Q&A Hero

Q: Jack is a sales manager and he recently learned that human resource managers with similar responsibilities and spans of control earn more than he does. Jack is concerned with the ________ form of equity. A) external B) internal C) distributive D) individual

Q: Which form of equity refers to how fair a job's pay rate is, when compared to other jobs within the same company? A) external B) internal C) distributive D) individual

Q: Jason is an information systems technician in a town in North Carolina with a population of 100,000. He earns $35,000/year. He recently found out that a nearby town with a similar population pays people in the same position $40,000/year. Jason is concerned with the ________ form of equity. A) distributive B) procedural C) internal D) external

Q: Which form of equity refers to how a job's pay rate in one company compares to the job's pay rate in other companies? A) external B) internal C) distributive D) procedural

Q: Unions negotiate all of the following pay-related issues except: A) wage rates B) income security C) unpaid leave to care for an immediate family member D) time off with pay

Q: Historically, the main issue in collective bargaining is ________. A) time off with pay B) wage rates C) income security D) health care benefits

Q: The ________ allows a firm to borrow against employee stock held in trust. A) Fair Labor Standards Act B) Civil Rights Act C) Employer Retirement Income Security Act D) National Labor Relations Act

Q: Which of the following is true for employers who use independent contractors? A) Fair Labor Standards Act regulations do not apply B) Social Security taxes are higher than for regular employees C) State income taxes are charged at a higher rate D) Social Security taxes are charged at a higher rate

Q: According to the Family and Medical Leave Act, eligible employees can take unpaid, job-protected leave for the ________. A) care of a child B) birth of a child C) care of a parent D) All of the above.

Q: According to the Family and Medical Leave Act, eligible employees can take up to ________ weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for the birth of a child or for the care of a child, spouse, or parent. A) two B) four C) six D) twelve

Q: The ________ prohibits discriminating against employees who are 40 years of age and older in all aspects of employment, including compensation. A) Fair Labor Standards Act B) Civil Rights Act C) Equal Pay Act D) Age Discrimination in Employment Act

Q: Which of the following professions is considered "nonexempt" from provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act? A) attorney B) physician C) management trainee D) general manager

Q: Under which condition is it acceptable for employees of the opposite sex to receive different pay for doing roughly equivalent work? A) when the difference exists despite equal skills B) when the difference exists despite similar responsibility C) when the difference exists because of a merit system D) it is never acceptable

Q: The ________ states that employees of one sex may not be paid wages at a rate lower than that paid to employees of the opposite sex for doing roughly equivalent work. A) American Disabilities Act B) Civil Rights Act C) Employer Retirement Income Security Act D) Equal Pay Act

Q: All of the following occupations are exempt from the overtime provisions stated in the Fair Labor Standards Act except: A) physicians. B) dentists. C) management trainees. D) teachers.

Q: Which of the following occupations must adhere to overtime and minimum pay provisions stated in the Fair Labor Standards Act? A) paralegals B) pharmacists C) attorneys D) department heads

Q: Jack worked 6 hours of overtime this week but has decided to take time off instead of overtime pay. How many hours will Jack get off? A) 3 hours B) 6 hours C) 9 hours D) 12 hours

Q: Jill works as a cashier at a grocery store. She earns $8 an hour (or $320 for a 40-hour week). Last week, she worked 44 hours. Given standard requirements from the FLSA, what did she earn last week? A) $320 B) $336 C) $344 D) $368

Q: According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, if a worker covered by the act works more than 40 hours, he or she will receive overtime pay at a rate of ________ of normal pay for any hours worked over 40 in a workweek. A) 50% B) 100% C) 125% D) 150%

Q: Which law makes it illegal to discriminate against any individual with respect to compensation because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin? A) Fair Labor Standards Act B) Civil Rights Act C) Employer Retirement Income Security Act D) Davis-Bacon Act

Q: The Fair Labor Standards Act covers workers employed in ________. A) manufacturing B) retailing C) service industries D) All of the above.

Q: Which of the following is addressed by the Fair Labor Standards Act? A) minimum wage B) maximum hours C) child labor D) All of the above.

Q: Which compensation-related law contains minimum wage, maximum hours, overtime pay, equal pay, and child labor provisions? A) Davis-Bacon Act B) Fair Wages Act C) Civil Rights Act D) Fair Labor Standards Act

Q: Which of the following factors affects the design of any pay plan? A) legal B) union C) equity D) All of the above.

Q: Which of the following is categorized as an indirect payment portion of employee compensation? A) wages B) salaries C) employer-paid insurance D) bonuses

Q: Direct financial payments include all of the following except: A) wages. B) insurance. C) salaries. D) incentives.

Q: ________ refers to all forms of pay or rewards going to employees and arising from their employment. A) Reimbursement B) Employee compensation C) Salary D) Benefits

Q: Briefly explain how an at-risk variable pay plan works.

Q: Why are family-friendly benefits increasingly valuable to employees? What are some examples of family-friendly benefits?

Q: Explain the three classifications that apply to basic pension plans.

Q: Explain the three types of benefits provided by Social Security.

Q: Why do employers provide severance pay to employees who are being terminated? Offer at least three reasons. What standards guide the amount of severance pay offered?

Q: Explain the purpose of sick leave and why sick leave pay causes difficulties for many employers.

Q: Explain the advantages of employee stock ownership plans.

Q: What are the steps for pricing jobs with a wage curve?

Q: List the steps used in the job ranking method of job evaluation.

Q: List the steps used to establish pay rates while ensuring external, internal, and procedural equity.

Q: Broadbanding refers to the requirement to pay men and women equal wages for jobs of comparable value to the employer.

Q: There is no limit to the amount an employee can contribute pre-tax into a 401(k) plan each year.

Q: The Comprehensive Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act ensures that employers are not responsible for making health benefits available to terminated or retired employees and their families.

Q: The American Disabilities Act makes it illegal for employers to discriminate against women by providing benefits of a lower amount or duration for pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.

Q: What steps can organizations take to enhance the promotional and career prospects for their female employees?

Q: What roles and responsibilities should a manager have in an employee's career development?

Q: What is the main difference between performance appraisal and performance management?

Q: There are several guidelines for developing an appraisal that is legally defensible. Identify four of these guidelines.

Q: Explain how an MBO program works and describe the six steps involved in this type of program.

Q: Explain the three steps in the performance appraisal process.

Q: Why do we have performance management?

Q: Explain what the SMART acronym tells us about goal setting.

Q: 360-degree feedback is sometimes called the wheel of feedback because ratings are collected from all around an employee.

Q: 360-degree feedback is generally used for development purposes, rather than for pay increases.

Q: The barriers for women to advance at work are referred to as the glass ceiling because it is so easy to break through it.

Q: Matching individual strengths and weaknesses with occupational opportunities and threats is the key to the career planning process.

Q: The employee, the manager, and the employer should all share the responsibility for an employee's career development and career success.

Q: A career is the occupational positions one holds at a single organization.

Q: Career development is the lifelong series of activities that contributes to a person's career exploration, establishment, success, and fulfillment.

Q: An appraisal interview is used to make plans for new hires as they move through the selection and training process.

Q: Managers who receive feedback from subordinates who identify themselves view the upward appraisal process more negatively than do managers who receive anonymous feedback.

Q: Peer appraisals have been shown to have an immediate positive impact on improving task motivation, cohesion, and satisfaction, while reducing social loafing.

Q: Central tendency is defined as the influence of a rater's general impression on ratings of specific ratee qualities.

Q: Graphic rating scales are the most reliable for rating performance.

Q: The advantages of the BARS appraisal tool include accuracy, clear standards, and consistency.

Q: Electronic performance monitoring (EPM) allows supervisors to electronically monitor the amount of computerized data an employee is process each day.

Q: MBO relates an employee's work goals to his or her departmental goals and to the organization's goals.

Q: BARS is a rating approach that involves keeping a record of uncommonly good or undesirable examples of an employee's work-related behavior and reviewing it with the employee at predetermined times.

Q: The basic problem with rankings is that while it is not difficult to identify the extreme good and bad performers, it is difficult to differentiate meaningfully between the others.

Q: The forced distribution method is similar to grading on a curve meaning that predetermined percentages of those being rated are placed into performance categories.

Q: Quantitative goals are best.

Q: The alternation ranking method is the simplest and most popular technique for appraising performance.

Q: Once you have a supervisor to conduct a performance appraisal there is no need to worry about anything else.

Q: The HR department conducts performance appraisals, develops the appraisal tools, and monitors the appraisal system.

Q: The evidence suggests that participatively set goals consistently result in higher performance than assigned goals.

Q: Goals should be challenging, but not so difficult that they appear impossible or unrealistic.

Q: A properly designed performance management system utilizes yearly meetings to ensure continuous improvement in the employee's capacity and performance.

Q: Electronic performance monitoring seems to raise employee stress levels.

Q: In practice, appraisal forms often blend several approaches to appraisal into one.

Q: The critical incident method forces supervisors to consider all the important aspects of an employee's performance.

Q: The forced distribution method is sometimes referred to as the "rank and yank" method.

Q: 360-Degree feedback is usually used for developmental purposes rather than pay purposes.

Q: Most managers are very willing and able to set measurable goals for their subordinates.