EOC Week 3: This Charming Man

This week in Human Resource Management we watched a danish movie called This Charming Man. In the movie there was a lot of discrimination. The movie starts off with a man named Lars Hansen trying to find work, so he gets set up with a class that has nothing to do with him, instead his name got mixed up with someone else name, so Lars calls the immigration center and talks to the lady, he gets frustrated and calls the lady working a peasant who needs to go back to where she comes from. Managers should use zero-tolerance harassment policies to take action even for offensive conduct that does not meet the legal standard of a harassing environment. The reason is that even mild forms of harassment that go unchecked can disrupt an operation through decreased morale and productivity and increased employee turnover. (Chapter 10 pg. 356)Another act of discrimination was when a bar tender was saying a racist joke. For example he tells a joke to the guys sitting at the bar that a bomb went off in Pakistan,  and asks if they know how many died, then replies "No one because they were all here on welfare. " HR managers can take disciplinary action against employees who occasionally use obscene language or tell off-color jokes, even if that conduct would not generally constitute illegal harassment unless the employees engaged in it on an ongoing basis.(Chapter 10 pg.356) Another act of discrimination during the movie was the print shop did not hire immigrants because they prefer a danish male with blonde hair and a charming danish name. The following situations indicate activities that could lead the EEOC to conclude that age discrimination is present in a hospitality operation. The boss wanted younger-looking, more attractive females (or males) for front-of-house positions, so older workers were not hired. (Chapter 9 pg. 327)

EOC Week 2: Sweet Charity

Today in class we watched a movie called Sweet Charity from 1969 staring Shirley Maclaine. The movie is about a taxi dancer named Charity who continues to have faith in the human race despite numerous disappointments, and in hopes to finally meet the man to sweep her off her feet and take her away from her sleazy life. During the movie Charity has an interview with the Human Resources department, during this time of the movie there were some really good views on what you should do and should not do in an interview. For example, something she did wrong during the interview was she did not dress as appropriate and business professional as she should have, she also ended up breaking down and begging for a job which is something no one should ever do. Rehearse before training. Just as trainees must practice to learn a task, trainers should also practice to gain experience with their presentation. Be aware of appearance and hygiene.(Chapter 7 pg. 246) Also, she did not even introduce herself when she walked into the room, she should have gave him a handshake and introduced herself."We probably don't consciously remember a person's handshake or whether it was good or bad. But the handshake is one of the first nonverbal clues we get about the person's overall personality, and that impression is what we remember." (http://www.careerbuilder.com/article/cb-884-getting-hired-why-you-need-a-good-handshake/)  Despite all this, she did do something right, and that was maintaining her optimism. Some managers maintain that employee rating and appraisal systems must include the evaluation of subjective employee characteristics such as personality, attitude, appearance, demeanor, friendliness, and social behavior. Other managers maintain that these characteristics most often do not reflect a worker's ability to successfully perform a job.(Chapter 9 pg.328)

 

EOC: Week 1: Best and Worst Jobs

Through out my four years of employment I have had exactly four jobs, and out of those four one of them was the worst job you could think of, and the one I currently work at is the best job I could ask for at this time in my life.

The worst job I have ever worked at was at a retail clothing store. The store was managed by young girls, and the owner was originally from Korea, but I barley saw her, and when she did come around is was like Cruella Deville stepping into the building everyone feared her. I worked their for about nine months and throughout those nine months I noticed this company seemed a little racist. They would hire Korean people to replace management whenever a manger would get fired, and they even demoted a manger to assistant manager and had a Korean lady come and fill in her place. Mind you these people were great people, but they had no real experience with retail or how to even manage a store, they had us the employees who had been working there and the assistant manager training and helping out the new managers. I was even helping train new employees who got hired with better pay. "Hospitality and tourism organizations that implement valuing-diversity efforts move beyond race and gender concerns and attempt to provide an environment that is welcoming and rewarding for every staff member."(Chapter 1 page 16)  They just over all are a horrible company with poor management, and the owner is stuck up in her own world, which is why I believe they have not progressed in the past couple years.

The job I currently work at is one of the best jobs I could ask for. My job really appreciates their employees and they show it too. They start you off with good pay and room for growth in the company. I work at a ticket booth all up and down the Las Vegas Strip where we have such a diverse group of people in the workplace. The company offers benefits, 401k, bonuses, and raises. The company is really big on customer service and they are also really big on making their employees happy as well. We even get sick pay, and paid vacation! "The best of HR managers actually go one step further and use their compensation programs as an essential tool for attracting and retaining excellent workers, as well as maximizing profits for their employers."(Chapter 8 pg. 264) Not only that but since we sell the shows that play all up and down the strip they also comp the shows for us so we can go see them and experience the show itself so we can talk to our customers about them!