Launches an Essay Writing Competition with 750$ Prize Fund

Launches an Essay Writing Competition with 750$ Prize Fund A student or a young writer from any part of the globe can take part in this essay writing contest. The topic is â€Å"Can education fight crime†. As famous French writer, Victor Hugo once said: â€Å"Pour the abyss of ignorance, and you will destroy the stash of crimes†. We want to know, is it true for you, or is education has no power against evil in your opinion? All contestants must be 25 years or younger. There are no entrance fees or any other limitations concerning what you can or should write. There are, however, some contest guidelines: Your essay should have 500-800 words. We don’t want your work to be too long. Also, we don’t want it to be too short. Length 500 to 800 words is just perfect. Your work should be written in English. Our contest is international. So is The English language. We know, that Chinese is also considered to be international, but none of us or our writers can speak it or any other international language well enough. Thanks for understanding all contest rules. Write contest by yourself and from the heart. As was said earlier, we want to read YOUR thoughts, be sure we are going to check every work for plagiarism. So, you have to make a deep breath and say: â€Å"I write my essay† to win this essay writing contest! Your work could be written in any style, but mistakes will be counted. Be ready to write about education, so we expect not to find countless grammar, spelling or punctuation mistakes. So please, even if your work has an incredible message and expresses your soul, bother to check it a few extra times. It will be a pity if a really good work which has all reasons to win the contest, go unnoticed due to poor language usage. Use MS Word, write your name, age and where you study as a name of the document. We ask You to write this information not because there are some extra limitations to participants in our contest, but because we ourselves are interested in where our participants from and who they are, so it would be great if you duplicate that data in the bottom of the document. Plus it is much easier to keep track of your works if they are named those way. Deadline of the contest and winner announcement Send us your works until April the 15th on our address at We will write you back as soon, as we receive your letter. If You won’t receive any reply, be sure to write at so your work could not be lost. We announce Winners   on May the 9th, on this day we will contact them with further instructions on how they can collect their rewards! Contest Prize Pool And now let’s talk about fun part of ours! Some of our writers, who are the best in our essay writing service, in consolidation with staff from a jury. They are going to choose three best works. Authors of those works will be rewarded with some tasty prizes: 1st Place – 500$; 2nd Place – 200$; 3rd Place – 50$. We will post winners’ essays which win the contest as well as information about the writers on our blog and post links to your Social Networks below it (it is optional, we won’t do it if you don’t want us to). More to that, if you repost this contest post on Facebook, you will have a chance of winning an Amazon gift card! We are going to choose randomly a person on May the 9th, the day when the first three works will be announced. All you need to do is not to delete this report until the day of winners’ announcement! Send us your essays till April the 15th. Be sure to write â€Å"This Contest† in the subject of the letter and follow our guidelines! Good luck!

Home Furniture Ltd.

Home Furniture Ltd. The success of Home Furniture Ltd. (HF) is due to their commitment to provide affordable yet high-quality products. As a result the corporate leaders at HF went the extra mile in developing solutions to rising manufacturing costs as well as shipping costs. For them the best way to lower manufacturing cost is through innovation.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Home Furniture Ltd. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The company developed a system of manufacturing that enabled them to disassemble furniture, ship it to customers, and then re-assembled in the comfort of their own home. It was an overwhelming success. The company was established in Finland but today HF already has a global presence. However, with the global expansion comes the inevitable problems associated with it. The corporate leaders at HF came face-to-face with challenges related to culture and logistics. Their difficulties were exacerbated by the f act that HF is no longer governed by a Finnish CEO but one who comes from the UK and together with his promotion to the top post, he brought with him a set of cultural beliefs and core values that came in conflict with teams working overseas. The new British CEO must learn how to do business in a global scale and it requires a clear understanding of cultural differences and its impact in developing teams. Some of the most significant changes made by the new CEO was to adopt the English language as the official language of communication throughout the organisation. Thus, multicultural teams located as far as India and other Asian countries must comply with this new directive. However, it did not take long for the CEO to realise that the communication strategy used to implement change revealed conflicts due to cultural differences. More importantly the CEO was made aware of the fact that there are serious lapses in human resource management especially when it comes to global operation s. There is a need to formulate a strategy to solve these problems and the best way to start is to realise that culture is at the heart of the matter. A. Provide the new Home Furniture CEO with advice on the policy he should adopt when operating in various countries and employing people from various countries. Refer to the various concepts and outcomes of research on management across cultures. Understanding Culture The CEO must lead the way when it comes to understanding differences in culture and the need to effectively managed multicultural teams (Hogan, 2007, p.81). There must be a program that teaches top managers on how to deal with diversity within the organisation. The struggle in coping with the challenges of diversity is especially true for the expatriates that HF sent to handle their Asian and American business operations.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The said training program should be instilled into the hearts and minds of the top-level managers who will be sent as expatriates to foreign countries. They must learn to respect, appreciate and manage diversity. They must come to realise that culture is: a) the collective programming of the mind that distinguishes one human group from another; b) important sets of assumptions that are shared by members of a community; and c) a groups characteristic way of perceiving the environment† (Earley Singh, 2000, p.18). These are the things that they cannot afford to ignore. HFs CEO must emphasise the fact that technical expertise is just part of the learning process, they must also learn the significance of understanding cultural differences. Members of the multicultural teams scattered all over the globe must come to terms with the fact that â€Å"Culture give people a sense of who they are, of belonging, of how they should behave, and of what they should be doing, culture im pacts behaviour, morale, and productivity at work, and includes values and patterns that influence company attitudes and actions† (Moran Harris, 2007, p.6). If the CEO and the top-level managers are in agreement about these issues then they will develop a keen awareness of the strengths and limitations of multicultural teams and how to deal with employees in foreign lands. A deeper understanding of culture and its impact on the organisation can be understood by referring to a framework developed by a psychologist named Geert Holfstede (Mindtools, 2011 p.1). These are labelled as follows: 1) Power/Distance; 2) Individualism; 3) Masculinity; 4) Uncertainty/Avoidance; and 5) Long Term Orientation. (Mindtools, 2011, p.1). These five dimensions cover important aspects of business operations such as corporate leadership, teamwork, how to deal with employees and how employees will interact with their supervisors. It is even helpful when it comes to gender issues. It also give leader s the ability to develop systems and company policies based on the local culture and not on what they believe is true according to their own culture. The framework developed by Holfstede is a helpful tool when it comes to devising strategies for developing human resources.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Home Furniture Ltd. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The first dimension labelled as Power/Distance is an important contribution in the study of international business. This cultural dimension is the measure of the effect of the perception of power when it comes to the interaction between two people. In the UK it is non-issue if a subordinate will deal with a boss in a manner that will reveal that they are equals, without considering age differences and social status. If the same thing is done in a country like Japan where there is a high score in the Power/Distance dimension, then the boss will be offended by the lack of respect from the subordinate. The second dimension which is Individualism is the measure of the â€Å"strength of the ties people have to others within the community† (MindTools, 2011, p.1). This means that in Asian countries the workers will chose harmony over confrontation. They will do everything not to rock the boat so to speak. This can be frustrating for a Westerner when it comes to dealing with problems in the company and find no one will speak out and talk about the issues that are hounding the group. The third most important insight that Hofstede contributed to the study of international business is how to measure long term orientation or LTO. This particular cultural dimension is very critical when it comes to introducing something new to the company. It is imperative that HFs CEO is aware of this facet of culture. If the CEO ignores the implications of LTO then he will be bewildered when he encounters resistance when it comes to a policy change. This re sistance is due to the natural tendency to use what worked in Western societies but does not necessarily mean that it is also effective in an Asian context. Hiring and Training Before going into the intricacies of multicultural teams the first thing that has to be done is to hire the best and brightest, train them and then hope to retain their services for a long period of time. It is the finding, training, and retaining of skilled workers that can thrive in Western-style multinational corporate cultures that will ensure the success of HF in foreign lands (Krizan et al., 2008, p.381). HFs CEO must be aware of the strength and weaknesses of the talent pool available to him. The best way to illustrate this is to look at HFs needs in the context of their operations in China.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More According to experts there are four types of managers that HF can hire and these are 1) Western expatriates; 2) Asian Expatriates; 3) Mainland Chinese returning home; and 4) Local talent (Lau, 2007, p.1). The same thing can be said of other operations outside Finland thus this is a good way to demonstrate how the CEO will deal with hiring and training expatriates and local talent. The strength of Western expatriates is seen in the way they understand international business and their familiarity with Western management techniques. However, they do not posses a deep understanding of the Chinese culture and they are very limited in terms of using the Chinese language. Asian expatriates on the other hand can be as good as Western expatriates in terms of their knowledge with regards to Western management techniques. Furthermore, they have another advantage; they have a far better grasp of Chinese culture and language. One option open to HF is to hire managers that are from Mainland China who went abroad to study or live there as expatriates and decided to come back to their homeland and work there. Their advantage is they understand the Western mindset and trained to implement strategies from a Western point of view. This group is valuable to the company in terms of their ability to understand Chinese culture. The only challenge is that HF must offer them an attractive compensation package so that they will be enticed to come home and work in China. The fourth group are the locals. The problem is that they lack international exposure and deficient when it comes to English language skills. Moreover, they need to be trained to appreciate and embrace the standard of quality expected by HF. Nevertheless, it is more practical to hire local talent than to hire someone from abroad. This is the reason why HF build teams by hiring a small number of local managers at the level of middle-management and then bring in an expatriat to guide the team initially for four years. Thi s is a good practice because the locals will know that they have job security and that the company has a long term commitment in their country. Aside from localising the management team one way of retaining top talent is through investing in training and development as seen in the following, â€Å"many foreign businesses have extensively rotated local talent through various countries. This rotation and related possibility of promotion is also an effective way of retaining human capital developed by the company† (Luo, 2007, p. 181). It is important to remember though that training programs should be a product of careful planning with an eye towards the future and not simply a hastily assembled training program that does not meet the needs of multicultural teams. According to Schuler and Jackson, â€Å"Enterprises often carry out training without strategic planning, costing or taking into account what the training needs of the enterprise† (2007, p. 282). This will not wo rk for HF. B. The sophisticated nature of logistics and the innovation and development of products at Home Furniture means that its employees are required to work in teams. Advise the new CEO on what he should take into account when forming multi-cultural teams from various countries where Home Furniture has offices, stores, and production units, and how to manage those teams. Develop a Training Program HFs CEO must design and develop a training program that will transform the way the organisation deals with multicultural teams. According to experts multicultural teams can easily become the most productive teams in the organization but at the same time this type of team can easily underachieve (Adler Gundersen, 2008, p.140). The reason for this is the inability of the CEO to manage diversity (Adler Gundersen, 2008, p.140). This is a crucial aspect of multicultural teams that HF must consider. If the CEO has no idea what to do with cultural diversity within a multicultural team the n conflict will arise and he will be powerless to deal with it. Experts are saying that the usual method of conflict resolution is by avoidance using the divide and conquer tactic evident in compartmentalisation or departmentalisation of an organisation (Earley Singh, 2000, p.21). Another method is through suppression by using the power of corporate hierarchy to stifle dissenting voices (Earley Singh, 2000, p.21) But recent studies indicated that conflict is something that organisations must learn not to avoid; they must learn to embrace it. This is especially true when it comes to â€Å"functional conflicts† because a closer inspection will reveal that this type of conflict is â€Å"viewed as a way of surfacing more ideas, criticisms, and opinions of group members regarding task performance and can make a positive contribution to group performance† (Earley Singh, 2000, p.21). This is why the CEO must create an environment where conflict is addressed properly and no t discourage team members to voice out their opinions and suggestions. With regards to the creation of a training program for multicultural teams, HFs CEO must design it in such a way that team members will be able to â€Å"reflect on their own self (My Biography); they should be objective and accurate observers (Ethnography); they should communicate effectively (Inter-cultural Communication); interact successfully with people from other cultures (Inter-cultural Interaction); they should come to terms with their emotions (Emotional Management); and deal with different issues of diversity (Diversity Management)† (Guilherme Glaser, 2010, p.187). The training program must teach top-level managers, middle-management and key leaders in the company to understand culture by being able to reflect on their own cultural bias and then use that to observe the cultural differences that exist around them. By doing so they have achieved a level of awareness that will enable them to communi cate effectively to team members in a multicultural team. As a result they are able to resolve conflict and enhance teamwork. The said training program that will be initiated by HFs CEO must also contain a module wherein team leaders and team members are taught the value of communication. In the context of a multicultural team verbal skills is not enough. According to experts in the field of international business, communication is a complex subject matter that it can even be broken down into smaller components such as: words, material things and behaviour (Hall Hall, 1990, p.3). In other words a team member must try to decode what was said not only by listening to the words that was said but also by determining the silent language being conveyed. This new skill is not mastered easily and requires team members to spend more time together. Conclusion HFs CEO must develop a system of hiring and training local talent. There is nothing wrong with bringing in an expatriate to guide the team in the initial stages of development. Therefore, HF must learn to manage multicultural teams. The next step is to create a training program that will instil in the hearts and minds of every single employee that they live in a globalised workplace. It is no longer enough to focus on ones culture; it is time to understand cultural differences that exist within the team. In this way multicultural teams can be more effective and HF will be able to expand in other countries because it is now possible to hire and retain the best talent. References Adler, N. J. Gundersen, A., 2008. International Dimensions of Organisational  Behaviour. UK: Thomson Higher Education. Earley, P. C. Singh, H., 2000. Innovations in International and Cross-cultural  Management. London: Sage. Guilherme, M. Glaser, E. 2010. The Inter-cultural Dynamics of Multicultural  Working. Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Hall, Edward T. Hall, M., 1990. Understanding Cultural Differences: Germans, French and Amer icans. Yarmouth, ME: Inter-cultural Press. Hogan, C., 2007. Facilitating Multicultural Groups: A Practical Guide. London: Kogan Page. Lau, D., 2011. China: Skills Shortage Makes Long-Term Talent Management Key  to Success. Web. Luo, Y., 2007. Guanxi and Business. New Jersey: World Scientific Publishing. MindTools, 2011. Holfstedes Cultural Dimensions. Web. Moran, R.T. Harris, P.R., 2007. Managing Cultural Differences. 7th ed. London: Butterworth-Heinemann. Schuler, R. Jackson, S. E., 2007. Strategic Human Resource Management. 2nd ed. MA: Blackwell Publishing.

Come up with a plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Come up with a plan - Essay Example Establishing a high completion/proficiency percentage shows me that the students are progressing in knowledge because they are accomplishing the tasks assigned through differentiation. To accomplish this goal, I will first determine what students know about the unit of instruction before I begin to teach it. These diagnostic tests will show me where students should begin their studies. The class is stratified roughly into three categories (Above, At and Below Grade Level). I will anticipate the diagnostic test showing the strengths and weaknesses of students across these categories. Based on the results of the diagnostic, students will be allowed to self-select multiple learning activities that have been developed for their current level of understanding. Allowing students to self-select provides a level of intrinsic motivation that dictated assignments do not, especially for students that struggle to learn or who possess negative attitudes towards authority. Students working above g rade level will be provided with opportunities to conduct semi-guided research, interview individuals in the community that have strong links to a particular topic in the unit of study or attend to a project that deepens their understanding of the unit.

Organizational Design, Culture, and Adaptation Essay

Organizational Design, Culture, and Adaptation - Essay Example This meant that there were less bureaucratic loopholes and more room for productivity to come about within the hospital settings. The patient-centric aspect is being documented through different programs and steps which are taken on every now and then, as well as in a consistent fashion. This has been the basis of finding out where shortcomings are taking place and what best measures are being done to avoid them from coming up in the first place (Tang, 2002). This healthcare manager is therefore doing his levels best to ensure that the hospital facility remains at par with the best hospitals in town and showcases its true mettle to the general public at all times. He has kept a close eye on the internal and external factors which are under his influence so that the hospital facility has a very sound structure in place. This is the basis of knowing exactly where internal level issues are plaguing the hospital and how external factors play significant roles as well. 2. What internal an d external factors were considered in the transformation? The internal factors that were considered during the restructuring and reengineering were mostly comprised of the attitudes that the employees had on a day to day basis. The external factors were mostly to do with the patients, who were essentially the customers for the sake of the hospital facility. ... The external factors were given similar importance because the patients are the basis of any hospital’s long term success. If they are contented, then this means that the healthcare facility is doing well but if these are not, and as the healthcare manager suggests, then there is much to learn on the part of all and sundry. This outlines how well the hospital facility has been able to rein in commitment towards its transformation. 3. What were the barriers or obstacles were encountered (e.g. internal politics, economics, resource limitations, time constraints, etc.) The healthcare manager faced quite a few obstacles and barriers in the beginning when the restructuring and reengineering aspects were outlined in essence. This meant that he needed to face them, analyze them and turn them in his own favor with the passage of time. There were attitudinal problems that the healthcare manager talked about with the internal domains not being beefed up properly. This meant that the pre mise of change was not such a welcoming one within the internal publics. They did not want to alter their working standards and hence this posed as a serious challenge towards the healthcare facility. Moreover, there were economic issues which haunt this healthcare manager as well. This meant that he needed to restructure and reengineer everything within a fixed budget. The internal politics also came about because the employees had a habit of speaking behind one’s back that had a very negative effect as far as the organizational design, culture and adaptation issues were concerned. 4. What is the potential impact on the program of technology, legislation, etc. on the services provided on the program? The potential impact on the program with regards to technology,

Define and discuss sustainable development by focusing on a global Essay

Define and discuss sustainable development by focusing on a global issue - Essay Example Global warming is an issue that has to be looked into urgently in order to curb these effects before they even get worse than they are now. And in dealing with these issues, so many things have to be put into consideration. Will the measures taken be able to sustain this problem over the years to come and will the generations to come be able to put up with these measures? Without a doubt, it is evident that there exist symbiotic relationship and dependency between society (human beings) and natural resources. This relationship is what we refer to as â€Å"social metabolism† (Ghosh & Goswami, 2014, pg. 67). In any given society, natural recourses are what keep the economy moving. They are the backbone of any economy in society. Human beings depend on forests in so many ways. Forests are the sole source of wood used in construction of houses, commercial buildings; office and house hold furniture and so on. Literally in any building or place one walks into, rarely will one miss a â€Å"wood† aspect around them. Forests too are a good source of charcoal and firewood used at homes. Rural societies and some urbanites depend on forest for medicinal purposes since it is in these forests that you will find herbs and wild vegetation that contain medicinal value for curing various human and animal diseases. Forests are a good water catchment area and source of some rivers. Rivers, lakes and other water bodies provide human beings with water. â€Å"Water is life† no living thing in the world can survive without water. Water from rivers is used in irrigation and in other domestic uses by human beings. Water bodies are a source of habitat for creatures that benefit society in one way or the other (Ghosh & Goswami, 2014, pg. 68). Fish is a good source of healthy food for humans. Other than being used for home purpose, most societies living around fresh water bodies have built their economy through the sale of fish, both locally and to other

Relationship Between Organization And Information System Information Technology Essay

Relationship Between Organization And Information System Information Technology Essay An information system provides procedures to record make available information, concerning part of the organization, to assist organization related activities. Information systems are more then the computers. Effective usage of information system requires a thorough understanding of the organization, its management and the information technology it implies. Information system is defined as the combination of hardware, software, infrastructure and trained personnel organized to facilitate planning, control, coordination, and decision making.(Web-2). Three activities; Input, Processing, and Output in the information system produce the information that are needed to make decision making, Analyzing the problems, controlling operation, and in launching new products. Input collects the raw data, which is manifested into meaning form by the Processor and Output transfers the processed data to the relevant person. Super market check-out is one of the most common examples of uses of information system used by the retail industry. It holds loads of valued information. It keeps millions of data, such as product cost and the details, product identification number and number of product sold out. On the basis of the information collected, companies analyze the total number of the items sold out, items left in the stock, items that sell most, the stuff that need to ordered, and the most analyze its sales. Information system is divided into operational, knowledge, management and strategic level and into five major functional areas; production and manufacturing, Finance, Accounting, sales marketing and Human resources. (Laudon and Laudon, 2003) A strategic level system helps senior management in tackling and addressing strategic issues in order to support the long range planning. Management level systems supports in monitoring, controlling, decision making, and administrative activities for middle managers. Knowledge and data workers are supported by the knowledge level system. Its importance is felt, when new ideas (knowledge) are to be injected into the organization. And basic activities and transactions of the organization (such as cash deposit, sales, receipts, payroll etc) are done by the operational managers, which is supported by the Operational level system. It is clear from the above classifications, that the information system is vital for every level of the organization. Sin ce, every level within the organization is interdependent. Any mistake, delays in information passage in any of the level, is enough for downfall of the organization. Similarly, in many ways, the information system supports the main business functions. For example, sales and marketing information system helps the firm to explore markets for its products or services, develop products and services that meet customers need and promote and sell those products and services. The manufacturing and production information system is responsible for planning, development and production of goods and services and control the production flow. Likewise, finance and accounting information system helps to set up long-term investment goals and provide long-range forecasts of financial performance of the firm. It also helps the managers to manage and control the firms financial resources. Moreover, human resources information system plays a vital role for managing the people effectively. It keeps and maintains employee records which makes easy to analyze and evaluate job performance, conduct recruitment and selection, training and development and retention as well. Managers and the Organization cannot ignore information system due to its critical nature. The influence and the importance of information system are evident in decision making, planning, and management of its employee and in management of the products. One of the most important roles of a manager is to make effective decisions which is very challenging job of the manager. The managers often depend on information system to make decisions because it helps to communicate and distribute information. Interdependence between the business strategy and the information system is becoming more and more complicated. Any change in any of the components has overall effect on the organization. Future prospect of any organization wholly depends on the information system it relies on. The following figure shows the relationship between organization and the Information system. When rules, procedures and strategy of the organization have to be changed, it is also important to change hardware, software, database and, telecommunication. One of the reasons behind the vast importance of the information system in any organization and its effect on so many people is because of the high power and falling cost of the computer technologies. Interdependence Organization Information System Business Strategy Rules procedure Software Telecomm-unication Database Hardware Figure1. Relationship between organization and information system A theory based on both economic and behavioral approaches has made us easier to know the affect of information system on organization. According to Economic Theory, Information technology helps firm contract in size, because it helps to reduce the transaction cost. According to (Williamson, 1985; Coase, 1937), using market place is expensive because of the problem of communicating with distant suppliers, buying insurance, obtaining product, and so on. According to Transaction cost theory, firms and organization try to lower the cost of transaction as much as they do on production costs. It also reduces Management costs. Similarly, according to Agency theory, firms are viewed as the nexus of contracts among self interested individuals who most be supervised and managed. (Laudon and Laudon, 2003, p80). Information system is a multidisciplinary field having different perspectives on information systems. In order to make the information system work properly, a lot of social, organizational and intellectual investments are required. It is divided into two different approaches, i.e, technical approach and behavioral approach. Technical approach includes computer science, management science and operations research where computer science purely deals with the computer system such as computation methods and efficient data storage and access method. The management science is responsible for developing models for decision-making and management practices. Similarly, operations research emphasizes mathematical techniques that help organization to optimize selected parameters such as transportation, cost of transaction and inventory control. So, technical approach is concerned with mathematically based models, physical technology and the capabilities of these systems. Behavioral approach focuses on the changes including management and organizational policy, attitudes and behavior. Although it does not normally focus on technical solutions, it does not ignore technology. The models used in this approach help to explore different issues which can not be explored through technical approach. Important concepts and methods are generated from other behavioral disciplines. For example, sociologists study information system in order to get knowledge about how development of system is shaped by groups and organizations. Similarly, the psychologists study information system so that they can know how human decision makers understand and use formal information. On the other hand, the economists study information system to know what impact has been created by system on cost structure of the firm and the markets as well. The ideas from the sociological, psychological and political point of view are useful in determining the behavior of individual firms, which i s stated by the behavioral approach. It is clear now that the introduction of information system in organization is to improve its effectiveness and efficiency. Automated activities helps in the reduction of the cost incurred, brings more accuracy then the human minds, and the most is the Speed. It saves time and reduces unnecessary costs. Organizations like British gas, British Petroleum, Banks and many more calculates lots of customer bills and other activities, which is only possible through the use of information system. It can be said with guarantee that many large companies would not survive more than 24 hrs without information system. On the contrary, its dark side on the cost at initial installment, the changes that comes along with it, and reluctance of the employee to go with it, and the cost of unproductive information would cause a severe problem to the organization.

Collective Bargaining and Labour Market Outcomes for Canadian Working W

Collective Bargaining and Labour Market Outcomes for Canadian Working Women I  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  INTRODUCTION: UNIONS, LOW PAY, AND EARNINGS INEQUALITY The major purposes of this paper are, first, to examine the impacts of collective bargaining on labour market outcomes for women workers in Canada, specifically with respect to pay, benefits coverage, the incidence of low pay and the extent of earnings inequality, and, second, to suggest ways in which positive impacts could be extended via the expansion of collective bargaining coverage. This part of the paper briefly reviews the literature on the impacts of collective bargaining on earnings, low pay, and earnings inequality, and Part II provides some background description of the labour market position of Canadian working women. Particular attention is paid to the situation of the majority of women who continue to work in lower paid, often insecure and part-time, clerical, sales, and service jobs. The central conclusion of the empirical analysis in Part III, mainly based on data from Statistics Canada's 1995 Survey of Working Arrangements, is that collective bargaining coverage, con trolling for other factors, has significant positive impacts in terms of raising pay and access to benefits, and in terms of reducing the incidence of low pay among women workers. However, the level of collective bargaining coverage for women is very low in precisely those sectors of the economy where women in low paid and insecure jobs are most concentrated, namely in private services and in smaller enterprises. Promoting better labour market outcomes for women workers accordingly requires a major extension of collective bargaining. Part IV of the paper briefly considers ways in which this could be achieved through trade union action and through changes to public policy. The 1996 OECD Employment Outlook comprehensively documented profound differences in the degree of earnings inequality and the incidence of low pay in the advanced industrial countries, noting that these two labour market characteristics are closely related in that "the incidence of low pay tends to be highest in those countries where earnings inequality is the most pronounced." While there is significant variation between countries, a generalized pattern is that continental European countries, particularly in Northern Europe, have a strikingly more equal distributio... ...omen in non-unionized jobs, while for men, the wage difference was about $4.50 - or 24 per cent. The wage premium associated with unionization is shown for selected subgroups of women and men in Table 3. It is notable that the apparent union wage premium tends to be higher for less educated workers, though this is more clearly the case for men than for women. This is consistent with the fact that managerial and professional occupations in the private sector have very low rates of unionization. Table 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Average Hourly Wages of Women and Men, by Unionization and Selected Characteristics, Canada 1995   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   WOMEN  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   MEN  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Union  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Non-Union  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "Union Premium"  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Union  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Non-Union  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "Union Premium" All Age 15 to 24 Age 25 to 44 Age 45 to 69 Less than high school High school grad. Certificate/Diploma University degree Full-time Part-time Managerial/Admin. Professional Clerical Sales Services Blue Collar Firm size less than 20 Firm size 20 to 99 Firm size 100 to 500 Firm size + 500   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   16.68 11.23 16.92 17.37 12.16 14.60 16.56 21.38 16.90 15.95 18.59 19.49 14.47