BA 370 (Employment Law) Discussion Questions - A+ WORK
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Week 1
Legal Action
Question A
Tell us about yourself so you can meet and greet other fellow Grantham University students within your course. Include what you believe to be your current knowledge level of this course topic and what you hope to learn before the course is over.
Question B
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Do you think that most employees who take legal action against their employers have valid claims or are looking to “get something for nothing?� What is the basis for your opinion? (Ch 1)
b. Would you be inclined to take legal action against your employer if you felt strongly that your legal rights had been violated? Why or why not? (Ch 1)
c. Commenting on the increasingly widespread use of labor contractors by large companies, attorney Della Bahan claimed “These companies are pretending they’re not the employer. The contractor is willing to work people seven days a week, not pay payroll taxes, not pay workers’ comp taxes. The companies don’t want to do that for themselves, but they’re willing to look the other way when their contractors do it.” Do you agree? To what extent should companies be held responsible for the employment practices of companies with which they contract? (Ch 2)
d. Legally, it makes a great deal of difference whether someone performing work is an employee or an independent contractor. But should it make a difference? What is the justification for excluding independent contractors from protection of antidiscrimination and other laws? (Ch 2)
e. Look at the examples of neutral requirements or practices that are listed in the chapter. Why is each of these a “good candidate” for an adverse impact claim? How are they linked to protected class? (Ch 3)
f. Should other protected classes be recognized under the law? If so, which ones? What is it about these groups that make them good candidates for being protected classes? (Ch 3)
g. How likely is it that you might be discriminated against in the workplace? Why do you think this? (Ch 3)
Week 2
Hiring Decisions
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Suppose that an employer has a close working relationship with your college and primarily recruits from there for professional positions. What would be the consequence of that recruiting strategy? Would it tend to result in adverse impact? (Ch 4)
b. In your judgment, is there a need for foreign nationals to perform work in the United States? Do existing laws regulating the employment of nonimmigrant foreign nationals in the Unites States strike the right balance between employers’ desire to tap this source of labor and protecting the interests of U.S. workers? (Ch 4)
c. Have you ever been asked a question during an interview that was inappropriate or discriminatory? How did you respond? Based on what you’ve learned so far in this course, would you do anything differently if confronted with a similar situation in the future? If you have never had such an experience, and knowing what you know now, how would you react if asked an illegal or inappropriate question during an interview? (Ch 4)
d. What do you think about employers using the Internet to check into the online postings and personas of job candidates? Does this practice pose any legal concerns? Ethical concerns? (Ch 5)
e. Potential employers have a responsibility to conduct background checks to avoid negligent hiring, and yet most companies have policies that prevent disclosing anything more than dates of previous employment. So what’s an employer to do? (Ch 5)
f. What policy would you recommend an employer adopt regarding use of criminal history in hiring decisions? Why? Would the policy differ according to the type of job in question, or the nature of the conviction? If so, how? (Ch 5)
Week 3
Testing, Hiring, and Promotion
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Would you advise an employer that operates retail clothing stores to drug test? If so, under what circumstances? Using what procedures? What should be done regarding applicants or employees who test positive? (Ch 6)
b. Staffing experts widely regard tests of general cognitive ability to be the best predictors of success at a wide range of jobs. What are the legal implications of relying on such tests? (Ch 6)
c. Jobs are being transformed. Employers are increasingly focusing on processes rather than individual jobs. More work is being done in teams, with team members expected to be capable of taking on each other’s functions. What are implications of this for validating tests or other selection criteria? Has it become more difficult to determine what is “job related?� (Ch 6)
d. It is often said that one of the benefits of a diverse workforce is that employees will better understand and relate to their diverse customers. Does this justify making hiring decisions on protected class grounds? Assigning work so that the protected class characteristics of employees and customers match? If not, what should employers do? (Ch 7)
e. Are workplace appearance and grooming policies necessary? If so, what policy would you recommend with regard to office workers who have some contact with clients/customers? To what extent should the policy differentiate between male and female employees? (Ch 7)
f. To what extent do you think that caregivers are discriminated against in the workplace? Do existing laws go far enough to protect caregivers? (Ch 7)
g. Do you think that the “glass ceiling� phenomenon is primarily a pipeline problem that will disappear over time as women and persons of color acquire the relevant experiences or is it rooted more deeply in organizational cultures and practices hostile to the advancement of women and minorities? (Ch 7)
h. In our culture, the general perception is that with youth, comes energy, imagination and innovation. With age comes decreasing interest, lack of innovation and imagination, and a lessening of the quality of the person. How do you respond to these notions? What other age-related stereotypes might be evident in your workplace? What can managers do to prevent perpetuating stereotypes and making discriminatory hiring decisions? (Ch 7)
Week 4
Managing the Workforce
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. What are some arguments in favor of affirmative action? Against it? What is your current view of affirmative action? Why? Does your view differ depending on the measures used to achieve affirmative action goals? (Ch 8)
b. What should an employer who has decided to implement an affirmative action program do to maximize support for the program and minimize resentment or “backlash�? (Ch 8)
c. It is often recommended that managers be evaluated and rewarded in significant part on the basis of their commitment to diversity. Is this a good idea? Can commitment to diversity be measured apart from numbers of women or people of color hired and promoted (Ch 8)
d. In light of workplace bullying and the difficulties plaintiffs face in same-sex harassment cases, would it be better to have anti-harassment statutes aimed at prohibiting unwelcome, offensive treatment, regardless of whether the motive behind the treatment is discriminatory? (Ch 9)
e. Do courts give sufficient weight to the obstacles that might make employees reluctant to report harassment? Explain your reasoning. (Ch 9)
f. Should employers attempt to restrict romantic relationships between employees as a response to concerns about harassment? Between supervisors and subordinates? In each case, why or why not? (Ch 9)
Week 5
Accommodation
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. How has the ADA been changed by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008? Did Congress get it right this time? Will the new law be more effective at protecting employees with disabilities? (Ch 10)
b. What challenges might an employee with a disability face in your workplace? What kinds of reasonable accommodations would be appropriate? (Ch 10)
c. Describe an example from your organization or your experience related to some aspect of religion in the workplace. How did the situation play out? What were the ramifications for all involved? Should anything have happened or been handled differently? (Ch 10)
d. Does the Family and Medical Leave Act go far enough? Too far? What, if any, changes would you make to the FMLA? (Ch 11)
e. Should Title VII be amended to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation? Why or why not? How likely do you think it is to happen, and in what timeframe? (Ch 11)
f. Should employers with multi-lingual workforces be allowed to adopt English-only rules? Under what circumstances? Explain your reasoning. (Ch 11)
Week 6
Compensation
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Should private sector employers be allowed to use comp time to meet their overtime pay obligations? What are the potential benefits? Problems? (Ch 12)
b. Does the Equal Pay Act go far enough in prohibiting pay discrimination? If not, should courts rethink their rejection of the theory of comparable worth? (Ch 12)
c. There are many cases of serious wage and hour violations by employers, particularly in the retail sector. These cases feature employers failing to provide breaks, pressuring workers to underreport hours of work, requiring that work be performed both before and after shifts, and crudest of all, “shaving time.” The latter refers to the practice of simply deleting work hours from computerized payroll records. Is this any different from stealing? Is there any justification for such acts? (Ch 12)
d. Is the broad preemption language of ERISA necessary? Does preemption unduly constrain the ability of employees to hold their employer accountable for the manner in which benefit plans are administered? (Ch 13)
e. Does the U.S. approach to providing for health insurance and retirement income—with its heavy reliance on employer-provided benefits —still make sense? What are the alternatives? (Ch 13)
f. What is your opinion of labor unions in general? What is the basis of your opinions and beliefs about unions (first-hand experience, secondhand observations of friends/family members with union experience, etc.)? To what extent might union affiliation/status affect your decision to work in a particular industry or for a particular employer? Are unions as necessary today as at various points in our nation’s history? Why or why not? (Ch 14)
g. Is it fair that employers can permanently replace economic strikers? Does the right to strike mean much if striking employees are subject to permanent replacement? (Ch 14)
h. What, if anything, should be done to revitalize the National Labor Relations Act and the institution of collective bargaining? Should the Employee Free Choice Act be enacted? (Ch 14)
Week 7
Safety and Performance
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Think about a restaurant, store, office or factory where you have worked. What safety and health hazards existed in that workplace? What measures were used to address those hazards? Was safety given sufficient attention? (Ch 15)
b. The “historic bargain” that resulted in workers’ compensation laws occurred at a time (the early 1900’s) when there were almost no other employment laws and courts routinely ruled against workers with disabling injuries caused by their employers’ negligence. Is workers’ compensation a fair bargain now, or does it too often shield employers from the consequences of their negligence? (Ch 15)
c. Does OSHA do enough to protect the safety of workers? Does it overregulate? Should the trend toward relying on voluntary compliance by employers be continued? (Ch 15)
d. Would you recommend that an employer use a forced distribution approach to performance appraisal? What are the pros and cons? (Ch 16)
e. Would you advise an employer to use training contracts? Under what circumstances? What might such contracts look like? (Ch 16)
f. What does privacy mean to you? What do you think is reasonable for employees to expect in terms of privacy in the workplace? Is the current privacy protection for e-mail and internet use sufficient? (Ch 17)
g. What does your company’s workplace privacy policy look like? What issues does it address? What does it say about those issues? Should anything about the policy be different? (Ch 17)
Week 8
Termination
Discussion Questions: select any THREE questions from the list below (preferably at least one from each chapter) and post your response in the discussion forum.
a. Should employers offer employees the choice between resigning or being terminated? Under what circumstances? (Ch 18)
b. Does the employment at will with exceptions standard provide sufficient protection for employees? Would it be better if all employers were required to meet a just cause/due process standard for termination? (Ch 18)
c. What do you think about the increasing use of restrictive covenants? Should employers who attempt to enforce these agreements against employees that have been fired have to show that the terminations were for cause? (Ch 19)
d. Is downsizing a sensible business strategy? Should employees be entitled to greater legal protection from downsizing? If so, what form should this protection take? (Ch 19)
e. Describe any concluding thoughts… what is the greatest lesson you’ve learned during the course or the most practical advice you’ll be able to apply?