International Legal and Ethical Issues in Business - Essay Example

Likewise, workers are also protected against discrimination (based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age), harassment, unhealthy/ hazardous working environments, and unfair dismissal. With these rights, come also the responsibilities of the employee. Aside from arriving at work on time and dressing appropriately (which includes wearing suitable safety equipment if required), employees are also expected to show respect to the employer, colleagues and customers, take care of the company’s property, follow reasonable and lawful orders, obey safety rules and not discriminate or harass other people in the workplace.

If these obligations are not met by employees, then their employer also has the right to dismiss their employment (Steingold, 2009). On the other hand, the working hours in the US are considerably shorter than in the UK and the rest of the member nation-states of the European Union. It has been noted that the European Working Time Directive sets the maximum length of working week to 48 hours, and a minimum rest period of eleven hours each day. Although the policy applies to all members, in the UK it is still possible to exceed this limit provided that it is the employee who opts for such a condition (Cressey & Jones, 1995).

In France, a recent legislation limits the working week to only 35 hours (but options are still available for those who want to exceed). While in the US, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 allowed for 44-hour work week, which was later reduced to a 40-hour standard in 1950. Despite this law, majority of the American workforce still work more than 40 hours in a week due to the lines of work they have (Mishel, Bernstein, & Boushe, 2003). Challenges in Filing a Formal Complaint If Mary decides to file a formal complaint against her employer on the basis of her somehow ‘insignificant’ situation in the company, then she will face the hardships of proving her case successfully.

The burden of proof is upon her and she needs to provide evidence to back her claims. Although Mary is relived by the fact that the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 guarantees fair treatment towards employees and that violation against this charter is punishable by law, she is still required to substantiate that she is treated in an unfair manner by the management and by her colleague for that matter. Furthermore, Mary needs to prove that the workplace has become a hostile environment for her.

In legal terms, a hostile work environment is primarily one of the reasons an employee cannot reasonably perform his or her duties and responsibilities. This is due to certain behaviors by management or co-workers that are considered ‘hostile.’ Nevertheless, the said term is still subject to much debate and substantiation (Cihon & Castagnera, 2008). A boss being rude, one who yells and purposefully annoys is a qualified ground for a hostile work environment -- cause for severe physical stress and mental anguish on the part of the employee.

Certainly, acts of lasciviousness and other forms of sexual harassment are always deemed constituents of a hostile environment. Yet, for Mary’s case these did not occur. She was not discriminated and she was in no way attempted to be