Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Learning Objectives
1. Discuss the role of ethics in human resource decision
making.
2. Describe the concept of rightsizing and identify
organizational strategies for rightsizing.
3. Describe how to manage termination and retention.
4. Describe the elements of voluntary turnover.
5. Discuss the key human resource issues during mergers
and acquisitions.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Ethics and Human Resource
Management
Ethics refers to an individual’s beliefs about
what is right and wrong and what is good and
bad. Ethics are formed by the societal context
in which people and organizations functions.
Ethical behavior and legal behavior are
not always the same because ethics and law
do not always coincide precisely, therefore,
managers must take steps to ensure their
behavior is both ethical and legal.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Rightsizing the Organization
Rightsizing is the process of monitoring and
adjusting the composition of the organization’s
workforce to its optimal size.

Organizations face a real challenge in managing

the size of their workforces as a way to deal with
their current needs and potential future
economic realities.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights

reserved.
Is Downsizing Effective?
A major study was conducted in the 1990s. It tracked
companies from 1980 through 1994.
Stable employers are defined as those firms in
which changes in employment throughout these years
fell between plus and minus 5%.
Employment downsizers are firms in which the
decline in employment was more than 5% and the
decline in plant and equipment was less than 5%.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

 Progressive Discipline
Punishment refers to Disciplinary programs
following unacceptable are designed to improve
behavior with some type performance.
of negative consequences. The goal is to convince
Discipline refers to the the employee to stop the
system of rules and ineffective behavior.
procedures for how and
when that punishment is
administered and how
severe the punishment

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights

reserved.
Progressive Disciplinary Plans (con’t)
Suspension refers to a temporary layoff
and is usually the third step in progressive
disciplinary plans.

Termination is the final step. The

employee is finally fired.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Employment-at-Will
This is the only real legal perspective on
employee termination and is based on a
nineteenth-century common law rule.
This view asserts that because an employee
can terminate an employment relationship at
anytime (i.e. quit a job), the employer should
have the same rights.
Therefore, employment-at-will states that an
employer can terminate any employee at any
time, for any reason (good or bad), or for no
reason at all.
Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
The Effects of Job Dissatisfaction
Organizational commitment is the degree to
which an employee identifies with an
organization and is willing to exert effort on
behalf of the organization.

Organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs)

include employee behaviors that are beneficial to
the organization but which are not formally
required as part of an employee’s job.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Retention Strategies
are pre-
Realistic job previews (RJPs)
employment previews that provide the job
applicant with accurate and realistic
information. They can also be used with new
employees as a means of socializing them in
their new job roles, and they are effective in
reducing turnover.

Copyright ©2012 by Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.