Q&A Hero

Q: (p. 357) Which of the following is true of pay ranges? A. Pay ranges are most common for blue-collar jobs and those covered by union contracts. B. Pay ranges are often widest for employees who are at lower levels in terms of their job evaluation points. C. Pay ranges generally are designed so that they do not overlap. D. The market rate or the pay policy line generally serves as the midpoint of a range for the job. E. The less overlap, the more flexibility in transferring employees among jobs.

Q: Failure to follow organizational policy or procedure is one of the reasons a company may choose to terminate an employee.

Q: (p. 356) Pay ranges are most common for _____. A. white-collar jobs B. piece-rate jobs C. jobs that are covered by union contracts D. automotive workers E. construction workers

Q: An employee handbook can be a supplement to employee orientation.

Q: (p. 356) _____ is a set of possible pay rates defined by a minimum, maximum, and midpoint of pay for employees holding a particular job. A. Pay grade B. Pay range C. Pay differential D. Compa-ratio E. Compensation differential

Q: An employer can terminate an employee for engaging in activities that are deemed to be beneficial to the public welfare.

Q: (p. 356) _____ are sets of jobs having similar worth or content, grouped together to establish rates of pay. A. Pay scales B. Pay ranges C. Pay differentials D. Pay levels E. Pay grades

Q: The decision to retire can be influenced by both economic conditions and personal characteristics.

Q: (p. 355) A drawback of pay rates is that they: A. increase the administrative burden of managing the compensation system. B. result in decreased promotional opportunities for employees. C. result in some jobs being underpaid and others being overpaid. D. increase the costs of surveying the market. E. grouping jobs will result in rates of pay for individual jobs that precisely match the levels specified by the market.

Q: Organizations utilizing hiring freeze and early retirement packages could be left with fewer vacancies in key areas in addition to fewer workers in functions and jobs considered redundant.

Q: (p. 355) A pay policy line: A. shows the mathematical relationship between the minimum pay and the maximum pay in an organization. B. can be generated using a statistical procedure called regression analysis. C. requires market-pay-rate data on all jobs in the organization. D. can be used to estimate the minimum pay level for a given job evaluation. E. reflects the pay structure in the market, which always matches rates in the organization.

Q: One alternative to layoffs is work-sharing programs, in which employees voluntarily reduce the number of hours or days per week they work in order to cut labor costs while maintaining their gainful employment.

Q: Downsizing refers to the tactical, physical action of eliminating redundant skills in the organization.

Q: (p. 355) A graphed line showing the mathematical relationship between job evaluation points and pay rate is termed as a(n): A. job evaluation line. B. pay policy line. C. equity line. D. aggregate income line. E. comprehensive appraisal line.

Q: 10. Written warning copied to a supervisor’s file is not an example of progressive disciplinary program.

Q: (p. 354) A rate of pay for each unit produced is known as: A. yearly pay. B. salary. C. hourly wage. D. piecework rate. E. monthly pay.

Q: One of the guidelines for writing a handbook is that the written policies must conform to local, state, and federal laws.

Q: (p. 353) Which of the following is true of key jobs? A. The organization usually has no survey data for key jobs. B. These are jobs that have highly unstable content. C. These are jobs that are unique among organizations and are rare to obtain. D. Organizations make the process of creating a pay structure more impractical by defining key jobs. E. A job with a higher evaluation score than a particular key job would receive higher pay than that key job.

Q: (p. 353) _____ provide the basis for decisions about relative internal worth. A. Benchmarks B. Pay structures C. Job evaluations D. Pay rates E. Two-tier wage systems

Q: The USERRA establishes the rights of reservists and members of the National Guard to return to work at the end of their service.

Q: (p. 353) An example of a typical compensable factor is: A. social status. B. education. C. longevity. D. gender. E. religion.

Q: Covenant of nondisclosure are contractual arrangements with employees that restrict their acceptance of employment with an industry competitor upon voluntarily leaving the current organization.

Q: (p. 353) Which of the following is true of compensable factors? A. They are generally statistically derived. B. They are the characteristics of jobs that a firm values and chooses to pay for. C. They refer to the factors that are important for setting the two-tier wage system. D. They describe all aspects of the jobs being evaluated. E. They are used to ensure equity among employees.

Q: The defamation exception stipulates that an employer cannot publish an untrue statement about an employee to a third party.

Q: (p. 353) _____ is an administrative procedure for measuring the relative worth of an organization's jobs. A. Job analysis B. Job determination C. Job evaluation D. Job identification E. Job description

Q: The public policy exception, which is a common exception to employment-at-will, covers four categories. Refusing to commit illegal or unethical acts is one of them.

Q: (p. 351) _____ play the most significant role in communication because they interact with their employees each day. A. CEOs B. Directors C. Subordinates D. HR professionals E. Managers

Q: Employment-at-will exists even when there is either a contract (implied or explicit) or a collective bargaining agreement or the employee works for a public agency.

Q: (p. 351) Research on the effects of two-tier wage plans found that: A. lower-paid employees were less satisfied on average than higher-paid employees. B. lower-paid employees were more satisfied on average than higher-paid employees since they made comparisons with lower-paying alternatives for themselves. C. lower-paid employees expected to be promoted into the second tier in a short time span. D. equity theory did not come into play for either group and neither group experienced more or less job satisfaction than the other. E. both existing employees and new employees have a similar pay rate.

Q: Institutionalized socialization is formal and involves providing each member of the organization with the same, sequential, fixed information upon organizational entry.

Q: (p. 349) What is the advantage of two-tier wage systems? A. They help in moving jobs out of the country. B. They help in closing down jobs without any legal hassles. C. They cut labor costs without cutting employees existing salaries. D. They provide more pay to new employees. E. They provide better standards of benchmarking.

Q: Ethical thinking programs emphasize evaluating a situation objectively and evaluating the anticipated and unintended consequences of each possible action.

Q: (p. 349) According to _____, people measure outcomes such as pay in terms of their inputs. A. the pay policy line B. equity theory C. retributive justice theory D. progressive justice theory E. economic theory

Q: Distributive justice results from a perception of fair rules, laws, or policies that allocate valued rewards and punishments.

Q: (p. 349) The National Compensation Survey is an ongoing activity of the: A. Bureau of Labor Statistics. B. Society for Human Resource Management. C. American Management Association. D. AFL-CIO. E. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Q: List the factors to be considered in designing a gain-sharing program.

Q: (p. 349) The procedure in which an organization compares its own practices against those of successful competitors is known as: A. redlining. B. poaching. C. benchmarking. D. profiling. E. delayering.

Q: What are the advantages of Scanlon and Rucker plans over IMPROSHARE?

Q: (p. 349) Pay policies are one of the most important human resource tools for: A. reducing competition in the product market. B. automating routine activities. C. persuading customers that high quality is worth a premium price. D. making decisions about product pricing. E. encouraging desired employee behaviors.

Q: How is gain sharing plans different from profit sharing?

Q: (p. 347) A company that views employees as resources is most likely to pay the employees _____. A. at market rates B. below the market rates C. above the market rates D. only minimum wages E. overtime rates only if they meet certain targets

Q: What are the limitations of the individual and group-based pay plans?

Q: (p. 347) Economic theory holds that the most profitable pay level, all things being equal, would be: A. below the market rate. B. at the market rate. C. above the market rate. D. anywhere within (slightly above or slightly below) the market-rate range. E. the pay level that is lower than that of the lowest paying organization.

Q: What are the three major questions to be answered for designing a PFP system?

Q: (p. 347) The size of the range of pay levels based on labor and product markets depends on: A. the minimum and maximum wages fixed by the government. B. the pay of federal contractors. C. an organizations competitive environment. D. the quality of employees. E. an organization's global reputation.

Q: Discuss the implications for employee stock option plans (ESOPs)

Q: (p. 347) Which of the following is true about the Consumer Price Index (CPI)? A. It helps product markets place an upper limit on the pay an organization will offer. B. Following and studying changes in the CPI helps employers prepare for changes in the demands of the labor market. C. It helps organizations lure top-quality employees. D. The CPI helps control labor market's demand for pay increases. E. It helps organizations to compete with companies in other industries that hire similar employees.

Q: Compare and contrast the three types of individual pay-for-performance plans.

Q: (p. 347) Following and studying changes in the _____ can help employers prepare for changes in the demands of the labor market. A. Living-Wage Index B. Consumer Price Index C. Gross National Product D. Exchange Rate Index E. interest rate

Q: Discuss some of the reasons for past failures of Pay-For-Performance (PFP) systems.

Q: (p. 347) The federal government tracks trends in the nation's cost of living with a measure known as the: A. Consumer Price Index. B. Living-Wage Index. C. Gross National Product Index. D. Exchange Rate Index. E. Employment Cost Index.

Q: (p. 347) Which of the following is true of labor markets? A. Organizations compete to sell labor in the labor market. B. Competition for labor establishes the minimum an organization must pay to hire an employee for a particular job. C. Changes in the CPI do not affect the labor market. D. Cost-of-living considerations have little impact on labor-market rates. E. An organization's competitors in labor markets typically include only companies with different products.

Q: Compare and contrast the Scanlon and IMPROSHARE group incentive plans.

Q: (p. 346) Organizations under pressure to cut labor costs may respond by: A. retaining staff levels. B. hiking pay levels to prevent employee turnover. C. postponing hiring decisions. D. requiring employees to bear less of the cost of benefits such as insurance premiums. E. increasing staff levels.

Q: Compare and contrast the straight piecework and standard hourly rate plan.

Q: (p. 346) Which of the following is true of competition in product-markets? A. The cost of labor does not affect the product market as it is an insignificant part of an organizations costs. B. Product-market considerations are of particular concern to a company when its customers place greater importance on product rather than price. C. Organizations in a product market are competing to serve the same customers. D. Product markets place a lower limit on the pay an organization will offer its employees. E. Organizations must increase the cost of labor every quarter.

Q: Which reward is best suited to the following situation: Production workers making close to minimum wage; the manager wants to introduce a pay for performance plan that will increase production numbers. Work is interdependent. Production output is measured daily. A) Individual bonus based on a percentage of company profits, paid at the end of the year. B) Group incentive; reward is a grocery store gift certificate of $100 awarded weekly. C) Merit increase determined annually and typically 1 to 3% of base pay. D) Individual incentive, reward is two tickets to Disney World awarded at the end of the year. E) Group incentive; reward is ten cent increase to base pay for the next years pay.

Q: A current trend is to develop individual pay for performance plans where the incentive pay is: A) Based on current performance, and not permanently tied to base pay B) Linked to an absolute percentage of a the employees base pay C) A variable percentage of the employees base pay. D) A percentage of base pay budgeted a the beginning of the year and provides a permanent increase to an individuals salary E) Determined by the board of directors for all employees, similar to executive compensation.

Q: (p. 346) Decisions about how to respond to the economic forces of product markets and labor markets limit an organization's choices about: A. pay rates. B. pay structure. C. pay differentials. D. pay grades. E. pay ranges.

Q: A manager on a construction site wants to encourage safety on the job to minimize accidents. What sort of pay for performance system would you recommend? A) Increase the employees base pay. B) Introduce a behavioral encouragement plan. C) Change workers pay from base pay to a draw commission plan. D) Implement a piece rate reward plan. E) Increase the level of benefits offered to all employees.

Q: (p. 346) The Walsh-Healy Public Contracts Act of 1936: A. permits a lower "training wage," which employers may pay to workers under the age of 20 for a period of up to 90 days. B. requires that employers pay higher wages for overtime, defined as hours worked beyond 40 hours per week. C. covers construction contractors that receive more than $2,000 in federal money. D. requires general contractors performing services on prime contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees in various classes no less than the wage rates found prevailing in the locality. E. covers all government contractors receiving $10,000 or more in federal funds.

Q: You have announced a pay for performance system, however, your budget is not large enough to truly differentiate between your top performers and your marginal performers. What is a possible outcome? A) You may end up with high turnover among your marginal performers because of perceived inequity B) All employees will be more motivated to achieve the new performance goals. C) Employees will be motivated to work together in teams to increase the likelihood of rewards. D) The composition of the workforce will shift to employees who thrive in high-risk situations. E) Your top performers will perceive the plan as inequitable and may leave the company

Q: (p. 346) The Davis-Bacon Act of 1931: A. permits a lower "training wage," which employers may pay to workers under the age of 20 for a period of up to 90 days. B. requires that employers pay higher wages for overtime, defined as hours worked beyond 40 hours per week. C. requires general contractors performing services on prime contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees in various classes no less than the wage rates found prevailing in the locality. D. covers all government contractors receiving $10,000 or more in federal funds. E. covers construction contractors that receive more than $2,000 in federal money.

Q: As the manager of a sales team, you want to establish a pay for performance system. Currently they receive 100% commission in the form or cash. You want to diversify the pay and control the budget while offering value to your staff. Which of the following would you not consider? A) Grant stock options for increases in repeat customer business. B) Offer gift certificates to the gym, owned by the company, for sales above quota. C) Increase their commission dollars per sale when they sell as a team. D) Present a trip to the Bahamas, on the company yacht, to the team with the highest sales. E) Award tickets for the companys box seats at the local music amphitheatre.

Q: (p. 346) Under the Davis-Bacon Act of 1931 and the Walsh-Healy Public Contracts Act of 1936, 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 _____ percent of the local labor force. A. 2 B. 5 C. 10 D. 20 E. 30

Q: Which of the following is not a factor to be considered in designing a gain sharing program? A) Potential for employee efforts B) Organized employee suggestion system C) Workforce interdependence. D) Workforce composition. E) Key organizational factors that affect the pay system

Q: (p. 346) Which of the following is true according to the Walsh-Healy Public Contracts Act of 1936? A. Under the Walsh-Healy Public Contracts Act, children aged 18 and 19 may not be employed in hazardous occupations defined by the Department of Labor. B. Federal contractors must pay their employees at rates at least equal to the prevailing wages in the area. C. The overtime rate applies to the hours worked beyond 45 in one week. D. Employers must pay a training wage to workers under the age of 15 for a period of up to 60 days. E. Organizations can defend themselves against claims of discrimination by showing that they pay the going market rate.

Q: Which of the following statements is FALSE regarding short-term and long-term incentives? A) Short-term incentives are usually additional salary rewards that an employee can receive on a quarterly or yearly basis. B) Short-term incentives are based on meeting short-run objectives such as a quarterly sales or a production goal. C) Long-term rewards focus on future profitability. D) Stock options are a common short-term incentive. E) Long-term incentives are usually best for upper-level executives who have a wider area of discretion in making decisions that affect the firm.

Q: (p. 345) Under the FLSA, which of the following statements is true of child labor? A. Children aged 18 and 19 may not be employed in hazardous occupations defined by the Department of Labor. B. Children aged 14 and 15 may not be employed in any work associated with interstate commerce. C. The FLSA's restrictions on the use of child labor apply to children younger than 18. D. Children aged 18 and 19 may work only outside school hours, in jobs defined as nonhazardous, and for limited time periods. E. All the states have laws requiring working papers or work permits for minors.

Q: Research on Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) shows: A) ESOPs work better when combined with extensive employee involvement. B) They have little effect on profitability. C) Decrease in employee absenteeism under ESOPs. D) ESOPs work better when the price of the stock is stable. E) Restricted company flexibility in a competitive environment.

Q: (p. 345) According to the FLSA, which of the following is most likely a nonexempt employee? A. CEO B. Senior administrative employee C. Hourly-paid employee D. Executive employee E. Director

Q: The Scanlon Plan: A) uses standard hours rather than labor costs to determine incentive pay. B) motivates the worker through rights to stock a fixed price which may be lower than the current stock market value. C) is based on incentive pay based on units produced. D) provides for less employee involvement than the Rucker Plan. E) provides for a high level of employee participation through labor-management committees.

Q: (p. 345) _____ means that the employee is paid a given amount regardless of the number of hours worked or quality of the work. A. Pay level B. Nonexemption C. Pay policy line D. Piecework rate E. Salary basis

Q: Which of the following is TRUE regarding group incentive plans? A) Increased interest in PFP has resulted in a declining number of group incentive plans. B) The use of group plans is particularly effective when cooperation and teamwork are less essential. C) Group plans are most useful when tasks are so interrelated that it is difficult to identify a measure of individual output. D) There is increasing evidence that group incentives do NOT increase productivity. E) Individual plans are generally preferable to group plans when tasks are interrelated and teamwork is essential.

Q: (p. 345) Under the FLSA, exempt status of an employee depends on his/her: A. job responsibilities and salary. B. organizational commitment. C. job title. D. work experience. E. job qualifications.

Q: All of the following statements are true regarding profit sharing plans EXCEPT: A) they are often used as a means of reducing turnover. B) they have been criticized as being remote and unrelated to performance. C) they were designed to motivate cost savings. D) the group that saves the most money receives the bonus. E) they provide long-term incentives.

Q: (p. 345) Which of the following is true of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? A. The overtime rate under the FLSA is two and a half times the employee's hourly rate. B. It requires federal contractors to pay less than the prevailing wage rate. C. It permits a subminimum training wage equal to 95% of the minimum wage. D. Nonexempt employees are covered by FLSA and include most hourly workers. E. Under the FLSA, executive, professional, and administrative employees are considered nonexempt employees.

Q: Acme Shoe Company is expanding nation-wide, and they wish to develop an incentive plan for their door-to-door salespeople. Which of the following plans is most appropriate? A) Piece-rate plan B) Commission plan C) Profit sharing plan D) Straight salary E) Scanlon plan

Q: (p. 345) Which of the following statements is true of the FLSA requirements for overtime pay? A. The overtime rate is one and a half times the employee's hourly rate, excluding any bonuses or piece-rate payments. B. Time worked includes only hours spent on production or sales, but not on activities such as attending required classes, cleaning up the work site, etc. C. Overtime must be paid whether or not the employer specifically asked or expected the employee to work the extra hours. D. Everyone is eligible for overtime pay. E. Most workers paid on an hourly basis are exempt and therefore not subject to the laws governing overtime pay.

Q: The Standard Hourly Rate: A) pays the worker an incentive based on units of production. B) relies on countable results as a basis for setting the PFP rate. C) uses a formula to determine the employees share of cost savings. D) uses a production standard that is expressed in time units. E) is usually folded into the base pay of the recipient and is usually granted as a percentage of a workers base pay.