Deck 11: Managing Employee Relations

Question 1

Recently,employers who have engaged in non-consensual recording of employee meetings have been prevented from using the evident,or have been ordered to discontinue the practice.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Counselling is discussing issues with employees in the hopes of helping employees cope with situations that are happening away from the workplace.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

While good employee relations practices tend to make for happier employees,they do not have any direct effect on either productivity or employment costs.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Comprehensive company programs that seek to help employees overcome their personal and work-related problems are referred to as employee assistance programs.

Question 5

Rewarding employees for useful suggestions tends to encourage the use of a suggestion system.

Question 6

The growing use of "wearables" is raising key questions related to privacy.

Question 7

The policy in some organizations of encouraging employees to come to higher management with any concerns is often referred to as a compassionate management policy.

Question 8

Factors that are important in building employee commitment include job security,quality of organization's products,and trust in top management.

Question 9

The growth in social media has brought with it an increase in social media hacking.Possible consequences of a social media hack include: damage to a brand's reputation,declining employee engagement,and loss of trust by customers.

Question 10

In-house complaint procedures are organizationally developed methods for employees to register a complaint.

Question 11

If an employer can show its legitimate business interests are affected by material posted on a social network by an employee,that employee may be liable and subject to discipline.

Question 12

Communication systems that exist to get information from employees are called an upward system.

Question 13

Organization-specific internal computer networks (Internet)are often known as intranets.

Question 14

Solid employee relations demand careful attention to communication,counselling,and employee management.

Question 15

Good employee relations practices ensure implementation of organizational strategies and improve productivity.

Question 16

Interestingly enough,one step that is missing from the seven-step plan to protect an organization from the misuse of its electronic communications by employees is the development and implementation of a relevant policy.

Question 17

A policy of encouraging employees to come to higher management with their concerns is called an open door policy.

Question 18

One reason that good employee relations are a reasonably simple issue is that they don't involve the more complex factors of either corporate culture or basic human resource activities.

Question 19

Organizational communication systems can generally be divided into upward systems and downward systems.

Question 20

The five key dimensions of employee relations are rights,discipline,counselling,involvement,and communication.

Question 21

Information collected under PIPEDA should only be kept for as long as it is needed.

Question 22

Discipline may be defined as management actions to encourage employee compliance with organizational standards.

Question 23

The law of wrongful dismissal is very complicated and demands either human resource professionals with specific expertise or outside legal advice.

Question 24

Consent is not a required principle under PIPEDA.

Question 25

The three purposes of corrective discipline are to reform the offender,to deter others,and to maintain consistent group standards.

Question 26

In early 2015,rules came into effect making it illegal to install programs on someone's computer without consent of the recipient.

Question 27

When it comes to GPS devices,employers have prevailed for the most part.

Question 28

Employers are concerned with inappropriate web surfing and just under two-thirds have software's to block access to the sites that have inappropriate information.

Question 29

When punishment is effective in correcting a problem,this is referred to as positive discipline.

Question 30

Constructive dismissal is a term that refers to dismissing an employee for their own good.

Question 31

Canada's new anti-spam legislation permits businesses to send electronic commercial messages provided the information is not pornographic in nature.

Question 32

Employee rights include both the right to privacy and the right to fair treatment.

Question 33

A major change in a significant term of the employment relationship that results in an employee resigning may be legally considered as constructive dismissal.

Question 34

A number of recent high-profile cases have demonstrated that conduct away from the workplace may lead to discipline or dismissal.

Question 35

An employee's off-duty conduct is never considered as just cause for dismissal.

Question 36

There is an increasing awareness among employers that collecting nonwork information about employees is an unnecessary intrusion into employees' lives.

Question 37

A survey by the Federal Privacy Commission reveals that 55% of companies do NOT have a privacy policy in place.

Question 38

Progressive discipline is also referred to as due process.

Question 39

Under PIPEDA,individuals are not allowed to access their personal information files unless a judge or court orders so.

Question 40

Preventive discipline and corrective discipline are basically two names for the same thing.

Question 41

Internal job postings are a form of:

A)upward communication
B)union-management communication
C)downward communication
D)lateral communication
E)job evaluation communication

Question 42

No-layoff policies are part of an integrated system of progressive HR practices.

Question 43

Following established rules and procedures and allowing employees to respond in disciplinary action is referred to as:

A)diligent process
B)due process
C)disciplinary process
D)corrective process
E)mandated process

Question 44

Factors in retaining key employees include which of the following?

A)communicating the organization vision and values frequently and in a clear and consistent manner
B)developing a planned approach to employee retention
C)becoming an employer of choice
D)rewarding supervisors and managers for keeping good people
E)all of the choices

Question 45

As more employees use the Internet at work,issues that organizations need to consider include all the following,EXCEPT:

A)the rights of employers to monitor employee usage
B)the restriction of use to business purposes
C)concerns dealing with copyright
D)the posting or downloading of offensive or defamatory material
E)which insurance company to provide on line benefit access to

Question 46

As identified in a BMO Labour Day survey,one of the most common practices used by employers to retain talented employees is flexible work hours.

Question 47

Self-directed work teams are one form of employee involvement.

Question 48

Just cause for dismissal under common law includes any act by the employee that:

A)could have serious negative impact on the organization's reputation
B)is felt to be unreasonable or unacceptable by top management
C)could have serious negative impact on the organization's operations,even if not the employee's fault
D)the union supports
E)a supervisor does not approve of

Question 49

One study has revealed that "shock" more than job dissatisfaction is most likely to cause an employee to leave his or her current job.

Question 50

Open-book management refers to:

A)an organization where all the rules are known and publicized
B)an organization that "goes by the book," and where this is common knowledge among all employees
C)an organization where employees receive information about the firm's economic performance
D)an organization where employees can access their own,and other's,personnel records
E)the system of constructive or corrective discipline

Question 51

Human resource professionals have an important role to play in downsizing efforts and should be involved in the strategic process.

Question 52

Components of effective employee relations include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)discipline
B)involvement
C)counselling
D)recruiting
E)rights

Question 53

High involvement work practices can increase human resource costs.

Question 54

Though it usually involves laying off employees,downsizing has been a very effective organizational tool for increasing productivity and improving a firm's financial picture.

Question 55

There are three types of downsizing strategies: work redesign,systematic reduction,and workforce layoffs.

Question 56

The Wallace Effect refers to:

A)awarding extended periods of notice in wrongful dismissal cases,when the employer was found to have terminated the employee in bad faith
B)awarding decreased periods of notice in wrongful dismissal cases,when the employer was found to have terminated the employee in bad faith
C)awarding extended periods of notice in wrongful dismissal cases,when the employer was found to have terminated the employee in good faith
D)awarding decreased periods of notice in wrongful dismissal cases,when the employer was found to have terminated the employee in good faith
E)forcing the employer to take the employee back in cases of wrongful dismissal,when the employer was found to have terminated the employee in bad faith

Question 57

A typical progressive discipline system has a number of steps and would likely include all the following EXCEPT:

A)a verbal reprimand
B)a written waning
C)a suspension from work
D)discharge for cause
E)cancellation of the warning after discipline has been applied and actions changed

Question 58

To improve communications internally and enhance links between employees and the organization,companies should do all of the following EXCEPT:

A)invest in research and surveys to find out what the employees attitudes are towards communication
B)focus on performance oriented communication
C)communicate training needs with managers and employees
D)provide monetary rewards communication,rather than total rewards communication
E)regularly review and audit the communication systems

Question 59

Surveys indicate that about __________ of all employees believe that their job offers little recognition and low satisfaction.

A)10 percent
B)18 percent
C)25 percent
D)45 percent
E)92 percent

Question 60

For an employer,one of the most difficult employee dismissal situations to successfully defend in court is dismissal for just cause in the case of:

A)insubordination
B)incompetence
C)conflict of interest
D)dishonesty or theft
E)frailty of character (e.g.drug use,bad or abusive behaviour,and so on. )

Question 61

The law of wrongful dismissal:

A)only applies to union members
B)tends to require prudent legal advice
C)is not very complicated
D)has not been applied in Canada since 1945
E)has no specific legal ramifications

Question 62

The employee handbook (often given to new employees)is an example of:

A)upward communication
B)top-down communication
C)employee referral programs
D)open-door policy
E)employee assistance program (EAP)

Question 63

One study identified seven factors important to building employee commitment,including all the following EXCEPT:

A)competitiveness of rewards
B)integrity of employer's business conduct
C)quality of the organization's products
D)job security
E)ability to be promoted to senior management

Question 64

Some common examples of downward communication methods include all the following EXCEPT:

A)grapevine
B)email
C)in-house newsletters
D)jobholder reports
E)meetings

Question 65

Reasons why good employee relations practices are important can include the fact that they can do all the following EXCEPT:

A)improve productivity
B)reduce employment costs
C)ensure implementation of organizational strategies
D)help employees grow and develop
E)improve wages and salaries

Question 66

Although the concept of employee __________ is relatively new,a growing number of organizations are introducing it as a means of reducing the cost of administrative work performed by human resource departments.

A)self-service
B)administration
C)production
D)avoidance
E)relations

Question 67

Reducing employment to improve efficiency,productivity,and competitiveness is often referred to as:

A)outsourcing
B)downsizing
C)midsizing
D)resizing
E)cotton sizing

Question 68

Numerous studies indicate that after an organization downsizes:

A)morale and productivity are unaffected
B)it performs better financially
C)it does not perform any better financially
D)morale drops but productivity improves
E)morale improves but productivity drops

Question 69

When an organization formally discusses employees' problem(s)with them and/or assists them in coping with these problems,this is normally referred to as:

A)employee assistance
B)employee counselling
C)employee stroking
D)employee involvement
E)an intrusion into an employee's private life

Question 70

All of the following are among the requirements necessary to dismiss an employee for incompetence EXCEPT:

A)having reasonable and objective performance standards that have been communicated to all employees
B)being able to show that other employees are able to achieve the standards set
C)it can be based on a single incident of incompetence
D)having evidence of warnings given to the employee
E)demonstrating that the employee concerned had reasonable time to improve performance

Question 71

A disadvantage of using electronic mail as an organizational communication method is that:

A)it allows for two-way interactive communication,e.g.employee surveys
B)it can be accessed quickly and easily
C)it can be limited to select recipients
D)it can be easily directed to all employees
E)it may exclude large numbers of employees

Question 72

Employees' rights to privacy are covered under which act?

A)constitution
B)charter of human rights and freedoms
C)personal information protection and electronic documents act
D)private information passage and email delivery act
E)postponing issues prior to email delivery act

Question 73

Good employee relations practices can reduce employment costs by:

A)increasing turnover and absenteeism among less effective employees
B)having employees take voluntary salary and wage cuts
C)reducing the number and size of rewards needed
D)offering an organization a recruiting advantage
E)improving workforce demographics

Question 74

According to PIPEDA,which of the following does NOT qualify as personal information?

A)factual information about the company
B)non recorded factual information about an individual
C)recorded factual information about an individual
D)an employee's home address
E)an employee's social insurance number (sin)

Question 75

A policy of encouraging employees to come to higher management with any concerns is often referred to as:

A)a policy of concern
B)an open-door policy
C)management by hierarchy
D)management by objectives
E)the whiney-employee policy

Question 76

Corporate culture,individual perceptions,and human resource practices make up the blend of factors important in the area of:

A)employee discipline
B)employee relations
C)employer relations
D)job analysis
E)technological change

Question 77

Action taken by supervisors prior to any infraction and that is designed to encourage employees to follow the rules is called:

A)corrective discipline
B)progressive discipline
C)preventive discipline
D)positive discipline
E)advisory discipline

Question 78

A procedure for non-unionized employees that is in writing,is communicated to employees,and guarantees employees the right to present complaints to management is often referred to as:

A)an unofficial complaint system
B)in-house complaint procedure
C)labour-management relations
D)the formal grapevine
E)a human resource method for identifying trouble-makers

Question 79

One study identified in the text indicated that there are a number of factors that are important in building employee commitment,including:

A)lack of job security
B)lack of trust in senior management
C)poor quality of organization's products/services
D)competitiveness of rewards
E)employer's unethical conduct

Question 80

Even when the basic human resource functions are performed properly,solid employee relations still depend on careful attention paid by managers to all the following EXCEPT:

A)work group management
B)developing employee counselling skills
C)effective disciplinary procedures
D)organizational communication
E)compensation and benefits