Human Resources Chapter 9

Which of the following is a disadvantage of competency-based pay?

Rewards employees for acquiring skills even if the employee is not using the skills on the job.

Which of the following is NOT an optional benefits program?

Workers' compensation

The largest part of the total rewards dollar is allocated to:

base pay

When an organization uses pay surveys to compare its own pay practices against those of successful competitors, the organization is engaging in:

benchmarking

The second largest portion of the "total rewards dollar" is allocated to:

benefits

Reducing the number of levels in the organization's job structure is called

broadbanding

The organization's job structure and pay levels:

are policies of the organization.

significant part of executive compensation comes in the form of:

company stock.

CPP/QPP is a mandatory __________ plan that provides retirement pensions, disability benefits, and survivor benefits.

contributory

When all costs of a benefits plan are funded by employees, employers, and the plan's own investments we call this plan a(n):

contributory plan.

Which of the following is an option employers have for communicating information about benefits?

All of the choices are correct.

Job evaluation is an administrative procedure for measuring the relative ________ worth of the organization's jobs

internal

A gradual transition into full retirement by reducing hours or job responsibility is called:

phased retirement

Companies increasingly recognize that increases in employees' pay needs to be linked to corresponding increases in:

productivity

All of the following are types of pay for individual performance, EXCEPT:

profit sharing.

Which of the following is a force that has made benefits and services a significant part of compensation packages?

All of the choices are correct.

Employees and job applicants often lack a clear sense of the _________ value of total rewards that an organization offers.

market

Broadbanding i.e. reducing the number of levels in the organization's job structure, is likely to increase:

organizational flexibility.

What types of measures may be included in a balanced scorecard approach for executives?

All of the choices are correct.

Which of the following would NOT be considered an "employee benefit"?

Actually, all of the choices are types of benefits that may be offered by an employer.

All of an organization's decisions about compensation should comply with which of the following types of legislation?

All of the choices are correct

Which of the following statements about competency-based pay is TRUE?

All of the statements are true.

Which of the following approaches is frequently used in designing executive pay?

Balanced Scorecard

What performance management approach is useful in designing executive pay?

Balanced scorecard

What is an example of a short-term executive incentive?

Bonuses based on the year's profits

What is an example of a long-term executive incentive?

Both "a" and "b".

When employees are paid according to their level of skill or knowledge and what they are capable of doing, this describes what type of pay system?

Competency-based pay system

A highly mobile workforce is likely to benefit from what type of retirement plan?

Defined contribution plan

What do we call compensation in forms other than cash?

Employee benefits

Benefits packages are less complex than pay structures, so benefits are easier for employees to understand and appreciate.

False

Employees tend to over-estimate the cost and value of their benefits.

False

Employees usually prefer receiving an increase in pay rather than an increase in benefits because benefits are taxed at a higher rate.

False

Gen-Y employees tend to place the most value on health benefits, pensions, stability, and formal recognition within total rewards.

False

Generational differences do not have any apparent impact on the type of rewards that employers should offer.

False

Having higher labour costs than your competitors is always something that is considered undesirable

False

Managers play a very small or insignificant role in communication of total rewards.

False

Stock options are the most common form of employee ownership.

False

The HR department has full responsibility for communicating total rewards to employees.

False

What do we call a benefits plan that offers employees a set of alternatives from which they can choose the types and amounts of benefits they want?

Flexible benefits plan

Which of the following benefits is expected to be the most popular over the next few years?

Flexible work hours

What type of pay for team performance is associated with a focus on efficiency?

Gainsharing

Which of the following is NOT a form of pay for individual performance?

Gainsharing

Which of the following statements about gainsharing is FALSE?

Gainsharing is most likely to succeed when managers discourage employee input.

What do we call an alternative to traditional employer-provided insurance in which an employer puts aside a specific amount of money per employee to cover health-related costs?

Health spending account

What do we call a system of linking pay increases to ratings on performance appraisals?

Merit pay

What do we call 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 or band?

Pay range

What do we call the pay policy resulting form job structure and pay-level decisions?

Pay structure

Which of the following is a long-term executive incentive?

Stock options

____________ is(are) playing an increasing role in providing employees with tools and information related to both communication and administration of employee compensation and rewards.

Technology

A stock ownership plan actually makes employees part owners of the organizations.

True

According to Benefits Canada, a good benefits package serves as a key indication of whether a company would be a good place to work.

True

An increasing number of employers are using technology to provide employees with tools and information related to both communication and administration of employee compensation and rewards.

True

Benefits contribute to attracting, retaining, and motivating employees.

True

Benefits packages tend to be more complex than pay structures, so benefits are harder for employees to understand and appreciate.

True

Communications is often a weak link in an organization's total rewards approach.

True

Competency-based pay systems may increase an organization's costs because employees are paid for acquiring skills even if they do not have an opportunity to use them on the job.

True

The traditional and most widely used approach to developing a pay structure focuses on setting pay:

for jobs or groups of jobs.

Total ___________ is a comprehensive approach to compensating and rewarding employees.

rewards

Rights to buy a certain number of share of stock at a specified price refers to the use of:

stock options.

Competency-based pay systems set pay according to:

the employee's level of skill or knowledge and what he or she is capable of doing.

All types of financial rewards and tangible benefits and services employees receive as part of their employment is called

total compensation

Taken together, direct and indirect compensation including base pay, incentives, and benefits are referred to as:

total compensation

Organizations that redefine their approaches to employee compensation and benefits by also taking into account the "overall work experience provided to employees" are said to have adopted a(n) approach called:

total rewards

Linking pay to stock price can reward _________ behaviour.

unethical