Assignment

1. When Maria Suarez got her new job, she was happy. As an oil rigger, she would make enough money to support herself and her two children. But after a week of working with a primarily male crew, her happiness was gone. Her co-workers were the reason. At first the men made unwelcome comments about her body. Then sexual graffiti mentioning her name appeared. When she came to work one morning a nude female picture was pinned to one of the rigs. Her name had been scrawled across the bottom. Maria complained to the crew foreman, who referred her to the site manager. "Let's ignore it for a while," he told Maria. "It's just good fun. The men are testing you. You've got to fit in."

Based on your reading of chapter 20 of the text, Reed, Pagattaro, Cahoy, Shedd, and Magid (2015) and other academic research, address the issues raised in the Maria Suarez job dilemma by responding to the following questions:

What are Maria's legal rights in this situation?
What would you do if you were the site manager?
Do you think Maria should just try to "fit in"?

As you respond to the learning activity, consider the following:

How Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits employment discrimination based on many different factors.Employment practices that may put a business at risk for claims of discrimination.

2. The learning activity below covers several labor laws that include WARN Act (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), The Fair Labor Standards Act, and Electronic Communications Privacy Act. After reading chapter 21 of the text, Reed, Pagattaro, Cahoy, Shedd, and Magid (2015), respond to the questions that follow.

You just had one of those days--exciting and overwhelming. As your company's director of human relations, you have dealt with an employee asking how much leave he can take when his wife has their first baby next month. A phone call from the company's CFO involved discussions of potential layoffs in order to "make the budget." A group of employees came to meet with you, and they indicated they were talking with union organizers as a way to combat the company's policy of monitoring phone calls and e-mail messages. Another group of employees expressed their feelings that they were not being paid for all the time they worked.

Before heading home, you take a few minutes to reflect and ask yourself the following questions:

How is the workday calculated?What legal requirements have to be met before layoffs can occur? What is the company's responsibility to educate employees about their rights under the FMLA? Can your company properly monitor its employees' phone calls and e-mail messages?
While responding to the learning activity, consider the following:

The authority of an agent to act on behalf of a principal and the resulting ethical considerations. The necessity of adequate and detailed documentation to justify employer decisions.

3. After watching the video, "What Does an Inclusive Work Environment Look Like?" discuss the following:

The need for flexibility to accommodate a diverse workforce, and the benefits of an inclusive workplace environment. (Zundel, 2015)

Type the title "What Does an Inclusive Work Environment Look Like?" (from: Managing Diversity) in the Search Bar to find the video.
Reference

Zundel, C. M. (2015, December 16). What Does an Inclusive Work Environment Look Like? [Video file].

4. After watching the video, "Bullying Versus Harassment", discuss the following:

When bullying rises to the level of illegal harassment, and the need for workplace policies addressing all negative behaviors. (Zundel, 2016)

Type the title "Bullying Versus Harassment" (from: How to Handle Workplace Bullying) in the Search Bar to find the video.

Reference

Zundel, C. M. (2016, July 20). Bullying Versus Harassment [Video file]. Retrieved from Lynda website.

5. After watching the video, "Definition of an Employee", discuss the following:

The rise of non-standard workers who operate outside the confines of traditional full-time employment, the differences between employees and independent contractors, and the factors a business must weigh when determining employment status of its workers. (Cascio, 2016)
Type the title "Definition of an Employee" (from: Human Resources in the On-Demand Economy) in the Search Bar to find the video.

Reference

Cascio, W. (2016, May 10). Definition of an Employee [Video file]. Retrieved from Lynda website.

6. The case below is an example of how an agency decision is appealed to a federal district trial court (U.S. District Court). The example agency is the National Labor Relations Board or the NLRB. It shows how the U.S. Justices defer to the decisions of Administrative Law Judges (called "ALJs"), a position for which I was being considered until President Bush changed the selection process and I decided not to sit again for the written and verbal tests and the President refused to "grandfather in" me and the other candidates. :>(

The abbreviated case is below. Discuss the case based on what you learned during week four. Do you agree with the general rule that the federal judges will follow the decision of the ALJs? What would be your recommendation?

Grill Concepts Services, Inc. d/b/a The Daily Grill, Board Case No. 31-CA-126475 (reported at 364 NLRB No. 36) (D.C. Cir. Decided January 29, 2018)

In an unpublished per curiam judgment, the D.C. Circuit summarily enforced those portions of the Board's order related to several uncontested unfair-labor-practice violations, and remanded the remainder of the case, which includes numerous work rule findings, to the Board for reconsideration in light of The Boeing Company, 365 NLRB No. 154 (Dec. 14, 2017). In Boeing, the Board (Chairman Miscimarra, Members Kaplan and Emanuel; Members Pearce and McFerran, dissenting) overruled one prong of its previous test, announced in Lutheran Heritage Village-Livonia, 343 NLRB 646 (2004), under which a "facially neutral" rule (one not explicitly restricting Section 7 activity) was unlawful if employees would "reasonably construe" it as prohibiting protected activity.

Boeing issued after briefing was completed in this review proceeding but before oral argument had been held. In its judgment, after granting partial summary enforcement, the Court remanded not only with respect to the seven violations affected by Boeing, but also with respect to the remaining disputed violations that were unaffected by Boeing. The Court explained that "[a]lthough these determinations are unaffected by the new Boeing test, we believe it would waste judicial resources to hear and decide them now while, at the same time, a substantial part of the case is remanded." The Circuit Court judgment [was] issued on January 29, 2018.... (Summary of NLRB Decisions For Week Of January 29 - February 2, 2018, 2018).

Reference

Summary of NLRB Decisions For Week Of January 29 - February 2, 2018. (2018).

7. I found that practical application is a good learning tool. Thus, discuss the decision of the National Labor Relations Board in the case of EYM King of Missouri, LLC d/b/a Burger King (14-CA-188832; 366 NLRB No. 5) Kansas City, MO, January 29, 2018 below in light of what you learned in week four, agency decisions and their impact on the business environment.

The Board adopted the Administrative Law Judge's dismissal of the complaint alleging that the Respondent violated Section 8(a)(1) by threatening to discharge employees for engaging in a protected strike and threatening to falsify the reasons for the discharges.

Charge filed by Workers Organizing Committee - Kansas City. Administrative Law Judge Christine E. Dibble issued her decision on September 29, 2017. Members Pearce, McFerran, and Emanuel participated. (Summary of NLRB Decisions For Week Of January 29 - February 2, 2018, 2018).

Reference

Summary of NLRB Decisions For Week Of January 29 - February 2, 2018. (2018).

8. After reading the week five course materials, share your thoughts regarding the direct quote of former Justice Sandra O'Connor, Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306, 330 (2003), who wrote the following in her opinion of the affirmative action, Grutter v. Bollinger (2003):

"[M]ajor American businesses have made clear that the skills needed in today's increasingly global marketplace can only be developed through exposure to widely diverse people, cultures, ideas, and viewpoints."

Reference

Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003).