Question 1

The four main types of privacy upheld by courts are intrusion,publication of private matters,disclosure of medical records,and appropriation of an employee's name or likeness for commercial purposes.

Accepted Answer

The four main types of employee privacy violations upheld by courts are intrusion (locker room and bathroom surveillance),publication of private matters,disclosure of medical records,and appropriation of an employee's name or likeness for commercial purposes.

Question 2

When firms do not deal swiftly and fairly with the unethical behavior of employees,ethical employees feel penalized.

Accepted Answer

To the extent that behavior is a function of its consequences,the manager needs to reward ethical behavior and penalize unethical behavior.Research suggests that employees expect the organization to dole out relatively harsh punishment for unethical conduct.If the company does not deal swiftly with unethical behavior,often the ethical employees feel punished.

Question 3

Wrongful discharge occurs when an employee's dismissal does not comply with the law or with the contractual agreement stated or implied by the firm through its employment application forms and employee manuals.

Accepted Answer

Wrongful discharge refers to a dismissal that violates the law or that fails to comply with contractual arrangements stated or implied by the employer,for instance,in employee manuals.Three main protections against wrongful discharge have eroded the termination-at-will doctrine-statutory exceptions,common law exceptions,and public policy exceptions.

Question 4

The fair treatment of job applicants by HR managers leads to applicants having favorable opinions about the selection procedure and the organization.

Accepted Answer

Job applicants who felt treated unfairly expressed more desire to appeal the outcome.Those who view the firm's programs as fair react more favorably to the selection procedure,and view the company and the job as more attractive.

Question 5

With a system of progressive penalties,the severity of the penalty depends on the offense and the employee's seniority level.

Accepted Answer

A system of progressive penalties is an aspect of effective discipline.Penalties typically range from oral warnings to written warnings to suspension from the job to discharge.The severity of the penalty is usually a function of the type of offense and the number of times it has occurred.

Question 6

Nonpunitive discipline attempts to gain short-term compliance from employees,while traditional discipline seeks long-term cooperation.

Accepted Answer

Traditional discipline has two potential drawbacks.First,no one likes to be punished.Second,punishment tends to gain short-term compliance,but not the sort of long-term cooperation employers often prefer.Nonpunitive discipline aims to avoid these drawbacks by gaining employees' acceptance of the rules while reducing the punitive nature of the discipline itself.

Question 7

In the absence of a contract,the employer and/or the employee can terminate the employer-employee relation which is known as dismissal.

Accepted Answer

Dismissal is involuntary termination of an employee's employment with the firm.Termination at will is when in the absence of a contract,either the employer or the employee can termination the employment relationship.

Question 8

Firms considered high performance work systems should strive to cut costs rather than downsize because employee morale is especially important to the firm's productivity and profitability.

Accepted Answer

Firms usually downsize to improve their financial positions.Downsizing is the process of reducing,usually dramatically,the number of people employed by a firm.

Question 9

If an employee conducts a personal phone call at work,the employer can legally eavesdrop and monitor the phone call.

Accepted Answer

Federal law and most state laws allow employers to monitor employees' phone calls in the ordinary course of business,but they must stop listening once it becomes clear that a conversation is personal rather than business related.

Question 10

Employers should avoid providing dismissed employees with full explanations of why and how termination decisions were made because such details typically lead the former employees to file wrongful discharge lawsuits.

Accepted Answer

Dismissed individuals who said that they were given full explanations of why and how termination decisions were made were more likely to perceive their layoff as fair and less likely to take the past employer to court.

Question 11

Exit interviews are conducted to inform an employee of the fact that he or she has been dismissed.

Accepted Answer

Termination interviews are conducted to inform an employee of the fact that he or she has been dismissed. Exit interviews are conducted with employees who are leaving the firm for obtaining information about the job or related matters to give the employer insight about the company.

Question 12

Unfortunately,employers have no tools for measuring the ethics of an individual during the applicant screening process,so employers do not realize they have hired an unethical person until it is too late.

Accepted Answer

Employers can eliminate many ethics problems by making effective hiring decisions.Conducting assessment tests,reference and background checks,drug testing,and making clearly defined job descriptions can reduce the need for many dismissals.

Question 13

Research indicates that individuals are more likely to make unethical choices when faced with minor dilemmas than with major problems.

Accepted Answer

Apparently "smaller" dilemmas prompt more bad choices than major dilemmas do.Influential issues here include,the total harm that can befall victims of an unethical choice,the likelihood that the action will result in harm,and the number of people potentially affected by the act.In apparently less serious situations,it's more likely that someone might say,in effect,"It's okay to do this,even though I know it's wrong."

Question 14

Most people view invasion of their privacy by employers as fair and ethical.

Accepted Answer

Most people view invasion of their privacy as both unethical and unfair. At work violations include intrusion,publication of private matters,disclosure of medical records,and appropriation of an employee's name or likeness for commercial purposes.

Question 15

Shared perceptions organizational members have about their organization and work environment is known as organizational climate.

Accepted Answer

Several experts define organizational climate as "the shared perceptions organizational members have about their organization and work environment."

Question 16

A small sample of employees who express their opinions and attitudes on an issue is a focus group.

Accepted Answer

A focus group is comprised of a small sample of employees who are presented with a specific question or issue and who interactively express their opinions and attitudes on that issue with the focus group assigned facilitator.

Question 17

A firm's ethics code outlines its mission,vision,appraisal system,and hiring policies.

Accepted Answer

An ethics code memorializes the standards to which the employer expects its employees to adhere,for instance with respect to bribery.Strategies,mission,and vision are not directly relevant to a firm's ethics code.

Question 18

Studies indicate that some people's traits and behaviors make them more susceptible to bullying.

Accepted Answer

Numerous studies show that certain people's traits and how they behave make them more likely to be targets of bullying. These include submissive victims (who seem more anxious,cautious,quiet,and sensitive),provocative victims (who show more aggressive behavior),and victims low in self-determination (who seem to leave it to others to make decisions for them and determine the course of their careers).

Question 19

Most legal rights in American society derive from local,state,and federal laws.

Accepted Answer

Not all rights derive from laws.In fact,it is the opposite: most legal rights actually flow from broader unwritten "human" or "unalienable" rights,rights that are the bedrock of American society.

Question 20

Nonpunitive discipline is discipline involving oral warnings and paid "decision-making leaves of absence."

Accepted Answer

Nonpunitive discipline involves issuing oral reminders,formal written reminders,and decision-making leaves.

Quiz 14: Ethics and Employee Rights and Discipline