Deck 2: The Environment and Management of Industrial Relations

Question 1

Which of the following best explains the rise of a new supervisory class foremen)between workers and owners?

A)the diffusion of scientific management techniques
B)rapid growth in the number of Canadian MBA programs
C)increase in the size of factories
D)the Canadian government's growing recognition of working- class political power
E)the growing unionization of skilled tradespeople

Answer 1

C

Question 2

What was the most important lesson learned by management in the wake of the 1970 Lordstown riots?

A)the benefits of civil rights legislation
B)the value of having highly educated auto workers
C)not to pay workers too well
D)the need to give workers even better pay and longer vacations to keep them content
E)the need to attend to workers' intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivation

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following statements about frictional unemployment is false?

A)It may be higher in good times than in bad.
B)Its rate is typically around 2 percent.
C)It's the most serious type of unemployment affecting Canada today.
D)It affects those who are changing jobs usually voluntarily).
E)There is no policy solution for it.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

All but which one of the following statements about the paternalistic management era is true?

A)All those who did work for others were well treated.
B)Profit as such was not a primary motive for most employers.
C)At this time,relatively few Canadians worked for others.
D)Most business establishments were extremely small by today's standards.
E)Workers had few if any legal rights.

Question 5

High Performance Work Systems are also called all but which of the following?

A)high- innovation
B)innovative work systems
C)high- commitment
D)alternative work practices
E)high- involvement

Question 6

What motivated most workers during the coercive drive era was

A)love.
B)a desire to get out of the house.
C)loyalty to their employers.
D)fear.
E)pride in their craft.

Question 7

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A)During low points of the business cycle,any strikes which do occur are apt to be longer.
B)Strike rates normally rise during high points of the business cycle.
C)Workers only join unions for economic reasons.
D)Union membership normally increases at times of high inflation.
E)Strikes are more apt to be over wages in good times.

Question 8

All but which one of the following helped to explain the American labour movement's declining size and clout during the 1970s?

A)the severing of longstanding political ties between the AFL- CIO and Congressional liberals.
B)Meany's support for the Vietnam War.
C)Meany's staunch support of the Progressive Labor Party.
D)AFL- CIO president George Meany's lack of interest in organizing the unorganized.
E)Meany's support for large weapons systems and clandestine intelligence operations.

Question 9

Which of the following statements comes closest to describing current Canadian management practice?

A)almost completely dominated by progressive HRM
B)generally bureaucratic,with a bit of consensual management at enlightened organizations
C)marked by a general reversion to coercive drive management
D)very much different than it was 15 to 20 years ago
E)a mix of several different approaches,none of which is dominant

Question 10

Which argument do proponents of mandatory retirement most often advance in support of their position?

A)Older people are needed at home to look after young children.
B)Most jobs are too demanding for people over 65.
C)Older people are incapable of learning new skills and keeping up with advancing technology.
D)Few workers over 65 are capable of doing a full day's work.
E)Mandatory retirement at 65 creates jobs for younger workers.

Question 11

Which of the following statements about solutions for demand- deficient unemployment is true?

A)There are many possible solutions for it.
B)Reducing work hours will have little impact on unemployment.
C)In the current economic and political environment,stimulating the economy seems the best way to reduce it.
D)Canada has done more to reduce work hours than have most European countries.
E)The short- term compensation program introduced during the early 1980s didn't work very well.

Question 12

Scientific management,broadly defined,was largely responsible for all but which one of the following?

A)a reduction in the powers of foremen
B)increase in relatively permanent job tenure
C)a greater concern with the physical environment in which work was done
D)shorter working hours
E)growth in employment- related legislation

Question 13

Which of the following best explains why large numbers of academic IR departments were established in the early postwar period?

A)the signing of large numbers of collective agreements and establishment of IR departments in firms
B)the desire of many firms to operate union- free
C)the need to create jobs for large numbers of unemployed managers and union officials
D)post- war veterans' benefits programs
E)the growth of employment- related legislation

Question 14

Cutting labour costs led many employers to engage in all but which of the following practices?

A)decreased use of temporary and part- time workers
B)tough concession bargaining
C)relocating to "union- free areas"
D)two- tier wage systems
E)shifting employment to outside suppliers

Question 15

All but which one of the following trends were associated with welfare capitalist management?

A)company- sponsored recreation programs and sports teams
B)employee savings plans
C)a more prominent role for personnel departments
D)maternity leave benefits
E)night school courses arranged by employers

Question 16

Recent research reveals which paradox regrading unionization rates between Canada and the United States?

A)Even with higher unionization rates,American workers express greater interest in joining unions.
B)Even with equal unionization rates,Canadian workers express greater interest in joining unions.
C)Even with lower unionization rates,American workers express greater interest in joining unions.
D)Even with higher unionization rates,Canadian workers express greater interest in joining unions.
E)Even with equal unionization rates,American workers express greater interest in joining unions.

Question 17

Which of the following statements is most accurate,in your view?

A)Almost no one is working regular hours any more.
B)Moonlighters are greedy people who want two or three jobs at a time when many don't even have one.
C)There has been little change in the proportion of workers working a standard work week.
D)Unions are relatively indifferent to the increase in home- based work and self- employment.
E)There has been significant growth in non- standard employment in recent years.

Question 18

Which of the following statements comparing Taylorism to the coercive drive approach is most nearly true?

A)They took a similar approach to the question of workplace conflict.
B)They were applied to the same groups.
C)They have some similarities,but also some differences.
D)They are one and the same.
E)They have little in common.

Question 19

All but which one of the following statements about demand- deficient unemployment is true?

A)There seems to be little political will to address it.
B)Cutting taxes and lowering interest rates could help reduce it.
C)Public works spending could help reduce it.
D)It continues to be a serious problem.
E)Education and training are the best solutions for it.

Question 20

All but which one of the following statements about the coercive drive system of management is true?

A)It eliminated the role of skilled tradespeople.
B)It led to an increase in the employment of women and children.
C)Employers and managers had virtually total control over workplaces.
D)It featured long work days and little if any employment security.
E)It led to increased labour- management conflict.

Question 21

What might today's managers learn from studying the management history of the 1930s?

A)You can get more and better work from people through negative,rather than positive reinforcement.
B)It's a good idea to hire criminals and ex- prizefighters if you want to keep your plant union- free.
C)Enlightened management practice is all very well in good times,but a luxury you can afford to dispense with when times get tough.
D)You can get away with anything,indefinitely,if people are desperate enough for a job.
E)Reversion to coercive drive management is likely to result in increased conflict and more frequent unionization drives.

Question 22

Why might a firm wishing to cut its labour costs be more likely to adopt a union- replacement strategy in the U.S.than in Canada?

Question 23

Today's workforce has a greater proportion of women and minorities within it.What are the implications for both unions and employers of this development?

Question 24

What were some "positive" ways in which management sought to increase workers' productivity and commitment to the firm during the late 1970s and the 1980s?

Question 25

Why is the Canadian system of Industrial Relations unique in the world?

Question 26

How does today's Canadian labour force differ from that of,say,30 or 40 years ago?

Question 27

Assuming a firm has decided to adopt a union- avoidance strategy,what factors are likely to underlie its choice of hard or soft tactics designed to achieve that end?

Question 28

What are some ways in which the current economic and political environment has made life more difficult for managers?

Question 29

In addition to a broad range of benefit plans,what were some methods used by "welfare capitalist" employers to cement workers' loyalty,reduce turnover,and remain union- free?

Question 30

All except which of the following statement about unionization of part- time workers is true?

A)There are sometimes legislative barriers in the way of it .
B)Part- timers are more apt to quit if they don't like working conditions than to try to improve conditions where they are.
C)Union membership rates among part- timers are roughly the same as among full- timers.
D)In many cases,employer opposition to unionization of part- timers is particularly strong.
E)Such workers tend to be costlier for unions to organize than full- timers.

Question 31

What are management's major aims? Has it always been possible for management to achieve both these aims simultaneously?

Question 32

Is the labour movement happy about the recent growth in non- standard employment?

Question 33

What current management practices are in use today? What's new about these practices.

Question 34

Which of the following is not a commonly used typology for the strategies available under Kochan's Strategic Choice Theory?

A)union removal
B)union substitution/avoidance
C)union resistance
D)union tolerance
E)union acceptance

Question 35

Why is Taylorism generally associated with the de- skilling of workers?

Question 36

Compare the three types of unemployment.

Question 37

Which of the following best describes the principal objectives of welfare capitalism?

A)increasing workers' drive toward cooperative self- help
B)empowering workers
C)keeping people off the welfare rolls
D)extracting the maximum amount of work from employees
E)cementing workers' loyalty to reduce costly turnover

Question 38

In what ways did management IR and personnel practice become more complex during the early postwar period?

Question 39

What are some of the implications of Canada's aging work force?

Question 40

Provincial and Federal governments are subject to different contextual influences in all but which one of the following?

A)implementation of employment practices
B)regulation of industrial relations
C)electoral processes
D)enforcement of industrial relations
E)implementation of employer policies

Question 41

The relative size of IR and HR staffs as a proportion of total staff)may be a good indicator of management's concern for workers.

Question 42

Welfare capitalism satisfied most workers whose firms used it.

Question 43

Any level of Frictional Unemployment is abnormal and undesirable.

Question 44

Changes in the economy have generally made life easier for managers.

Question 45

Management has almost always been able to achieve both its major objectives.

Question 46

Compare and contrast workers' legal rights under paternalistic and coercive drive management.

Question 47

What are some of the most important differences between management in the early paternalistic era and the coercive drive system of management which followed?

Question 48

The entry of large numbers of women into the labour force has had important implications for collective bargaining.

Question 49

The pattern of strikes is different in bad times than in good.

Question 50

Until the early 20th century,most employers personally oversaw all the work done by their workers.

Question 51

Unions welcome the shift to such non- standard employment as temporary,part- time,and home- based work.

Question 52

Today's changing Canadian labour force presents challenges for both workplace equity and government policy.

Question 53

Structural Unemployment refers to an overall lack of jobs.

Question 54

What stance does a Union Acceptance strategy expect an employer to take? Does it matter whether it is done willingly?

Question 55

In general,union membership rates are likely to rise when inflation is low.

Question 56

Taylorism sought to increase workers' skill levels.

Question 57

What were some ways in which management sought to cut labour costs during the late 1970s and the 1980s?

Question 58

Considerable variation of goals and values exist between the various sub- groups that comprise the Canadian mosaic.

Question 59

The changes we're seeing in today's economy are mostly of a temporary nature; things should be back to normal soon.

Question 60

Canada's Industrial Relations system of eleven,and possibly more,unique sub- systems ,is a standard world model.

Question 61

There is general consensus among today's managers as to the best management approach to use.

Question 62

Discuss the implications of increased non- standard employment for management,individual workers,unions,and government agencies.

Question 63

Discuss the key goals of Welfare Capitalist firms.Why were these practices not maintained?

Question 64

The direction of the transformation of the Human Resource Management system of most firms is clearly determined.

Question 65

Discuss the shifts in the Industrial Relations environment as traced through the various practices of Bureaucratic Management Practices.

Question 66

What is the impact on continuing high unemployment on the balance of workplace power?

Question 67

In order to cut labour costs,some firms engaged in seemingly contradictory hard- line and more participative practices.

Question 68

Compare and contrast coercive drive management with early Taylorist)scientific management.

Question 69

Discuss the key features of the coercive drive system of management.

Question 70

Most employers remain neutral during the organizing phase of union certification.

Question 71

Which of the Labour force trends will have the most significant impact on society as a whole?

Question 72

Discuss the key features of Industrial Relations Management practices in the Pre- Industrial Era.

Question 73

Union acceptance is often conceded as a given in modern management strategy.

Question 74

Discuss some of the most important impacts of today's changing labour force on management,unions,and the government agencies which regulate employment.

Question 75

Legalizing collective bargaining eliminated most Canadian strikes.

Question 76

Most people who have a job today can feel confident that so long as they do their job reasonably well,they will be able to keep that job for as long as they like.