Organizations In The Workplace

The purpose of the Organizations in the Workplace course (HRER 802) at Penn State University is to help me define and be able to articulate critical factors that affect behavior within organizations. 

One of my assignments consisted of the following:

Using the material in Lesson 08, write a minimum of 500 words addressing the following issue.

You are participating in a meeting with two colleagues (Joe and Mary) from your department to develop a plan to implement a new performance appraisal process. You are the supervisor. The group has been stuck on one critical issue for 20 minutes. At one point Joe (speaking to Mary) blurts out: "Hey, you've been a real pain in the butt on this issue. I've had it with your arrogance. I have enough problems in my life to have to put up with this." This is not the first time that Joe has behaved this way in situations of this sort.

• You have decided you need to address Joe's behavior. Based on the materials from the text (Chapter 9), how would you approach resolving this problem?

Here is the Essay I wrote: 

   First, I realize that Joe is experiencing stress. He seems to have a high level of hostility and anger and he doesn’t know how to cope. The problem, however, is that Joe is taking his frustration out on his colleague and he is not hiding how he feels.  Second, I would stop a moment to ask Joe about his thoughts on the performance process and find out how he would like to see things go.  According to the text, “if employees are given a sense of control over their work environment, such as being given a chance to be involved in the decision-making process that affects them; this will reduce their work stress.” At this point, I am not rewarding Joe for his bad behavior; rather, I am ensuring that it doesn’t get worse.

I have to understand that Joe may be feeling under pressure at work. He is exhibiting workplace aggression where he reacts to frustration.   And while I will take a moment to understand where Joe is coming from I will also ensure that these types of outbursts do not happen again. Once the three of us have reached an agreement on the performance appraisal process, I will conclude the meeting. Before Joe leaves I will ask him to meet me in my office and I will ask Mary to stay behind. After Joe leaves the room, I would apologize to Mary and inform her that no one deserves to be spoken to that way. I will inform her that I will be working with Joe to solve his disagreements. And finally I would ask Mary to keep our conversation confidential.

Now that Joe is waiting for me outside of my office, he and I will have a private chat. And this is how it would go. “Are you okay, Joe?” “You seem to be very frustrated in our meeting today. Would you please tell me what happened?” I will hear Joe’s thoughts and I will be very understanding. However, I will make it pointedly clear to Joe that cannot happen again. He will be referred to our Employee Assistance Program where he can seek stress management help. Suggesting an EAP to Joe may be the best option because Joe could be dealing with personal issues unrelated to work. “Although EAPs are aimed mainly at work-related difficulties, they can also help employees with problems that originate outside the workplace when such troubles impact work attendance or on-the-job performance” (Rouse, n.d.).  Nonetheless, I will provide him with all the tools and resources he needs to improve his situation and his performance on the job. Joe will still be given a warning for inappropriate workplace behavior, but I will give him an opportunity for coaching and counseling before any disciplinary measures are taken.

            Meanwhile, I will begin immediately drafting a policy on “handling interpersonal conflicts at work.”  Expectations will include cooperative and courteous behaviors.  Treating others with dignity and respect during meetings and other workplace interactions will also be a requirement. Employees will be made aware of all programs available to assist them. In the policy, they will be encouraged to seek help if they sense a stressful workplace environment. It will be a very detailed document with not only policies and practices, but it will also include options and resources.  Basically, I will outline departmental guidelines and the consequences for not following them will be included. Because next time, if someone else has an outburst like Joe, based on the new policy they may be terminated.

  

References

Luthans, F. (2011). Organizational Behavior: An Evidence-Based Approach, 12th Edition. New York. McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Rouse, M. (2007). Employee assistance program (EAP), Retrieved from http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/employee-assistance-program

Here is the grade I received and my professor's comments:

Kendra,

Submission Score(30 pts)	Comments
Kendra Thornton - Lesson 08	10/21/2013 12:01:57 AM	93.33%(28 pts)

Well  done. EAP is a good idea. When YOU send an employee to the EAP provider, YOU can get the results of the conversations and what the issues are. If an employee refuses to go to EAP or does not keep appointments, this should be grounds for termination (as written in your EE manual). What does your employee handbook say about outburst in the workplace? What else do you know about Joe? Passed OVER FOR PROMOTION? problems WORKING WITH OR FOR WOMEN?

This action is borderline insubordination. It is also not his first outburst. Watch for danger signs. He may need remedial help; or may be a potential danger in the workplace.

Well written, good content, context, grammar and spelling.

Best,

Dr. G

Managing Disabilities in the Workplace: ADA Compliance

Why do employers have an obligation to accommodate disabilities?  The purpose of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is to provide disabled workers with a level playing field within the workplace.  Qualified individuals with disabilities should have the same employment opportunities as everyone else. They should be able to secure and retain employment, promoted and advanced within the workplace, not be discriminated against because of their disability and reasonably accommodated.   The ADA was influenced by the Rehabilitation Act and modeled after it.  It is a federal anti-discrimination law that apply to all employers, both public and private with 15 or more employees.  It protects qualified individuals with disabilities from discrimination and it requires "reasonable accommodation” if needed in order to perform “essential functions” of a job. The ADA of 1990 was amended on September 25, 2008 and took effect on January 1, 2009. It is is enforced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. 

Because people with disabilities should not be discriminated against in any aspect of employment, including, but not limited to, candidate search and hiring, reasonable accommodation is required during the application and interview process. The first step is to ask all job candidates if they require reasonable accommodation when scheduling an interview. This is okay as long as more probing questions about the disability itself are not asked. Further, it is important for employers to know their organizational policies on reasonable accommodation requests, including the time-frame for providing one.  Second, all requests for reasonable accommodation should be documented. Some reasonable accommodations during the application process can include, but is not limited to, making the application available in alternate formats, such as large print, Braille, or computer disk, in an oral or pre-recorded format, or as an electronic document that can be completed using a computer or if an application or forms are paper-based, allow candidates to take them home, if requested.  Further, when interviewing candidates, employers must ensure all questions are legal and appropriate; and questions that focus on possible disabilities should be avoided.

 In addition, interviewers may not ask questions about a person’s perceived or actual disability. Questions should only investigate a person’s ability to perform the “essential functions” of the job. In addition to not questioning people about their present disabilities, employers cannot ask about previous workers’ compensation claims, history of hospitalization or past substance abuse. More, employers may not ask how often a person will need to be absent for medical care. However, the company’s attendance policy can be stated and the applicant may be asked if they can meet them. 

Employers can comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act by implementing effective processes, methods and procedures for accommodation. First, employers should engage employees in an interactive process. Here, “employers become aware of an employee’s need for accommodation and then work with that person to find mutually acceptable accommodation” (Walsh, p. 305). This process involves the employer identifying and examining the job, its purpose and essential functions. Next, the employer and the disabled individual work together to determine the precise job-related limitations that pose barriers to the individual’s job performance. And then, the two parties identify, discuss and determine which specific accommodations will remove the barriers and difficulties, ultimately allowing the individual to perform the essential functions of the job. Second, “employers should access the effectiveness of each accommodation and the preference of the individual to be accommodated and then determine whether the various accommodations would pose an undue hardship upon the employer” (http://www.mediate.com/articles/bullivant.cfm).

“Recently, in Barnett v. U.S. Air, Inc., 228 F.3d 1105 (9th Cir. 2000), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (whose decisions govern the Western states) addressed the interactive process in depth, noting that “the interactive process is a mandatory rather than a permissive obligation on the part of employers under the ADA and . . . this obligation is triggered by an employee or an employee’s representative giving notice of the employee’s disability and the desire for an accommodation” (http://www.mediate.com/articles/bullivant.cfm). The interactive process is one of the best ways for an employer to avoid liability in a disability discrimination lawsuit. And showing a good faith effort to reasonably accommodate is what matters most.

While employers want to maintain productive employees within the workplace, the overall objective of reasonable accommodation is compliance with the Americans with Disability Act. Lawsuits can bankrupt an organization. Besides being the right thing to do, “the ADA is a federal mandate that carries heavy fines and penalties for noncompliance” (http://www.adaconsultants.com/WhyComply.aspx). However, employers can demonstrate proactive steps when they create and implement human resources reasonable accommodation practices, policies and procedures within their organizations. Good faith efforts that demonstrate their willingness to accommodate qualified individuals who are disabled will save them penalties and unnecessary court costs. Recruiting and hiring disabled workers can improve their bottom line because of increased worker productivity and performance. Further, employer’s efforts will present them in a favorable light and their risks for liability will be reduced. Once organizations take these steps to provide reasonable accommodations they will show they have a handle on the ADA requirements and they will meet EEOC guidelines.  The outcome will be federal law compliance, and nondiscriminatory hiring, recruiting, interviewing, promotion and advancement, discharge and any other terms, conditions and privileges of employment practices within their organization. 

When implementing your recruitment, application and interviewing strategies here are some suggestions: 

DO NOT

• Inquire about an individual’s disability or perceived to be disability during any recruiting, application and / or interview process.

• Document or track any information related to an applicant’s disability during your recruiting, application and / or interview process. 

• Ask if any disability claims have been filed or intend on being filed during your recruitment, application and / or interview process.

• Ask any questions that are not specifically related to the job or job performance during your recruitment, application and / or interview process.

• Ask questions to elicit information that could be used to discriminate against persons with a disability.

• Ask or elicit questions concerning an individual’s medical history. Refrain from seeking any medical data from all applicants, whether disabled or not during your recruitment, application and / or interviewing process. This includes, medications taken, worker’s compensation claims filed previous or current medical history or condition.

• Discriminate against qualified disabled persons who can perform the essential parts of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation.

YOU MAY

• Ask are “you able to perform the essential duties of this job, with or without an accommodation?”  

• Request a satisfactory medical examination, if it applies to job requirements as a condition of employment. (Every person hired to do the same kind of work must be subjected to the same medical inquiries or exams).

• Seek medical information from job candidates ONLY after job candidates have been conditionally offered employment, based on their other qualifications.

YOU MAY NOT

• Discriminate against qualified disabled persons who can perform the essential parts of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation.

There are serious legal consequences for violating ADA in addition to the harmful affect to an employer’s reputation.  The purpose of the ADA as amended is to provide qualified individuals with disabilities the same employment opportunities available to others without disabilities.

References:

 Disability Access Consultants (2012). Why Comply with the ADA? Retrieved November, 13, 2012 from http://www.adaconsultants.com/WhyComply.aspx

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (1990). Titles I and V of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/ada.cfm

Society for Human Resource Management (2012). Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Retrieved from http://www.shrm.org/legalissues/federalresources/federalstatutesregulationsandguidanc/pages/americanswithdisabilitiesactof1990(ada).aspx

Goren, W. (2012).  Concept of Undue Hardship and Reasonable Accommodation in the Employment Context. Retrieved from http://www.mediate.com/articles/gorenw2.cfm

Walsh, D. (2010). Employment Law For Human Resource Practice. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning

International Human Resource Management

In the United States, we tend to focus more on traditional human resources management practices. However, any organization that conducts business outside of their original country is considered a Multi-National Enterprise (MNE) or Multi-National Corporation (MNC).

Therefore, it is critically important for companies (including those in the U.S.) to understand implications of International Human Resources Management. Here is a brief overview and introduction to IHRM.

IHRM (International Human Resources Management) goes beyond the traditional role of Human Resource Management.

·         Traditional Human Resource Management typically focuses on local customs alone

·         Traditional HRM professionals are least likely to take on international assignments      

·         And they may not operate as strategic partners in the internationalization of their firms

International Human Resource Management is the study and application of ALL human resource management activities within the global environment and basically it takes the traditional HRM role to an international level.

Again, any Organization that conducts business outside of their original country is considered a Multi-National Enterprise (MNE) or Multi-National Corporation (MNC). These organizations can be described as operating their businesses as either:

·         Multi-domestically

·         Internationally or

·         Globally

·         Transnational

And depending on a firm’s strategy, they can be categorized as either one of the above.  

 Multi-domestic strategies are for organizations that have a poly-centrism managerial style.  This means host country cultures and standards are more prominent than those of the home-country; and decentralization is emphasized where independent decisions and judgments are made based on local customs. This organizational strategy is likely to have more wholly owned subsidiaries (where independent companies have developed).   

Global business strategies are used when management uses their home-country standards to run their international activities (ethnocentrism).

Transnational organizations have a geo-centric mindset. Their managerial outlook involves creating a global network and a transnational strategy where they integrate various elements of their global organization into their business strategies.      

•      Ethnocentric orientations: Their IHRM practices for their international operations copy their parent-company practices and are very centralized.

•      Polycentric mindsets of firms: Their subsidiaries are left alone to follow the local HRM practices and their IHRM practices tend to be decentralized.

•      Geocentric firms: Are eclectic. They borrow best practices from around the world and they don’t necessarily choose customs of headquarters over local practices.

  Reference:  Briscoe, D., Schuler, R., Tarique, I. (2012). International Human Resources Management. New York, Routledge.