Discuss the following:
Opportunities for improvement:
The IP is a continuation of the paper started In section of the paper development, the policies must be well-researched and developed. Policies are principles, rules, and guidelines formulated or adopted by an organization to reach its long-term goals. They are designed to influence and determine all major decisions, actions and activities taking place within the boundaries (Scope) set by them. The following are the Acts for which policies are needed: “A policy for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), A policy for the Age Discrimination in Employment act (ADEA), A policy for dealing with different types of harassment, A policy for the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), A policy for the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), A policy for the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and A policy for the Equal Pay Act (EPA)”. There expectation here is that grammar, spelling, punctuation, and format are checked for correctness and professionalism. References should be cited (APA).
Paper outline
Title page: Equal Opportunity Policies for Company AXY Forward
Policies:
Equal Employment Opportunity
A policy for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
A polic, for the Age Discrimination in Employment act (ADEA)
A policy for dealing with different types of harassment.
A policy for the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) A policy for the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
A policy for the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
A policy for the Equal Pay Act (EPA)
Definitions
Acknowledgement References
Finalize your project by reviewing the feedback that you received from your instructor and your peers. Then, prepare a PowerPoint training presentation for employees to review the new policies (6- slides) not including the title and reference page. At the end of the presentation, include 2 slides addressing:
• For the employee handbook, write a policy for employee use of technology because new sources of social media and more advanced electronic devices are regularly being introduced to the market. Address topics such as: refraining from workplace commentary on social media, maintaining a professional image, what can be shared and what not to share on social media, harassment, privacy, and IT security.
Policy formulation is a critical aspect of management because the approach deployed dictates the nature of relationship amid the employees at the management. It is for this reason that policy formulators ought to approach the practices with caution, especially in the enactments of guides as stipulated in the employee handbook. In a business setting, for instance, the leaders must put into place some consideration in the process (Collins 25). One of them is ensuring the policies corroborate with the existing Acts such as EEOC, ADA, ADEA, and OSHA. Additional consideration entails compliance with the ethical codes of conducts in addressing employee grievances and carrying out dismissals. As discussed, the study explores the use of the policies and in relation to existing acts governing relations between administration and staff and their implication on organizations.
One of the steps organizations can factor in place when recruiting employees is ensuring inclusiveness and such demands compliance with disability act. On numerous occasions, an organization can formulate a policy that recognizes the privileges of the group by encouraging their recruitment as part of the team. Afterward, the employer can mandate the recognition of the rights of the disabled by inferring to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). As noted by Collins (30), the policy ensures coordination in duties besides harmonizing the society; thus, eliminating cases of discrimination. However, while enacting the policy, the employer must approach the process with much caution. This is because some employees might exploit the policy for their benefit. For example, a disabled employee failing to partake duties as instructed by disguising on their disability as the excuse for underperforming at work. The employer on his/her part might favor some employees on claims they are disabled. The employee, on the other hand, can misuse the policy by ignoring orders from other employees on claims that someone is violating their rights. It is also possible that the abled employees might encourage the disable to rebel on certain issues and such could jeopardize goal accomplishment at the organization as intended.
The second policy for formulation in organizations is a guide that recognizes people of all age groups as part of the workforce. The implementation of the policy has to commence in recruitments and then address issues in other areas of the organization such as team building. The objective should be promoting cohesiveness to eliminate conflicts attributable to mistreatments because of age (Stone 252). The existence of the policy is also critical because it fulfills the requirements of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Additionally, the policy can create a sense of balance in workplace composition. The shortcoming in its usage is that minors might use the guidelines as the excuse for disrespecting senior members of the organization, especially in cases where a minor rises to the supervisory levels. Another possibility is that the old employers might justify their perpetration of unethical acts in the organization based on the policy. Employees might dismiss the competency of their counterparts using age as the basis for categorization. For that reason, it is recommendable aligning the policy with EEOC stipulations.
The policy of dealing with harassment that an organization can institute is the sexual offenses policies. The law has to uphold the requirement of Civil Acts Rights 1964 that acknowledges the privileges of all genders and races at the workplace. The law should also encourage openness in communication as a step towards promoting diversity at the workplace. The inference to EEOC should guide the implementation of the legislation since the Act prohibits mistreatment of any person because of their gender. Hence, with the enactments of the policy barring harassments by the employee or employer, an organization can minimize cases of conflict emanating from the mistreatment of the minority. Having the policy helps an organization to deal with challenges such as gender stereotypes (Calvasina, Richard and Eugene 38). The risk of the adoption of policies can encourage female employees to overlook duties on the premise that they have the rights to assistance from their male counterparts. Some employees might use the policies as the excuse for settling personal scores. A case is an employee accusing another of sexual harassments even in a context where the harassments did not take place. The management on their part might exploit policy in exaggerating harassments (Stone 253). On the negative, the professional might confront challenges creating harmony at the workplace. The policy might also create a contradiction to the existing legislations governing relations amid employees.
A policy that dictates adherence of occupation safety and health standards is also a requirement in the organization since it benchmarks standards for operation leading to mutual agreements on specific issues. The policy also upholds EEOC guidelines that demand acknowledgment of the employees’ privileges of working in a clean and safe environment. The risk of enacting the policy is that employee might exploit it as the loophole for filing a lawsuit against the company if dissatisfied with some aspects of work. Regulation authorities, on their part, can victimize small entities for failing to enact in place the guidelines of the act even in a situation where the legislation applies. Implementation of the policy also increases costs of operations and makes it difficult for employees to fulfill duties as intended by the management (Corbett 260). The policy also puts the organization at loggerheads with health inspectorate agencies. Despite the complexities, the policy improves cleanliness standards and encourages accountability in duties.
An organization can enact a policy that recognizes the privileges of employees taking leave to attend to critical family matters. An example can include medical emergencies and attendance visitation of health facilities for checkups. In a broader context, the policy has to permit recognition of needs arising due to a medical condition. The adoption of such a framework poses the risk of encouraging employees to seek leave during times when one is uncomfortable handling work (Neumark 1). Management can permit leaves that lead to redundancy at the workplace. In the long-term, an organization will grapple with escalated cost such as Medicare and operations costs. The positive is that it leads to the motivation of the workforce.
The fair labor standards act can guide an organization defines guidelines for dealing with grievances amidst employees in an organization. In compliance with the Act, an organization should formulate a policy that dictates the term of engagement between the management and the labor force. An example is a policy stipulating term of remuneration for work done. In its use, a company can benefit by increasing productivity due to the motivation of the workforce. The existence of the policy can also present employees a clear picture of their expectations when partaking duties at a given firm. The advantage of the framework is that it results into unity at work (Collins 35). On the negative, the guides can restrict flexibility in decision-making at the firm in that the management will abide by laws in recruitments and handle petty issues affecting relations with employees. The guide can also encourage the management to embrace bureaucracy leading to rigidity at the workplace.
The harmonization of pay leading to enactment of a fair pay framework has many benefits in the organization since it aligns to equal pay act stipulations. When using the policy, the employees feel acknowledged for their efforts at work. It also becomes easier for the management forecasting for the long-term needs of the organizations. The risk that emanates from the stipulation of the act is that it can create inequality whereby lazy employees attain same benefits as those committed to duties. The company might also deal with litigations filed by employees seeking fair pay. Nevertheless, enactment of the policy is necessary as discussed.
Works Cited
Calvasina, Gerald E., Richard V. Calvasina, and Eugene J. Calvasina. "Personal liability and human resource decision making." Journal of Management and Marketing Research 1 (2008): 38.
Collins, William J. "The political economy of state-level fair employment laws, 1940–1964." Explorations in Economic History 40.1 (2003): 24-51.
Corbett, William R. "Waiting for the labor law of the twenty-first century: Everything old is new again." Berkeley Journal of Employment and Labor Law 23.2 (2002): 259-306.
Neumark, David. "The Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the challenge of population aging." Research on Aging (2008).
Stone, Katherine VW. "Legal protections for atypical employees: employment law for workers without workplaces and employees without employers." Berkeley Journal of Employment and Labor Law (2006): 251-286.