1. "Performance Appraisals and the Law" Please respond to the following:

Most employee complaints related to performance evaluations are based on alleged violations of employment law. Determine what you think would be a common complaint that could have legal consequences. Propose a strategy that HR could implement to reduce the number of these types of employee complaints.

2. "Civil Service and Interviewing Techniques" Please respond to the following:

From the case study "Didn't Cut It? Hire Another", state your analysis of the following and justify your response:

The types of management errors were committed

Other options Kathy and Sam could have considered to fill this position that might have led to a more successful hiring decision

Every department manager should participate in recruiting as an active partner with the employment section of human resources (HR). This collaboration begins with determining and approving a staffing need, identifying recruiting channels to be used, and agreeing on the contents of a position description (also called a job description). The content of an existing job description must be revised and updated as necessary. The partners specify any special recruiting requirements that may be present, consider both internal and external candidates as they become available, and conduct professional interviews to identify the most appropriate of available job candidates.

Because of contemporary legal concerns, primarily the risk of charges of defamation or negligent hiring, a department manager's involvement in checking references and responding to reference requests should be minimal or nonexistent. This task is best left to HR. Of special interest to department managers is the advisability of promoting from within an organization. This is helpful during periods of staff shortage. Employees occasionally maneuver to enhance their salaries.

Case Study: "Didn't Cut It? Hire Another"

Kathy Gray was hired by Meadows Nursing Home for the position of business manager. Hers would be a small department: two employees other than herself plus one open clerical position. Although she had considerable experience with business office operations, this was Kathy's first supervisory position.

One of the first tasks facing Kathy was hiring someone to fill the open clerical position. She asked the individual who handled HR matters for help in finding some candidates for her to interview. There was no HR department as such, just one person who also coordinated purchasing for the home. Kathy's manager, nursing home administrator Sam Weston, chose to sit in on the interviews, citing Kathy's newness to supervision as his reason. Because Kathy had never interviewed or hired before, Weston reasoned that he should assist her in the process.

Kathy and her boss jointly interviewed four candidates. Of these, two appeared to be reasonably qualified for the job. One of these was a young woman named Louise Bennett who worked in the home's food service department. The other was a young woman named Emily Smith whose total work experience consisted of working in a convenience store for a few months.

Following the interviews, Kathy expressed her desire to hire Louise Bennett from food service because she seemed to have the ability and exhibited a strong desire to better herself. She reasoned that selecting Ms. Bennett would show a commitment by the home to develop employees from within the organization. Weston disagreed, telling Kathy that she could do the hiring "the next time a job opened." Weston himself made the decision to hire the other candidate and personally communicated the offer to Emily Smith.
As the 30-day probationary period progressed, it became increasingly evident to Kathy that Emily was not shaping up in a satisfactory manner. Even after providing Ms. Smith a good orientation, providing her with reasonable guidance, and extending her every benefit of the doubt because she had been "the boss's choice," Kathy still had to conclude that the nursing home would be making a mistake by keeping Emily.

On the 28th day of Emily Smith's employment, Kathy Gray went to see Sam Weston. She had kept Weston informed, so it was no surprise to him when Kathy said they should let Smith go and start over.

"Okay," Weston replied. "She didn't cut it? Let her go and hire another person."

Kathy hesitated, then finally said, "I don't believe I should be the one to let her go. I'm not the one who hired her."

"She's your employee," Weston said, "so you get rid of her."

What management errors were committed? Remembering that Emily Smith reported to Kathy even though Weston had hired her, do you believe that Weston dodged his responsibility by ordering Kathy to get rid of Emily? How might this whole situation have been handled in a more professional manner? What effect might the Smith incident have on the future relationship between Kathy Gray and Sam Weston?