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Chapter 6: What Employers Owe Employees

Every problem in the chapter beside the book’s answer, a chapter at a time as you scroll.

Chapter 6: What Employers Owe Employees

19 problems · 0 figures

6-1 §6.1 source ↗

How often should managers in a workplace anticipate an inspection from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration?
  1. a.
    every day
  2. b.
    once a month
  3. c.
    upon request or complaint
  4. d.
    never

Answer

C. upon request or complaint

6-2 §6.1 source ↗

Sexual harassment is unethical but not illegal.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-3 §6.1 source ↗

What are examples of benefits or perks that women usually value more than men?

Answer

Surveys show that women value benefits related to childcare and health care more highly than do men, although the benefit mix any employee values most is an individual one.

6-4 §6.1 source ↗

What can a company do to try to reduce sexual harassment?

Answer

Managers can model ethical behavior by example, and the company can offer training and communicate and strictly enforce a written policy.

6-5 §6.2 source ↗

According to data presented in the chapter, about how much do women earn in comparison with men doing the same job?
  1. a.
    a lot less (about 40%-50%)
  2. b.
    somewhat less (about 70%-80%)
  3. c.
    almost the same (95%)
  4. d.
    about the same (100%)

Answer

B. somewhat less (about 70%-80%)

6-6 §6.2 source ↗

Minimum wages are established by federal law only.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-7 §6.2 source ↗

Minimum wages have at least kept pace with the cost of living, because of the automatic cost-of-living adjustment clause in the law.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-8 §6.2 source ↗

Why have some states raised minimum wages above the federal minimum?

Answer

Cost of living variations and concern about a shrinking middle class are possible motives for a state to enact its own above-federal minimum wage.

6-9 §6.2 source ↗

What are some of the reasons that have contributed to women making less than men in similar jobs?

Answer

Among the factors are discrimination, historical wage rates, and artificially manipulated job titles.

6-10 §6.3 source ↗

In the United States, CEO pay is on average ________ times as high as the pay of the average worker in the same company.
  1. a.
    30
  2. b.
    50
  3. c.
    100
  4. d.
    300

Answer

D. 300

6-11 §6.3 source ↗

U.S. union membership today is at the lowest level since the 1950s.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

A. True

6-12 §6.3 source ↗

The right to work without joining a union is controlled by federal law.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-13 §6.3 source ↗

Why is union membership at an all-time low?

Answer

Union membership is low due to two primary reasons: the United States has switched from a manufacturing economy to a service economy, and the law now affords workers many of the protections they once got only through a collective bargaining agreement.

6-14 §6.3 source ↗

How does executive pay in the United States compare to that in other countries?

Answer

Most studies indicate that U.S. executives are paid much more highly than executives in other countries, including those that are very competitive with the United States. The pay ratio is approximately three hundred in the United States as compared with twenty-two in the United Kingdom and twelve in Germany.

6-15 §6.4 source ↗

Advance permission from employees is required before they can be electronically monitored under federal law.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-16 §6.4 source ↗

Workplace drug testing is completely prohibited in some states.
  1. a.
    True
  2. b.
    False

Answer

B. False

6-17 §6.4 source ↗

Why would a company want to monitor Internet use at work?

Answer

There are at least two reasons a company might want to monitor Internet use at work: productivity and electronic security. Managers do not want employees wasting time or exposing the company to breaches of data security, identity theft, or the legal ramifications of inappropriate or offensive behavior.

6-18 §6.4 source ↗

What are the two major exceptions to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act that weaken its protections of employee privacy rights?

Answer

The two exceptions to the ECPA that weaken its protection are the business purpose exception, which allows monitoring if an employer can demonstrate a legitimate business purpose for doing so, and the consent exception, which allows employers to monitor employee communications provided employees have given their consent.

6-19 §6.4 source ↗

Should drug testing of employees be allowed?

Answer

The answer is yes, as long as a company is responsible for what its employees do. Then businesses need to check for drugs due to reasons such as workplace safety and protection of property.

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Problems and answers are adapted from Business Ethics by Stephen M. Byars and Kurt Stanberry, OpenStax, and are used under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence. Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/business-ethics/pages/1-introduction. Illustrations: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license. This adaptation is released under the same licence, is non-commercial, and is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by OpenStax or Rice University.