Q&A Hero

Q: Mandatory employment arbitration agreements: A. keep employees from suing about workplace disputes. B. do not apply to claims of discrimination. C. are disfavored by the U.S. Supreme Court. D. are supported by the EEOC.

Q: The Civil Rights Act of 1991: A. provides Title VII coverage only to U.S. citizens working in the U.S. B. curbed remedies for people harmed by discrimination thereby prohibiting claimants from suing for damages. C. provides Title VII coverage to persons of all nationalities working in the U.S. D. established that an employment decision based partly on discriminatory motives and partly on legitimate reasons is still illegal discrimination.

Q: Under the ADEA and its amendments: A. employers of 10 or more people are prohibited from discriminating against their employees on the basis of age. B. it is permissible for employees to take early retirement on the grounds of inability to do work. C. it is legal for employees less than 70 years of age to retire under a mandatory pension plan. D. a BFOQ exemption is not provided.

Q: Which of the following statements is true of the ADA? A. The ADA protects a qualified individual with a disability from discrimination on the basis of that disability. B. Most of the provisions of the ADA are very different to those of the Rehabilitation Act. C. The ADA makes clear that the ADAA should be interpreted in favor of broad coverage. D. "Reasonable accommodation" under the ADA includes providing quality treatment for drug and alcohol dependency.

Q: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: A. permits mandatory binding arbitration as a condition of employment. B. can initiate action under Title VII on its own. C. is not supportive of alternative dispute resolution. D. is based on the laissez-faire values of the 19th century.

Q: The major piece of legislation outlawing discrimination in employment prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin is the: A. FLSA. B. ERISA. C. Age Discrimination in Employment Act. D. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Q: Which of the following is a true statement about the Civil Rights Act of 1964? A. The act applies to employers engaged in an industry affecting interstate commerce that have at least 10 employees. B. Affirmative action is made illegal by the Act because it involves reverse discrimination. C. Discrimination based on religion is permitted where religion is a BFOQ. D. Discrimination based on race is permitted where race is a BFOQ.

Q: Quid pro quo harassment involves: A. insulting an employee by calling names or playing jokes to degrade someone that can take place at even those places where you least expect them to take place. B. demeaning, offensive, and inappropriate conduct against an employee based on their racial identification. C. some express or implied connection between the employee's submission to sexually oriented behavior and job benefits. D. an employee being subjected to demeaning and inappropriate conduct based on their religious practices or a disability.

Q: Which of the following statements about the EEOC is true? A. It protects workers from retaliation if they refuse to do work that they reasonably believe might cause serious injury. B. It prohibits employers from using lie detector tests on employees unless the employer is engaged in an investigation of economic losses due to theft. C. It objects to mandatory binding arbitration as a condition of employment because it denies employees the right to bring independent discrimination claims. D. It provides skilled people to help unions and employers in their bargaining so as to prevent strikes.

Q: A contract between an employer and the union, which requires the employer to refrain from dealing in the products of another employer who is considered to be unfair to the union, is called a: A. collective bargaining agreement. B. competitive-hit agreement. C. hot-cargo agreement. D. union shop agreement.

Q: The Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act: A. requires employers to disclose the wages of their employees. B. requires a union to have a constitution and bylaws. C. requires employers to disclose their meeting minutes taken in any union negotiation. D. requires that manufacturing workers be informed of hazardous chemicals in the workplace.

Q: According to the LMRA, which of the following is an example of unfair labor practices by the employer? A. Setting excessive initiation fees under a union shop agreement. B. Coercing an employee to join a union. C. Coercing an employee in the selection of representatives for collective bargaining. D. Establishing or dominating a labor union.

Q: Which of the following statements about the Equal Pay Act is true? A. The Equal Pay Act was passed as an amendment to the ERISA, prohibiting sex discrimination in pay. B. It requires that both sexes have equal pay for jobs that require equal responsibility and which are performed under similar working conditions. C. Equal rates of pay are permitted under seniority and merit systems as well as other incentive systems. D. It is designed to prevent problems such as underfunding and careless management of funds.

Q: The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed as an amendment to the: A. Employment Retirement Income Security Act. B. Labor-Management Relations Act. C. Fair Labor Standards Act. D. National Labor Relations Act.

Q: In terms of labor law, "garnishment": A. processes unfair practice charges brought against unions and employers. B. occurs when the employer discontinues operations during a labor dispute. C. is a court order that makes money or property held by a debtor subject to the claim of a creditor. D. refers to plans for increasing the proportion of minorities or women in an employer's workforce.

Q: The Employment Retirement Income Security Act of 1974: A. primarily requires employers to establish pension plans. B. primarily regulates the management and vesting of established plans. C. covers only union-sponsored pension plans but not employer-sponsored pension plans. D. processes unfair practice charges brought against unions and employers.

Q: This act established the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to provide insurance for plans whose total assets were insufficient to pay promised benefits. A. ADA B. FLSA C. ERISA D. EPPA

Q: A "yellow-dog contract": A. required an employee to remain a member of the union at all times in order to remain employed. B. was widely used by employers to encourage the formation of unions. C. required a worker taking a job to promise not to join a union. D. specified that a worker's employment will not be affected by his union membership.

Q: One of the major functions of NLRB is to conduct elections for employees. Identify the correct statement regarding the election process. A. An election is held after a petition is filed with the NLRB only by the employer. B. More than one union must always be present on the ballot for the election to take place. C. The group of employees allowed to vote by the board is called the bargaining unit. D. The exclusive bargaining representative for the unit represents only the employees of the unit who voted for them.

Q: The Family and Medical Leave Act: A. covers birth but not adoption of a child. B. covers employees the moment they begin work. C. requires employers with 50 or more employees to give covered employees up to 12 paid workweeks of leave per year to deal with the care of themselves. D. provides job security to employees with serious health conditions.

Q: The FLSA requires: A. covered employers to pay their professional staff time and a half for hours worked in excess of 45 in one week. B. covered employers to pay their employees a minimum hourly wage. C. covered employers to pay their employees double time. D. covered employers to pay employees of both sexes equally for jobs that require equal skill, effort, and responsibility.

Q: Generally, employers covered under the FLSA are: A. those engaged in interstate commerce. B. those whose annual gross sales exceed $1 million. C. those whose business affects intrastate commerce. D. those whose annual gross sales exceed $10 million.

Q: The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: A. requires employers to establish pension plans or to meet specific benefit levels. B. requires covered employers to pay their employees time and a half for hours worked in excess of 40 in one week. C. is designed to provide reasonable leave periods for family-related health issues. D. permits its inspectors to enter the workplace at any reasonable time and without advance notice.

Q: The Congress amended the ADA with the passage of the Americans with Disability Amendments Act (ADAA) to overturn decisions of the Supreme Court that severely limited the coverage of the ADA.

Q: Under the GINA, genetic information includes family medical history.

Q: Private employees cannot challenge drug testing under tort theories such as invasion of privacy or infliction of emotional distress.

Q: Under workers' compensation: A. the employer is not liable for injuries that occur as the result of negligence by another worker. B. the employer is liable for injuries occurring within the scope of employment without regard to fault. C. the injuries occurring on the way to and from the job are within the course of employment, for which damages may be recovered. D. general damages for pain and suffering, and punitive damages for employer negligence, are also available.

Q: In terms of workers' compensation: A. "work-related injuries" implies injuries arising out of employment or those which are related to the type of employment involved. B. employers are required to report on-the-job fatalities and injuries that require hospitalization within 72 hours. C. the secretary of labor authority is delegated to establish detailed health and safety standards that must be complied with by employers. D. injuries occurring on the way to and from the job are considered to be within the course of employment.

Q: OSHA imposes on employers a general duty to: A. prevent workplace hazards that may cause death or serious injury. B. provide reasonable leave periods for family-related health issues. C. develop and enforce their own health and safety programs. D. make the workplace more accommodating to women and families.

Q: Union membership and union power have dramatically increased over the past decade.

Q: The Lilly Ledbetter Act said that each illegal pay differential payment renewed a cause of action until the discrimination was reasonably discovered.

Q: Affirmative action has not been upheld by courts.

Q: The EEOC has strongly supported mandatory binding arbitration as a condition of employment.

Q: The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) is enforced by the EEOC.

Q: The Employment Retirement Income Security Act requires employers to establish pension plans or to meet specific benefit levels.

Q: Under the FLSA, an employer may be liable for pay when an employee works voluntarily and for short rest periods when the employee cannot use his time effectively.

Q: States are preempted by the federal government from governing such matters as how soon wages must be paid to the employee and the garnishment of wages.

Q: ERISA does not cover union-sponsored pension plans.

Q: The first federal safety statute that applied to all types of businesses was the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

Q: Ralph and Ann engaged Sue, a realtor, to sell their variety store. Sue represented to buyer Mike that "this was a typical general store," selling gas, oil, hardware, beer, and groceries. She reported that the store had an annual gross income of over $1 million. Sue failed to inform Mike that one-third of the store's profit was attributable to an accompanying lawn and garden equipment distributorship that Ralph and Ann were not including in the sale. When Mike visited the business, Sue directed him away from the garage area where the lawn and garden equipment was stored. Throughout all of these negotiations, Ralph and Ann were unaware of Sue's misrepresentations. After purchasing the store, Mike learned of the importance of the equipment sales from Ralph and Ann. Are Ralph and Ann liable for Sue's misrepresentation? If yes, what can they do to avoid liability?

Q: Wheelz retained Doug, an attorney, to repossess several utility trailers, giving him the authority to take whatever steps were necessary to recover the trailers. Doug hired Randy RepoMan to locate the equipment. After orally reporting to Doug that he had found the trailers in Iowa, Doug instructed RepoMan to have them towed to Nebraska. RepoMan hired Ted's Towing to carry out the request. Ted's stored the trailers on its lot in Omaha, Nebraska, and RepoMan notified Doug of this fact. When Ted's was not paid, it sued Wheelz for its towing and storage services, arguing that RepoMan was a subagent capable of binding Wheelz to the towing and storage contract. Discuss.

Q: Briefly describe the doctrine of respondeat superior.

Q: All employees are covered by workers' compensation.

Q: Employees in certain types of employment, such as farming, charitable organizations, and household service are covered by workers' compensation.

Q: After Bart and Veronica were involved in an automobile accident, Bart retained Rhonda as an attorney to negotiate an out-of-court settlement. After a lengthy discussion with Veronica's insurance company, Rhonda settled the case for $5,000. However, Bart personally rejected the $5,000 offer. Veronica filed suit to enforce the settlement, claiming that Rhonda was authorized to accept the settlement on behalf of Bart. Discuss Rhonda's express, implied and apparent authority.

Q: Explain the concept of apparent authority.

Q: A person who commits a crime under instructions from her principal: A. is relieved from liability if committed within the scope of employment. B. is guilty of the crime because the agent's duty to society overrides the duty to follow the direction of the principal. C. is guilty of the crime because newly revised criminal codes will almost always impose liability on the third party. D. is relieved from liability if the crime is committed to accomplish the objectives of the agency.

Q: A principal's liability under respondeat superior often is called: A. direct liability. B. vicarious liability. C. contributory liability. D. enterprise liability.

Q: When the principal is negligent in the hiring and/or supervision of the agent, the principal may be liable under: A. direct liability. B. apparent agency. C. joint liability. D. vicarious liability.

Q: An agent will be relieved from liability for representations in excess of the agent's authority if: A. the agency is partially disclosed. B. the third party knows that the agent is acting in excess of his authority. C. the entity has a legal existence. D. the act was undertaken with a good intent.

Q: Which of the following statements is true for a nonexistent or incompetent principal? A. If the third person is unaware of the lack of capacity of the principal, the agent is protected. B. A minor is considered a nonexistent principal. C. The law imposes an apparent warranty by the agent that the principal has the capacity to be bound. D. A person judged insane is not considered to be nonexistent.

Q: A large and well-known corporation wants to acquire a plot of ground for a new plant. To avoid the extra cost, purchases the land through several agents, each purporting to be buying personally. In such cases, the corporation is a(n) ______. A. undisclosed principal B. disclosed principal C. partially disclosed principal D. subagent

Q: Jacobsen contracted with Orr to purchase some of Orr's property. Jacobsen informed Orr that he (Jacobsen) was purchasing the property on behalf of another person, but Jacobsen did not reveal to Orr the name of the person for whom Jacobsen was making the purchase. The agency here is: A. disclosed. B. undisclosed. C. partially disclosed. D. illegal.

Q: Which of the following statements is true for the principle of respondeat superior? A. When an agent commits a tort or crime while working for the principal, the agent is always personally liable for the consequences of his actions. B. A principal's liability under respondeat superior often is called direct liability. C. If the agent was acting within the scope of the agency when the tort occurred, he is liable for his own actions. D. This theory of liability makes the principal responsible without regard to whether the principal was actually at fault.

Q: A person who is induced to enter a contract by the misrepresentation of an agent has the same remedies as if he had contracted with any person who made a _____. A. misrepresentation B. duress C. undue influence D. fraud

Q: Which of the following statements is true for a principal's liability for notice and payments to the agent? A. The agent is not bound to inform the principal of knowledge the agent gains in the course of his or her responsibilities. B. Payment to the agent of a debt owed to the principal discharges the debt if the agent has authority to receive such payments. C. An agent who makes over-the-counter sales is viewed as having express authority to collect for the goods. D. The principal is bound by the information that is passed on by the agent if it relates to the scope of the agent's responsibilities and authority.

Q: An agent can limit the liability for the acts of a subagent to the principal by using: A. express authority B. ministerial actions C. implied authority D. exculpatory clause

Q: Jane appointed Tom as her agent and gave him express authority to retain subagents to do some or all of Tom's work. Tom retained Mike as a subagent. Based on these facts, which of the following statements is true? A. Only Jane is bound to a third party by Mike's actions. B. Neither Jane nor Tom is bound to a third party by Mike's actions as subagent. C. Between Jane and Tom, it is Tom who is ultimately liable for Mike's actions as subagent. D. Mike is solely bound to third parties for his actions as subagent.

Q: Liability is imposed on an agent who has exceeded his authority on the basis of an: A. implied warranty of authority. B. actual warranty of authority. C. inherent warranty of authority. D. apparent warranty of authority.

Q: A principal's intent to ratify a contract: A. needs to be expressed explicitly. B. may not be implied by his acts or failure to act. C. may be inferred by a court from the fact that the principal accepted the benefits of an unauthorized contract. D. may be inferred from the principal's repudiation of an unauthorized contract after becoming aware of it.

Q: Which of the following is true for ratification? A. It releases the principal from liability to the third person. B. It gives the agent the same right to compensation that he would have had if there had been prior authorization. C. It requires that the principal to have full understanding of the legal significance of all material facts. D. It is inferred by a court from the fact that the agent accepted the benefits of an unauthorized contract.

Q: The principal is bound by representations: A. that are reasonably necessary for the agent to make in order to accomplish the purpose of the agency since they would be apparently authorized. B. that the agent is expressly authorized to make. C. even if the third person knows that the agent has exceeded his actual authority. D. that are not customary in the kind of business being transacted by the agent.

Q: For ratification to be effective: A. the principal cannot be disclosed to the third person. B. the agent or purported agent must have acted on behalf of the principal. C. the principal must have had capacity to do the act only at the time of ratification. D. it is necessary that the principal fully understand the legal significance of all material facts.

Q: Which of the following statements is true about apparent authority? A. Only a general agent can have apparent authority. B. Only a special agent can have apparent authority. C. If the agent justifiably believed he had authority, his authority would be apparent. D. If a third party justifiably believed the agent had authority, the agent's authority would be apparent.

Q: Jen is a buyer for Autumn's Iowa health food store. While Jen is in California buying tofu, she finds a solar car for sale for just $3,000. Jen contracts to buy the car for Autumn, who has been looking for a solar car for the past three years. Autumn instructs the seller of the car to ship it. Under these circumstances: A. Autumn has ratified the contract. B. Autumn is not liable on the contract. C. Jen is liable on the contract. D. Jen has ratified the contract.

Q: Ratification releases: A. the principal from liability. B. the agent from liability. C. the third party from liability for acts of the principal. D. the principal and the third party from liability.

Q: Ratification may be inferred by a court: A. from the fact that the principal accepted the benefits of an unauthorized contract. B. from the agent's failure to repudiate an unauthorized contract after becoming aware of it. C. from the third party's extent of knowledge about the contract. D. from the principal's failure to give express authority to the agent.

Q: Where an agent has taken an unauthorized action: A. the principal may not ratify the action even if it would be beneficial to the principal to do so. B. the principal is free to ratify the beneficial part of the unauthorized action and deny any burdensome part of it. C. any ratification by the principal must be for the entire action, not merely the beneficial part. D. the principal may ratify the action only if the principal is a corporation.

Q: General agents: A. have a limited range of implied authority than special agents. B. are authorized by the principal to do a specific act. C. are agents who do not possess the authority to contract on behalf of its principal. D. act for the principal in a number of transactions over a period of time.

Q: Apparent authority may exist: A. only if actual authority has been conferred. B. if a principal has unintentionally permitted third persons to believe a person is her agent. C. if the principal specifically describes the extent of the agent's powers in writing or orally and makes him/her a special agent. D. when the conduct of the principal causes a third person reasonably to believe that another has the authority to act for the principal.

Q: The test of an agent's implied authority is: A. the justifiable belief of the agent. B. the specific language the principal used in granting the authority. C. to determine whether the authority is also apparent. D. the technical label given to an agent.

Q: An agent possesses implied authority when: A. the principal has ratified past actions, leading third persons to believe authority exists. B. the principal gives greater authority to special agents than general agents. C. the agent is required to safeguard the property interests of the principal due to an emergency. D. the agent's powers are specifically described by the principal.

Q: When Nancy's aunt left for her annual Christmas vacation, she left Nancy in charge of her coffee shop. During this time, there was a devastating snow storm which damaged the roof of the caf. Under such circumstances, Nancy can make necessary repairs if she cannot reach her aunt for further instructions because: A. she has apparent authority. B. she has power of attorney. C. she has express authority. D. she has inherent agency power.

Q: When an agent commits a tort or crime while working for the principal, the agent is personally liable for the consequences of his actions, unless he is acting at the direction of the principal.

Q: An agent who commits a criminal act under instruction from her principal is guilty of that crime.

Q: The test of an agent's express authority is: A. the justifiable belief of the agent. B. the specific language the principal used in granting the authority. C. the technical label given to an agent. D. the surrounding circumstances such as the words and conduct of the parties.

Q: Express authority: A. is created when the principal specifically describes the extent of the agent's powers. B. arises from the principal's failure to inform third persons that the relationship is not what it appears to be. C. occurs with respect to an act of an agent who has exceeded the authority given. D. is created by the conduct of the principal that causes a third person reasonably to believe that another has the authority to act for the principal.

Q: An attorney-in-fact: A. is the label given to an agent whose authority is in writing. B. is the label given to an agent whose authority is implied. C. is the label given to an agent whose authority is apparent. D. is the label given to an agent who has the authority to ratify.

Q: When the principal is undisclosed, the third party who deals with the agent believes the agent is acting personally and accordingly expects the agent to be a party to the contract.

Q: When the agent colludes with a third party to withhold knowledge or money from the principal, the principal will be liable.