Gender Inequality in Workplace Essay

Gender inequality and discrimination in organizations will damage the individual quality of life in relation to Maslow’s analysis of human needs. Especially for higher order need which are needs for social, esteem and self-actualization. Women experience gender inequality in workplace. Although there are many women who earn more than men, the average women earn is still lower than men’s. A study has found that in 1992, the median earnings of a year-round, full-time woman worker was $21,440 and for a man worker it was $30,358. Thus women, on average, make about 71 percent of what men make. Women age 45 or over, on average, have a net worth of 64%of men’s asserts, $282,826 compare to $430,650. On the other hand, when organizations hiring people, many executives have a subconscious that men can do better than women for some particular job. Many women feel that â€Å"if we try to climb the corporate ladder, we bump our heads on a glass ceiling, beyond which we cannot climb. The glass ceiling metaphor for subtle gender discrimination in the corporate world.† In fact, in many people’s pespectives, some jobs are designed as the jobs men should do but women, such as actuary, financial analyst, fin ancial engineer, administrator, professional specialist and so on. It is gender inequality which is unfair. While women are moving into the professions, they are stalled in the lower-paying positions. Because this phenomenon has existed for a very long time, there appeared occupational segregation meaning that women sometimes been considered as somebody who do not fit for any particular jobs. This kind of discrimination has leading an earning gap between men and women. For every dollar a man earned, a women earned, on average, 71 cents according to the Womens Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor. It has been estimated that one-half of the earning gap is due to direct discrimination in the labor market. Thus, women desire more for the need of self-actualization because they believe it will be more harder for them to develop their creativity and problem solving skills, also, harder to reach their goals. What people lack is usually what they need. Women eventually have more need than men for self actualization. Women experience gender inequality in social life as well. Many people still consider women is that group of people who should be in the lower class of  the society. Gender discrimination is still a serious problem. An on-line consultation has ask a question that whether you agree gender inequality should be a highly priority or not. The answer show that 85.6% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that gender inequality should be a priority. Another question was considering the issue if government should increase funding support for women’s organizations working for equality and bring women’s equality into attention of policy maker. The result can be translated into an average of 4.19 (5 in total), which indicates that the respondents generally agreed. For education, on the other hand, is more obvious. In many parents’ subconscious, born a boy is much better than a girl, because they believe boys can be more successful than girls in the future. Depending on those thoughts, parents will let boys to go to school and been educated but leave girls at home to do some bacis housework. For instance, in China, in primary school, girls constitute only 44 percent of primary school enrollment. In secondary school, girls make up 39 percent. At college level and higher, women account for only 26 percent of enrollment. Thus, for the esteem need and social need, women have more on those than men. Women want to have more respect from other people, they want to be identified by their success. On the other hand, because of women’s nature characteristics, they will have more need on sex intimacy as well.

Ban Cell Phones While Driving

Ban Cell Phones While Driving Almost every American has one. Some people use them strictly for business while others strictly for leisure. Most of us use them for both. They are always at our side ready to be answered, receive text messages, check email, or update our Facebook status. Cellphones have almost become a necessity in society. People regularly engage in a wide variety of multitasking activities when they are behind the wheel. Data from the 2000 U. S. census indicates that drivers spend an average of 25. min each day commuting to work, and there is a growing interest in trying to make the time spent on the roadway more productive (Reschovsky, 2004). Unfortunately, this leads to drivers being distracted on the road. I was a victim of an accident caused by a distracted driver on the telephone. I was in a parking lot about to park and a woman backed into me while she was talking on the phone. She profusely apologized and said she didn’t see me. It wasn’t that she couldn’t see me; she wasn’t paying attention because she was on the phone. Luckily, no one was hurt and there was minimal damage to my car.It’s just annoying and disheartening that people can be so careless. Cellphone use while driving needs to be banned in order to protect drivers and pedestrians alike. This isn’t just my personal opinion on the matter. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommends that states to  ban drivers from any non-emergency use of cell phones and other electronic devices that aren't built into their automobile (Alhers, 2011). It also called on wireless companies to create technology that would â€Å"disable the functions of these portable electronic devices within reach of the driver when a vehicle is in motion† (Alhers, 2011).The recommendation came out of an investigation of a 2010 pickup truck-school bus pileup in Missouri last year that killed two people and injured 35. The investigation found that the pickup driver who caused the accident sent 11 text messages in the 11 minutes leading up to the accident, including some just before impact. The NTSB lacks the authority to impose regulations, but its safety recommendations are highly regarded and have led to many state and federal laws and regulations (NTSB 2011). On Oct. , 2009, President Barack Obama issued an executive order banning the use of text messaging while driving for federal government employees on official business or while using government-supplied equipment. He said, â€Å"text messaging causes drivers to take their eyes off the road and at least one hand off the steering wheel, endangering both themselves and others† (Obama, 2009). Texting while driving is banned in 37 states and the District of Columbia. 30 states ban all cell phone use for beginning drivers.Ten states prohibit all hand-held cell phone use while driving; however, no states currently ban the use of hands-free phones while driving. Most people don't put Bluetooth or Sync in their cars anyway because it’s too expensive. Talking on the phone, hands-free or not, puts the driver’s focus on the conversation and not what is going on around them. It’s impossible to accurately gauge how many car accidents nationwide are cell-phone related, but according to the Department of Transportation, distracted driving killed 3,092 people in the United States in 2010. David L.Strayer, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Utah, stated the following in their Summer 2006 study comparing cell-phone use and intoxication while driving: It is now well established that cell phone use impairs the driving performance of younger adults. For example, drivers are more likely to miss critical traffic signals (traffic lights, a vehicle braking in front of the driver, etc. ), slower to respond to the signals that they do detect, and more likely to be involved in rear-end collisions when they are conversing on a cell phone.In addition, even when participants direct their gaze at objects in the driving environment, they often fail to ‘see' them when they are talking on a cell phone because attention has been directed away from the external environment and toward an internal, cognitive context associated with the phone conversation†¦ (p. 382) Strayer and his colleagues, with respect to traffic safety, found that the impairments associated with cell phone drivers may be as great as those commonly observed with intoxicated drivers.The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Ad Council have launched the new Stop the Texts. Stop the Wrecks. This is a public service advertising public service announcement campaign nationwide. All of the PSAs direct audiences to StopTextsStopWrecks. org, a new campaign website where teens and young adults can find facts about the impact of texting while driving, and tips for how to curb the behavior. The website also has an ar ea where individuals can post and share their solutions to stop texting and driving on Facebook.The NHTSA also reported that pilot projects in Syracuse, New York, and Hartford, Connecticut, produced significant reductions in distracted driving by combining stepped-up ticketing with these high-profile public education campaigns. Before and after each enforcement wave, NHTSA researchers observed cellphone use by drivers and conducted surveys at drivers license offices in the two cities. They found that in Syracuse, hand-held cellphone use and texting declined by a third. In Hartford, there was a 57 percent drop in hand-held phone use, and texting behind the wheel dropped by nearly three-quarters (Wellenbach, 2011).There are many arguments against banning cell phone use infringes on the personal rights of motorists. Receiving a cell phone traffic ticket may negatively reflect on your driver record and can increase your insurance premiums. Those opposed to the ban feel it’s impos sible to enforce because a police officer can mistake a driver for texting someone when they are really changing a song on their MP3 player. Another counterargument is that holding a conversation on a cell phone while driving is no more distracting than being engaged with a passenger or rowdy kids in the back seat, eating fast food or messing around with the radio.Motorists know that using a cell phone while driving is distracting and should refrain from doing so. Another argument against banning cell phones is the use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Most GPS’s displays three-dimensional renderings of virtual surroundings. At least 10 states that ban texting while driving offer some type of service that allows motorists to get information about traffic tie-ups, road conditions or emergencies via Twitter (DeMillo, 2009). There is also an argument to implement hands free devices in all motor vehicles.Enforcing such advanced technology to be built would be extremely expensi ve. This technology, built-in speaker phones or no use of cell phone if driving over 30 miles per hour is not cheap. It is not cheap for the manufacturers or for the customers. The average prices of cars would rise, and if there are be technical errors, it would cost more to repair the car. Assume that the United States did enforce this law upon manufacturers in their country. What if someone drove to the United States from neighbor countries, where cars are not equipped with this technology?Should those drivers from the neighbor countries, then, be allowed to use cell phones? No. The best thing to do is having a strict law, banning cellphone while driving until such advanced equipment in cars becomes basic technology, and fairly priced. In a survey I conducted revealed that 80% of drivers between the ages of 16 to 24 use a cell phone while driving. 90% percent of 16 to 24 year olds have been on the road and noticed drivers swerving and talking/texting on the phone while driving. My research indicates that only 20% of drivers 55 and over admitted they use a cell phone while driving.This shows that younger people are more at risk to be involved in some sort of collision or accident. The last question of the survey was have you ever been at a red light and have someone honked at you while you were at a red light looking at phone? Even though the survey was anonymous I don’t think people wanted to admit that this has happened to them. Only 40% of all who took the survey answered yes to this question. I think if had a larger survey pool my information would have supported my argument further. Here is a graph of the results of the question Have you used a cell phone while driving:Several technology start-ups will release new products for phones that can detect when a car is in motion and automatically log incoming calls and texts much as a personal assistant would. All the products have provisions that allow both incoming and outgoing calls during emergencie s. The following products are services available to reduce driver distraction. The first one is Key2SafeDriving. Parents can set up a password-protected profile that won't allow calls or texts when a Bluetooth device detects that the car is in motion. Next, there is Aegis Mobility Drive Assist.This is downloaded software will use a phone's GPS to determine whether it is in a moving vehicle, then log incoming calls and texts, and respond with a message that you're driving. And finally the least restrictive of these three products, ZoomSafer, is downloadable software that lets you dictate text messages and updates to social-networking sites while you're driving (Cruz 2009). This is similar to the talk-to-text program that my Droid phone has. I have tried to use it while driving and it hasn’t been too successful. I have to push a button that records what I want to say and then â€Å"listens. The majority of the time the words are totally wrong and I’m more distracted bec ause I have to go back and delete everything. I know technology will evolve and create a safe way to communicate while operating a vehicle. The evidence from studies showing the negative effects of cellphone use while driving is overwhelming. People need to be less concerned with emails, social networks, and texting and be more focused on the road. There is no simple solution to get everyone to agree or follow the rules if such as ban was put into action.It will take a long time to give up their right of cellphone privileges, but the outcome is worth the sacrifice. References Ahlers, Mike. (2011, December 13). NTSB recommends full ban on use of cell phones while driving. Cable News Network. Retrieved from http://articles. cnn. com/2011-12-13/us/us_ntsb-c ell-phone-ban_1_smart-phones-texting-pickup-truck-driver? _s=PM:US Cruz, Gilbert. (2009, August 24). Distracted Driving: Should Talking, Texting Be Banned? Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www. time. com/time/magazine/article/0, 9171,1916291-1,00. html DeMillo, A. (2009, Sept 19).Mixed Messages on Texting and Driving. Retrieved from Associated Press and Fox News website: http://www. foxnews. com/us/2009/09/19/states-send-mixed-message-texting-driving/ National Transportation Safety Board. (2011). No call, no text, no update behind the wheel: NTSB calls for nationwide ban on PEDs while driving [Press release]. Retrieved from http://www. ntsb. gov/news/2011/111213. html Obama, Barack. (2009, October 1). Executive Order 15313. Retrieved from http://www. whitehouse. gov/the-press-office/executive-order-federal-leadership-reducing-text-messaging-while-driving Strayer, D.L. & Drews, F. A. (2006). A Comparison of the Cell Phone Driver and the Drunk Driver Vol. 48, No. 2, pp. 381–391. Reschovsky, C. (2004). Journey to work: 2000, Census 2000 brief. Retrieved May 19, 2012 from http://www. census. gov/prod/2004pubs/c2kbr-33. pdf Wellenbach, P. (2011, Dec. 8) More American drivers are texting while driving despite additional legal measures. New York Daily News. Retrieved from http://www. nydailynews. com/news/national/american-drivers-texting-driving-additional-legal-measures-article-1. 988991#commentpostform

Business Environment and Strategic Managment Essay

Business Environment and Strategic Managment - Essay Example Indeed, after the completion of the installation process, the business strategy needs to be periodically monitored as of its performance (Harrison 2012). In this way, weaknesses and failures can be identified early so that major risks in regard to all business operations are avoided. According to Herzog (2010) the strategic management process can be also completed in just three phases: â€Å"a) situation assessment, b) strategy development and c) strategy implementation† (Herzog 2010, p.17). The development of the phases of strategic management process, as described above, is based on a series of tools, also known as strategic tools. The key role of these tools is to ensure that the decision-making process is adequately supported (Herzog 2010). Certain of these tools are quite popular. Reference can be made, for example, to SWOT analysis, PEST analysis, Porter’s Five Forces, Benchmarking, Forecasting and Financial Ratios (Herzog 2010). Each organization chooses the stra tegic tools that most respond to its needs taking into consideration the existing resources and the risks involved, both in the short and the long term (Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson 2010). Also, the type of industry in which each firm operates is expected to influence the firm’s strategic management process, meaning also the strategic management tools that will be used for achieving the business objectives ((Daft, Kendrick and Vershinina 2010). The business model is another important criterion taken into account by strategic managers when having to choose the strategic tools employed in the achievement of business goals ((Daft, Kendrick and Vershinina 2010). Qatar Petroleum (QP) is the most powerful competitor in Qatar’s oil and gas sector; the company... This paper approves that the strategic management process incorporates a series of phases, aiming to help businesses to keep their value at high level. According to the literature, four are the most common phases of strategic management process: at a first level, the â€Å"vision and mission of the organization are reviewed† then, â€Å"the internal and external organizational environment needs to be analyzed† using the information retrieved through the research and the analysis developed in the previous two phases, the strategic manager proceeds to the identification of strategy that is most appropriate for supporting business goals, the â€Å"implementation of the chosen strategy† can be completed; at this level, the strategic management process should not be considered as terminated. Indeed, after the completion of the installation process, the business strategy needs to be periodically monitored as of its performance. This essay comes to the conclusion that strategic management tools can be used in both planning and evaluation of a company’s strategy or direction. According to Henry Mintzberg’s strategy can be defined as â€Å"a pattern in a stream of decisions†; based on the above definition it can be claimed that strategic tools can be effectively used for the evaluation of the performance and the strategic objectives of an organization. The specific approach to strategic management has been used in order to explore and evaluate the business strategy of Qatar Petroleum. Three widely used strategic tools have been employed: SWOT, PEST and benchmarking analyses.

In-Basket Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

In-Basket - Essay Example There are specifically supervisory tasks. One of these is the planning activities which include deciding what objectives to pursue and how to achieve them. These planning activities likewise include the routing and scheduling of people and materials. While it is desirable to actively involve employees in planning activities, the supervisor should retain primary authority and responsibility for them. Although a supervisor may (and should) delegate certain parts of the planning process, he or she should retain authority for the coordination and finalization of plans. For instance, the task of addressing the notice that the mall will be changing hours for the upcoming holiday and requesting notice of store plans can be delegated to the two assistant or shift managers. It is important to seek the suggestions of these assistants/shift managers. They may have sound and creative ideas that may contribute to the efficient and effective operation of the shoe store. But of course, the finaliza tion of the plans based from the different suggestions is the responsibility of the supervisor. The assignment of work should also be controlled by the supervisor. As with planning activities, parts of the process of assigning work may and probably should be delegated, but the supervisor should retain overall control. The four shipping receipts indicating that about one hundred thirty (130) pairs of shoes have been delivered and need to be stocked can be delegated to one of the assistants or shift managers. The assistant or the shift manager can be given an order to assign sales clerks identified by the supervisor who will take care of this job. Creating the proper work environment to enhance employee motivation is primarily the responsibility of the supervisor. This does not imply that employees do not play a significant part in their own motivation. However, it does imply that the supervisor will always have a strong influence on

Morality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Morality - Essay Example f Catholic moral thinking. Reason informed faith The Catholic Church worked to cease the dichotomy of rational morality and faith morality, otherwise understood as pure humanism and sectarianism (Gula, 1989, p. 1). For the believer, faith and reason can be integrated in its moral tradition to make Christian teachings more understandable for non-believers as well. This is also explicated in Humanae Vitae published in 1968 which pointed that natural law is further made significant by divine revelations as well as in the scriptural writings (Gula, 1989, p. 1). The latter upholds that the moral principles can be taught, using logical inferences of reason, from the perspective of faith (Gula, 1989, p. 32) The bishops have likewise applied this moral framework to resolve the issues on homosexuality which articulated the rational capacity of human beings to understand gender and sexuality; illumined by faith (Gula, 1989, p. 25). This theological position of the issues of morality is also ap plicable to the problems and issues of bioethics, scientific innovation, and other development which put the Christian teachings under social and moral dilemma. Notwithstanding the pressures, the church consistently stood for the dignity of creation and the need to respect human rights. As such, the Catholic Church maintained that such human dignity cannot only be understood separately by reason but by unquestioning faith with conviction that dignity is a gift of God given to any person, even if the same be interpreted using the laws of nature. As such, every person needs to possess an informed faith, illumined by reason, to understand the strategic goal of moral life and on how to behave well as a moral agent. Every Catholic believer must be imbued with wisdom about the role of being as a moral agent. And, as a faithful, must have a reference which served as the criteria for moral judgment (Gula, 1989, p. 9; Blair, 2010, p 1). Common issues with humanity Like other institutions on earth, the Catholic Church is also mocked and rocked with variegated issues (Hamilton, 2013, p. 1). There were instances when the church is being subject of corruption, sexuality, questionable financial relations with state agents, and other social issues such as their involvement in extractive industries, in corporate leveraging, and in amassing real estate properties at the expense of those property-less and those that are bereft of economic capacity to meet even the most fundamental need—food (Hamilton, 2013, p. 1). The resignation of previous Pope was even controversially tagged with varied issues on corruption and political machinations due to some alleged transactions done. There were many priests that were allegedly responsible on sexual relations, which violated the dignity of women;

The cinema of Hong Kong Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The cinema of Hong Kong - Essay Example They are able to share the costs and expenses, as well as able to gain large market coverage in Mainland China The contents of a film have mixture of elements from the Hollywood and elements from traditional Chinese drama and art, particularly a penchant for stylization and a disregard for Western standards of realism (Wikipedia, 2008). Successfully surviving and competing in the industry since about fifty years, Shaw Brothers is one of the most famous production companies in Hong Kong having more than 80 films to their credit. Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. is the biggest movie production company of Hong Kong movies. The company focuses on investment holding and investments in media and entertainment industries. Activities mainly consist of distributing films and the provision of filming facilities and services. Sir Run Run Shaw, Chairman of Shaw Brothers (Hong Kong) Ltd., has said "In the film industry, one walks a tightrope, with all its thrills, satisfactions and dangers. That is perhaps why the business of making movies has given me the pleasure, the excitement and the fulfilment which I have always craved" (Sir Run Run Shaw, Movie/TV Marketing, Eighth issue, 1977). Sir Run Run Shaw started Shaw Studios with his vision to produce quality Chinese movies in Hong Kong. This information was found in the company website of Singapore (www.shaw.sg). Section Two - Informal Learning - 500 words An important approach to managing the creation and exchange of tacit knowledge is the creation of a shared workspace, or environment, for the elicitation and sharing of knowledge (Smith, 2001). I shared the space with Mr. Wong and his secretary Miranda. By sharing the space I was provided with a chance to undertake knowledge creation. According to Nonaka, there are two dimensions to tacit knowledge. The first is the technical dimension, which encompasses the kind of informal personal skills often referred to as "know-how." The second dimension is cognitive. The cognitive dimension consists of beliefs, ideals, values, and mental models, which are often taken for granted (Nonaka and Konno, 1998, p. 42). But in my placement case I not only focused at the technical dimension of learning but also gave importance to the cognitive aspect. Section Three Placement Analysis: As the production assistant of Mr. Lawrence Wong, my general duties were to assist in some projects he was working on. My work involved assisting Mr. Wong in different stages of film and movie production, from early preparations to finalizing the film. I participated I each step with him from the negotiation of the contract to the final step of shooting and editing the films. My learning process at Shaw Brothers was undertaken according to the theory Y assumptions being presented by McGregor. According to these assumptions: "The expenditure of physical effort and mental effort in work is as natural as play or rest". I found it as entertaining and pleasant to gain knowledge at Shaw Brothers as I could have at any other leisure activity. "External control and the threat of punishment are not the only means for producing effort toward organisational

Management Information Systems Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Management Information Systems - Term Paper Example Today, management information system is used in various levels of management, and it should be supportive to both the short term and long term goals of the organization. The researcher tates that management information systems of companies are built to serve several purposes. It enhances communication among employees as they are able to access the information they need to carry out their daily tasks. An management information system delivers complex information throughout the organization by ensuring that information flow is easy. A MIS will also ascertain that there is an objective system that will be used record and generate information whenever it is required. It also reduces the labor expenses that would have been incurred if the information was handled manually and all these in return helps in achieving the organizational goal of efficiency. A management information system will provide decision makers facts, which they will use to make a decision and this enhances job performanc e in the organization due to availability of information. At the top management level, an MIS will provide management with information necessary to make strategic decisions. However, at the lower levels, the management information system will provide a means for monitoring activities in an organization and a distribution channel for information from management to the employees. In conclusion, the researcher states that business owners need to keep up with the changing trends in MIS and this will foster customer satisfaction.... A MIS will also ascertain that there is an objective system that will be used record and generate information whenever it is required (Nowduri, 2011). It also reduces the labor expenses that would have been incurred if the information was handled manually and all these in return helps in achieving the organizational goal of efficiency. A MIS will provide decision makers facts, which they will use to make a decision and this enhances job performance in the organization due to availability of information (Kroenke, 2010). At the top management level, an MIS will provide management with information necessary to make strategic decisions.at the lower levels, the MIS will provide a means for monitoring activities in an organization and a distribution channel for information from management to the employees. Management information systems will help organizations to make proper decisions, and they will carry out a series of steps when aiding in decision making. The first step is intelligence gathering, where the system will define the problem, gather related data and identify the constraints. The second stage is the design phase where alternatives to the solution of the problem are identified. The last phase is making the choice between the alternatives and this marks the end of the decision making process from where the decision made can be communicated to everyone in the organization. Despite the importance of using management information systems, they also have potential risks associated with them. Management will use the decisions made by the MIS in coming up with decisions and decisions made from ineffective or inaccurate MIS may undermine the efficiency of an organization, and this is because it cause operational risks, which