Download IPMA-HR Study Guide: Diversity, Employment Law, and Workplace Practices and more Exams Advanced Education in PDF only on Docsity!
IPMA-HR NEW STUDY GUIDE EXAM QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT ANSWERS 100% VERIFIED (Everything)
Disadvantages to Diversity Training - ANSWER Programs interesting or entertaining but don't produce long-term changes; hasn't reduced discrimination and harassment complains; sometimes increased hostility and conflict; produced divisive effects and not changed behaviors; nothing but "lip service"; white males feel they are blamed for societal problems; perceived as benefiting only women and minorities and takes away opportunities for white man
Diversity Challenges - ANSWER to design meaningful and effective training programs that assist people of diverse backgrounds to communicate and build rapport in work situations
Diversity Model - ANSWER -form committee
-conduct training
-establish monitoring systems
-emphasize importance in succession and promotion planning
-establish multi-cultural work teams
-Filing requirements and limitations period
-Jurisdiction - ANSWER Requirements that must be met in order to properly file an EEOC appeal
Filing Requirements and Limitations Period - ANSWER Must pre-file a charge within 180 days; if first filed a charge with state agency, 300 days from violation or 30 days after notice that the state agency terminated the proceedings
Jurisdiction - ANSWER Employer must have 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks, in the current or preceding calendar year
Job Analysis Elements - ANSWER -Significant and Essential Duties
-New or Revised KSAs
-Testing
Prohibited Pre-Employment Inquiries - ANSWER -race
-height and weight
-financial information
-unemployed status
-background checks
-religious affiliation or beliefs
-citizenship
-marital status, number of children
-gender
-disability
-medical questions and examinations
Common Issues in Disparate Impact Cases - ANSWER -employer utilizes an employment practice (ex. agility test)
-selection procedure must be job-related and consistent with business necessity
-can the plaintiff demonstrate that less discriminatory alternative was available
3 Basic Types of Evidence - ANSWER -Direct
-Circumstantial
-Statistical
Direct Evidence - ANSWER Defendant admitted; proves a fact without resort to inference or presumption
Rights - ANSWER Powers, privileges, or interests derived from law, nature or tradition
Statutory Rights - ANSWER Rights based on laws or statutes passed by federal, state or local governments
Responsibilities - ANSWER Obligations to perform certain tasks and duties
Contractual Rights - ANSWER Rights based on a specific contract between an employer and an employee
5 Types of Employment Contracts - ANSWER Employment, Non-Compete, Intellectual Property, Implied, Employment At Will
Employment Contract - ANSWER Formal agreement that outlines the details of employment
Non-Compete Agreements - ANSWER Agreements that prohibit individuals who leave an organization from working with an employer in the same line of business for a specified period of time
Criteria for Non-Compete Agreements - ANSWER Reasonable in limits, duration, and geographical scope; additional consideration beyond employment; limitations from working within their area of specialisation
Intellectual Property and Trade Secrets - ANSWER Right to keep trade secrets confidential; right of employees to take business opportunities to employer first before seeking it elsewhere; common-law copyright in works and other documents prepared by employees
Implied Contract - ANSWER Unwritten agreement created by the actions of the parties involved
Employment At Will (EAW) - ANSWER Common-law doctrine stating that employers have the right to hire, fire, demote or promote whomever they choose, unless there is a law or contract to the contrary.and employees may quit at any time with or without notice
Exceptions to EAW - ANSWER Public Policy Exception;
Implied Contract Exception;
Good-Faith and Fair-Dealing Exception
Wrongful Discharge - ANSWER Termination of an individual's employment for reasons that are illegal or improper
Constructive Discharge - ANSWER Process of deliberately making conditions intolerable to get an employee to quit
Just Cause - ANSWER Reasonable justification for taking employment related action (see e269 for FAQ for Just Cause)
Just Cause Determinants - ANSWER -Was employer's rule reasonable?
-Was employee warned of the consequences?
-Did mgmt investigate before disciplining?
-Was investigation fair and impartial?
-Was there adequate proof of guilt?
-Were rules and punishments uniform?
-Was punishment fair, in light of infraction?
Due Process - ANSWER Occurs when an employer is determining if there has been employee wrongdoing and uses a fair process to give an employee a chance to explain and defend his or her actions:
-employee has right to be heard before disciplinary action is imposed;
Arbitration - ANSWER Process that uses a neutral third party to make a binding decision, thereby eliminating the need to involve the court
Mandatory Arbitration - ANSWER Employees are required to sign a pre-employment agreement stating that all disputes are to be submitted to arbitration and that they give up their rights to pursue their legal options until the arbitration process is complete
Peer Review Panel - ANSWER Internal committee of employees who review the actions and make recommendations or decisions for employees that appeal disciplinary actions. There could be a few managers on this panel.
Ombuds - ANSWER Individuals outside the normal chain of command who act as problem solvers for both management and employees
2 Types of Mediation - ANSWER Facilitative and Evaluative
Facilitative Mediation - ANSWER Fosters communication among the parties to help uncover options for settling
Evaluative Mediation - ANSWER Points out the potential weaknesses in each side's case and offers potential settlement options
Right to Privacy - ANSWER Individual's freedom from unauthorized and unreasonable intrusion into personal affairs
Data Protection Act - ANSWER Requires employers to keep personnel records up to date and keep only the details that are needed
3 Ways which Employee's Freedom of Speech are Restricted - ANSWER 1-Controversial Views
2-Whistle-Blowing
3-Internet and other communication-based technology
Whistle-Blowers - ANSWER Individual who report real or perceived wrongs committed by their coworkers or employers
Whistle-Blower Key Questions - ANSWER 1 - under what circumstances do workers have the right to blow the whistle and be protected against reprisal?
2 - Under what circumstances do workers breach the confidentiality of their employment by blowing the whistle?
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) - ANSWER Policy allowing employees to bring their personally owned mobile devices, such as smart-phones and digital tablets, into the workplace
Ways to Address Employee Theft - ANSWER Pre-hire applicant screening and background investigations; honesty tests; workplace monitoring; ethics code defining behaviors; internal checks and balances
Policies - ANSWER General guidelines that focus organizational actions (i.e. 2 weeks vacation, with increases on 8th, 15th, 25th years)
Procedures - ANSWER Customary methods of handling activities and are more specific than policies (i.e. specific steps for requesting vacation)
Rules - ANSWER Specific guidelines that regulate and restrict individuals' behavior-i.e. rule that an employee cannot take a vacation day before or after a holiday
Employee Handbook - ANSWER Physical or electronic manual that explains a company's essential policies, procedures and employee benefits.
Union - ANSWER Organization of workers that acts to advance the interests of its members through collective action
Advantages of a Union - ANSWER Give employees an opportunity to provide feedback to employers about concerns and suggestions that would be tough to provide otherwise; A balance against mgmt's unchallenged decision-making when necessary; Job tenure, performance and employee earnings increase
Disadvantages of a Union - ANSWER Adversely affects the distribution of organizational resources, reduces profitability, adversely affects productivity due to increased compensation and inflexible work rules
Reasons to Join a Union - ANSWER 1 - dissatisfied with the way employers treat them
2 - feel that unions can help them improve the work situation
Desirability of Unionization - ANSWER -Working conditions
-Compensation
-Management Style
-Employee Treatment
Reasons for Union Decline - ANSWER Deregulation, foreign competition, lack of individual support, increased right-to-work legislation, increasing use of temporary or contingent workers
Work Centers - ANSWER Operate as nonprofit organization that offer union members a variety of services, often serving as a front for unions and providing worker advocacy, lobbying, legal advice and training services
Railway Labor Act (RLA) of 1926 - ANSWER Gave railroad employees the right to organize and bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing
Norris-LaGuardia Act - ANSWER Guaranteed workers some rights to organize and restricted the issuance of court injunctions in labor disputes; prohibited employers from asking employees to sign yellow dog contracts
Yellow Dog Contracts - ANSWER Pledges by workers not to join a labor union
3 Acts that constitute the core of US Labor Law - ANSWER 1 - Wagner Act
2 - Taft-Hartley Act
3 - Landrum-Griffin Act
Wagner Act (aka National Labor Relations Act/NLRA) - ANSWER Encouraged collective bargaining; specifically, established the right of workers to organize free from management interference; workers were provided with the right to participate or not participate in union membership; DOES NOT APPLY TO PUBLIC SECTOR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.however, many of its tenets are embodied in public sector collective bargaining
Protected Concerted Activities - ANSWER Actions by employees who are working together in an attempt to improve pay and working conditions - union or non-union
Unfair Labor Practices - ANSWER Actions that employers are forbidden by law from taking in order to prevent employees from unionizing
Taft-Hartley Act (Labor Mgmt Relations Act) - ANSWER Established a code of conduct for unions who represent employees under the law; prohibited unions from engaging in unfair labor practices similar to the prohibitions already placed on employers in the NLRA, specifically, coercion, discrimination against non-union workers, refusing to bargain, excessive membership fees and other practices were made unfair practices under the law
Right-to-Work Laws - ANSWER State laws prohibiting a requirement that employees join unions as a condition of getting or keeping a job
4 board members, each serving a 5-year term, and one general counsel who serves a 4-year term; purpose is to enforce the provisions of the law
US Constitution - ANSWER Contains certain prohibitions that provide the framework for labor-employee relations:
-1st amendment pertaining to freedom of association and free speech
-14th amendment which guarantees due process and has been applied to certain aspects of employee discipline
Microunit - ANSWER Bargaining unit that includes only one job category or department within a company
Unit Determination - ANSWER Grouping certain jobs together and designating the group of employees who occupy those positions as members of an appropriate bargaining unit
Criteria for Unit Determination - ANSWER -Community interest of employees
-Prior bargaining history and prior union organization
-Potential effect on the efficiency of employer operations
-Effect of over-fragmentation
Considerations for Unit Criteria - ANSWER -Similarity for determining wages, hours & other conditions and terms
-Frequency of contract ad interaction among employees
-Interconnected nature of the work being performed
-Common supervision and labor relations policies
-Relationship to the administrative body of employer
-Collective bargaining history
-Wishes of the parties
Categories of employees in relation to Unit Determination - ANSWER -Management employees
-Confidential employees
-Supervisors
-Professional employees
Process of Unionizing Workers - ANSWER 1 - Union targets an industry, region or company
2 - Employees request union representation
Typical Unionization Process - ANSWER -Organizing campaign
-Authorization cards/petition filing
-Representation Election
-Certification
-Collective bargaining/contract negotiation
No-Solicitation Policy - ANSWER Policy that restricts employees and outsiders from distributing literature or soliciting union membership on company premises.
Salting - ANSWER Practice in which unions hire and pay people to apply for jobs at target companies to initiate organizing efforts
Union Authorization Card - ANSWER Card signed by employees to designate a union as their collective bargaining representative
Bargaining Unit - ANSWER Employees eligible to choose a single union to represent and bargain collectively on their behalf
Decertification - ANSWER Process whereby a union is removed as the representative of a group of employees
4 - Strikes and lockouts
Ratification - ANSWER Process by which union members vote to accept the terms of a negotiated labor agreement
Conciliation - ANSWER Process by which a third party facilitates the dialogue between union and mgmt negotiators to reach a voluntary settlement
Mediation - ANSWER Process by which a third party suggests ideas to help the negotiators reach a settlement
Types of Strikes - ANSWER Economic, Unfair Labor Practice, Wildcat, Jurisdictional, Sympathy
Affinity Groups - ANSWER Groups for employees with a common interest or characteristic
Complaint - ANSWER Indication of employee dissatisfaction
Grievance - ANSWER A formal complaint by a person or persons who believe they have been wronged
Grievance Procedures - ANSWER Specific steps used to resolve grievances (e256):
1-employee discusses grievance with immediate supervisor
2-union steward and employee discuss grievance with supervisor's manager, employee relations specialist or HR manager
3-union rep and grievant discuss issue with senior management level of organization
4-rep from national union and organizations CEO or employee relations officer review and attempt to resolve the grievance
5-presented to arbitrator for final decision and resolution
Grievance Arbitration/Mediation- ANSWER Process in which a neutral third party who is qualified and knowledgeable about the industry meets with the parties to the grievance and attempts to help the parties reach a settlement
Advantages to Arbitration - ANSWER -saves time and is less expensive
-accomplished by neutral parties who possess specific expertise
-viewed by Supreme Court as a superior means of conflict resolution
Codetermination - ANSWER Practice in which union or worker representatives are given positions on a company's board of directors
Key Union Focuses - ANSWER -Economic issues vs. other concerns
-Organization by kind of job and employer
-Collective agreements as "contracts"
-Competitive relations
Steps for Interest Based Bargaining - ANSWER 1 - Separate the problem from the person
2 - Focus on interest, not on positions
3 - Invent options for mutual gain
4 - Insist on objective criteria
HR Functions in Labor/Management Leadership - ANSWER -Gather information regarding mgmt and supervisory concerns prior to negotiations
-Keep mgmt and supervisors updated as to the progress
-Coordinate the preparation of strike plans
-Assist supervisors and managers in processing settlement of grievances
-Provide assistance for line staff in the investigation and pre-disciplinary elements, as
Mandatory Subjects for Bargaining - ANSWER -wages and benefits
-grievances and procedures for resolutions
-work hours and schedules
-union security issues
-seniority
-health and safety rules
-paid and unpaid time off from work
-retirement and pension coverage
Permissive Subjects for Bargaining - ANSWER Not mandatory subjects, but issues that the parties MAY choose to negotiate over only if both parties agree (i.e negotiation of benefits for retired employees)
Illegal/Prohibited Bargaining Issues - ANSWER Cannot bargain over and forces one or both parties to do something illegal (i.e. an action that would violate a person's civil rights)
Collective Bargaining in the Public Sector - ANSWER Performance of mutual obligation of the public employer and the representative of the public employees to meet at reasonable times and confer in good faith with respect to wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment and the execution of a written contract incorporating any agreement reached
Meet and Confer - ANSWER Obligation of both the public employer and the public employee organization to bargain in good faith to reach an agreement which means to meet at reasonable times to exchange openly and without fear information, views and proposals striving to reach agreement on matters relating to wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment
Meet and Discuss - ANSWER Parties meet to discuss proposals by the union, but the final authority rests with the employer
Ground Rules for Negotiations - ANSWER -starting and ending times for negotiating sessions
-location of meetings
-agreement to reduce proposals to writing and to sign off on tentative language as agreement is reached
-agreements about payment status for employees attending the negotiations as union representatives
-information sharing
-confidentiality of discussions
-public disclosure of progress
-civility across the table between team members
-role of the chief spokesperson/team members
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Economic Proposals - ANSWER For salary and benefits, unions research like organizations in surrounding locations for comparison data to justify their employees' desires
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Non-Economic Proposals - ANSWER Varied and more complicated than economic issues; employees concerned about health and safety issues because of a recent accident, the application of seniority to job openings, parking spaces for employees, uniforms, etc.
Examples of Items that need to be Costed and Considered - ANSWER -Retirement Increase
-Health Care Contributions
-Holidays, Personal Days, Sick Days
2 Types of Collective Bargaining - ANSWER 1 - Positional Bargaining
2 - Interest Based Bargaining
Positional Bargaining - ANSWER Viewed as a contest making the end result a win/lose
