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Pros of Labor Unions

The pros of labor unions in regards to employees include improved working conditions, upward mobility, job security, higher wages, and benefits (Maryville University, 2022). The pros of labor unions in regards to employers include improved safety and training of workers, reduced turnover rates, a more productive team, and enhanced communication (Lytle, 2022). The pros of labor unions regarding society include financial stability, economic growth, resilience, and reducing inequality (Feiveson, 2023).

Cons of Labor Unions

The cons of labor unions in regard to employees include union dues, less autonomy, workplace tension, slower advancement, and improper use of funds (Maryville University, 2022). The cons of labor unions in regards to employers include workplace tension, difficulty in promoting, dismissing unproductive workers, strikes, higher costs, and reduced competition from other businesses (Kourtis, 2024). The cons of labor unions in regard to society include the possibility of an increase in cost, less competitive business competition, and reduced employment (Potter, 2023).

From what I learned in this week’s material contrasts with what I found in research because the course’s material heavily relies on facts, descriptions, and some numerical details. While my research reflected facts, but seemed to heavily rely on and include some personal thoughts and opinions. While the materials and research differ, I value being able to learn about both the statistical facts and laws while also learning about how different individuals are affected, whether good or bad. I believe it has helped me have a well-rounded understanding of labor unions.

I am not sure if I would join a union. I am not sure because I think there are many factors to consider with joining a union and working for an organization that has a union. I have heard positive stories about joining a union, but have also heard many negative things. One major disadvantage I have heard from employees who join a union is having to pay dues and having to work with coworkers who have low performance but are still there due to the union. Something that would make me consider joining a union is if they truly are going to benefit me and not do the bare minimum while still having to pay dues. Overall, I am still on the fence about whether I would join a union, but I believe there are both considerable advantages and disadvantages to consider.

References:

Feiveson, L. (2023, August 28). Labor Unions and the U.S. economy. U.S. Department of the Treasury. https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/labor-unions-and-the-us-economy#:~:text=Increased%20unionization%20has%20the%20potential,and%20thus%20lessening%20economic%20volatility.

Kourtis, F. (2024, April 9). Understanding the pros and cons of Labor Unions. Laborsoft. https://www.laborsoft.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-labor-unions

Lytle, T. (2022, September 7). How companies benefit from partnering with Unions. Welcome to SHRM. https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/hr-magazine/how-companies-benefit-partnering-unions#:~:text=Fenton%20followed%20up%20with%20air,%2C%20not%20us%20versus%20them.%E2%80%9D

Maryville University’s. (2022, April 11). What are the pros and cons of labor unions?. Maryville University Online. https://online.maryville.edu/blog/pros-and-cons-of-unions/#:~:text=The%20Drawbacks%20of%20Labor%20Unions,workplace%20tension%2C%20and%20slower%20advancement.

Potter, L. (2023, September 7). What’s going on with labor unions? – @theu. The U. https://attheu.utah.edu/facultystaff/what-going-on-with-labor-unions-a-qa-with-megan-reynolds/

After taking the three tests, I have been able to learn a bit more about myself. After taking the Type A Personality test, I have learned that I am a bit more irritable and impatient than I had originally thought. I did receive a low score on this test, but it has made me consider ways I can practice more patience. With the Coping and Stress Management Skills Test, I have learned that I sometimes use problem-focused coping. I learned that I often try to alter the problem or stressor. I never realized that I sometimes do this, I thought I usually allow the stressor to continue and let it be, and for me to work on ignoring it. Lastly, for the Life Stress Inventor,y I learned that there are not too many stressful things or events occurring in my life. My scores did not indicate anything severe or alarming. I found the results surprising because the results from the other tests somewhat suggest that I do have some serious stressful things going on, and that the way I can approach them can be improved. 

Steps that I can take as I progress through my professional career to help me manage stress are to address the stressor or cause if needed, be realistic in what I can and can not do, and learn to focus on my work and self (Swift, 2021). Other steps that I can also take is making time for myself and making sure my needs are meet, having a support group whether it be friend or family members that I can discuss my stress and help me talk through it, and to be overall kinder to myself and be aware that I cannot always complete what I want for the day or be a 100% everyday. 

Organizations are taking action to help their employees manage their health and cope with stress by giving breaks or micro breaks, resources and training for coping with mental health, stress, or addiction, stress surveys, and building a supportive work environment (Forbes Human Resources Council, 2024). These steps taken to help their employees can not only benefit the employees personally but also help them in their work lives. 

References: 

Forbes Human Resources Council (2024, October 9). 18 stress management initiatives businesses can implement today. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbeshumanresourcescouncil/2024/10/09/18-stress-management-initiatives-businesses-can-implement-today/

Swift, M. (2021). Job Stress [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas.

An example of a situation where someone I knew engaged in a set of behaviors where compensation may have been a motivating factor is when my sister worked at Davita, a healthcare company. When she began at Davit, she was promised certain benefits, accommodations to her disability, and a raise after a certain amount of time. During her time there, she began learning the ropes of her duties, as she did more and more work was left to her. She appreciated how others trusted her with sensitive work assignments, but she never received her disability accommodations, and instead of receiving a raise, her manager was talking about giving her more work with the same pay. Since she did not receive appropriate disability accommodations and was being asked to do more for the same pay, she got burned out and decided to leave her position. 

In this example, compensation was a great motivating factor in her decision to leave her job. Compensation can be considered a factor in the engagement of their employees; it can reflect how valued they feel by their employers (Smith, 2015). In my sister’s case, she did not feel valued. She accepted the extra workload without complaint and was willing to do more for the same pay. Knowing that she would still receive the same salary that was towards the low end of the pay range, she did not feel valued by her employer or by her managers and coworkers who were above her in rank. The compensation that was offered was too low in my sister’s standards. She believed she had more than enough experience, education, and dedication to still be receiving the same pay to do more work after being with the company for two years. The compensation she received began to affect her self-worth and also negatively affected her attachment and how she felt about the organization (Swift, 2021). All in all, the lack of care and compensation my sister received during her time at Davita pushed her to leave her position, as they did not reflect her qualifications, dedication, and work she had put into her job.

References:

Smith, D. (2015). Most People Have No Idea Whether They’re Paid Fairly. In Harvard Business Review (pp. 1-). Harvard Business Review.

Swift, M. (2021). Introduction to Compensation [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas.

A training that I have not found beneficial is the training I received to work in ABA therapy. This training was done online through a Team’s video call. This training at first seemed very detailed, extensive, and overall very good. The people in the training were able to role-play scenarios that were supposedly to “occur” every day on the job, and there were some short quizzes. Based on the job description I was training for and what was shared, what I would be doing, the training seemed on point. Once I started the job, the training was not beneficial or effective. A class that I have found beneficial and effective is when taking a behavior modification class. In this class, we had 2-3 opportunities to work on writing a functional assessment that allowed me to practice creating treatment plans based on theories for specific clients with undesired behaviors. When I was allowed to write a functional assessment for a job, I knew what was expected of the written assessment and of me.

What made the training versus the class more effective is the transferability of what was taught during the training to the actual job itself. One major issue for the job training is the lack of material transferable to the job (Swift, 2021). There were very few materials and practices that were transferable to the job. This made the job far more difficult and complex than it should have been. Additionally, the organization did not support, check in, or help the new group of employees I was in to get up to speed with the workplace (Ellis et al., 2017). This class was effective because it was meaningful, transferable to the jobs that use functional assessments, and tested us on what we learned (Swift, 2021). The class was effective because it provided me with real-life scenarios of clients with challenging, undesired behaviors. This allowed me to reflect on the course material to create an effective and efficient functional assessment for the client. Additionally, the class shared what was expected of us, and the quality of performance needed to be effective in a position that used functional assessments (Swift, 2021). 

References

Ellis, A. M., Nifadkar, S. S., Bauer, T. N., & Erdogan, B. (2017). Your new hires won’t succeed unless you onboard them properly. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2017/06/your-new-hires-wont-succeed-unless-you-onboard-them-properly

Swift, M. (2021). Developing Training Programs [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas.

Reflecting on past experience with interviews that I have participated in, I have encountered both effective and ineffective practices. The first interview I ever had was very casual and was an unstructured interview. Unstructured interviews can be very ineffective when predicting job performance (Bohnet, 2016). The interviewer asked broad questions and frequently used “yes/no” questions. These types of questions lack validity since they would not help the interviewer to see if I have the necessary skills and qualities for the position (Swift, 2021). Looking back on this interview after reviewing this week’s material, it is evident now that it has low reliability since it was not a consistent way of interviewing applicants. Each applicant was asked random, inconsistent, and tactless questions for the position. 

In my most recent interview, it was much more formal and was a structured interview. The interviewer asked me tactful questions like real-life scenarios and asked me how I would handle them. The interviewer also used an assessment center, using a specific work example and role playing (Swift, 2021). This increased the interview’s validity and utility, since these scenarios and questions were relevant to my job and allowed the employer to see how I would perform in a similar situation. Additionally, the interview being structured assisted in its reliability; applicants were asked the same or similar questions, and this minimized bias. A way that this interview can be seen as ineffective is the use of snap judgment. It seems the interviewer heavily considered first impressions and also participated in the contrast effect and pressure to hire. He mentioned how I was an applicant for the whole day and hired me on the spot. I believe he felt pressure to hire someone.

If I could advise these past employers, I would recommend that they follow and use a structured interview, ask job-relevant questions or scenarios, and ensure that all applicants are being asked the same questions to limit bias (Swift, 2021). Additionally, I would recommend that they truly select the best applicant, not the most recent applicant, due to desperation. I believe these recommendations could help improve reliability, validity, and utility for their future interviews. 

References:

Bohnet, I. (2016). How to take the bias out of interviews. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2016/04/how-to-take-the-bias-out-of-interviews

Swift, M. (2021). Choosing Selection Methods [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas.

With my experience overcoming some of the challenges associated with developing and maintaining job descriptions, I have had some positive and negative experiences. While overcoming some of the challenges associated with developing and maintaining a job description, I was able to fix a job description by ensuring that only the necessary and needed KSAO’s are included that are used to fulfill the tasks of a job (Swift, 2021). In my experience, there was a job description that somewhat changed over time and was not yet updated to the current task of the job. I was able to work with others to see what was not necessary and what was necessary to include in the job. The way we overcame this challenge is by envisioning ourselves in the job and describing what it entailed and other potential things one may encounter during the job. 

An idea for overcoming the challenges associated with developing and maintaining job descriptions is to experience firsthand the position and to do a continuous check-up. The job description should be updated, whether it be through constant communication or firsthand experience, and should be maintained and updated at least once a year or more (Tyler, 2013). To overcome the challenge of having an accurate role, it can be helpful to include different members of the team who participate in the role and observe them. This can include managers, employees, and human resources (Tyler, 2013). These individuals in the company can offer or suggest good insight on the description that can provide hidden tasks or provide a more accurate picture. It is vital that one continues to maintain and update job descriptions because having an outdated description can do just as much harm as good (Tyler, 2013). 

References:

Swift, M. (2021). Job Analysis [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas. 

Tyler, K. (2013, December 21). Job worth doing: Update descriptions. SHRM. https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/hr-magazine/job-worth-update-descriptions
Links to an external site.

I examined three companies in the 2020 Fortune Best Companies to Work For. This included Capital One, Accenture, and Deloitte. With these three companies, I examine how the companies practice HR. Additionally, I will later examine what kind of manager I would like to be and what aspects of the job I believe are most challenging. 

Capital One

Employees at Capital One share that the company allows them to be themselves as individuals. Capital One practices HR as it is committed to allowing its employees to be themselves, authentic, and diverse (Swift, 2021). In connection, Capital One practices HR by participating in caring for their employees’ health and safety. Allowing others to be authentic to themselves and have a diverse workplace allows their employees to feel safe in their workplace. Additionally, employees feeling welcomed and safe can overall improve their health both physically and mentally. 

Accenture 

Employees at Accenture share that the company values diversity within its organization. Accenture practices HR as it is committed to managing diversity (Swift, 2021). Many employees highlight the inclusivity within the company. Accenture encourages not only a diverse workplace but also encourages its employees to give back to their community. This depicts Accenture as also participating in employee engagement (Swift, 2021). Accenture employee engagement is both within the organization and outside the organization. 

Deloitte

Employees at Deloitte share that the company encourages and offers opportunities for them to improve and grow. Deloitte practices HR as it is committed to training and development within the company (Swift, 2021). Deloitte offers its employees opportunities for growth regardless of their experience. This encourages employees to feel supported and respected in the work at Deloitte. Deloitte also encourages employee engagement (Swift, 2021). Deloitte offers many opportunities for employees to participate in new career-benefiting opportunities. 

In the future, I would like to be a manager who fosters a diverse, engaging, and supportive work environment. I would like to be a manager who encourages others to be authentic and feel comfortable with themselves (Buckingham & Coffman, 2016). An aspect that I believe would be challenging for a manager’s job is encouraging and supporting employees while also still focusing on the company and ensuring that employees are still reaching organizational goals. I believe it would be difficult to have a balance between the two because not being able to balance out both can lead to significant negative effects on the company. 

References:

Buckingham, M., & Coffman, C. W. (2016). First, break all the rules: What the world’s greatest managers do differently. Gallup Press.
Swift, M. (2021). Importance of HR Management [Video] MGMT 453. Canvas.