances. Many recruiters can still detect race and gender from other information you may voluntarily provide, i.e., the applicant’s last name. How can companies eliminate discrimination during the recruitment process and promote diversity during the hiring process?
5. Selecting the right employees is essential for four main reasons. 1) improved employee and organizational performance; 2) your performance depends partly on your subordinates; 3) can help reduce dysfunctional behaviors at work, and 4) it is costly to recruit and hire. Explain the shortcomings of background investigations, reference checks, and pre-employment information services and how to overcome them.
6. Has it become too complicated for employers to develop legally defensible employment tests? Why do you say this? Would it be better for employers to rely more heavily on interviews instead? Why or why not?
7. Please read the case Shea v. Kerry on pages 243-248 in the course textbook. Answer the questions at the end of the case and post your response to each question.
8. Besides training employees on how to behave in the workplace to prevent sexual harassment, what about employers educating employees on bystander intervention? Others need to intervene when witnessing misconduct or harassment. Is there bystander intervention training where you work? If there isn’t, do you think it is essential to have such training?
9. Please read the case on page 362 of your textbook and answer the question at the end of this case and share your thoughts with your classmates.
A cashier at a Costco store wore facial jewelry. The company subsequently revised its dress code to prohibit all facial jewelry except earrings. Despite the policy change, the woman wore her eyebrow piercings without managerial objection. However, a few months later, managers started actively enforcing the policy. The woman was told that she would have to remove her facial jewelry. At this point, the woman mentioned for the first time that she was a member of the Church of Body Modification and that her facial piercings had religious significance. Members of this Church participate in various forms of body modification, including piercing, tattooing, branding, and cutting. The Church’s mission is to promote its adherents’ personal growth so that they may become “confident role models in learning, teaching, and displaying body modification.” The Church does not strictly require that its members wear or display facial jewelry at all times, but the woman said that this is how she regarded its call to be a confident role model. The woman was eventually terminated for noncompliance with the company’s dress code. After filing a charge with the EEOC, and during mediation, the employer offered for the first time to allow her to come back to work if she would use clear plastic retainers or cover her facial piercings with Band-Aids. Although the woman had made the same request when her supervisors initially confronted her, she now assumed that only being allowed to openly wear the facial jewelry would fulfill her religious obligations. Costco refused, and the case went to court. What should the court decide? Why?
10. A form of discrimination that is rarely mentioned is pregnancy discrimination. Pregnancy discrimination involves treating a woman (an applicant or employee) unfavorably because of pregnancy, childbirth, or a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) forbids discrimination based on pregnancy when it comes to any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, fringe benefits, such as leave and health insurance, and any other term or condition of employment. Here is s a link to a recent case that has received national attention: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/03/bipartisan-bill-would-make-it-easier-for-pregnant-women-to-keep-working.htmlLinks to an external site. It is important to assist employees in stopping this type of behavior, and HR is the first department that should be made aware of such atrocity. Is there an outlet for employees to report incidents like this? Employees must have an Employee/Labor Relations (ELR) Office or an HR Manager with experience in ELR to report any type of discrimination in an organization. Class, does your company have such as office? Do employees utilize this resource? If not, why not.
11. How should organizations balance pay equity with performance?
12. Why is it essential for organizations to prioritize employee mental health and have medical plans cover their mental health services?
13. Please read the case on page 520 of your textbook and answer the question at the end of this case and share your thoughts with your classmates. A union organizing campaign was underway at a company that makes parts used by auto manufacturers. A high company official held monthly meetings with workers. Statements made during these meetings included, “If we got [a] Union into the plant [auto makers] wouldn’t probably do business with us, and we wouldn’t have jobs”; “If Honda or Toyota or any other customer became concerned about the reliability of DTR’s production flow, . . . those customers would look for other sources”; “We had a sole supplier deal going with some of our customers where we were the only company that made particular parts for them. If the UAW were to get into DTR, we would lose that sole supplier status because the companies would no longer feel confident that we are their only supplier. After all, the UAW would make us more unreliable”; “Competition from other companies would result in layoffs”; and “DTR had never laid anyone off in the time that they’d been a company, but if the UAW came there that that policy would have to change.” Did this employer violate the NLRA by unlawfully threatening its employees? Why or why not?
14. The CDC, and the OSHA are federal agencies that play very important roles in infection control. The CDC is not a regulatory agency. It is to issue specific recommendations based on sound scientific evidence for health-related matters. OSHA is a regulatory agency. Its role is to issue specific standards designed to protect employees’ health in the United States. Failing to comply with OSHA requirements can result in serious consequences, including heavy fines. How would you handle a situation in which you knew that a co-worker has not routinely followed infection control policies?
15. Please read the case on page 596 of your textbook and answer the question at the end of this case and share your thoughts with your classmates. A public school science teacher learned that for months he had been watched in his classroom by a secret camera. The camera had been placed in the classroom by a school administrator with a child taking a class with the science teacher. The science teacher was also a track coach at the school. When he wanted to change into his track clothes at the end of the day, he would lock the classroom door and change clothes in the classroom. After finding out about the video surveillance, the teacher sued. Were the Fourth Amendment rights of the teacher violated? Why or why not?
16. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits hiring, compensation, and terms, conditions, or privileges of employment based on race, religion, color, sex, or national origin. The Supreme Court decisions clarified the meaning of the Act. Griggs v. Duke Power Company (1971) demonstrated that selection criteria must be directly relevant to the job. The Equal Employment Opportunity Act (EEOA) amended Title VII and created and gave enforcement powers to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The EEOA expanded Title VII coverage to include state and local government employees, educational institutions, and others. Also, the EEOA stipulates that organizations must actively recruit and give preference to minority group members in employment decisions, which is more than merely stopping discriminatory practices. How can organizations ensure they are recruiting for positions that will reach a diverse group of applicants? What source(s) can employers use to recruit?
17. Class, Please read the case on page 731 of your textbook and answer the question at the end of this case and share your thoughts with your classmates. A woman worked at a hospital as a benefits coordinator. She had no patient care responsibilities or direct contact with patients. Her daughter had a severe reaction to a flu shot several years ago and was subsequently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The daughter eventually died from problems with the medication she took for her condition. Any relationship between flu shots and developing various sclerosis is disputed, but a neurologist who treated the daughter said that the vaccination could have triggered the disease. The woman never received a flu shot during over twenty years of employment at the hospital. However, the hospital decided to change its policy and require that all hospital employees get a flu shot each year. Only employees with specific allergies and known adverse reactions to flu shots were exempted from the requirement. Her doctor strongly advised her not to get a picture and wrote a letter supporting that position. However, the woman’s request for an exemption was denied. She was terminated after refusing to get a flu shot. She filed for unemployment insurance, and the hospital contested her claim. What should the court decide? Why?
