HR

in house vs. contracted out training

-Organizations can mail vendors a request for proposal(RFP) which is a document outlining the type of service needed, # employees to be trained, date it needs to be completed, and the date by which proposals should ve received. RFP indicates funding for the project and the process by which the organization will determine its level of satisfaction. putting together a request for proposal is time consuming but worthwhile because it helps the organization clarify its objectives, compare vendors, and measure results organizations reviews the proposals to eliminate any vendors that do not meet requirements and to compare the vendors that do qualify generally its more costly to purchase training from a contractor, however specialized training program can require a significant amount of time for material the consultant won't be able to sell to other clients.

approaches to employee development

-formal education: more education is necessary in order to advance within an organization -assessment: collecting information and providing feedback to employees about their behavior, communication style, skills. Goals is to identify strengths and weaknesses -experiences: most employee development occurs through job experiences. The combination of relationships, problems, demands, tasks, and other features of an employee's jobs -interpersonal: employees can also develop skills and increase their knowledge about the organization and its customers by interacting with a more experienced member( ex. mentor or coach)

features of effective training objectives

-include a statement of what the employe is expected to do, the quality of level of performance that is acceptable, and the conditions under which the employee is to apply what he or she learned( for instance, physical conditions, mental stresses, or equipment) -they include performance standards that are measurable -the identify the resources needed to carry out the desired performance or outcome. Successful training requires employees to learn but also employers to provide the necessary resources

various job experiences that facilitate employee development

-job enlargement: involves adding challenges or new responsibilities to employees' current job. Not only makes a job more interesting but also creates an opportunity an opportunity for employees to develop new skills -job rotation: moving employees through a series of job assignments in one or more functional areas. Helps employees gain appreciate for the company's goals, increases their understanding of different company functions, develops a network of contacts, and improves problem-solving an decision making skills. Also helps employees increase their salary and gain promotions faster transfer: assignment of an employee to a position in a different area of the company, usual in a lateral move. downward move: assignment of an employee to a position with less responsibility and authority promotion: assignment of an employe to a position with greater challenges, more responsibility, and more authority than in the previous job, usually accompanied by a pay increase

characteristics of an effective incentive plan

-performance measures are linked to the organization's goals -employees believe they can meet performance standards -the organization gives employees the resources they need to meet their goals -employees value the rewards given -employees believe the reward system is fair -the pay plan takes into account that employees may ignore any goals that are not rewarded

different ways to compensate expatriates

1. base salary--difficult because of different currencies and exchange rate 2. tax equalization allowance--expatriate withholds the amount of tax to be paid in the parent country then pays all the taxes due in the country where the expatriate is working 3. benefits--most benefits issues have to do with whether an employee can use the same benefits in the foreign country 4. allowances to make a foreign assignment more attractive: cost of living allowances make up the differences in expenses for day to day needs.

criteria for selection of employees for foreign selection assignments

1. competency in the employee's area of expertise 2. ability to communicate verbally and nonverbally in the foreign country 3. motivation to succeed and enjoyment of challenges 4. motivation to succeed and enjoyment of challenges 5. willingness to learn about the foreign country's culture, language, and customers 6. support from family members

emotional cycle associated with a foreign assignment

1. honeymoon-fascination and euphoria 2.culture shock-disillusionment and discomfort that occur during adjustment 3. recovery-begin to develop a grater understanding and a support network 4. adjustment--accepts and enjoys the host country's culture

hofstede's five dimensions of culture

1. individualism/collectivism: describes the strength of the relation between and individual and other individuals in the society. 2. power distance: concerns the way the culture deals with unequal distribution of power and defines the amount of inequality that is normal 3. uncertainty avoidance: describes how cultures handle the fact that the future is unpredictable 4. masculinity/femininity: the emphasis a culture places on practices or qualities that have traditionally been considered masculine or feminine 5. long-term/short-term orientation: suggest whether the focus of cultural values is one the future(long term) or the past and present(short term)

required benefits: family/medical leave

Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993: federal law requiring organizations with 50 or more employees to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave after childbirth or adoption; to care for a seriously ill family member, or for an employee's own serious illness; or to take care of urgent needs that arise when a spouse, child, or parent in the National Guard or Reserve is called to active duty. Must guarantee those employees the same or comparable job when they return. Pregnancy Discrimination Act: if an employee is temporarily unable to perform her job due to pregnancy, then the employer must treat her in the same way as any other disabled employee

exempt employees

Not everyone is eligible for overtime pay.managers, outside salespeople, and other employees not covered by the FLSA requirement for overtime pay. Exempt status depends on the employee's job responsibilities, salary level( at least $455 per week), and "salary basis" meaning that the employee is paid a given amount regardless of the number of hours worked or quality of work

readiness for learning characteristics

The necessary employee characteristics include cognitive ability, ability to learn the subject matter, favorable attitudes toward the training, and motivation to learn necessary organization characteristics: -situational contraints are minimized -environment that encourages learning -avoids interfering with training -supportive culture -avoids interfering with training -supportive culture

readiness for training

a combination of employee characteristics and positive work environment that permit training.

balanced scorecard

a combination of performance measures directed toward the company's long--and short term goals and used as the basis for awarding incentive pay. Performance types include financial, customer, internal, learning, growth, etc. Because all incentive pay has advantages and disadvantages, many organizations design a mix of pay programs to balance the disadvantages of one type of incentive pay with the advantages of another type. Organizations customize their scorecards according to their market, products, and objectives

required benefits: unemployment insurance

a federally mandated program to minimize the hardships of unemployment through payments to unemployed workers, help finding new jobs, and incentives to stabilize employment. Most of the funding comes from federal and state taxes on employers. Careful HR planing can minimize layoffs and keep their experience rating favorable requirements for unemployment benefits: 1. meet requirements demonstrating they have been employed 2. available for work 3.actively seeking work 4. they were not discharged for cause, did not quit voluntarily, and are not out of work because of labor dispute

scanlon plan

a gainsharing program in which employees receive a bonus if the ratio of labor costs to the sales value of production is below a set standard

pay policy lines

a graphed line showing mathematical relationship between job evaluation points and pay rate

coach

a peer or manager who works with an employee to motivate the employee, help him or her develop skills, and provide reinforcement and feedback 1. working one on one with an employee 2. helping employees learn for themselves 3. providing resources such as mentors, courses, or job experiences

training

a planned, systematic effort to change the job related KSs, attitudes, and/or behaviors of employees to improve the match between employee characteristics and job requirements. Rapid change requirements that employees continually learn new skills training can benefit the organization when it is linked to organizational needs and when it motivates employees

benchmarking

a procedure in which an organization compares its own practices with those of successful competitors. Benchmarking involves pay surveys. These provide information about the going rates of pay at competitors in the organization's product and labor markets.

instructional design

a process of systematically developing training to meet specified needs an effective training program is designed to teach skills and behaviors that will help the organization achieve its goals simply put an effective training program teaches what it is designed to teach

pay ranges

a set of possible pay rates defined by a minimum, maximum, and midpoint of pay for employees holding a particular job or a job within a particular pay grade. Pay ranges are most common for white collar jobs and for jobs that are not covered by union contracts. Sometimes divided into different pay ranges, and within each pay grade has a range. The midpoint is usually the market rate

individual incentive plan:merit pay

a system of linking pay increases to rating on performance scale. Most common incentive plan. Requires quality performance appraisal. Supervisor provides most performance information. Disadvantages: discourages teamwork, too much reliance on supervisor for rating, pay increase are not representative of performance and/or are too small to be motivating, an annuity based on the past rather than the present, fail to account for short-term fluctuations in performance

pay differentials

adjustment to a pay rate to reflect differences in working conditions or labor markets. For example, employers may pay extra to those working the night shift because it is less desirable. Many businesses in the US provide business differentials based on geographic location. The most common approach is to move an employee higher in the pay structure to compensate for higher living costs.

job evaluation

an administrative procedure for measuring the relative internal worth of the organization's jobs

training methods: on the job

an employee is shown how to perform a work task by a supervisor or coworker and then goes straight to doing the task types: -apprenticeship: a work study training method that teaches job skills through a combination of on the job training and classroom study -internship: on the job training sponsored by an educational institution as a component of an academic program

Mentor

an experienced, productive senior employee who helps develop a less-experienced employee( a protege). Ensure access to mentos

individual incentive: Standard hour plans

an incentive plan that pays workers extra for work done in less than a preset "standard time". These plans are much like piecework plans. They encourage employees to work as fast as they can and be efficient. However, employees under standard hour plans may not necessarily care about quality or service.

various ways employees are assessed

assessment center: an assessment process in which multiple raters or evaluators(assessors) evaluate employees' performance on a number of exercises, usually as they work in a group at an off-site location leaderless group discussion: an assessment center exercise in which a team of five to seven employees is assigned a problem and must work together to solve it within a certain time period benchmarks: a measurement tool that gathers ratings of a manager's use of skills associated with succes in managing myers briggs type indicator(MBTI):psychological test that identifies individuals' preferences for source of energy, means of information gathering, way of decision making, and lifestyle, providing information for team building and leadership development performance appraisals: the process of measuring employees' performance 360 degree feedback: performance measurement by the employee's supervisors, peers, employees, and customers

group level incentive: bonuses and rewards

bonuses for groups performance tend to be for smaller groups. These bonuses reward the members of a group for attaining a specific goal, usually measured in terms of physical output( advantage that they encourage group or team members to cooperate). However, competition among individuals may be replaced by competition among groups. Issues: hurdle too high or too low( results are unsatisfied employees or high labor costs), value the payout( like all rewards, must actually be seen as desirable), and line of sight( employee/lack of understanding of organizational objectives and how to contribute to those objectives, free rider( obtains benefits from one's membership but does not bar a proportional share of the costs of providing those benefits)

child labor

children 16 to 17: may not be allowed to be employed in hazardous occupations defined by the US department of labor children 14 to 15: may work only outside school hours, in jobs defined as nonhazardous, and for limited time periods children under the age 14: may not be employed in any work associated with interstate commerce, exceptions: babysitting, acting, and delivering newspapers

the big five and expatriate success

conscientiousness--predicted supervisor rated performance agreeableness--negative correlation of expatriate's desire to terminate assignment emotional stability--negative correlation of expatriate's desire to terminate assignment openness--non-finding extroversion--negation correlation of expatriate's desire to terminate assignment failure: a desire to prematurely terminate the assignment, supervisor related expatriate performance top 3 causes of failure: unhappy spouse, expatriate does not adjust, family

types of team training

cross training: team training which team members understand and practice each other's skills so that they are prepared to step in and take another member's place coordination training: tema training that teaches the team how to share information and make decisions to obtain the best team performance team leaders training: teaches the skills necessary for effectively leading the organization's team

factors effecting HRM in international Markets

culture: is a community's set of shared assumptions about how the world works and what ideals are worth striving for. Most important influence on the international HRM education: companies with foreign operations locate in countries where they can find suitable employees. The educations and skill levels of a country's labor force affect how, and the extent to which companies want to operate there. In countries with a poorly educated population, companies will limit their activities to low-skill, low wage jobs economic systems: the economic system provides many of the people with incentives or disincentives for developing the value of the labor force. In developed countries with great wealth, labor costs are relatively high. This impact compensation and staffing practices. Income tax differences between countries may pay structures more complicated when they cross national boundaries political-legal systems: the country's law often dictate the requirements for the HRM practices: training, compensation, hiring, firing, and layoffs. An organization that expands internationally must gain expertise in the host country's legal requirements and ways of dealing with its legal system organizations will hire one or more host country nationals to help in the process

training methods: computers based

e-learning: involves receiving training via the internet or the organization's intranet and it offers tools and information for helping trainees improve performance. Allows individuals to go at tier own pace and replay or repeat lectures and activities. Programs can customize content based on trainees' previous performance. Earlier computer based training came on CD-Rom and now have been adapted to new wireless technologies

training vs. development

employee development deals with the acquisition of KSs and behaviors that improve employee's ability to meet changes in job requirements demands. Development prepares employees for future jobs and even those that may not exist. IMplies learning that is not necessarily related to the employee's current job. Participation is often voluntary

expatriates

employees assigned to work in another country

nonexempt employees

employees covered by the FLSA requirements for overtime pay. Most workers are paid on an hourly basis are nonexempt and there fore subject to the laws governing overtime pay.

optional benefits: retirement plan

employers have no obligation to offer retirement plans beyond social security half of employees working in the private business sector have employer-sponsored retirement plans

optional benefits: paid leave

employers pay employees for the time spent not working; receive nothing in return; employers should establish policies for leave without pay( ex. leaves of absence to pursue non work goals or to meet family needs) unpaid leave is an employee benefit because the employee usually retains seniority and other benefits during the leave types of unpaid leave: vacation, holidays, sick leave, personal days, jury duty, funerals, time off to vote paid time off bank: a flexible approach that establishes pools of personal, sick, and vacation days for employees to use as the need arises( employers may use these to minimize legal concerns about holiday recognition)

anti-discrimination

equal access to benefits for all employees including longer living populations(women) and those over 40

required benefits: social security

federal social security(OASDHI): combines old age(retirement) insurance, survivors insurance, disability insurance, hospital insurance(medicare part A), supplementary medical insurance(medicare part B). Employers and employees share the cost of social security though a payroll tax.90% of the US employees are covered by this program. Main exceptions are railroad federal, state, and local government employees, who often have their own plans.

incentive pay

forms of pay linked to an employee's performance as an individual, group member, or organization member. Organizations can tie incentive pay to individual performance, profits, or many other measures of success. Incentive pay is specifically designed to energize, direct, or control employees' behavior--employees often try harder or get more creative than they might without incentive pay. Organizations can select incentives based on costs, expected influence on performance, and fit with the organization's broader HR policies and goals

european union

free movement of people, goods, services, and capital

issues with development: glass ceilings

glass ceiling: circumstances resembling an invisible barrier that keep most women and minorities from attaining the top jobs in organizations

training methods: team training

growing reliance on teamwork creates a demand for the ability to work in teams

vesting rights

guarantee that when employees become participants in pension plan and work a specified number of years, they will receive a pension at retirement age, regardless of whether they remained with the employer. Goal of vesting requirements is to protect employees from organization termination to avoid pension obligations

overtime

hours beyond 40 hours per week. Overtime rate is 1.5 times the employee's usual hourly rate. Time spent in training, traveling between work sites, and cleanup/maintenance is counted towards employees 40 hrs a week. If the employer knows an employee is working overtime but does not pay a time and a 1/2, then the employer may be violating FLSA

Consolidated omnibus budget reconciliation Act of 1985

if an employee terminates employment, then the employee is entitled to continue participating in the plan for up to 36 months to continue participating, the employee does have to pay the premium(but still at the group rate) mostly to smooth over transitions between job changes and for those with pre-existing conditions( when employees switch jobs, their pre-existing condition might only be covered by the old plan even if the rest of their health insurance is covered by a new plan)

commissions

incentive pay calculated as a percentage of scales, revenue, or profitability. Types: straight commission( pay arrangement), salary-plus-commission, and commission-plus-draw Best for individuals high on risk taking, reward-seeking, and extraversion. Disadvantages: contaminated( some things are beyond the employees control), deficient( make the sale regardless of the long term costs)

optional benefits: long term disability insurance

insurance that pays a percentage of a disabled employee's salary after an initial period and potentially for the rest of the employee's life

optional benefits: short term disability insurance

insurance that pays a percentage of a disabled employee's salary as benefits to the employee for six months or less

different levels of organizational participation

international organization: organization that sets up one or a few facilities in one or a few foreign countries multinational country: an organization that builds facilities in a number of different countries in an effort to minimize production and distribution costs global organization: an organization that chooses to locate a facility based on the ability to effectively, efficiently, and flexibly produce a product or service, using cultural differences ads an advantage

transnational HRM system:

makes decisions from a global perspective, includes managers from many countries, and is based on ideas contributed by people representing a variety of cultures decisions that are the outcome of a transnational HRM system balance uniformity(for fairness) with flexibility(to account for cultural and legal differences)

group level incentive: gainsharing

measures increases in productivity or effectiveness and distributes part of the gain back to employees. Frees employees to determine how to improve their own and group's performance. Distributes payout frequently. Conditions for success include: management commitment, commitment to continuous improvement and change, high level or cooperation and information sharing, employment security, requirements clearly communicated with employee input

training methods: classroom instruction

most widely used training method, class room instruction typically involves a trainer lecturing a group of trainees( augmented by slides, discussion, Q&A, case studies, etc.) distance learning involves trainees at different locations using computers to view lectures, ask questions, and exchange ideas/documents. While in most cases distance learning is less costly, may reducer interaction between trainer and audience

individual inventive: performance bonuses

not built into base pay so employees must re-earn it every year. Usually given in addition to or in place of merit "pay" incentives. Also allows organization to e flexible, year to year, in terms of what they want to reward. "best" timing and most motivating is before a holiday or vacation. Can award large rewards, at one time, and smaller/no rewards in lean years

issues with development: dysfunctional managers

often cause by promoting high performing specializes who do not posses managerial skills. Organizations should try to provide managerial training to these individuals and coaching by their manager.

protean career

one that frequently changes based on changes in the person's interests, abilities, and values in the work environment. Most poeple will change jobs about 7 times during their life and change careers 3/4 times. Spiral career paths are more common now than linear. Career advancement depends on continuing to learn and develop. Responsibility for career development is shifting more and more to employees.

first step to needs assessment

organization analysis: a process for determining the appropriateness of training by evaluating the characteristics of the organization. takes into account: the organization's strategy, resources available for training( cost, time, and expertise required for training, and management's support for training activities

optional benefits

organization, in an effort to attract and retain skilled employees, offer benefits that are not required by law. Further, these benefits are often extended to the employees' dependents domestic partner benefits: -extends family benefits to same sex couples -sick leave, relocation expenses, and permission to attend company functions are most commonly provided -health insurance is less commonly offered( but seldom used even by those who are eligible)

labor market

organizations must compete to obtain human resources in labor markets. Competing in labor markets establishes the minimum an organization must pay to hire an employee for a particular job

different types of employees in an international workforce

parent country: employee who was born and works in the country in which an organization's headquarters are located host country: employee who is a citizen of a country(other than parent country) in which an organization operates a facility third country: an employee who is a citizen of a country that is neither the parent country nor the host country of the employer

health care

patient protection and affordable care act(2010): outlines requirements for insurance companies, incentives/penalties for employers, and public funding of health care. Provisions are being phased in over a 5 year period: -2010--small businesses are given tax credits for offering health insurance -they must cover dependent children with pre-existing conditions and dependents through age 26 and must not impose lifetime limits -2014 all organizations with over 200 employees must offer health insurance; organizations with 50 or more employees will face a penalty for not providing health insurance -implementation of the law is still developing

hourly wage

pay rate for each hour worked

retirement plan: defined benefit plan

pension plan that guarantees a specified level of retirement income--the employer set a pension fund to invest the contributions

second step of needs assessment

person analysis: a process of determining individual's needs and readiness for training. the person analysis is critical when training is considered in response to a performance problem. Before developing a training program, organizations must be sure that performance problems results from a deficiency in knowledge or skill. If it is decided that problem was the result of a malleable deficiency, organizations must then decide which individuals need training and for what

optional benefits: long term insurance

provide benefits toward long term care and related medical expenses

taxation

qualified plans, which require vesting and nondiscrimination rules, allow employees to take multiple tax advantages

piecework wage

rate of pay for each unit produced

salary

rate of pay for each week, month, or year worked

4 ways to evaluate training effectiveness

reactions: indicates areas of hostility to the training or trainers, almost no relationship between liking training and learning learning: indicates whether the information was understood by the trainees, not strongly related to use of material on the job behaviors: indicates changes in behavior on the job setting, cannot give accurate diagnostic information for how to improve training results: show change to organizational bottom line results, may be too far upstream to reveal the impact of successful training it is best to use all four in some combination

delayering

reducing the number of levels in the organization's job structure. More assignments are combined into a single layer called broad bands. Gives managers more flexibility in making assignments awarding pay increases. Emphasis on acquiring experience rather than promotions

retirement plan:contributory plan

retirement plan funded by contributions from the employer and the employee

retirement plan: noncontributory plan

retirement plan funded entirely by contribution from the employer

retirement plan: cash balance plan

retirement plan in which the employer sets up an individual account for each employee and contributes a percentage of the employee's salary the account earns interest at a predefined rate. This arrangement helps employers plan their contributions and helps employees predict their retirement benefits. If employees change jobs, then they generally can toll over the balance into an individual retirement account(IRA)

retirement plan: defined contribution

retirement plan in which the employer sets up an individual account for each employee and specifies the size of the investment into that account( money purchase plans, profit-sharing and employee stock ownership plans, section 401(k) plans) these plans free employers from the risks that investments will not perform as well as expected the responsibility for wise investing is shifted to each employee

pay grades

set of jobs having similar worth or content, grouped together to establish rates of pay. A drawback of pay grades is that grouping jobs will result in rates of pay for individual jobs that do not precisely match the levels specified by the market and other organization's job structure

required benefits: workers compensation

state programs that provide benefits to works who suffer work-related injuries or illnesses or to their survivors. They operate undre a principle of no fault liability: an employee does not need to show that the employer was grossly negligent in order to receive compensation, the employer is protected from lawsuits

equity theory

states that employees care about their pay relative to what others are earning and that those feelings are bared on what employees perceived. If employees see their pay as equitable, then their attitudes and behaviors remain unchanged( adequate compensation). If employeees see their themselves as receiving an advantage, then they usually rethink the situation to see it merely as equitable( over compensated). If employees conclude that tehy are under-rewarded, then they are likely to make up the difference by stealing, reducing effort, or withdrawal( under compensated)

other benefits

subsidized cafeterias moving and relocation expenses employee discounts on products tuition reimbursement on site dry cleaning services dues for professional organization off sit company recreation area pet services

third step for needs assessment

task analysis: the process of identifying and analyzing tasks that should be focus of the training program. To carry out the tasks analysis, the conditions in which tasks performed are analyzed: -The equipment and environment of job -time constraints -safety considerations performance standards the person or committee conducting the needs assessment must decide what levels of importance, frequency, and difficulty signal a need for training

optional benefits: life insurance

term life insurance--if the employee dies during the term of the policy, then the employee's beneficiaries receive a death benefit payment

readability

the difficulty level of written materials

Employee Retirement Income Security Act(ERISA) of 1974

the employer must contribute enough for he plan to cover all benefits to be be paid out of retirees; established the pension benefit guarantee corporation(PBGC) when is a federal agency that insures retirement benefits and guarantees retirees a basic benefit if the employer experiences financial difficulties

minimum wage

the lowest amount that employers must pay for federal or state law $7.25 hour, $2.13 if you are a server. Established by the Fair Labor Standards Act(FLSA)

pay structure

the pay policy resulting from job structure and pay level decisions. Pay structure reflects decisions about the relative value of each job( job structure) and how much to pay(pay level). Establishing pay structure simplifies the process of making decisions about individual workers' pay by grouping employees together with similar jobs

needs assessment

the process of evaluation the organization, individual employees, and employees' tasks to determine what kinds of training, if any are necessary used to specify a number of key features for the implementations(input) and evaluation(outcomes) of training programs the presence and comprehensiveness of a needs assessment is related to the overall effectiveness of training( provides the mechanism whereby the question central to successful training programs can be answered) answers 3 questions: 1. organization--what is the context in which training will occur? 2. person--who needs training? 3. tasks--what subjects should the training cover

issues with development: succession planning

the process of identifying and tracking high potential employees who will be able to fill top management positions when they become vacant. It forces senior management to regularly and thoughtfully review the company's leadership talent 1. identify positions to plan for 2. identify employees to include 3. define job requirements 4.measure employee potential 5. review and plan to meet development needs 6.link succession planning with other HR systems 7.provide feedback to employees

Compa-ratio(CR)

the ratio of average pay to the midpoint of the pay range. If CR is 1, the average pay equals the midpoint. if CR is greater than 1, the average pay is above the midpoint. if CR is less than 1, the average pay is below the midpoint

comparable worth

this policy uses job evaluation to establish the worth of an organization's jobs in terms of such criteria as their difficulty and their importance to the organization

world trade organization

to supervise and liberalize international trade

optional benefits: health insurance

traditional coverage(blue cross/shield): patients choose their doctors and facilities; advantage is maximum choice and no third party to pay for administration purposes health maintenance organization(HMOs): must use doctors with the HMOs overage; advantage is the emphasis on prevention and early treatment preferred provider organization(PPOs): coverage is similar to HMO for preferred providers, with large copayments and deductibles for moving outside the plan; advantage is the direct contractual relationship with employers, health care providers, and employees dental insurance is the same but cheaper flexible spending account: employee controlled pretax earnings set aside to pay for certain eligible expenses such as health case expenses during the same time

diversity training programs

training designed to change employee attitudes about diversity and/or develop skills needed to work with a diverse workforce objective is to increase participant's awareness of cultural and ethnic differences, as well as differences in personal characteristics and physical characteristics( such as disabilities)

orientation training program

training designed to prepare employees to perform their jobs effectively, learn about their organization, and establish work relationships. Organizations provide for orientation because, no matter how realistic the information provided during employment interviews and site visits, people feel shock and surprise when they start a new job. The objectives of orientation programs include making new employees familiear with the organization's rules, policies, and procedures

training methods: action learning

training in which teams get an actual problem, work on solving it and commit to an action plan, and are accountable for carrying it out. ideally, the project is one for which the efforts and results will be visible not only to participants but also to others in the organization

training methods: simulations

training method that represents real life situation with trainees making decisions resulting in outcomes that mirror what would happen on the job. equipment simulators or mock up job tasks are more effective in producing positive work behaviors on the job rather than training techniques that only include lecture and discussion ex. virtual reality, avatars, strategic business simulations, case studies etc

north atlantic free trade agreement

trilateral trade block, elimination of tariffs

prevailing wage

two federal laws govern pay policies of federal contractors: Davis-Bacon Act of 1931: covers construction contractors that receive more than $2,000 in federal money walsh-healy contracts act of 1936: covers all government contractors receiving $10,000 or more in federal money under these laws, federal contractors must pay their employees at rates at least equal to the prevailing wages in the area. The calculation of prevailing rates must be based on 30% of the local labor force. Typically the rates are based on relevant union contracts

individual incentive: piecework rate

wage based on the amount workers produce. Best used for work that is stable repetitive, worker paced, and easily measured. Fits best with low interdependence between jobs. Not folded into base pay. Rarely used because most jobs have no physical output, individuals focus on the incentive, does not fit the team approach, does not reward obtaining multiple skills, rewards output at the expense of quality or service.