Jack Nelson's Problem

Jack Nelson 's Problem

What do you think is causing some of the problems in the bank’s home office and branches?
First of all, there is a lack of communication between branches, management, and the home office. The supervisors lead their own employees without any guidance or exchange with the home office. There is a high rate of employee turnover, which can have a variety of causes. According to the text, the problem in this situation is that whenever a new employee was hired, one would also end-up leaving. People in the home office seem to be ill-trained. They are lacking in specific knowledge needed for their jobs. This shows that there is a piece missing in this organization. All of the branches hire their own employees with no input or exchange with the home office as well. This leads to varying levels of expertise among the newly hired employees. The missing piece is a Human Resource Department.

Do you think setting up an HR unit in the main office would help?
“The advantage of a strong HR department is employees who are happier, more trustful, and more prone to stay with the company” (Singh, 2011). An HR department would help with making sure that new employees were skilled and experienced for the job they were being hired for, which would, ideally, reduce the employee turn-over rate. The fact that the company had grown so quickly also shows why it was lacking in an HR department and why one is now needed. A central HR department would take some of the strain off of branch managers because they would handle the hiring of qualified employees and employee retention. The staffing functions of this organization are currently run without any real plan and without communication. Implementing an HR department would remedy that.

What specific functions should an HR unit carry out? What HR functions would then be carried out by supervisors and other line managers?
The HR department would determine what jobs needed to be filled, as well as how many people were needed to fill them, they would also be responsible for finding the best qualified candidates - the ones with knowledge and prior experience in this sort of organization. The HR department would also implement and handle communication between the branches and the main office as well as between branches. They could handle training schedules and make sure that all employees were trained properly also. The HR department would carry-out employee evaluations once or twice a year to determine where the strengths and weaknesses were in the current team. Line managers would assist with carrying out the training and the evaluations for the employees they supervise.
References
Dessler, G. (2011). A Framework for Human Resource Management (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Singh, S., Sharma, G. D., & Goraya, A. K. (2011). Study of the qualitative effect of human resource management in organizations. Rochester: doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1850447

Answer the questions to the case, "LearnInMotion.com: A Question of Discrimination," at the end of Chapter 2. Include at least one outside source supporting your answers. Explain your answers in 200 words. Respond to at least two of your fellow students ' postings.

Our company is in New York City. We now have only about five employees and are only planning on hiring about three or four more. Is our company covered by equal rights legislation?
The law in New York states that any company or organization with four or more employees is bound by the employment discrimination laws. Because of this, the company is covered by equal rights legislation at the state level.
Were we within our legal rights to ask the possibly age-related and substance abuse-related questions? Why or why not?
The Age Discrimination Employment Act makes it illegal to discriminate against employees or potential employees based on age (Dessler, 2011). For this reason, the age-based questions were not within the company’s right to ask.
Substance abuse questions are not specifically banned under law. It is common for employers to ask questions regarding criminal history and do background checks before hiring someone. The questions should be appropriate to the job, but it seems that they are asked more often than not (Dessler, 2011). Employers argue that criminal history or substance abuse are relevant to any job and the performance that will be expected in that position.
Did Dan and Alex create a hostile environment for Ruth? Why or why not? How should we have handled this matter?
It is difficult to determine whether a hostile work environment was created for Ruth. It all depends on whether the law looks at this matter objectively, using the Reasonable Person Standard or if it is viewed subjectively according to how Ruth felt because of the comments that were being made. When it comes to sexual harassment, for example, there must be more than just discomfort; an employee must feel that their job is in jeopardy because of the treatment they are receiving. I guess, in that way, it is considered both objectively and subjectively (Twerski & Wedell, 2012).
This situation should have been addressed through the company management or HR department as soon as it became a problem. Many employees do not like to do that though because they fear that they will lose their jobs if they say something. If there is reason for them to believe that, then a hostile workplace has been created. If it is a fear without basis, one has not been (Twerski & Wedell, 2012).
What have we been doing wrong up to now with respect to EEO-related matters, and how do you suggest we rectify the situation in the future?
Expectations of employees must be well laid-out and understood. This must be a part of the training that all employees receive. If this does not happen, then it leaves the door open for trouble because people will cross lines that they do not even realize are there in the first place. This can lead to legal trouble for the company.
It should also be written-out in the employee handbook regarding what to do if someone or a group is making you feel uncomfortable in the workplace. It should include that your job is safe if you have to report a situation, but explain that unfounded reports will lead to disciplinary action.

References
Dessler, G. (2011). A framework for human resource management. (6 ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
New york commission on human rights. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.nyc.gov/html/cchr/html/coverage/employment.shtml
Twerski, A., Henderson, J. & Wendel, W. (2012). Torts : cases and materials. New York: Wolters Kluwer Law & Business.

References: Dessler, G. (2011). A framework for human resource management. (6 ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc. New york commission on human rights. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.nyc.gov/html/cchr/html/coverage/employment.shtml Twerski, A., Henderson, J. & Wendel, W. (2012). Torts : cases and materials. New York: Wolters Kluwer Law & Business.