Man3240 - Organizational Behavior - Test 1

Front 1

What are the misconceptions about jobs and job expectations that were discussed in class?

Back 1

“Jobs won’t find you”
”You ain’t gonna make 60 grand in year 1”
”A resume you make the night before will kick "mule" (sarcasm....means ass)”
"You need to let them know what you want.”

Front 2

The skills that employers are looking for in college graduates include?

Back 2

-Get Along
-Ability to Coexist
-Willingness to Learn
-Determination and Persistence
-Work Ethic
-Technical Competence
-Communication Skills
-Problem Solving Skills
-Honesty
-Loyalty

Front 3

What jobs are expected to grow during 2009?

Back 3

-Health Care
-Government
-Education

Front 4

Why are younger employees particularly vulnerable in high unemployment settings?

Back 4

-Another factor keeping the jobless rate high among younger workers may be their unwillingness to accept any job that’s offered.

“When you’re younger you’re willing to look a little more, maybe move around or live with parents,” he says. “If you’re 50 with a mortgage, you’ll do anything to work hard.

Front 5

What trends regarding the most and least literate cities in the US exist according to the research?

Back 5

-an estimated 32 million adults in the USA — about one in seven — are saddled with low literacy skills

-Least Literate
1. El Paso
2. Hialeah, FL
3. Corpus Christi, TX

-Most Literate
1. Minneapolis and Seattle (tie)
3. Washington, D.C.
4. St. Paul

Front 6

Management’s top pet peeves include what?

Back 6

1. Abuse of sick leave
2. Poor hygiene
3. Out-of-control cubicles
4. Unorthodox noises
5. Obnoxious cell phone behavior
6. Extended smoking breaks
7. Lousy table manners
8. Selling your wares at the office
9. Red vs. blue states
10. The office sourpuss

Front 7

What are the compensation-related implications of employee height? Be specific.

Back 7

Each inch in height amounted to about $789 more a year in pay, the study found

Front 8

What are the very “best gigs” and the very “worst gigs” according to the research?

Back 8

Worst Gigs in terms of death (deaths per 100,000 persons)
Fishermen (141.7)
Pilots (87.8)
Loggers (82.3)
Structural iron and steel workers (61.0)
Refuse collectors (41.8)
Farmers and ranchers (37.1)
Power linemen (34.9)
Roofers (33.9)
Drivers (27.1)
Agricultural workers (21

Top Ten Gigs
1. Mathematician
2. Actuary
3. Statistician

Worst Gigs
191. Ironworker
192. Roustabout
193. Welder
194. Garbage Collector
195. Roofer
196. EMT
197. Seamen
198. Taxi Driver
199. Dairy Farmer
200. Lumberjack

Front 9

Barriers to going green include __________.

Back 9

The most common barrier to creating an environmental program is implementation cost (85 percent) followed by maintenance cost (74 percent). Other barriers include lack of management support (43 percent), lack of employee support (25 percent), and concern for workplace inefficiency (20 percent).

Front 10

What is the current (January) unemployment rate?

Back 10

7.6%

Front 11

What do economists expect it to do during the rest of 2009?

Back 11

-look for the unemployment rate to continue to rise to about 9.75% by the end of 2009

Front 12

Why is the job market so lousy according to the research?

Back 12

Companies are cutting costs to make up for plummeting demand and a lack of available credit and investment

Front 13

Is it a good idea to use furloughs as an alternative to layoffs? Why or why not?

Back 13

“It’s better to have a job than not have a job,”

“Mainly because so many companies are having a hard time finding skilled and capable workers during the good times that they don’t want to have to go through that again in a year or two when the economy comes back. They’re hoping to keep people.”

Have people work less but keep them employed.

Front 14

What happens to those who survive a layoff? How do these employees respond?

Back 14

87% of survivors reported that morale either decreased or decreased significantly after the layoff

50% of survivors were actively looking for another job one week after the layoff.

A decline in customer service because workers feel they lack job security after layoffs.

Employee attitudes that may change for the worse, possibly leading to tardiness, absenteeism, and reduced productivity.

Front 15

Is your generation worried about finding a job? What are some doing to find work? Understand specifics.

Back 15

44% say they’re very worried about finding employment after graduation, while 42% say they are somewhat worried about getting jobs. Only 14% say they are not worried at all.

As a result of the tough job market, new grads are making unexpected compromises that they may not have had to in the past. Many (48%) have expanded their job searches to
include a wider array of geographic locations than originally intended, and even more (56%) have explored employment in industries in which they had not initially been interested.

Front 16

How does the employment rate for college graduates compare to non-grads? For college grads, what is the outlook for the rest of 2009?

Back 16

For December, their unemployment rate was 3.7 percent, compared with 7.2 percent for everyone regardless of academic pedigree

Mishel predicted the unemployment rate for college graduates will reach a record 4 or 5 percent during 2009 and that educated workers "are going to experience the kind of pain that has been common for people with less education

Front 17

What does the current state of the economy (i.e., recession) mean in terms of jobs/employment?

Back 17

-Fewer absolute number of jobs
-Salaries will remain stagnant
-Fewer internship opportunities
-Greater competition for jobs (people you wouldn’t think)
-Less efficiency at the company’s end
-More hiring weirdness (jobs-no jobs)
-More “starting at the bottom”
-Slower

Front 18

What makes starting a franchise difficult?

Back 18

Hefty startup costs, which may range from $20,000 to $150,000 to buy part-time or smaller franchises, don't guarantee a profit. There also are royalties, licensing requirements, long-term commitments and the franchise company's ultimate control to consider. Three-quarters of all franchisors die within the first 10 years

Front 19

According to the research, what has been the economy’s effect on spending and retirement?

Back 19

Less spending and later retirement

Front 20

What if you were conservative with your family’s finances? What did this philosophy predict for people?

Back 20

-Higher job satisfaction
-More confidence you could find another job
-Less edgy at home after a stressful day
-Felt life and family were more in balance
-Fewer symptoms of depression
-Less inclined to be in “job search” mode
-Experienced lower levels of work stress

Front 21

Top five predictors of job satisfaction for men and women include ___________.

Back 21

Women
-they have autonomy
-they have less selfish co-workers
-have less backstabbing going on at work
-they can count on their co-workers
-they believe their company -communicates honestly

Men
-they feel secure
-their organization communicates with them
-they have autonomy
-the company is honest with them
-they have co-workers who are not selfish

Front 22

Per our discussion, chronologically trace (e.g., timeline) society’s cynicism as it relates to government.

Back 22

Kennedy assassination, Nixon scandals, Clinton Scandals, Bush’s presidency

Front 23

Do people have faith in the government and those disseminating news information?

Back 23

67% have no faith that the information they are receiving is accurate

Front 24

How many Americans have total distrust for political parties?

Back 24

80%

Front 25

What states had the highest increases in median household income during 2000-2006? The steepest declines?

Back 25

Steepest Declines
-Mississippi
-Oregon
-Michigan
-Utah
-North Carolina

Highest Increases
-Montana
-North Dakota
-Wyoming
-Rhode Island
-D.C.

Front 26

What can be said about the research examining perceptions of a “haves” and “have-nots” society?

Back 26

The percentage of people who think we are not divided has decreased and percentage of people who think we are divided has increased from 2004 to 2008

Front 27

What did the research examining the relationship between cynicism, politics and job satisfaction confirm?

Back 27

People with low trait cynicism have higher job satisfaction and people with high trait cynicism have less job satisfaction.

Front 28

Why is telecommuting a good idea given the present economy?

Back 28

Flexible schedules

Front 29

Do employees feel that their organization has integrity (know specifics)?

Back 29

-88% of employees feel that their organization does not practice what is in it’s mission statement regarding values
-78% felt that corporate scandals and fat-cat payouts have increased skepticism
-29% have indicated that they have lost ALL trust in corporate leaders
-75% of employees feel that their organization would stab them in the back to make a buck.

Front 30

Compare the unemployment rate of high school dropouts to other education attainment levels in 2008

Back 30

All workers 25 years of age and older, regardless of educational level, have endured rising unemployment over the last year. However, those without a high school diploma have sustained the greatest increase in joblessness—climbing from 6.5 percent in October 2007 to 9.3 percent in October 2008.

Indeed, high school dropouts are more than three times as likely to be unemployed as those with at least a bachelor's degree.
From October 2007 to October 2008

Front 31

How did husbands and wives agree/disagree on perceived financial sustainability after a potential layoff?

Back 31

*For women
-If I got laid off = 18 months
-If my husband got laid off = 12 months
-If both got laid off = 5 months
-Also, 78% reported less than 6 months if both were laid off

*For men
-If I got laid off = 15 months
-If my wife got laid off = 22 months
-If both got laid off = 8 months
-Also, 25% reported less than 1 months if both were laid off (that ain’t much)
-20% of husbands and wives were > 6 months apart on their opinions if both got laid off

Front 32

What percentage of employees have experienced yelling and verbal abuse at work in the past year?

Back 32

37%

Front 33

Understand executive stress and the consequences of bullying in the workplace.

Back 33

Stress, excessive worrying (76%)
Loss of concentration (71%)
Disrupted sleep (71%)
Edgy, irritable, easily startled (60%)
Stress headaches (55%)

Front 34

“Recent economic events have increased employees’ stress levels at work”

Back 34

Women - 66%

Men - 69%

Front 35

“I am concerned that a company layoff will affect me”

Back 35

Women - 65%

Men - 69%

Front 36

What percentage are “optimistic”?

Back 36

Women - 76%

Men - 66%

Front 37

“Despite the economy, I could find another job at least as good as the one I have”

Back 37

Women - 22%

Men - 28%

Front 38

______ percent of U.S. caregivers report making adjustments to their work life, including going in late, leaving work early or taking time off during the day.

Back 38

67%

Front 39

What percent of 4th and 8th graders are performing at a level considered proficient by the U.S. Department of Education?

Back 39

30%

Front 40

Married couples with a single working Dad, stay at home Mom, and kids living with two biological parents. What percent?

Back 40

1900 - 90%
Now - 7%

Front 41

What facts link obesity and savings rates?

Back 41

-From 1980 to 2003, obesity rates rose, consumption as a percentage of the country's gross domestic product rose, and the U.S. savings rate plummeted.

-According to the University of Miami, obesity took off when women started earning more and restaurant portion sizes grew. Families started eating out more often as women spent more hours away from home and restaurants increased portions to stay competitive.

-from New York University claim the number of new products introduced in restaurants bragging of huge portions increased sevenfold during the '80s and '90s.

Front 42

What is the biggest cause of workplace cynicism? What is the best way to deal with it if you are a manager?

Back 42

-Communicate Regularly
-Ft the person at the job
-Recognize performance
-Develop your mplys
-Find ways to have fun
-understand the importance of nnwrk
-Create a healthy and safe environment
-be straight with people

Front 43

What are the statistics related to employee morale in the current employment climate?

Back 43

-October study of nearly 300 HR professionals 26% said that current economic conditions were causing "serious employee morale

-A September poll of 711 adults found that HALF said they were experiencing stress because of financial concerns. 48% said stress was making it hard for them to perform well on the job.

-the number of calls for financial help in August and September jump 87%

-29% said the level of economic anxiety in their workplace was "severe" or "high." 56% reported seeing some anxiety. Yet 46% said their organization’s leadership had taken no actions to respond to the economic anxiety in the workplace