Chapter 11 HRM

14) Unions tend to believe that no one can judge the relative worth of jobs better than: A) job evaluation consultants. B) workers. C) union leaders. D) management. E) HR staff.

B

18) Job evaluation is a technique used to determine: A) performance appraisals of individuals to the group. B) the relative worth of each job. C) the relative value of an individualʹs career earnings to the groupʹs. D) merit reviews of individuals to the group. E) promotability.

B

20) Job evaluation involves comparing jobs to one another based on their content. Job content is assessed using: A) behavioural anchors. B) compensable factors. C) job design. D) critical incidence. E) comparable worth.

B

29) Another way to categorize jobs, other than using class descriptions, when undertaking the job classification method is to: A) assign points to compensable factors. B) rank jobs by compensable factors. C) draw up a set of classifying rules. D) rank jobs against one another. E) rank jobs from lowest to highest.

C

30) A disadvantage of the job classification method of job evaluation is the difficulty in: A) classifying jobs. B) writing job descriptions. C) writing grade descriptions. D) grouping jobs. E) developing job clusters.

C

1) Total rewards refers to: A) all forms of pay or other compensation provided to employees. B) payroll costs. C) contractual pay methods or fringe benefits to employees. D) certain forms of pay and rewards to employees. E) cash payments only.

A

2) The total rewards approach has arisen from the: A) changing business environment of the last several decades. B) organizationʹs business needs. C) executive boardroom. D) changing global economy. E) employeeʹs requirement for stability.

A

26) The job evaluation method that rates each job relative to all other jobs, usually based on some overall factor like ʺjob difficulty,ʺ is the: A) ranking method. B) classification method. C) critical incidence method. D) point method plan. E) factor comparison method.

A

28) The type of job evaluation method where the groups are called classes if they contain similar jobs is called the: A) job classification method. B) ranking method. C) factor comparison method. D) point method. E) Hay plan method.

A

3) A total rewards approach considers: A) individual reward components as part of an integrated whole. B) cost constraints. C) compensation and benefits together. D) business strategy. E) employee value

A

32) The point method of job evaluation identifies several compensable factors, each having several degrees, in addition to: A) degrees to which each of these factors is present in the job. B) identifying behavioural anchors. C) establishing points in ranking jobs. D) ranking jobs. E) degrees within a present job.

A

34) The job evaluation committee will want to group similar jobs (in terms of their ranking or number of points, for instance) into grades for: A) pay purposes. B) assessment purposes. C) wage structure purposes. D) personal growth. E) non-economic reasons.

A

51) Broadbanding facilitates less specialized, boundaryless: A) jobs and organizations. B) division of work. C) leniency and error. D) job evaluation. E) geographic dispersion.

A

57) Experience has shown that competency -based pay is more efficient in the ________ years of its existence. A) first B) first 10 C) later D) first 5 E) last

A

58) The great challenge of competency -based pay is: A) measurement of skills, abilities and competencies. B) determining base pay. C) competency definition. D) educational levels of employees. E) determining bonuses.

A

59) Quantitative job evaluation systems, primarily the point plan, are widely used in Canada, partly due to: A) the requirements of pay equity legislation. B) job descriptions that restrict employee behaviour. C) the influence of job specifications on employee behaviour. D) the need for hourly jobs to be compared to salaried positions. E) employee behaviour that is limited to what is on paper.

A

62) The following are elements in a managerʹs compensation package EXCEPT: A) commission. B) long-term incentives. C) short-term incentives. D) benefits. E) salary.

A

68) The ʺwage gapʺ between men and women is a result of systemic discrimination, as well as the following EXCEPT: A) performance levels. B) differences in hours worked. C) education levels. D) level of unionization. E) experience levels.

A

9) You are advising the President of a newly formed company as to payroll obligations. This company is provincially regulated and is located in British Columbia. She has asked you to advise her as to legislative minimum standards regarding pay. You respond that the British Columbia Employment Standards Act sets minimum standards regarding pay for each of the following categories EXCEPT: A) pensions. B) paid statutory holidays. C) overtime pay. D) paid vacation. E) minimum wage.

A

25) Job evaluation methods include the following EXCEPT the: A) job classification method. B) ranking method. C) point method. D) Hay plan method. E) factor comparison method.

D

4) Originally, total rewards were conceptualized as having three broad categories: They are: A) performance and recognition, benefits, work experience. B) compensation, flexible benefits, work experience. C) bonus, benefits, work experience. D) compensation, benefits, work experience. E) development/career opportunities, benefits, work experience.

D

55) With skill/competency-based pay, employees are not paid for the job they currently hold, but instead for the following EXCEPT: A) types of skills. B) depth of skills. C) knowledge. D) years of experience. E) range of skills.

D

56) There are often more opportunities for advancement with skill-based pay plans than with job-based pay plans because of: A) higher base pay. B) the emphasis on years of experience. C) the lack of job evaluation. D) the company-wide focus on skill building. E) less bureaucracy.

D

11) Most Canadian human rights acts prohibit discrimination in pay based on the following grounds EXCEPT: A) sex. B) age. C) physical disability. D) colour. E) height.

E

16) Wages must compare favourably with rates in other organizations or an employer will find it hard to attract and retain qualified employees. This is known as: A) wage compensation. B) need for equity. C) compensation policy. D) internal equity. E) external equity

E

22) Job evaluation is mostly a judgmental process which requires close cooperation and input from the following EXCEPT: A) supervisors. B) employees. C) compensation specialists. D) union representatives. E) customer responses.

E

33) Once a job evaluation method has been used to determine the relative worth of each job, the committee can turn to the task of assigning pay rates to each job, but it will usually want to first group jobs into: A) range rates. B) department classes. C) personal contracts. D) labour contracts. E) pay grades.

E

42) The graphic description of the relationship between the value of the job and the average wage paid for this job is called a: A) wage structure. B) rate range. C) wage grade. D) pay grade. E) wage curve.

E

6) Work/life programs help employees do their jobs effectively using: A) recognition programs. B) advancement opportunities. C) vacation and holidays. D) employer-paid insurance. E) flexible scheduling and childcare.

E

Employers usually survey other firms to see if they are paying comparable pay for comparable jobs.

T

Human rights legislation makes it illegal to discriminate in employment because of race, colour, religion, sec, and age

T

In most cases, the union's position is that it is accepting job evaluation only as an initial decision technique and is reserving the right to appeal the actual job-pricing decisions through grievances or bargaining channels.

T

48) An advantage of using rate ranges for each pay grade is that it allows for: A) education differences. B) gender differences. C) performance differences. D) employer inflexibility. E) age differences.

C

50) Collapsing salary grades and ranges into just a few wide levels or ʺbandsʺ is called: A) compensation banding. B) wide banding. C) broadbanding. D) red circle banding. E) job specialization.

C

53) Rates being paid to overpaid employees are often called: A) black circle pay rates. B) excessive pay rates. C) red circle pay rates. D) silver circle pay rates. E) premium jobs pay rates.

C

54) An alternative method to a traditional job evaluation is pay: A) for education. B) for responsibility. C) for skill/competency. D) for ability. E) based on seniority.

C

64) The general trend in executive compensation today is to decrease the relative importance of ________ and increase the relative importance of short - and long-term executive incentives. A) perquisites B) employee benefits C) base salary D) pension plans E) commissions

C

66) When compensating professional employees, compensable factors tend to focus on the following EXCEPT: A) creativity. B) problem solving. C) working conditions. D) technical expertise. E) technical knowledge.

C

69) You are the HR professional at a forestry company. You are responsible for implementing a pay equity plan. Which of the following questions would not be beneficial for the purpose of avoiding pay equity problems? A) Are job duties and responsibilities clearly documented? B) Are pay equity laws being monitored and adhered to in each province? C) Have pay equity consultants been hired? D) When was the pay system last reviewed? E) Is the pay system clearly documented in a salary administration manual?

C

7) Engagement is: A) the belief that the organization cares about talent management. B) transactional rewards which are consistent across competing organizations. C) positive emotional connection to the employer and a clear understanding of the strategic significance of the job. D) providing competitive base pay. E) relational work experiences.

C

8) The Revlex Company did a salary survey, and the results showed that 10 of its key positions had lower wages compared with similar positions at their key competitors. The problem the company faces is: A) broadbanding. B) pay equity. C) external inequity. D) internal inequity. E) comparable worth.

C

Executive, administrative, and professional employees are included in the overtime requirements of employment/labour standards legislation

F

Job evaluation involves an informal and unsystematic comparison of jobs to determine the worth of one job relative to another.

F

Management does not have the right to serve on a job evaluation committee, because this would constitute a conflict of interest

F

Most employers pay just one pay rate for all jobs in a particular pay grade

F

Skill/competency-based and market-based pay entirely eliminates the need for evaluating the worth of one job relative to others in the firm

F

The Employment Equity Act provides unemployment compensation for up to 65 weeks for all Canadian workers.

F

The only way to categorize jobs is to draw up class descriptions and place jobs into classes based on their correspondence to these descriptions.

F

The two bases upon which to pay employees are increments of performance and seniority

F

21) Jeffrey is the newly hired HR professional who is responsible for evaluating compensation practices at the company. To determine if there are issues with internal equity he has chosen to conduct a job evaluation according to the method popularized by the Hay consulting firm. Which of the following are the compensable factors he uses to evaluate jobs: A) skill, effort, problem solving, and working conditions. B) responsibility, skill, effort, and working conditions. C) know-how, problem solving, accountability, and working conditions. D) knowledge, problem solving, responsibility, and working conditions. E) effort, responsibility, authority, and working conditions.

B

24) The following are primary functions of the job evaluation committee EXCEPT: A) evaluating the worth of each job. B) selecting behavioural anchors. C) selecting compensable factors. D) selecting a job evaluation method. E) identifying 10 or 15 key benchmark jobs.

B

27) The job classification method of job evaluation is a widely used method in which jobs are categorized into: A) departments. B) groups. C) factors. D) clusters. E) functions.

B

40) Statistics Canada provides monthly data on earnings by: A) industry and city. B) geographic area, industry, and occupation. C) geographic area and size of company. D) size of company. E) city and occupation.

B

44) There are several steps in pricing jobs with a wage curve. The first is: A) determine the pay rate for a cluster of jobs. B) find the average pay for each pay grade. C) determine the pay grade. D) create a wage line. E) determine the rate range.

B

45) There are several steps in pricing jobs with a wage curve. The second is: A) determine the rate range. B) plot the pay rates. C) find the average pay for each pay grade. D) create a wage line. E) price jobs.

B

46) Rate ranges are a series of steps or levels of pay within a pay grade, usually based upon: A) years of education. B) years of service. C) teamwork. D) amount of responsibility. E) peer appraisals.

B

67) When compensating professional employees, the commonly used job evaluation method is: A) factor comparison. B) job classification method. C) competency. D) point. E) ranking.

B

47) One way to depict the pay rate ranges for each pay grade is with a wage structure graphically depicting the: A) scatter-plot points within a pay grade. B) range of jobs. C) range of pay rates for each pay grade. D) range of pay grades for each pay rate. E) pay for each job.

C

31) The job evaluation method in which a number of compensable factors are identified, and then the degree to which each of these factors is present on the job is determined, is the: A) factor comparison method. B) ranking method. C) point method. D) job classification method. E) Hay plan method.

C

35) In establishing pay rates, an employer should conduct a salary survey for the purpose of: A) performance appraisals. B) fine tuning pay rates. C) pricing jobs. D) job evaluation. E) slotting jobs into pay grades.

C

38) The problem resulting from using data in employee compensation surveys is known as: A) employee discrimination. B) systemic undervaluing. C) upward bias. D) report bias. E) stereotyping of data.

C

17) Pay rates must be equitable for each employee relative to other pay rates inside the organization. This is known as: A) need for equity. B) compensation plan. C) external equity. D) internal equity. E) wage compensation.

D

19) The basic procedure of job evaluation is to compare the content of jobs in relation to one another in terms of the following EXCEPT: A) skill. B) effort. C) responsibility. D) personality traits. E) working conditions.

D

23) The process whereby several people meet together who are familiar with the jobs in question, and who may have different perspectives regarding the nature of the jobs, is called a(n): A) union negotiating team. B) management negotiating team. C) position review committee. D) job evaluation committee. E) performance appraisal.

D

41) The type of wage survey that pertains to members of associations includes: A) geographic surveys. B) benefits surveys. C) local surveys. D) Professional Engineers Ontario. E) area surveys.

D

52) The problem with having a wage structure with underpaid employees can be solved through raising their wages to: A) another pay grade. B) the midrange of an employeeʹs pay grade. C) the maximum of the rate range for their pay grade. D) the minimum of the rate range for their pay grade. E) be competitive with other jobs in the firm.

D

61) Executive compensation tends to emphasize ____________ more than for other employees pay plans. A) benefits B) commissions C) base pay D) performance incentives E) salary

D

65) When compensating professional employees, most employers use a: A) skill-based pay approach. B) pay equity approach. C) job-based pay approach. D) market-pricing approach. E) job evaluation approach.

D

Classifying jobs, ranking them, or assigning points to them is not applicable to managerial and professional jobs.

F

10) Pay equity laws were enacted in response to: A) pay discrimination against senior citizens B) gender-neutral job evaluation systems. C) the variety of job evaluation systems being used to evaluate jobs. D) the variety of compensable factors being used to evaluate jobs. E) the historical undervaluing of ʺwomenʹs work.ʺ

E

12) Important considerations for paying employees include the following EXCEPT: A) equity considerations. B) policy considerations. C) legal considerations. D) union considerations. E) average age considerations.

E

13) The Employment Insurance Act provides unemployment benefits varying by region and other factors for up to ________ weeks. A) 18 B) 26 C) 30 D) 52 E) 45

E

15) Compensation policies are usually written by the HR or compensation manager together with: A) compensation consultants. B) stockholders. C) supervisors. D) employees. E) senior management.

E

36) Establishing pay rates involves three stages, which are: A) collecting data used to price every job in the organization, working with a compensation consultant, and working with a benefits specialist. B) consulting with industry, determining salaries for executive positions, and deciding on a benefits plan. C) pricing of benchmark jobs, collecting data on insurance benefits, evaluating benefits packages. D) collecting data on insurance benefits, creating a salary survey, and hiring external consultants. E) job evaluation, conducting salary surveys and combining job evaluation and salary survey results.

E

37) Wage surveys undertaken by the human resources department may collect other data which would include the following EXCEPT: A) sick leave benefits. B) vacation time. C) employee benefits. D) insurance benefits. E) industry demand

E

39) An example of an informal survey conducted by an employer would be a(n): A) professional organization survey. B) governmental agency survey. C) commercial survey. D) industry-wide survey. E) telephone survey.

E

43) Assigning pay rates to each pay grade (or to each job) is usually accomplished with a: A) rate range. B) job evaluation. C) wage grade. D) performance appraisal. E) wage curve.

E

49) The rate range is usually built around the: A) Hay system. B) performance appraisal. C) job evaluation. D) job specialization. E) wage line or curve.

E

5) Research conducted by WorldatWork has clarified the ʺwork experienceʺ category of total rewards by splitting it into three parts. They are: A) work/life programs, business strategy and development/career opportunities. B) work/life programs, succession programs, and salary grade. C) work/life programs, organizational culture and development/career opportunities. D) work/life programs, HR strategy, and development/career opportunities. E) work/life programs, performance and recognition, and development and career opportunities.

E

60) When developing compensation plans for managers and professionals, job evaluation is central to: A) non-salary issues. B) bonuses. C) incentives. D) benefits. E) base salary.

E

63) Executive compensation tends to emphasize performance incentives more than do: A) pay plans for boards of trustees. B) pay plans for boards of directors. C) pay plans for boards of governors. D) stockholdersʹ pay plans. E) other employeesʹ pay plans.

E

Most of the pay equity acts in Canada focus on four compensable factors -- skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions

T

The point method of job evaluation is easily explained to employees

T

The point method plan of job evaluation identifies several compensable factors, each having several degrees; as well as the degree to which each of these factors is present in the job

T

Total rewards refers to all forms of pay or other compensation arising from employment

T

With skill/competency-based pay, employees are paid for the range, depth, and type of skills and knowledge they are capable of using, rather than for the job currently held

T