Explain the stand of labor unions in the United States on issues such as employment of prison labor and contingent workers.
What will be an ideal response?
Answers will vary. The U.S. labor movement and its advocates argue that the U.S. prison system needs reform to provide more rights to prison laborers and to ensure that prison labor does not take away civilian population jobs, which in the long run can lead to increased crime. Unions have become more involved in social issues such as the use of prison labor. Traditionally, prison inmates literally worked on chain gangs or worked sewing clothes or doing laundry. However, today inmates perform a range of jobs in the community, including working as firefighters in Oregon and California. Some states do not actually pay inmates, while Oregon's fire crews makes more than $4.00 an hour. Of course, firefighters on the outside make considerably more than $4.00 an hour, so relying on convict labor saves states a great deal of money, but it also means there are fewer jobs for noninmates (who might be union members), which can also cause problems for a community. U.S. unions have also taken a stand on the topic of contingent workers. Clearly, organized labor has a vested interest in opposing the reliance on these groups of potential replacement laborers. Although the representatives of the unions focus on the social implications of these practices, and probably are concerned about these social costs, clearly labor unions have more to lose in these cases than do others. Nonetheless, U.S. labor unions have been able to form coalitions with other community groups who oppose the use of prison labor or are concerned about exporting jobs overseas, and they have become very vocal in this movement. As a result, labor unions have gained a great deal of credibility as guardians of middle-class jobs. See 11-7: Labor Unions in the 21st Century
You might also like to view...
When using a spreadsheet to prepare the statement of cash flows, an increase in accounts payable is entered in the Analysis of Changes columns with a debit in the statement of cash flows section and a credit in the balance sheet section.
Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)
An effective oral presentation should have
A) An introduction that arouses the audience's attention and states the topic of the presentation. B) A body that touches on all the points. C) A conclusion that suggests what is next, explains when a follow-up should happen, or why a date is important. D) All of the above. E) A and C.
Continuous monitoring, in the contemporary approach, is beneficial because
A. organization response time is increased. B. organizational flexibility is reduced. C. it reduces time lags. D. it increases the time it takes to detect changes in the competitive environment.
Which of the following statements best describes groupthink?
A. It is a situation in which organizations compete with one another for resources, but they also need to cooperate to share competencies. B. It is a process by which the founder defines and shapes an organization's culture, which can persist for decades after his or her departure. C. It is a process whereby employees internalize an organization's values and norms through immersion in its day-to-day operations. D. It is a situation in which opinions coalesce around a leader without individuals critically challenging and evaluating that leader's opinions and assumptions.