Legal and Regulatory Environment in Human Resource Management - Essay Example

Legal and Regulatory Environment in Human Resource Management Question 1: Sexual Harassment Employee relations are part of the legal environment in the Human Resource Department that involves training, conflict resolution, advising, and punishing of the workforce as desired. It also involves management and team building within the organization. In this case Jennifer’s harassment from a senior partner should have been reported immediately to the Human Resource authorities through her line manager so as to validate her case in court. There would have been a conflict resolution committee to deliberate on her case before resigning and suing her former employer. In my opinion, the case Jennifer has filed against her employer will not hold water and she is likely to lose it because firstly, she is no longer part of the workforce in the company and secondly, there is no concrete evidence of her harassment reported to the authorities before leaving the company. Thirdly, her reasons for resigning are unclear to the management even though she claims the sexual harassments from the senior partner instigated her exit from the company even after six months of enduring through this harrowing experience. Question 2: Pregnancy Discrimination It is unlawful to discriminate someone on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or such medical conditions. Pregnancy is considered a disability in most cases and in the case of Theresa Thomas; I would advise her to sue the school management especially the principal for discriminating and dismissing her on unsatisfactory grounds. The principal should have questioned the reasons why her ratings have dropped suddenly than dismissing her without even checking her track record. It would have been fair if her previous ratings were matched with the current ones and a SWOT analysis done about the ones at hand. Theresa should inform the board of governors of the school about her dissatisfaction with the improper dismissal and if no action is taken, a lawsuit will be convenient to air out her issues in court, which will end up in win-win situation that is getting her job back and being compensated for damages. Question 3: Dress Code The two lawyers have the right to observe their religious doctrines freely since religion is a culture that cuts across all races regardless of where one comes from. Religious discrimination might be a tricky subject for many employers but federal and government discrimination laws always have special considerations and adjustments regarding this dress code in relation to religion. Since the two lawyers already requested their employer to grant them the permission to wear turbans as a fulfillment of their religious beliefs, this was the right and legal step to take; hence, the employer brushing off their request is an act or religious discrimination. If the wearing of Turbans does not affect their professionalism in any way then I can advise the lawyers to sue their employer for grounds of religious discrimination. Question 4: Harassment Employers always have anti-harassment policies put in place to protect their employees against harassment regarding their sex, national origin, language, ethnicity and age. This creates a conducive work environment for the employees and if a complaint arises such as the ones raised by co-workers in Bayou Oil Drilling Company, it should be addressed in accordance to these stipulated policies. First the affected co-workers should take the matter with the HR department since their supervisor had snubbed them. By doing this, they should request for a policy document about harassment and evaluate its depth in line with the foul language the Mexican co-workers use. If the policies are clearly stated, they should ask the HR to enforce it to the vulgar co-workers by summoning them or otherwise file a lawsuit against the company. Question 5: Sick Leave Policy Rogers’s sentiments about the change of policy can be seen as valid to some extent but it is also biased in some way. Since he feels that the change of policy from specific number of days to occurrences will affect the elderly employees in executing their duties effectively, I would advise him that he files the lawsuit but give a substantial reason for the reinstatement of the former policy. This is because all employers are mandated to offer specific number of days paid sick leave annually to its employees regardless of their age, race, ethnicity or color. However, special cases may arise and be paid attention to when it comes to disability and specific chronic illnesses that need frequent attention. The elderly can be slotted into this category but with validity that they are frequent invalids. Employers may be mandated to award certain categories of leave for employees who are sick or disabled. Question 6: Special Sick Leave Special sick leave is a health necessity for employees who have chronic illnesses and need special attention so that they are able to act on their jobs swiftly and without problems, Rita’s situation with kidney problems should be given special attention by the company with regard to her position. Rita should do a written request to her employer with all the supporting health documents to show why she needs to focus on her health so that her productivity at work gains momentum. She should keep copies of these documents just in case things go against her wish. If the employer still denies her the chance, she should opt to resign, file a law suit against the employer for denying her special sick offs. Question 7: Ergonomics in the Workplace The law firm should adhere to the requests of its employees since a good work place design is a mandatory requirement that employers must demand for to create a conducive working environment for employers get the best out of each and every employee in the company. The postures and movement of employees play a vital role in their successful completion of tasks and is dictated by the body muscles, joints and ligaments which help in posture. By providing them with more frequent breaks, it will relieve them from tediousness and help them relax their muscles. Ergonomically designed chairs, armrests and footstools have a great impact on their posture and movements while typing and this would increase their typing speeds and accuracy. The liquid crystal display monitors reduce eye staring after long working hours which may lead to slumber in the offices. Therefore the law firm should allocate funds for these materials since these are necessary for a conducive working environment. Question 8: Personal Injury Claim Fraud This may be a case of soft fraud, which is usually very common. It happens most regularly with reasonable claims, when claimants overstate their hurts to accumulate their damages. Claimants can similarly fake an injury by deceptively using a past injury as the source for a new claim. Venus cosmetics should collect substantial evidence against the claims of Marissa Campbell by doing a thorough investigation about her conduct regarding the injury she allegedly got during her employment with the cosmetic company. This could be a case of defrauding her former employer for compensation of work related injury that she was not as intense as she claimed. If the company’s investigations find concrete evidence against her claims, Venus Cosmetics have the liberty to sue Marissa Campbell for conspiracy to defraud them and eventually pay her former employer for damages of their reputation if they win the case. References Buckley, J. F., & Green, R. M. (2004). State by State Guide to Human Resources Law 2005. Frederick, MD: Aspen. Read More