1.

What is Employee Training and Development Program, discuss its importance and site
examples of a certain program applicable to your respective agency or organization (if
employed) and personal growth and development (self-employed/business owner).

Training presents a prime opportunity to expand the knowledge base of all employees,
but many employers find the development opportunities expensive. Employees also miss out
on work time while attending training sessions, which may delay the completion of projects.
Despite the potential drawbacks, training and development provides both the company as a
whole and the individual employees with benefits that make the cost and time a worthwhile
investment.
Addressing Employee Weaknesses: Most employees have some weaknesses in their
workplace skills. A training program allows you to strengthen those skills that each employee
needs to improve. A development program brings all employees to a higher level so they all
have similar skills and knowledge. This helps reduce any weak links within the company who
rely heavily on others to complete basic work tasks.
Improved Employee Performance: An employee who receives the necessary training is
better able to perform her job. She becomes more aware of safety practices and proper
procedures for basic tasks. The training may also build the employee's confidence because she
has a stronger understanding of the industry and the responsibilities of her job. This confidence
may push her to perform even better and think of new ideas that help her excel. Continuous
training also keeps your employees on the cutting edge of industry developments. Employees
who are competent and on top of changing industry standards help your company hold a
position as a leader and strong competitor within the industry.
Structured Training and Development: A structured training and development program
ensure that employees have a consistent experience and background knowledge. The
consistency is particularly relevant for the company's basic policies and procedures. All
employees need to be aware of the expectations and procedures within the company. This
includes safety, discrimination and administrative tasks. Putting all employees through regular
training in these areas ensures that all staff members at least have exposure to the information.
Employee Job Satisfaction: Employees with access to training and development
programs have the advantage over employees in other companies who are left to seek out
training opportunities on their own. The investment in training that a company makes shows the
employees they are valued. The training creates a supportive workplace. Employees may gain
access to training they wouldn't have otherwise known about or sought out themselves.
Employees who feel appreciated and challenged through training opportunities may feel more
satisfaction toward their jobs.

2. Is labor union important in the organization? What are the pros and cons of having it in
the organization? Identify the different labor activities considered beneficial to
organization/company/agency.
A labor union, officially known as a “labor organization,” is an entity formed by workers in
a particular trade, industry, or company for the purpose of improving pay, benefits, and
working conditions. Also called a “trade union” or a “worker’s union,” a labor union
selects representatives to negotiate with employers in a process known as collective
bargaining. When successful, the bargaining results in an agreement that stipulates
working conditions for a period of time. Labor unions may also advocate for legal, social,
and political measures for the country as a whole.1

Labor unions are often industry-specific and tend to be most common today among
public sector (government) employees and those in manufacturing, mining, construction,
and transportation. In 2019, 14.6 million U.S. wage and salary workers were members of
unions. Union membership was five times more common among public than private
sector workers.2

Rises and falls in union membership have been linked to economic conditions. When
there is full employment and rising wages, unions usually experience decline, particularly
among younger workers. In times of recession, union membership becomes more
attractive.

Pros
Pro 1: Unions provide worker protections.
In most U.S. states, non-union workers are at-will employees. In short, employers can
fire employees for virtually any reason. Of course, there are limitations in place such as
discrimination. For union members, it’s different. There must be just cause. And it’s not a
simple firing. In most instances, this type of decision must go through arbitration or a
grievance procedure.

Speaking of those procedures, unions make it easier for workers to handle disputes and
complaints with management and other workers. Members, regardless of status, are
able to use the processes to raise grievances. In some unions, members will see the
organization subsidize legal fees on disputes related to discrimination and wrongful
terminations.

Pro 2: Unions promote higher wages and better benefits.

Through collective bargaining, unions are able to secure higher wages and better
benefits. That said, unionized workers are not the only ones to benefit from this.
Employers have also raised wages for non-unionized workers in order to compete for
talent.

Pro 3: Unions are economic trend setters.

Before unions, weekends and provisions for workers did not really exist. Even though
the U.S. workforce has not been 100% unionized, unions do impact trends that benefit
all workers. Other examples include the minimum wage, OSHA guidelines, and overtime
rules.

Pro 4: Political organizing is easier.

Unions are able to amplify and advance political causes the working class supports. This
doesn’t necessarily mean unionized workers always support the political agenda of their
union, but generally speaking, unions help keep candidates focused on issues that
matter to the American worker, unionized or non-unionized.

READ: The NLRB Is Watching Your Social Media Policy Whether You Have a Union or
Not
Cons
Con 1: Unions require dues and fees that some workers don’t want to pay.
Workplaces with unions fall into two categories: open and closed. What’s the difference
between the two? Open shops don’t require employees to pay dues or fees to the union.
In a closed environment, employees have to be union members in order to apply for a
job. Some will allow candidates to apply for the job as a non-unionized candidate, but if
the candidate is hired, the non-member must become a member. Some allow
employees to work as non-members, but those workers are required to pay agency fees,
which contribute to the work the union is doing.

Opponents say closed environments are unfair to those individuals who have valid
reasons for not supporting the work of the union.

Another reason for this particular con is that union dues are deducted from a worker’s
paycheck. In most circumstances, that can translate to a deduction of 1.5%-2.5% in their
pay. These fees can reduce or wipe out any pay gain the employee would have had in
moving from a previous job to another.

Con 2: Labor unions discourage individuality

Workers are bound by the decisions of the union even if they disagree with the decision.
In some instances, they only way a unionized employee can get out of the situation is to
resign, which isn’t always an option.

Also, working in groups encourages “group think” situations, which in turn discourages
individual creativity.

Con 3: Unions make it harder to promote and terminate workers.

Unions focus a lot on the seniority of the worker. This often translates into the lack of
advancement for new and high performing employees to advance. Similarly, it is difficult
to demote those employees who are not performing at high levels.
 Going a step further, unions can discount worker education and experience. Because of
seniority, the perfect employee may not get the job because they have not been with the
company/union a specific amount of time.

Con 4: Unions can drive up costs.

Though it is a pro that unions can often get higher compensation for their members, it
can likewise be stated that hiring unionized workers can be more expensive than hiring
non-unionized workers. It also comes with added safeguards and rules and regulations
that can lead to hire litigation and negotiation costs should issues be taken to arbitration
or put through a grievance process.

Conclusion

The above pros and cons were in no way designed to change positions on whether or
not unions are more positive than negative or vice versa. As with everything, there are
elements of both in the argument. It depends on whether or not a company’s culture is
ripe for a unionized workforce.

HR professionals must also consider the changing face of unions. At one point in time,
unions were negatively perceived and were less diversified. That is no longer the case.
More and more, union membership is looking less white male and more inclusive. And
though the numbers show a decline in unions, there are some signs resurgence is on
the way. Time will tell as to how that plays out.

3. Identify the difference between layoffs and retrenchment. When do we consider them
healthy in the organization/company/agency?

Definition of Layoff
To layoff is to temporarily or permanently terminate or get rid of the staff / employee.
This is usually done by a company / firm on account of a business slowdown as a result
of which there is insufficient work to be allotted to an employee who is registered with
the establishment and who has not yet been retrenched.

It is Suspension or termination of employment (with or without notice) by an employer or

management. A company layoff involves the cessation of employee benefits such as
salary or wages. The laid-off employees are paid laid-off compensation. All of the laid-off
employees should be taken back in their usual posts, as soon as the layoff lifted out. It
may be due to, one of the given reasons:

Shortage of raw materials

Economic recession
Breakdown of machinery
Accumulation of stocks
Definition of Retrenchment
Retrenchment is to reduce the amount of corporate expenses. When a company/firm
implements retrenchment, it cuts off or minimises all the unnecessary expenditures,
 usually by cutting back on the diversity of products or services it offers and often
reducing the size of its company by closing down some of its offices that don’t
necessarily mean a reduction in a company’s workforce.

It simply means termination of employee’s services, because of replacement of the

worker by machines or closure of the unit due to the lack of product’s demand, produced
by the unit. In retrenchment, the termination of services of several employees takes
place where they are sent to the home and their connection with the organisation are
completely and immediately severed.

Key Differences between layoff and retrenchment

Layoff refers to the provisional termination of the employee, at the instance of the
employer. Retrenchment means involuntary separation of an employee due to the
replacement of labour by machines or the close of the department.
The layoff is an action step, whereas retrenchment is a business strategy to reduce
company’s expenses.
The layoff is defined in section 2 (kkk) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Conversely,
Retrenchment is defined in section 2 (oo) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
The layoff is of a temporary nature, i.e. it is for a definite period, in which the employees
are recalled after the expiry of the term. As opposed to retrenchment, is permanent in
nature.
After the declaration of layoff, the company’s operations stops because of the shortage
of raw material, the breakdown of machinery, economic recession and so on. On the
other hand, the operations of the company continue even after retrenchment is declared.
As soon as the layoff period is over, the employees are re-appointed to their previous
posts. Unlike Retrenchment, in which the employees are not taken back by the
company, once they are terminated.

Conclusion
Therefore, with the above discussion, it is quite clear that layoff and retrenchment are
two different ways of involuntarily terminating employees. While in both the cases the
employees are paid compensation as per the method specified in the act. However,
gratuity is paid only in retrenchment but not in layoff.

4. What are impacts of the integration of Human Resource Information System (HRIS) in
the Human Resource Development or in the HR core functions?

HRIS stands for Human Resources Information System. The HRIS is a system that is
used to collect and store data on an organization’s employees.

In most cases, an HRIS encompasses the basic functionalities needed for end-to-end
Human Resources Management (HRM). It has a system for recruitment, performance
management, learning & development, and more.
 An HRIS is also known as HRIS software. This is a bit confusing as it implies that
different systems can have different software running on them. However, this is not the
case. The HRIS is, in essence, a software package.

The HRIS can either run on the company’s own technical infrastructure, or, what’s more
common nowadays, be cloud-based. This means that the software is running outside of
the company’s premises, making it much easier to update.

Benefits of an HRIS
Using an HRIS has a number of clear benefits.

Record-keeping. An HRIS is a record-keeping system that keeps track of changes to

anything related to employees. The HRIS can be seen as the one source of truth when it
comes to personnel data.
Compliance. Some data is collected and stored for compliance reasons. This includes
material for the identification for employees in case of theft, fraud, or other misbehaviors,
first contact information in case of accidents, citizens identification information for the tax
office, and expiration dates for mandatory certification. All this information can be stored
in the HRIS.
Efficiency. Having all this information in one place not only benefits accuracy but also
saves time.
HR strategy. The HRIS enables the tracking of data required to advance the HR and
business strategy. Depending on the priorities of the organization, different data will be
essential to track. This is where the HRIS comes in.
Self-Service HR. A final benefit is the ability to offer self-service HR to employees and
managers. This enables employees to manage their own affairs. When done right, the
HRIS can offer a good employee experience. Keep in mind that not all HRIS systems
offer this in a user-friendly manner!

5. Introduce a certain Human Resource (HR) issues in your organization and give
examples of programs and activities considered as Human Resource Development
(HRD) best practices that can be adopted/practiced in your organization.
Late pay for Job Orders: One of the major sources of employee dissatisfaction is payroll
delay or inaccurate payroll computation. Imagine the frustration when an employee fails
to pay a bill because he didn't receive his salary on time. While other employees didn't
receive the salary that they expected due to salary disputes. The major factor for salary
disputes is the manual computation of the payroll which is very prone to human error.
Employees are expecting HR to be very proactive with this and extra careful. After all,
employees mainly work to earn a living.
How to solve it:
Maximize technology. Instead of outsourcing your payroll computation or doing it on your
own, use automated payroll systems. These systems will let you remove all the human
errors and make your payroll smooth, easy and 100% accurate.
6. Explain the role of the Human resource manager/practitioner in the employee
empowerment driving culture and capabilities required in the organization and employee
career management.

Employee empowerment is defined as the ways in which organizations provide their

employees with a certain degree of autonomy and control in their day-to-day activities.
This can include having a voice in process improvement, helping to create and manage
new systems and tactics, and running smaller departments with less oversight from
higher-level management.

A key principle of employee empowerment is providing employees the means for making
important decisions and helping ensure those decisions are correct. When deployed
properly, this should result in heightened productivity and a better quality of employee
work and work life.

Employee empowerment varies based on an organization's culture and work design.

However, empowerment is based on the concepts of job enlargement and job
enrichment. Job enlargement differs from job enrichment in that job enlargement is
horizontal expansion and job enrichment is considered vertical.

Job enlargement: Changing the scope of the job to include a greater portion of the
horizontal process.
Example: A bank teller not only handles deposits and disbursement, but also distributes
traveler's checks and sells certificates of deposit.
Job enrichment: Increasing the depth of the job to include responsibilities that have
traditionally been carried out at higher levels of the organization.
Example: The teller also has the authority to help a client fill out a loan application, and
to determine whether or not to approve the loan.
As these examples show, employee empowerment requires:

Training in the skills necessary to carry out the additional responsibilities

Access to information on which decisions can be made
Initiative and confidence on the part of the employee to take on greater responsibility
Employee empowerment also means giving up some of the power traditionally held by
management, which means managers also must take on new roles, knowledge, and
responsibilities. However, this does not mean that management relinquishes all
authority, delegates all decision-making, and allows operations to run without
accountability. It requires a significant investment of time and effort, especially from
management, to develop mutual trust, assess and add to individuals' capabilities, and
develop clear agreements about roles, responsibilities, risk taking, and boundaries.

Part II. Case Study. Read the short case below and answer the questions.
Employee Absence by Stephen Adams

Joan, an employee of Great American Market, was warned about her excessive
absenteeism
several times, both verbally and in writing. The written warning included notice that
“further violations will result in disciplinary actions”, including suspension or discharge.
A short time after the written warning was issued, Joan called work to say she was not
going to be in because her babysitter had called in sick and she had to stay home and
care
for her young child. Joan’s supervisor, Sylvia, told her that she had already exceeded
the
allowed number of absences and warned that if she did not report to work, she could be
suspended. When Joan did not report for her shift, Sylvia suspended her for fifteen days.
In a subsequent hearing, Joan argued that it was not her fault that the babysitter had
cancelled, and protested that she had no other choice but to stay home. Sylvia pointed
out
that Joan had not made a good faith effort to find an alternate babysitter, nor had she
tried
to swap shifts with a co-worker. Furthermore, Sylvia said that the lack of a babysitter
was
not a justifiable excuse for being absent.

Case Questions:
1. Was the suspension fair? Discuss.
2. Did Joan act responsibly? Explain your answer.
3. Should she be fired? Defend your answer.
4. Should the baby sitter be fired? Defend your side.
5. Was Sylvia fair in her actions? Discuss.
6. Is there ever a solution for working mothers? Make some proposals.

Ethical Decision Factors to Consider:

In analyzing this case, here are the ethical decision factors to consider:

Options to be Considered – FMLA is a job protected option for intermittent or continuous

leave to care for a new child, or a sick family member (Kubasek, et al, 2009, pp.536
539). Wages and Hours Bill of 1938, also known as FLSA or Fair Labor Standards Act is
the act in which FMLA is incorporated into (pp. 527 530). California Vacation Law/Labor
Law provides options with paid time off options (Tracy, 2009)

In review of the case, the key factors that should be considered are:

1) Does the employee (Joan) have a backup plan when it comes to childcare needs?
(From a consequential view – can be seen as good or bad based on whether or not
employee has this)

2) If no backup plan available, employee should be allowed to take same day vacation
time and have the leadership team make an exception on an emergency basis if no
vacation time available

From a deontological view, actions would be considered good since it would prevent
progressive disciplinary action.
3) Employee should be allowed to take an emergency short notice day off, or ESN, in
which employee can take in hours or increments

From a humanist view – it would promote intelligence and provide a win win situation for
both employee and employer.

4) Working mothers should be given consideration to be given time off to care for a child
to prevent a “latchkey child” situation (Answers.com, 2006)

With a child being in a home alone, the potential for a child to be exposed to home
dangers exists. (Answers.com, 2006)

5) If the child is sick, employee should be provided time off as mandated by law for
FMLA. Employee must be eligible to qualify.

Recommended Corrective Action:

One recommendation would be to have the supermarket chain invest in an onsite
childcare center at selected locations. As part of “best practices”, the Publix supermarket
chain is an excellent example of how a company can promote positive morale and
employee development. They offer an onsite child care center, so that employees with
children can work while their child receives the best day care. According to some
longstanding workers at this chain, this supermarket supports “anyone confronted with
an illness or personal problem” (Fortune, 2009). The costs for Publix to maintain these
childcare centers are just under 500.00 per month.

The advantages of having an onsite childcare center are:

Convenience
Less stress from management
Comfort of having your child within close proximity
The disadvantages of having onsite childcare are:

Costs: More expensive than other day care centers

More chance for exposure to germs as staff and children increase (Patricelli, 2009)
To prevent potential attendance issues in the future, a semi annual review of the
attendance policies should be reviewed with each employee at Great American Market.
Covering the expectations with the employees will minimize the chance of them using
sick time or unpaid absences to cover babysitting needs. In addition, employees may
consider using the backup care service provided by some employers to assist with care
of a child. The backup care service is great for employees who sometimes have needs
with caring for a young child or an elderly parent. Some employers provide this service
as a benefit to employees through the Work Options Group. Advantages of backup care:

• Available 24/7

• Advice and options provided over the phone when employee calls (Princeton, n.d.)
(Work Options Group The Backup Care Company, n.d.)
• Caregivers are licensed, bonded and insured

Furthermore, employees can take advantage of the EAP, or Employee Assistance

Program. By using the EAP, advice and recommendations can also be provided to the
employee. The service is confidential and free. They can also provide self help
opportunities and counseling in emergencies like what Joan experienced. Many Fortune
500 and other large corporations provide this service as part of their benefits package. If
Joan had called EAP (provided this was a service provided by Great American Market),
she would have been provided with a referral to contact the Work Options Group for
assistance and the chances of her missing work would have decreased. If she had
allowed the caregiver to come over to her home to take care of the child, she still would
have been able to go to work. The supervisor may have worked with her to adjust her
shift to a later one to accommodate the emergency.