Employment Law - C233 – WGU Exam Questions with Correct Answers

Employment Law - C233 – WGU Exam Questions with Correct Answers Voluntary Affirmative Action Plan - answerA plan put into place by an employer whose self- analysis reveals effects of past discriminatory action. Whistleblower - answerIndividual who reports real or perceived wrongs committed by the employer. Whistleblowing - answerThe action of an employee to report the wrongdoings of an employer. Wildcat Strike - answerA strike by a portion of workers that is not authorized by the union. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) (Time before Mass Layoff) - answerEnacted in 1988, it gives terminated workers an opportunity to search for other employment or obtain additional training. WARN requires employers with over 100 employees to provide detailed written advance notification of plant closings and mass layoffs to affected employees Worker's Compensation - answerA form of insurance that provides wage replacement and medical benefits for employees injured while at work in exchange for relinquishment of the right to sue the employer for negligence. Workforce Analysis - answerA review of jobs, ranked by title and compensation. Workweek - answerAny consecutive seven-day period. Yellow Dog Contract - answerA document whereby an employee agrees not to organize or join a union. 20-factor Analysis - answerA guide adopted by the Internal Revenue Service for determining if a worker should be classified as an independent contractor. ADA Amendments Act - answerPassed in 2008, it amends the ADA by adding new protections for employees with disabilities. ADEA - answerAge Discrimination in Employment Act ADEA Waivers - answerA statement from a retiring employee that he or she will not make a personal ADEA claim against the employer in exchange for retirement incentives. Abuse of Discretion - answerAn employer's failure to consider important and relevant facts; acting in an arbitrary or capricious manner. Adverse Job Action - answerA negative job action that results from an employee's lawful actions. Affirmative Action (AA) - answerAny action taken by an employer to overcome discriminatory effects of past or current practices that create barriers to equal employment opportunity. Affirmative Action Plan - answer"Plan that analyzes a workforce to determine whether protected classes are underutilized in different job groups and describes how an organization will address any underutilization that exists." Age Discrimination - answerTreating an applicant or employee less favorably because of his or her age. Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) - answerEnacted in 1967, it protects employees who are 40 years of age and older. Agency - answerA contract relationship between a principal and an agent whereby the principal authorizes the agent to work on his or her behalf and with power to bind the principal. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) - answerEmployers with 15 or more employees are prohibited from discriminating against people with disabilities. In general, the employment provisions of the ADA require equal opportunity in selecting, testing, and hiring qualified applicants with disabilities; job accommodation for applicants and workers with disabilities when such accommodations would not impose "undue hardship;" and equal opportunity in promotion and benefits. Tangible Job Action - answerAn employment outcome arising out of sexual harassment. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - answerProtects all races from discrimination. Tort - answerA civil wrong which causes someone harm. U.S Constitution - answerEstablished America's national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens. USERRA - answerUniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act Underutilization - answerA discrepancy between the number of women and minorities in a particular position and the number of qualified women and minorities in the constituent market. Undue Hardship - answerAn accommodation to the work environment that places a significant burden or expense on the employer. Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) - answerAction by an employer or a union that restrains or coerces employees from exercising their rights to organize and bargain collectively or to refrain from doing so. Unfair Labor Practices Strike - answerA stoppage of work in order to pressure management to follow the law. Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) - answerEnacted in 1994, it prevents any employer from discriminating against someone who is or has been in military service. Union Shops - answerA bargaining clause that allows a condition that all employees must join the union once hired. Unions - answerAn organization that represents workers in bargaining with employers. Unwelcome Conduct - answerConduct that is not solicited by an employee and that a reasonable person would regard as offensive. Vesting - answerThe conveying of an employee's rights to benefits or contributions after a certain amount of time. Vicarious Liability - answerA form of secondary liability that comes from the doctrine of respondeat superior - "let the master answer for the servant". Vietnam Era Veteran Readjustment Assistance Act - answerPassed in 1974, it requires contractors to take affirmative action toward veterans. Sexual Harassment - answerHarassment directed at an employee because of his or her gender. Sherman Anti-Trust Act - answerEnacted in 1890, it prevents businesses from combining together to restrain trade and seeking monopoly business power. Stare Decisis - answer(Latin for "let the decision stand") the doctrine of a court following the precedent of an earlier court Statute of Frauds - answerA doctrine that requires certain contracts to be in writing. Steering Assignments - answerA type of race discrimination in which an employer hires a minority and assigns him or her to a less-desirable position. Strike - answerA work stoppage by mass refusal of employees to work. Summary Plan Document (SPD) - answerA document issued from an employer to an employee that contains information about an employee's benefits. Supervisor - answerA managing employee who has power to take tangible employment actions against an employee. Supremacy Clause - answerArticle VI, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution is commonly referred to as the Supremacy Clause. It establishes that the federal constitution, and federal law generally, take precedence over state laws, and even state constitutions. Public-policy Exception - answerA rule of exception to the employment at-will doctrine that states that an employer cannot terminate an employee for reasons that violate public policy. Punitive Damages - answerMonetary damages designed to punish an employer who acted maliciously or recklessly. Qualifying Event - answerAn event that entitles an employee to twelve weeks unpaid leave. Quid Pro Quo - answer(Latin for "this for that") The notion that an employer seeks sexual favors in exchange for some positive employment outcome for an employee. Quota - answerAn official limit on the number or amount of people or things that are allowed. Race - answerA local geographic or global human population distinguished as a distinct group by genetically-transmitted physical characteristics. Racial Animus - answerA type of race discrimination in which an employer obviously excludes an applicant from a job opportunity on the basis of race. Reasonable Accommodation - answerA reasonable change to the work environment that allows an individual with a disability to perform job functions. Reasonable Action - answerSensible action taken to remedy an injustice or imbalance. Reasonable Factor Other Than Age (RFOA) - answerAn employer defense to a disparate impact claim that age was not a factor in an employment action. Reasonable Person Test - answerHypothetical person in society who exercises average care, skill, and judgment in conduct and who serves as a comparative standard for determining liability. Reasonable Rationale - answerA sensible justification for an affirmative action. Reasonable Self-analysis - answerA review of what a contractor's workforce looks like. Rebuttal - answerThe action of contradicting or opposing by formal legal argument, plea, or countervailing proof. In this step the plaintiff responds to the employer during an EEOC discrimination claim hearing. Reduction in Force (RIF) - answerOccurs when a business eliminates one or more positions as part of a strategic business plan to realign operations or reduce cost. Rehabilitation Act of 1973 - answerThis federal law prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. The Act also authorizes state grants for rehabilitation services to disabled persons. Reinstatement - answerA remedy in which a former employee returns to his or her job. Remedies - answerA desired action resulting from a successful lawsuit. Retaliation Claim - answerA complaint filed by an employee who feels he or she was discriminated against in violation of the law. Retaliatory Discharge - answerTermination of an employee as punishment for engaging in a protected activity. Reverse Discrimination - answerDiscrimination that occurs when an employer, acting under an affirmative action plan, favors one race or gender in an employment decision. Right-to-work Laws - answerLaws that give employees the option to not join a union. Same Actor Defense - answerA defense used by the same employer who hires and then fires an over-39 employee to show that age was not a motivating factor in termination. Scope of Employment - answerEmployee conduct that is reasonably relative to a job description. Secondary Boycotts - answerA group's refusal to deal with a business that is not directly involved in the dispute. Serious Health Condition - answerAn incapacitating illness, injury, or impairment that requires overnight care or continuing treatment from a health care provider. Permissive Bargaining Subject - answerA bargaining subject that either party may bring to the table, but over which the other party is not required to bargain. Placement Goal - answerA reasonably attainable objective to achieve equal employment opportunity.