Deck 13: Employee Rights and Discipline

Question 1

According to the Workers' Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act,notice of closure or layoff affecting 50 or more full-time workers must be given to the highest elected local official.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The employment-at-will doctrine states that either employees or their employers may terminate the employment relationship for any reason.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

One way to help avoid implied contract lawsuits is to have written proof that employees have read the employment-at-will disclaimers.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Most legal experts suggest employers use antipiracy agreements rather than noncompete?agreements.

Question 5

The right of privacy,which is recognized by law and legal commentary,includes the general principle of personal autonomy and largely involves an individual's right to be left alone.

Question 6

Telling an employee that their job is secure as long as they perform satisfactorily and are loyal to their organization does not make an implied contract binding.

Question 7

The Workers' Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act (WARN)requires many employers to provide 60 days notice of plant closure and mass layoff.

Question 8

The significance of wrongful discharge suits is that they challenge an employer's right under the employment-at-will doctrine to unilaterally discharge employees.

Question 9

Whistle-blowing is a protected right of employees.

Question 10

An implied contract may result from statements found in employee handbooks or other employment documents.

Question 11

Federal employees are not covered by the federal Whistleblower Protection Act.

Question 12

In law,negligence is the failure to use a reasonable amount of care when such failure results in injury to another person.

Question 13

Approximately two million workers are discharged each year.

Question 14

Negligent hiring occurs when an employer hires an employee who is prone to violent behavior.

Question 15

Explicit contracts are not enforceable in court if either the employee or employer violates any provisions of the agreement.

Question 16

Constructive discharge cases involve employees who are forced to quit due to intolerable work conditions.

Question 17

Employee rights can be defined as the guarantees of fair treatment that workers expect in return for their services to an employer.

Question 18

During her interview,Angela is told by her future manager that if she is a good employee,she will have a permanent job with the company.This situation is an example of an implied contract.

Question 19

The employment-at-will doctrine gives managers and supervisors the unrestricted right of termination.

Question 20

Wrongful discharge is legal under the employment-at-will doctrine.

Question 21

In the private sector,drug testing is largely regulated by individual states.

Question 22

One of the goals of discipline is that it should be considered as training that molds and strengthens desirable conduct,corrects undesirable conduct,and helps in developing self-control.

Question 23

According to a recent report by the American Management Association, more than a quarter of employers have fired workers for misusing e-mail.

Question 24

One advantage of impairment testing is that it focuses on off-duty behavior rather than workplace conduct.

Question 25

Today,most companies conduct drug tests only when reasonable suspicion or probable cause exists.

Question 26

A number of states have passed laws that allow employers to fire employees for activities they pursue offsite on their own time.

Question 27

If a state law allows employees to examine their files,employers can insist that someone from HR,or a supervisor,be present to ensure that nothing is taken,added,or changed.

Question 28

​In general,employers have the right to monitor calls and text messages sent from their telecommunications devices,provided they do so for compelling business -reasons and employees have been informed that their communications will be monitored.

Question 29

According to a recent report by the American Management Association,a third of employers have fired workers for misusing the Internet.

Question 30

Documentation of an employee's misconduct includes stating the improvement expected by the employer.

Question 31

An employee's immediate supervisor is the logical person to apply the company's disciplinary procedure.

Question 32

​Employers can discipline employees for off-duty conduct,but there must be a relationship between the employees' behavior and the effect of that behavior on the organization.

Question 33

A supervisor in a romantic relationship with a subordinate becomes immediately vulnerable to a sexual harassment claim.

Question 34

Few federal laws protect workers from being watched.

Question 35

Random searches of employees' personal belongings without probable cause should be avoided.

Question 36

​U.S.courts consider random searches of employee lockers,suitcases,and toolboxes illegal.

Question 37

In an organizational setting,discipline should be viewed as a way of correcting poor performance rather than as a punishment.

Question 38

It is increasingly common for employees to quit or resign from their jobs because of the intolerable acts of their employers leaving them with no other choice.

Question 39

Impairment testing is always the first step in random drug testing.

Question 40

Because personnel files are the employer's property,an employee may be barred from seeing his or her file.

Question 41

Organizations are required by law to comply with ethical guidelines.

Question 42

Dreadlocks and beards are protected religious observance rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

Question 43

Positive discipline relies on reminders given to employees to improve performance.

Question 44

Progressive discipline is designed to force an employee to improve his/her performance involuntarily.

Question 45

Due process is generally defined as the employee's right to be heard.

Question 46

The most significant cause of inadequate documentation is that managers often do not know what constitutes good documentation.

Question 47

According to the Weingarten ruling,an employer must bargain with the employee's representative during an investigative interview.

Question 48

The NLRB v Weingarten ruling requires that nonunion employees always be the cause of the right to representation during an investigative interview.

Question 49

When the first two steps fail while implementing positive discipline,decision-making leave is provided,which is a paid leave.

Question 50

Positive discipline is based on a mutual problem-solving approach,but resolutions are still mandated by management.

Question 51

Progressive discipline results from using positive reinforcement instead of punishment to correct behavioral problems.

Question 52

With an open-door policy,decisions tend to be consistent across managers.

Question 53

Mediation is always a formal process that results in compromise.

Question 54

​The typical sequence of progressive discipline is written warning,oral warning,suspension,and discharge.

Question 55

Step-review systems involving nonunion employees are very similar to grievance procedures used in union contracts.

Question 56

Ethics can be defined as a set of standards of acceptable conduct.

Question 57

Peer-review boards consist only of people whose jobs are similar to that of the person appearing before the board.

Question 58

​Ombudsmen solve problems by negotiating and mediating between supervisors and subordinates.

Question 59

​Bill has been found guilty of theft,a termination offense.Before he is discharged,his manager must ensure that all the steps of progressive discipline are followed.

Question 60

Employees do not have the right to have an attorney present during an investigative interview.

Question 61

Under the employment-at-will doctrine,who can terminate an employment relationship?

A)Only employees
B)Only employers
C)Government or unions
D)Employees or employers

Question 62

In 1908,the Supreme Court upheld the employment-at-will doctrine in _____.

A)NLRB v. Weingarten, Inc.
B)EEOC v. Waffle House, Inc.
C)International Union v. Johnson Controls
D)Adair v. United States

Question 63

Because employers cannot predict with certainty the future behavior of employees despite background checking,negligent hiring lawsuits are seen as:

A)a no-win situation for employers.
B)a no-win situation for employees.
C)a Catch-22 situation for employers.
D)a necessary-evil situation for employees.

Question 64

The minimum advance notice of plant closings or layoffs affecting 50 or more full-time employees required by the Workers' Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act of 1989 is:

A)60 days.
B)180 months.
C)7 days.
D)120 months.

Question 65

Which of the following is NOT an example of how an implied contract may become binding?

A)Telling employees their jobs are secure as long as they perform satisfactorily and are loyal to the organization
B)Failing to create an employee handbook or conducting performance appraisals on a routine basis
C)Stating in the employee handbook that employees will not be terminated without the right of defense or access to an appeal procedure
D)Urging an employee to leave another organization by promising higher wages and?benefits, then reneging on those promises after the person has been hired

Question 66

Which of the following is the dominant principle governing private-sector employment relationships?

A)The employment-at-will doctrine
B)The job-as-property doctrine
C)The implied contract rules
D)The implied covenant rules

Question 67

Discharge for refusing to violate a professional code of conduct falls under which exception to employment-at-will doctrine?

A)Violation of public policy
B)Implied contract
C)Implied covenant
D)Does not fall under an exception

Question 68

Which exception to the employment-at-will doctrine occurs when a lack of good faith and fair dealing by the employer has been suggested?

A)Implied contract
B)Established protection
C)Violation of public policy
D)Implied covenant

Question 69

Which of the following groups CANNOT grant rights to employees?

A)Employers
B)State legislatures
C)Federal courts
D)Unions

Question 70

Employers defend their intrusion into employee privacy by noting:

A)their constitutional right.
B)their legitimate business interest.
C)that they are required by law.
D)that they are required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to do so.

Question 71

Which of the following is NOT an exception to the employment-at-will doctrine?

A)Implied contract
B)Established protection
C)Violation of public policy
D)Implied covenant

Question 72

Which of the following acts financially rewards whistle-blowers who expose fraud related to governmental programs and wrongdoing related to consumer financial products or services?

A)The Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act
B)The Sarbanes-Oxley Act
C)The Whistleblower Protection Act
D)The False Claim Act

Question 73

One of the primary goals of ethics training is to avoid adverse publicity.

Question 74

Which of the following actions is MOST likely to create a wrongful discharge claim?

A)Terminating an employee only if there is an articulated reason
B)Setting and following termination rules and schedules
C)Documenting all performance problems
D)Making exceptions to the rules in unique circumstances

Question 75

In _____,a court found that a provision in an employee handbook constituted a unilateral enforceable contract with employees.

A)Adair v. United States
B)NLRB v. Weingarten, Inc.
C)Toussaint v. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan
D)Young v. Southwestern Savings and Loan Association

Question 76

Employers are prohibited from retaliating against employees under all of the following EXCEPT:

A)the Workers' Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act.
B)Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
C)the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
D)Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Question 77

Which of the following statements is NOT true of whistle-blowing?

A)Employees engage in whistle-blowing when they report an employer's illegal actions
B)Employers cannot discharge employees for reporting corporate wrongdoings.
C)Employers can discipline, but not discharge employees for reporting corporate wrongdoings.
D)Employers may be liable to huge fines if found guilty of the whistle-blowing charges imposed on them.

Question 78

An implied employment contract:

A)is valid only in writing.
B)covers the entire American workforce.
C)exists only after an employee passes his or her probation period.
D)can result from statements made in an employee handbook or HR policy manual.

Question 79

The expectations of a fair exchange of employment obligations between an employee and his or her employer is referred to as:

A)employment-at-will.
B)a no-win situation for employees.
C)a Catch-22 situation for employers.
D)psychological contract.

Question 80

It is estimated that _____ of employees in the United States work without benefit of an employment contract.

A)20 percent
B)40 percent
C)89 percent
D)66 percent