affirmative action
employment activities designed to "right past wrongs" by increasing opportunities for minorities and women
agency shop agreement
clause in a labor-management agreement that says employers may hire nonunion workers; employees are not require to join the union by must pay union fee
apprentice programs
training programs involving a period during which a learner works alongside an experienced employee to master the skills and procedures of a craft
arbitration
the agreement to bring in an impartial third party (single arbitrator or a panel of arbitrators) to render a binding decision in a labor dispute
cafeteria-style fringe benefits
fringe benefits plan that allows employees to choose the benefits they want up to a certain dollar amount
collective bargaining
the process whereby union and management representatives form a labor-management agreement, or contract, for workers
compressed workweek
work schedule that allows an employee to work a full number of hours per week but in fewer days
contingent workers
workers who do not have the expectation of regular, full-time employment
core time
in flextime plan, period when all employees are expected to be at their job stations
flextime plan
work schedule that gives employees some freedom to choose when to work, as long as they work the required numbers of hours
fringe benefits
benefits such as sick-leave pay, vacation pay, pension plans, and health plans that represent additional compensation to employees beyond base wages
grievance
a charge by employees that management is not abiding by the terms of the negotiated labor-management agreement
human resource management (HRM)
process of determining human resource needs and then recruiting, selecting, developing, motivating, evaluating, compensating, and scheduling employees to achieve organizational goals
injunction
a court order directing someone to do something or to refrain from doing something
job analysis
study of what is done by employees who hold various job titles
job description
summary of objectives of a job, the type of work to be done, the responsibilities and duties, the working conditions, and the relationship of the job to other functions
job sharing
an arrangement whereby two part-time employees share on full-time job
job simulation
the use of equipment that duplicates job conditions and tasks so that trainees can learn skills before attempting them on the job
job specifications
written summary of the minimum qualifications required of workers to do a particular job
lockout
an attempt by management to put pressure on union by temporarily closing the business
management development
the process of training and educating employees to become good managers and then monitoring the progress of their managerial skills over time
mediation
the use of a third party, called a mediator, who encourages both sides in dispute to continue negotiating and often makes suggestions for resolving the dispute
mentor
an experienced employee who supervises, coaches, and guides lower-level employees by introducing them to the right people and generally being their organizational sponsor
networking
process of establishing and maintaining contacts with key managers in one's own organization and other organizations and using those contacts to weave strong relationships that serve as informal development system
off-the-job training
training that occurs away from the workplace and consists of internal or external programs to develop any of a variety of skills or to foster personal development
online training
training programs in which employees complete classes via the Internet
on-the-job training
training at the workplace that lets the employee learn by doing or by watching others for a while then imitating them
open shop agreement
agreement in right-to-work states that gives workers the option to join or not join a union if one exists in their workplace
orientation
the activity that introduces new employees to the organization; to fellow employees; to immediate supervisors; to policies, practices, and objective of the firm
performance appraisal
an evaluation that measures employee performance against established standards in order to make decisions about promotions, compensation, training, or termination
primary boycott
when a union encourages both its members and the general public not to buy the products of a firm involved in a labor dispute
recruitment
the set of activities used to obtain sufficient number of the right people at the right time
reverse discrimination
discrimination against whites or males in hiring or promoting
right-to-work laws
legislation that gives workers the right, under an open shop, to join a union if it's present
secondary boycott
an attempt by labor to convince others to stop doing business with a firm that is the subject of a primary boycott, prohibited by the Taft-Hartley Act
selection
the process of gathering information and deciding who should be hired, under legal guidelines, for the best interests of the individual and the organization
sexual harassment
unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature
shop stewards
union officials who work permanently in an organization and represent employee interests on a daily basis
strike
union strategy in which workers refuse to go to work; the purpose is to further workers' objectives after an impasse in collective bargaining
strikebreakers
workers hired to do the jobs of striking workers until the labor dispute is resolved
training and development
all attempts to improve productivity by increasing an employee's ability to perform. Training focuses on short-term skills, whereas development focuses on long-term abilities
union
an employee organization that has the main goal of representing members in employee-management bargaining over job-related issues
union shop agreement
clause in a labor-management agreement that says workers do not have to be members of a union to be hired, but must agree to join the union within a prescribed period
vestibule training
(near-the-job training) training done in classrooms where employees are taught on equipment similar to that used on the job