Module 1 – Case
INFLUENCES ON
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
Assignment Overview
Signature Assignment: Information Literacy, Emphasized Level
View the following video discussing information literacy
(Eastern Gateway CCTS, 2015).
As mentioned previously, there are many influences on
employee relations in organizations. One of the most relevant today is the
amount of information that is available to us.
There are numerous sources of information available to us as
students, employees, labor union representatives, and HRM professionals. For
example, students might use sources from the Internet. Before we use
information that we have found, however, it is important that we evaluate its
authority and appropriateness.
In this assignment you will be evaluating some sources
available to you.
Start by reviewing some of the following articles and making
a list of important factors needed to evaluate sources. (you will need to
include this list of factors as either an appendix after the References section
in your paper, as a slide at the end of your slide presentation, or as a MS
Word document along with your video file).
University of California Berkeley. Critical evaluation of
resources. Retrieved from http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/instruct/guides/evaluation.html
Cornell University. How to critically analyze information
sources. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/skill26.htm
Cornell University. Distinguishing scholarly journals from
other periodicals. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/skill20.html
Cornell University. Evaluating web sites: Criteria and
tools. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/webeval.html
Case Assignment
For this exercise you will be presenting information on the
following topic and defending the sources utilized.
Topic: HRM’s role in improving employer–employee relations
Your discussion of the topic itself should be 3–4 pages.
Describe the issue, its importance to overall business success, and any
anticipated changes related to employee-employer relations in the next decade.
Select at least three different library sources and at least
three different Web sources. Each source that you select should be available to
you in full text and be at least 3–4 paragraphs. Be sure to include a variety
of both “good” and “bad” sources. Be sure to discuss the factors you selected
as important to evaluate sources.
Cite each of the six or more sources in proper APA format
and include its link.
Provide a “List of References.” Under each source, provide a
paragraph critiquing the source according to the evaluation factors you have
learned are important. Include how useful the source was for you to write your
paper.
You may present your information as (a) a written essay (3-4
pages, not counting the cover page and References page), (b) a slide
presentation of 10-12 slides, with graphics and detailed presenter notes, or
(c) 5-6 minute video delivered as an MP4 or MOV file. Remember to include the
list of factors you developed to evaluate sources (as described above).
Submit your assignment by the module due date.
Information Literacy
As you may recall, the first signature assignment addressing
information literacy at the “introduced” level was located in ETH501—Business
Ethics, Case 1 Assignment).
Then, in MGT516—Legal Implications in HRM, information
literacy was assessed at the “reinforced” level in Case 1.
Now, in this HRM522 Case 1 assignment your information
literacy skills will be further developed reaching the “emphasized” level.
These three assignments build upon each other and aim to
offer you the opportunity to enhance and practice your information literacy
skills at the graduate level.
The grading rubric for this HRM522 assignment has been
developed to measure student success in meeting the HRM522 Case 1 expectations
related to information literacy.
Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work. Cite sources of borrowed
information in the body of your text as footnotes or numbered end notes, or use
APA style of referencing.
Prepare a paper that is professionally presented (including
a cover page, a list of references, headings/subheadings, and a strong
introduction and conclusion). Proofread carefully for grammar, spelling, and
word-usage errors.
Visit Trident’s Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality
Academic Paper for instruction on writing papers, citing sources, proper
referencing, and so forth.
Module 1 – SLP
INFLUENCES ON
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
In the SLP project for this course you are asked to place
yourself in the role of others. You might play the role of an employee, HR
Manager, or another stakeholder in a private-sector organization. By the end of
the course, you will have a better understanding of different HRM
employee/union/employer relations responsibilities in the private-sector and
how to maximize your department’s contributions to the organization.
Your assignment:
Look over the following list from the Overview page:
As you recall we began the course by considering many
different internal and external factors that might impact relationships at
work. For example:
Employer Rights Company Policy & Work Rules
Management Actions Wage and Salary Plans
Employee Privacy Employee Benefits
Supervisory Actions Work Design
Economic Conditions Available Information
Work Assignments Technology
Employee/Co-worker Actions Performance Management
Labor Unions Company
Practices
Laws & Regulations HRM Procedures
typing manWrite a magazine article draft (of at least 750
words) in which you select one internal or external factor from above and
analyze how it can positively or negatively impact work relationships. (Look at
HR Magazine in the library to see what a short magazine article might look
like.) Be sure to include employer examples (stating employers by name). Also
provide specific examples (for example, if you discuss “work assignments,”
provide actual examples of work assignments on the job and how they could
impact relationships with others).
Include 2 additional library sources (or more) to help
strengthen your submission.
Upload your paper by the module due date.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work. Cite sources of borrowed
information in the body of your text as footnotes or numbered end notes, or use
APA style of referencing.
Prepare a paper that is professionally presented (including
a cover page, a list of references, headings/subheadings, and a strong
introduction and conclusion). Proofread carefully for grammar, spelling, and
word-usage errors.
Visit Trident’s Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality
Academic Paper for instruction on writing papers, citing sources, proper
referencing, and so forth.
Module 2 – Case
EMPLOYEE VOICE
Case Assignment
In this assignment you have the opportunity to look at
employee voice and protections and restraints on that voice.
Prepare voice over PowerPoint (using two impactful
slides)—table or chart, picture, drawing, etc.—discussing what employees can
and cannot openly say openly about their coworkers, supervisors, and employer.
Cover how the term “protected concerted activities” affects workplaces. The
audience of your 5-to 8-minute presentation will be new shop-floor, first-line
supervisors. Include notes underneath the slides on what you will say.
worker
Google Images
Include at least 4 additional sources to help strengthen
your discussion.
Please upload your paper by the module due date.
Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work. Cite sources of borrowed
information in the body of your text as footnotes or numbered end notes, or use
APA style of referencing.
Module 2 – SLP
EMPLOYEE VOICE
meetingYou are currently interviewing for a middle
management HR position with a prestigious manufacturer. Your interviewers have
asked you to speak to them for about 8 minutes about whether or not you would
implement employee voice activities/programs in the organization if hired. What
will you say?
Present your talk as a podcast using a software of choice
(such as voice-over PowerPoint, limit to 2 or 3 slides) or a video, or other
such as Sound Recorder or Audacity to create an audio file and save as a MP3 or
WAV file.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
For the sources you utilize, give the authors credit for
their work.
Module 3 – Case
ORGANIZED LABOR
Assignment Overview
This assignment is about what the labor contract says. This
is a key element in whether or not the union or employer will win at a
grievance arbitration case. View the following video that explains that the
contract wording alone sometimes does not tell the whole story:
(Eisenberg, 2015)
In this Case Assignment we will look at actual labor
contracts to experience the content and detail involved.
Go to the following source:
United States Department of Labor, Office of
Labor-Management Standards, Collective Bargaining Agreements. Retrieved from
https://www.dol.gov/olms/regs/compliance/cba/index.htm
The emphasis is on how to represent information in table
form and to draw your own conclusions from the data presented.
Case Assignment
Select two labor contracts, each representing a different
industry group. Discuss (in your own words):
How the two contract sections on employee grievance handling
differ and are the same (paying close attention to the definition of
“grievance”; grievance processing steps, mediation and/or arbitration and other
important topics in the clause).
Compare and contrast their employee discipline/discharge
clauses.
Summarize by bringing in your module readings and/or library
research to discuss the impact grievance handling might have on employee
relations.
Include at least 3 library sources to help strengthen your
discussion.
Half of your paper should be a table or tables, and half a
discussion of your conclusions drawn from the tables you present. Paper length:
4–5 pages, not counting cover and reference pages. Please upload your paper by
the module due date.
Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work. Cite sources of borrowed
information in the body of your text as footnotes or numbered end notes, or use
APA style of referencing.
Prepare a paper that is professionally presented (including
a cover page, a list of references, headings/subheadings, and a strong
introduction and conclusion). Proofread carefully for grammar, spelling, and
word-usage errors.
Visit Trident’s Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality
Academic Paper for instruction on writing papers, citing sources, proper
referencing, and so forth.
Module 3 – SLP
ORGANIZED LABOR
In the SLP assignment, you have the opportunity to evaluate
strategies taken by union organizers to organize nonunion workplaces.
Review the sources pertaining to union organizing listed on
the Module 3 Background page, review the indystar.com article (below), and
conduct your own research.
Hussein, F. (2017). Labor Movement Turns to Social Activism
to Attract Millennials. Retrieved from
http://www.indystar.com/story/news/2017/07/27/labor-movement-turns-social-activism-attract-millennials/456409001/.
What labor movement effort or efforts do you think might
have the most impact on increasing the number of unionized workplaces in the
private sector? Why?
Prepare your response as a 3-page brochure/handout geared to
HR professionals attending an HRM conference expo. Your goal is to make them
more aware of what you think will be unionization tactics they should look out
for in future.
Please upload your eye-catching brochure by the Module due
date. Include at least 2 references that you utilized to prepare your
assignment.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
For the sources that you utilize, give the authors credit
for their work.
Prepare a submission that is professionally presented.
Proofread carefully for grammar, spelling, and word-usage errors.
Module 4 – Case
WORKPLACE RELATIONS,
VALUE CREATION, AND THE FUTURE
Assignment Overview
We will conclude this course by looking at the contributions
HRM might make to creating value for private-sector organizations and how
employee relations and/or union relations fits into that process.
Begin by reviewing the following:
Case Assignment
You are a professional in HRM and are in charge of your
employer’s company blog for the week. In your introductory blog you start out
by showing the following video:
(The Centre Online, 2014)
Your first blogger asks you:
Is there risk that technology will over-power life as we
know it? What impact will technology have on the employee-employer
relationship? How will this impact HR labor/employee relations activities?
How would you respond?
Write your response as 3-page blog, adding visuals for
impact. Include at least two outside sources to validate your comments.
Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant
issues and HRM trends, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work.
Prepare a paper that is conversational in nature.
Include a cover page and a list of references. Proofread
carefully for grammar, spelling, and word-usage errors.
Module 4 – SLP
WORKPLACE RELATIONS,
VALUE CREATION, AND THE FUTURE
Signature Assignment: Oral Communications, Reinforced Level
Begin by viewing the following video on globalization:
In this SLP 4 assignment you are the top human resources
manager in your hospitality organization. You are responsible for your
organization’s human resource function with HRM offices in the BRIC countries
(Brazil, Russia, India and China) as well as in a few developing countries.
You have just received an email from your boss (the CEO). He
wants you to help explain to the top managers at 10 of your employer locations
how the impact of globalization is changing the world of work. He has asked you
to prepare a slide presentation (10-15 slides) with notes at the bottom that he
(the CEO) will give to his top management staff next week. In the presentation
he wants to explain why it is important for all managers and supervisors to
think globally and incorporate the influence of globalization into their
workplace practices. Your boss wants you to email him the slides “today if
possible, and tomorrow at the latest.”
You are currently sitting in an airport in China with a
10-hour delay. It is time prepare and send in this presentation. You have
prepared slides and notes for your boss before. He wants appealing slides with
attached, meaningful notes so that he doesn’t need to add content.
Any references utilized for this assignment should be
included in a “List of References,” using APA format. Please upload your presentation
by the Module due date.
Oral Communications Emphasis
As you may recall in HRM520 SLP for Module 1 emphasis was
placed on the first step to building oral communications skills—deciding what
to cover.
Now at this “reinforced” level, the HRM522 4 SLP takes oral
communications a step further by working on your slide presentation skills.
And, finally, in HRM 599 (Integrative Capstone) your oral
communications skills will be further developed. In Module 3 Case in HRM599 you
will complete an audio presentation component to bring your final speech outline
and slide presentation alive.
These three assignments build upon each other and aim to
offer you the opportunity to enhance and practice your oral communications preparation
and delivery skills.
The grading rubric MBA/MSHRM Oral Communication has been
developed to measure student success in meeting the HRM522 SLP 4 expectations
related to oral communications. Rubrics for the other two courses are included
in their respective oral communications assignments.
Assignment Expectations
Demonstrate critical thinking and analysis of the relevant issues
and HRM actions, drawing on your background reading and research.
Information Literacy: Evaluate resources and select only
library/Web-based resources that provide reliable, substantiated information.
Give authors credit for their work. Cite sources of borrowed
information in the body of your text as footnotes or numbered end notes, or use
APA style of referencing.
Prepare a slide presentation (and accompanying notes) that
are professionally prepared. Proofread carefully for grammar, spelling, and word-usage
errors.
Visit Trident’s Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality
Academic Paper for instruction on writing papers, citing sources, proper
referencing, and so forth.
