I want you to read my decument ( IEP Study notes) and answer my Essay

I need you to peruse my decument ( IEP Study notes) and answer my inquiry 2-3-4 - Essay Example There must be an accord between the guardians and the school that that individual from the gathering doesn't join in. This might be for the explanation that their specialized topic won't be examined in the gathering (Siegel, Lawrence M, 2011). Besides despite the fact that the aptitude of the part will be required the part might be avoided from the gathering, yet it has additionally to be recorded as a hard copy by the school and the guardians. The part who is prohibited from the gathering needs to place it into composing that he won't go to the gathering, which is done before the gathering to guarantee that there is an audit of what's in store during the gathering. I would suggest that the agreement be recharged with conditions whereby I will guarantee to catch up on the advancement and see whether the exhibition is improving or that the part is still on a similar position they were during assessment. I would restore on the grounds that the evaluations expresses that the individual from staff can improve and attempt to give another

LA---The City that Might Have Been Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

LA - The City that Might Have Been - Essay Example In the event that the task was transformed into the real world, have it not been for disappointments in land arrangements, the manufacturers would have confronted the test of truly making the structure secure and ready to stand the terrible conditions on the ocean achieved by evolving seasons. Upkeep would have been a genuine test since keeping such a structure, that ought to withstand solid downpours, is very costly. Notwithstanding the structure, there was likewise a proposition of having a glass-encased scaffold that interfaces the structure to the shore. This is a truly virtuoso arrangement and a similar test introduced by the structure is appropriate to the extension. With such a stupendous proposed assembling, funds for the support probably won't be an issue after all on the grounds that without a doubt, this venture would have pulled in individuals around the territory as well as from everywhere throughout the world. The experience this undertaking offers to exceptionally audacious clients may have carried great monetary chances to neighborhood and outside speculators on account of the building configuration as well as due to the experience that individuals regularly look for and readily pay for. The genuine test that designers would have truly confronted if the venture pushed through would be the affirmation that the structure is a protected spot for individuals to go to. Despite the fact that designing and compositional tasks demonstrated that it is conceivable to assemble solid structures in the ocean as confirm by a few extension structures which remained steadfast and dangerous waters for a considerable length of time, the idea of building a spot which will continually house various individuals is very extraordinary to

What is Operant Conditioning and How Does it Work

What is Operant Conditioning and How Does it Work Every morning, billions of people around the world get up early in the morning and beat the morning traffic to get to their places of work. If they could, many of these people would avoid this daily routine.Many people hate having to get up at 6, prepare themselves in a rush and head out for work, yet all of them do it anyway, because they know that at the end of the month, they will receive a paycheck.What would happen if these people stopped receiving the paycheck at the end of the month? How many people would get up every morning and go to work if they were not promised a salary at the end of the month?Very few, and the reason behind this is because of something known as operant conditioning. Going to work 5 days a week in exchange for a salary is a great example of operant conditioning.WHAT IS OPERANT CONDITIONING?Operant conditioning, also referred to as Skinnerian conditioning or instrumental conditioning, is a learning method where desired and voluntary behavior is taught thro ugh the use of positive and negative incentives.Through a system of rewards and punishments, individuals make an association between a specific behavior and the consequences of the behavior. The association of the behavior with a reward or punishment leads to a modification in the strength of the behavior. Operant conditioning is not something new. We can all point out numerous examples of how rewards and punishments have shaped our own behavior. Growing up, we tried a number of behaviors and then learned whether they are good or bad behaviors from their consequences.Operant conditioning plays a very powerful role in everyday learning, and we see the principles of operant conditioning at play almost every day.Below are some examples of how a system of rewards and punishment are used to influence behavior on a daily basis:A sales person receiving a bonus for hitting his targets. The bonus acts as a reward, encouraging the sales person to continue hitting his targets.A parent giving a child a prize for excellent grades to encourage the child to continue performing well in school.An employee who is habitually late to work is scolded by the boss, leading to a decrease in the behavior.A student who remains in detention because of playing truant is likely to stop the behavior.Giving customers redeemable loyalty points for shopping at a specific store increases their likelihood of shopping at the same store.Operant conditioning is based on three main assumptions. The first assumption is that any action leads to an experience that is a direct consequence of the action.The second assumption is that the perceived quality of the consequences of an action influences the likelihood of the action being repeated.The final assumption is that behavior is mainly influenced by external, rather than internal factors.HOW DID OPERANT CONDITIONING COME ABOUTThe concept of operant conditioning was first put forward by B. F. Skinner, an American psychologist, behaviorist and social ph ilosopher. The term Skinnerian conditioning is a reference to his name. At the turn of the 20th century, psychologists had grown very interested in behaviorism.Already, the concept of classical conditioning, had been proposed. Behaviorists who subscribed to the classical conditioning concept believed that learning was a mental and emotional process. They believed that the best way of studying behavior and learning was by looking at the internal thoughts and motivations of an individual.While Skinner did not deny that the fact that internal thoughts and motivations have an influence on behavior, he thought that viewing them as the key drivers of behavior was too simplistic to explain complex human behavior. Skinner theorized that the best way of understanding learning and human behavior was to look at an individual’s actions and the consequences of these actions.In explaining his theory, Skinner came up with the term “operant conditioning.” Skinner defined an operant as any act ive and deliberate behavior that led to a consequence. Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning borrowed heavily from Edward Thorndike’s Law of Effect.Thorndike’s principle stated that actions that lead to favorable outcomes have a higher probability of being repeated. On the other hand, actions that lead to unfavorable outcomes are less likely to be repeated.Operant conditioning is based on an equally simple premise. Actions that are reinforced will be strengthened and are more likely to be repeated in future. For example, if you take some risks at work and your boss praises you for your courage, you are more likely to take another risk in future.If you purchase from a particular store and they give you a discount, you are likely to shop from the same store again in future. In this case, receiving praise from your boss and receiving a discount from the store are positive reinforcements that encourage your behavior. The outcomes of your actions were desirable, thus strengtheni ng the preceding actions.Some actions, on the other hand, lead to undesirable consequences or punishment.Such actions are weakened and are less likely to be repeated. If you took a risk at work and your boss scolded you for acting without running things through him, you will be less likely to take another risk at work.Similarly, if you shop from a particular store and you later realize they sold you a low quality product, you are less likely to shop from them in future. In this case, the scolding from your boss and the poor quality product are undesired outcomes or punishments.To test his theory, Skinner invented the operant conditioning chamber, also known as the Skinner box, which he used to conduct experiments using animals. The operant conditioning chamber allowed Skinner to isolate small animals, such as rats and pigeons, and then expose them to carefully controlled stimuli.Skinner also came up with another invention known as the cumulative recorder, which allowed him to keep a record of the response rates (the number of times an animal pressed a key or bar inside the Skinner box).HOW OPERANT CONDITIONING WORKSSkinner stated that individuals (both humans and animals) display two key types of behaviors. The first type is known as respondent behaviors. Respondent behavior refers to actions automatically and on reflex. You don’t need any learning in order to display respondent behavior.A good example of respondent behavior occurs when you touch something hot. Without thinking about it, you immediately draw your hand back from the hot surface.Pavlov’s classic experiments with dogs is another great example of respondent behavior. Dogs automatically and involuntarily salivate to the presentation of food. By ringing a bell every time before presenting food to his dogs, Pavlov formed an association between the ringing of a bell and the presentation of food, and his dogs learned to salivate when they simply heard a bell, even if no food was presented.Skinner n oted that classical conditioning was good at explaining how respondent behaviors affected learning. However, not all learning is based on respondent behaviors. According to Skinner, the greatest learning came from voluntary actions and their consequences.The second type of behaviors that Skinner identified are known as operant behaviors. Skinner defined operant behaviors as voluntary behaviors that act upon the environment resulting in a consequence.Unlike respondent behaviors, operant behaviors are under our conscious control, and can be learned voluntarily. According to Skinner, the outcomes of our actions have a major impact on the process of learning operant behaviors.COMPONENTS OF OPERANT CONDITIONINGWe noted earlier that operant conditioning is based on two major factors: reinforcement and punishment. Let us take a look at these two factors.ReinforcementReinforcement refers to any environmental consequence to an action that increases the likelihood of the action being repeated . Reinforcement strengthens behavior. There are two types of reinforcement:Positive reinforcement: This refers to consequences where a favorable event or outcome is added following a certain behavior, leading to the strengthening of the behavior. For example, when you go the extra mile and receive praise from your boss, this is an example of positive reinforcement.To show how positive reinforcement works, Skinner placed a hungry rat in the operant conditioning chamber. In one side of the chamber was a lever that dropped food pellets into the chamber when pressed. As the rat moved around the box, at one point it would accidently press the lever, resulting in a pellet of food being dropped into the chamber immediately.Over time, the rat would learn that pressing the lever led to food being released, and it quickly learned to go directly to the lever whenever it was placed in the chamber. Receiving food every time it pressed the lever acted as positive reinforcement, ensuring that the rat would keep pressing the lever again and again.Negative reinforcement: This refers to consequences where an unfavorable event or outcome is removed following a certain behavior. In this case, the behavior is strengthened not by the desire to get something good, but rather by the desire to get out of an unpleasant condition.A good example of negative reinforcement is a teacher promising to exempt students who have perfect attendance from the final test. The test is something unpleasant for the students, but if they display certain behavior (perfect attendance), they won’t have to sit the test. This encourages them to attend all classes.Such responses are referred to as negative reinforcement because the removal of the unfavorable event or outcome is rewarding to the individual. While they have not actually received anything, not sitting a test can still be seen as a reward.To show how negative reinforcement works, Skinner placed a rat in the operant conditioning chamber and then delivered an unpleasant electric through the floor of the chamber. As the rat moved about in discomfort, it would accidently knock the lever, switching off the electric current immediately.Over time, the rat learns that it can escape from the unpleasant electric current by pressing the lever, and it starts going directly to the lever every time the current is switched on.PunishmentPunishment refers to any adverse or unwanted environmental consequence to an action that reduces the probability of the action being repeated. In other words, punishment weakens behavior. There are two types of punishment:Positive punishment: This refers to consequences where an unfavorable or unpleasant event or outcome is presented or applied following a certain behavior in order to discourage the behavior.For instance, when you get fined for a traffic infraction, that is an example of positive punishment. An unfavorable outcome (payment of the fine) is applied to discourage you from committing the infr action again.Negative punishment: This refers to consequences where a favorable or pleasant outcome is removed following a certain behavior. This can also be referred to as punishment by removal. An example of negative punishment is where a parent denies a child the opportunity to watch television following misbehavior by the child.Sometimes, it can be challenging to distinguish between punishment and negative reinforcement. What you need to remember is that reinforcement (both positive and negative) is meant to strengthen behavior, while punishment is used to weaken behavior.It is also good to note that reinforcement is a more effective in effecting behavior change compared to punishment for a number of reasons. These include:Punishment merely suppresses behavior. The behavior is not forgotten, and once the punishment is no longer present, the behavior might return.Punishment does not necessarily lead to desired behavior. It only discourages unwanted behavior.Punishment can lead to increased aggression â€" it teaches the individual that aggression is an acceptable way of dealing with problems.Punishment leads to fear, which can lead to other unwanted behavior. For instance, spanking a child for not performing well can lead to fear of school.REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULESApart from reinforcement and punishment, behaviorists also discovered that operant conditioning is also influenced by reinforcement schedules.Reinforcement schedule refers to the rules that determine when and how often behavior reinforcements are delivered.Reinforcement schedules have an impact on how quickly behaviors are learned and the strength of the acquired behavior.There are several different delivery schedules that can be used to influence the operant conditioning process. These include:Continuous reinforcement: This is a schedule where a reinforcement is immediately delivered every time a response occurs. For instance, a food pellet is dropped immediately every time the lever is pressed. Wit h continuous reinforcement, new behaviors are learned relatively quickly.However, the response rate (the rate at which the rat presses the lever) is quite low. The learned behavior is also forgotten very quickly once reinforcement stops.Fixed ratio reinforcement: This is a schedule where the reinforcement is delivered only after a behavior or response has occurred a specified number of times. For instance, a pellet of food is released every fifth time the rat presses the lever. With fixed ratio schedules, the response rate as well as the extinction rate (the rate at which the learned behavior is forgotten) is medium.Fixed interval reinforcement: This refers to a schedule where reinforcement is delivered after a specified interval of time, provided the correct response has been made at least once. The response rate is medium, though the responses tend to increase as the interval approaches and slow down following the delivery of the reinforcement.Variable ratio reinforcement: This re fers to a reinforcement schedule where reinforcement is delivered after an unpredictable number of responses. A good example of variable ratio reinforcement is gambling. Variable ratio reinforcement results in a very high response rate and a very slow extinction rate. This explains why gambling becomes addictive.Variable interval reinforcement: This refers to a reinforcement schedule where reinforcement is delivered after an unpredictable interval of time has elapsed, provided the correct response has been made at least once. Variable ratio reinforcement also results in a very high response rate and a very slow extinction rate.Apart from reinforcement schedules, there are a few other factors that influence the effectiveness of reinforcement and punishment. These include:Satiation/Deprivation: Reinforcements lead to behavior change because of the individual’s craving for the reward/reinforcement. However, if the individual has received enough of the reward to satiate his or her cra ving, the individual will be less inclined to display the desired behavior.When the individual has been deprived of the reward, on the other hand, the effectiveness of the reinforcement will be increased due to the increased craving for the reward. This explains why Skinner used hungry rats in his experiments.Immediacy: Learning occurs faster when the consequence (reinforcement or punishment) is delivered immediately after an action or behavior. The more the consequence is delayed, the more ineffective it becomes.Consistency: Reinforcements that are consistently delivered following every correct response lead to faster learning times. Intermittent delivery of reinforcements leads to slower learning, but then the learned behavior is harder to extinguish compared to when reinforcements are consistently delivered after each correct response.Size: The amount of reinforcement or punishment also has an effect on the effectiveness of the consequence. When the reward is too little, it might not seem worthwhile to go through a lot of effort displaying the desired behavior for such a small reward.Similarly, when the punishment is too small, the benefits of engaging in the unwanted behavior might outweigh the discomfort of experiencing the punishment.APPLICATIONS OF OPERANT CONDITIONING AT THE WORKPLACEOperant conditioning can be applied at the workplace in various ways, from instituting corporate culture and addressing interactions between employees to helping an organization achieve its annual targets.Below are some ways operant conditioning can be useful at the workplace:Increased ProductivityPositive reinforcement, one of the key components of operant conditioning, can be used to increase productivity at the workplace.Providing employees with positive reinforcement â€" through verbal praise and through incentives such as bonuses, generous perks and pay increases can motivate employees to work harder, leading to increased productivity for the entire organization.Corpo rate CultureCompany culture is very important. It affects everything, from employee satisfaction to performance and how your organization is perceived in the media.To cultivate a great company culture, managers should identify the behaviors that need to be encouraged within the workplace and those that need to be discouraged.They can then come up with a system of rewards and punishments that are in line with the company’s desired culture.TeamworkHaving your employees work in teams is a great way of harnessing the benefits of both reinforcement and punishment. Working in teams can help your employees cover each other’s weaknesses and achieve their targets, helping them receive praise or promotions (reinforcement).At the same time, if certain members of the team are not working as hard as they should, they will incur negative backlash (punishment) from their team members, thus discouraging them from slacking off in future.This way, working as a team provides reinforcement for good performance and hard work and at the same time provides punishment for those who go against the grain.Using Sales as a RewardReinforcement is also commonly used to boost performance in sales departments. Many businesses provide bonuses for sales people who hit their targets. The bonus acts as positive reinforcement for achieving their targets.This motivates the sales people to learn everything they need to do in order to close more sales, hit their targets and get the bonus.WRAPPING UPSkinner’s theory of operant conditioning has been an important tool in helping psychologists understand how individuals learn and modify their behavior. The theory surmises that our environment and its reactions to our actions has a major influence on our behavior.Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning is something we use in daily life to either encourage behavior â€" by providing reinforcements â€" or to discourage behavior â€" by meting out punishment.You can see examples of operant conditioni ng in various spheres of daily life, from teaching your children good behavior and pet training to encouraging good performance at work and teaching good discipline in the military.

Gender Roles Essay - 686 Words

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Management and Development - 2671 Words

4DEP Developing Yourself as an Effective Human Resources Practitioner Activity 1 The CIPD HRPM is an outline of what CIPD believes are the core behaviours, activities and knowledge that an individual would need to become a good HR professional. It is also to help the individual develop the above attributes for the future to add value to the organisation. It is a point of reference to show what a successful HR professional should look like at all levels and sets targets and objectives for future development for each of the bands. The HRPM is broken down as follows: 10 professional areas – that layout the requirements, what you need to do and know at all the four bands as well as outlining the predominant behaviours that you need to†¦show more content†¦The HR professional needs to be easy to contact and able to respond quickly and effectively. Obviously employees require accurate pay and benefits, on time. They also want to be given the opportunity for training and development. 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The Crude Art of Policy Making Free Essays

Lessons: The Crude Art of Policy Making All over the world, the price of crude oil experiences wide price swings in times of shortage or oversupply just like other commodities. The crude oil cycle may extend over several years responding to changes in demand and supply. In this paper, we intend to discuss the dynamics and impact in the economy, and how the central banks respond to a rise in oil price. We will write a custom essay sample on The Crude Art of Policy Making or any similar topic only for you Order Now To be able to understand the dynamics of adjustment of oil price, we use the economic diagram of aggregate demand and supply given by D1 and S1 respectively in the left hand graph, where the points they intersect signify that the economy is in equilibrium. In the graph, Q1 is the output at the natural level of output and implies the price, P1. Based on the graph, the shift on aggregate supply curve to the left, to S2 is caused by the firm who imports crude Graph1. The impact of higher oil prices. oil. If the price of importing crude oil is high, then the firm’s production costs will also increase. As a result, it reduces profit so they supply fewer goods and services. This can also relate according to Blanchard, using the equation: P = Pe (1+?) F(1- u,z) where, u = unemployment rate ? = mark up of the price over nominal wage Pe = expected price level In this equation, given the Pe, the increase in the price of oil shows an increase in the mark up, ?. The increase in the mark up will lead the firms to increase their prices, leading to an increase in the price level, P, at any level of output, Q. Then, the aggregate supply curve shifts up or move to the left. In addition, the aggregate demand curve also moves left, to D2. The increase in the price of oil leads the firms to increase their price which decrease the demand and output. As a result, the consumers would be resulted in lower rates of consumption due to increase in the price level. Thus, economy suffers both a negative supply shock and negative demand shock. Over time, output decreases further and the price level increase further. Now we know the impact of the increase of price of oil in the economy. Second we want to know is how the central bank responds in this issue. According to the article, higher oil prices are neither inflationary nor deflationary in themselves. It depends upon how the monetary policy reacts. Based on the right-hand graph, it shows how policy responded after the 1973-74 oil price shock. This will attempt to prevent output falling. For example, based on the article, America’s Federal funds rate was cut from 11% in mid 1974 to less than 6% in 1975, resulting in sharply negative real interest rates. In effect, this shifts the demand curve to the right, to D3, with same output at Q1. But still, the price tends to increase to P3. To hold the inflation down, central banks must increase interest rates. On the left hand graph, this implies a further leftward shift in the demand curve and shows a larger decrease of output. Take note an increase in interest rates does not necessary imply a tightening of policy of inflation which caused by higher oil prices. According to the article, central banks need to raise interest rates to simply keep real interest rates stable. To be able to increase interest rates, there should be a sign of a rise in the core of inflation, excluding the energy prices. In Europe, the increase in inflation tends to spill over into wages compare in America because of less flexible labour markets. So the European Central Bank (ECB) will be more cautious when the oil prices increase. In addition, central banks must know the recurring position of the economy to know if they need to increase interest rates. If the economy is slack, the bigger the risk that increase in crude oil will quickly affect the wages and that firms will be able to pass on higher costs. In contrast, when economy is weak and the oil price decrease then it tends to risks of deflation, the central bank will cut the rates. How to cite The Crude Art of Policy Making, Papers

UNC Chapel Hill 2018-2019 Essay Prompts

Want to attend the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill (also known as UNC or, simply, Carolina)? You’ll need to answer these essay prompts to do so.UNC Chapel Hill 2018-2019 application essay prompts: Analysis ExamplesKnown as one of the top schools in the US with top tier programs in Communication and Media Studies, Biology, Psychology, Economics, and Political Science, UNC Chapel Hill is a dream school for many students. To gain admission, you’ll need to answer two of the following four essay prompts specific to the school. Here’s how to tackle them (plus, real examples below!). Each response is limited to 200-250 words.UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompt #1:Tell us about a peer who has made a difference in your life. How to interpret this prompt: A slightly different take on the traditional â€Å"Who inspires you?†an essay prompt many applicants use to write about mentorsthis prompt is unique in that it asks the applicant to look toward classmates and colleagues as sources of inspiration. It’s an opportunity to consider the people you interact with on a daily basis from a viewpoint you may not have previously considered. Why is UNC asking this?: This prompt can help gauge the level of engagement you have with your peers and how much you respect and draw inspiration from them. Essay example:My natural habitat is where tater tots are consumed, homework questions are discussed, essays are proofread, the economic and political repercussions of the Death Star debated, and fashion suggestions are as common as snow in New England. These seemingly unrelated activities come together in one place in my life: the twenty-five minutes before class when a group known as The BottomFeeders ritually assembles everyday in Linda Pirek’s classroom. Essay excerpt from TheNotoriousPh, UNC Chapel Hill 18.Unlock this UNC Chapel Hill profile to read the full essay!UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompt #2:What do you hope will change about the place where you live?How to interpret this prompt: This essay lets the applicant talk about his/her background: where were you raised and, more importantly, how were you raised? What are the circumstances that led you to where you are today and what are your corresponding values? Worded another way, it’s a critique on the place you grew up and how you believe changing it would improve it. There’s room here for social commentary if you feel comfortable. Why is UNC asking this?: How have you made the most of your surroundings (a quality that is important in a college candidate)? Is your assessment of the problem and proposed solution one that demonstrates humility and maturity? Essay example:Growing up in the Bible Belt, I felt uncomfortable about my family’s lack of religion. My mom and dad both came from church-going families, yet we only went for the occasional holiday, and even then only for the social experience. At first, my younger brothers and I would whine about having to dress up, sometimes even hiding when my dad called for us to load up in the minivan. But as I entered third grade, my peers pressured me into wanting to attend church.Essay excerpt from Reagan, UNC Chapel Hill 17.Unlock this UNC Chapel Hill profile to read her personal statement and supplemental essays! UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompt #3:What is one thing that we don’t know about you that you want us to know?How to interpret this prompt: What is something that isn’t listed on your resume or activities list that matters to you? Talk about a special talent, hobby, or cause that you may not have showcased in the rest of your application that could shed light on the type of person you are. Consider the qualities about yourself that you’d like to bring to the forefrontmaybe it’s an interpersonal quality, such as the ability to listen non-judgmentally, or maybe it’s a skill you’re currently working on, such as speed reading. Don’t forget to talk about why it matters to you. Why is UNC asking this?: It’s an attempt to get a full picture of you as a three dimensional person beyond your shiny accolades. Can you delight the reader with something unexpected; give them a glimpse of who you are if you weren’t trying to impress. Essay example:In this world there is one thing that inspires me, keeps me going through thick and thin; Cold Stone Cotton Candy ice cream. Even the thought of the decadent treat motivates me to make that final push. Although it is a delicious pleasure, its not just the idea of consuming the ice cream that inspires me. The ice cream itself inspires me to be sweet, let my true colors show, and allow myself a reward every once in awhile. Essay excerpt from Hwoodworth, UNC Chapel Hill 21.Unlock this successful UNC Chapel Hill application file to read the full essay! UNC Chapel Hill Essay Prompt #4:What about your background, or what perspective, belief, or experience, will help you contribute to the education of your classmates at UNC? How to interpret this prompt: Consider this a diversity statement that specifically speaks to UNC. Beyond just your background, what is something you care about that you think increases the diversity of the UNC student body? The beauty of this question is that your diversity can be what you define it to be. Are you inordinately interested in ocean conservation growing up in a landlocked state? Are you a cis-ally of the LGBTQ community? How will you bring an open-minded, tolerant voice to the study body at UNC?Why is UNC asking this?: To better understand from your point of view what you believe makes you a unique asset to the school. Beyond the â€Å"diversity† factors listed on your application, what makes you diverse that may not be apparent from the rest of your application? Essay example:Im from Holland, Michigan, and here the saying goes, â€Å"If you ain’t Dutch, you ain’t much.† No one actually feels that way, but the community is extremely influenced by the Netherlands. Our main attraction is the Tulip Time Festival every May. We’ve also got the huge DeZwaan Windmill, Veldheer Tulip Farm, a blue delft factory, and an unusually high population of tall women. Also, literally everyone owns a pair of wooden shoes. This enlightening Dutch influence has changed my perspective more than anything else since moving here 7 years ago. Essay excerpt from davislw, UNC Chapel Hill 16.Unlock this successful UNC Chapel Hill profile to read the full supplemental essay! As you respond to these prompts, remember that you should be writing with an eye on maximizing fit with UNC. In other words, reveal aspects about yourself that will highlight why you’re a great fit at the school. Hope this was helpful as you write your supplemental essays! If you have any additional questions, please comment below and we’ll give you more advice! Get access to profiles in our database! Ourpremium plansoffer different levels of profile access and data insights that can help you with your application process. Unlock any of ourpackagesor search ourundergraduate profile databaseto find specific profiles that can help you make an informed choice about where to apply!

Free Essays on Racism Today

Racism has been a major problem in society from the 1950’s until this day. Being racist means believing that there is only one superior race. These beliefs are a main cause in riots, boycotts and other such outrages. Even though there have been laws passed in order to help control racist acts; it has not changed the thoughts of many people today who still remain racist. Race plays a very large role when it comes down to the way the public is treated. In some cases for example, some businesses will refuse to hire another person that differs from their own race. Another example of this is the use of racial jokes, comments and names. Some hypocrites will claim to be anti-racist while they use racial nicknames in their daily vocabulary. After the civil war, most of the race crimes and racial conflicts took place in the southern states, but now these problems have worked their way up North. Now these racial problems are found mostly in New Jersey and New York, two of the most populated states on the east coast. Everyday there are acts of racism evolving from different areas all over the USA. On June 13, 1998, James Byrd Jr., a 49 year old man from Texas, was beaten unconscious and chained to the back of a pick up truck, where 3 white men dragged him along for miles. This is only one example of recent racial violence in America. Although some racism is still involving African Americans, it is becoming more pointed towards the large amount of Eastern Asians now living in the United States. Many individuals don’t like the fact that these individuals are running most of the gas stations and 7 11’s, and so this is where the racial comments and nicknames are started. This jumping off point is where most racial crimes are rooted and grown from. In comparing racism now to 50 years ago, a lot has changed, but also a lot has remained the same. The changes that have been made to prevent most acts of racial violence ar... Free Essays on Racism Today Free Essays on Racism Today Racism has been a major problem in society from the 1950’s until this day. Being racist means believing that there is only one superior race. These beliefs are a main cause in riots, boycotts and other such outrages. Even though there have been laws passed in order to help control racist acts; it has not changed the thoughts of many people today who still remain racist. Race plays a very large role when it comes down to the way the public is treated. In some cases for example, some businesses will refuse to hire another person that differs from their own race. Another example of this is the use of racial jokes, comments and names. Some hypocrites will claim to be anti-racist while they use racial nicknames in their daily vocabulary. After the civil war, most of the race crimes and racial conflicts took place in the southern states, but now these problems have worked their way up North. Now these racial problems are found mostly in New Jersey and New York, two of the most populated states on the east coast. Everyday there are acts of racism evolving from different areas all over the USA. On June 13, 1998, James Byrd Jr., a 49 year old man from Texas, was beaten unconscious and chained to the back of a pick up truck, where 3 white men dragged him along for miles. This is only one example of recent racial violence in America. Although some racism is still involving African Americans, it is becoming more pointed towards the large amount of Eastern Asians now living in the United States. Many individuals don’t like the fact that these individuals are running most of the gas stations and 7 11’s, and so this is where the racial comments and nicknames are started. This jumping off point is where most racial crimes are rooted and grown from. In comparing racism now to 50 years ago, a lot has changed, but also a lot has remained the same. The changes that have been made to prevent most acts of racial violence ar...

State Sponsored Terrorism in Iran

State Sponsored Terrorism in Iran Iran has consistently been described by the United States as the worlds foremost state sponsor of terrorism. It actively supports terrorist groups, most prominently the Lebanese group Hezbollah. The Iranian relationship with Hezbollah demonstrates one accepted explanation of why states sponsor terrorism: to indirectly influence politics elsewhere. According to Michael Scheuer, the former CIA officer: State-sponsored terrorism came in the middle-1970s, and ... its heyday was in the 1980s and early-90s. And typically, the definition of a state sponsor of terrorism is a country that uses surrogates as its weapon to attack other people. The primary example to this day is Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah. Hezbollah, in the nomenclature of the discussion, would be the surrogate of Iran. State Sponsored Terrorism Thrives, says Michale Scheuer Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was created following the 1979 revolution to protect and promote the objectives of the revolution. As a foreign force, they have also exported that revolution, by training Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, and other groups. There is evidence that that IRGC is playing an active role to undermine Iraq, by funneling funds and arms to Shiite militias, engaging directly in military activity and gathering intelligence. The extent of Iranian involvement is not clear.​ Iran and Hezbollah Hezbollah (which means Party of God, in Arabic), an Islamist Shiite militia based in Lebanon, is a direct product of Iran. It was formally established in 1982 following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, aimed at uprooting the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) bases there. Iran sent Revolutionary Guard Corps members to assist in the war. A generation later, the relationship between Iran and Hezbollah is not entirely transparent, so it is not clear whether Hezbollah should be considered a full proxy for Iranian intentions. However, Iran funds, arms, and trains Hezbollah, in large part through the IRGC. According to the New York Sun, Iranian Revolutionary Guard soldiers fought alongside Hezbollah in the Israel-Hezbollah summer 2006 war by supplying intelligence on Israeli targets and manning and firing missiles. Profile of HezbollahIsrael Concludes Serious Errors Made in 2006 War with HezbollahNY Sun: Iranian Revolutionary Guards helped Hezbollah in 2006 War Iran and Hamas Irans relationship with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has not been constant over time. It has, rather, waxed and waned according to the interests of Iran and Hamas at different times since the late 1980s. Hamas is the dominant political party in the Palestinian territories that has long relied on terrorist tactics, including suicide bombing, to register a protest against Israeli policies. According to Cambridge University Professor George Joffe, Irans relationship with Hamas began in the 1990s; it was around this time that Irans interest in exporting revolution coincided with Hamas rejection of compromise with Israel. Iran has been alleged to provide funding and training for Hamas since the 1990s, but the extent of either is unknown. However, Iran did pledge to help fund the Hamas-led Palestinian government after its parliamentary win in January 2006. Profile of HamasGeorge Joffe discusses Iran-Hamas relations Iran and Palestinian Islamic Jihad The Iranians and PIJ first made extended contact in the late 1980s in Lebanon. Subsequently, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps trained PIJ members at Hezbollah camps in Lebanon and Iran commenced funding PIJ.​​ Iran and Nuclear Weapons The creation of WMD is not itself a criterion for being a state sponsor of terrorism, however, when already designated state sponsors to appear to have manufacturing or acquisition capabilities, the U.S. grows especially worried because could be transferred to terrorist groups. At the end of 2006, the United Nations adopted Resolution 1737 and imposed sanctions on Iran for failing to halt its uranium enrichment. Iran has contended that it has that right, in order to create a civil nuclear program

East Asiatic Company Nutrition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

East Asiatic Company Nutrition - Essay Example It is hoped that EAC will continue to grow and expand its business in the world markets in coming years. Economics of the infant nutrition industry means what are the financial considerations or economically significant aspects of the industry? The nutrition business mainly centers around the production and sale of milk powder and other products for newborn and growing children under the various brand names. The recent economic recession requiring an increase in the commodity prices because of rising cost of raw material has decreased the sale of EAC Nutrition in Thailand and Malaysia. There has been a decrease in the stock price on account of the investor’s lack of trust in the Asian economy and fear of neck-throat competition. Thanks to the successful restructuring of the company, the share price has increased during June 1998 in 2002.The management is making all-out efforts to further enhance stock price and to rebuild the confidence of stockholders in the company. A dynamic growth strategy ensuring that EAC would continue to grow and expand in the years to come is being chalk ed out. A new management team took over in 1998 and restored financial strength by shifting money from underperforming business units to viable units. As a result, business units amounting to over US $ 1.4bn (DKK 12bn) in annual sales and the US $36.4 million (DKK 300 million) in annual losses were profitably divested. In (2001) 25% of group sales were contributed by EAC nutrition and 34% of group operating profit with an EBIT margin between 8 to 10% were also given. Driven by the increase in GDP growth in many countries especially China, Singapore and India, the domestic market capacity for high-quality dairy products will go on escalating leading to higher demand of dairy products especially infant milk for large-scale production or joint ventures in collaboration with a local businessman.

Trends in porting existing PC applications to the mobile environment Research Paper

Trends in porting existing PC applications to the mobile environment - Research Paper Example This makes porting existing PC applications to the mobile environment an uphill task for the developers (Damianos Gavalas and Daphne Economou) Interoperability is by far the largest impediment in application development. There are so many devices that run on totally different operating systems, having different screen sizes among other local requirements of the markets. Mobile app developers are therefore faced with a unique challenge of making apps that will work flawlessly across the different platforms. That is why porting of applications is probably the most important concern for app developers today. When porting of applications, there are three important considerations to make. The first is the device type. You have to consider that the app will be running on smart phones, brew devices, or J2ME devices. The second consideration to make is the operating systems used. Quite a number of mobile apps usually need some native functions of a specific operating system. This makes it almost impossible for developers to write code only once and reuse it across the different platforms. Thirdly, you need to consider the device features. Different mobile devices have different features like screen size, keyboard types, and internal memory. A good app must put the variations into perspective (Damianos Gavalas and Daphne

Industrial Relation System In Japan Management Essay

Industrial Relation System In Japan Management Essay Industrial Relations usually refer to relationships between labour and capital that grow out of employment. There are two parties in the employment relationship-labour and management. Both parties need to work in a spirit of cooperation, adjustment, and accommodation. In their own mutual interest certain rules for co-existence are framed and adhered to. Opinions about IR in Japan are extremely diversified. The main concern regarding IR appears to be whether Japan can maintain the vitality and flexibility to cope with the changes in the industrial structure and technology in a stagnant world economy. The lack of opposition and dispute between labour and management may be the most important feature for summarizing labour-management relations in modern Japan when making international comparisons. The study highlights IR in Japan and pointing out lesson that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka can take. The research is based on desk study. Moreover, the recommendation would be helpful to the practi tioners, researchers, planners, policy makers and academicians, who are involved in the concerned area. Keywords: Industrial Relations (IR); Employment; Capital and Labour JEL Classification: M1, M1, M54 Introduction The relationship between employer and employee or trade unions is called Industrial Relation (IR). Harmonious relationship is necessary for both employers and employees to safeguard the interests of the both the parties of the production. In order to maintain good relationship with the employees, the main functions of every organization should avoid any dispute with them or settle it as early as possible so as to ensure industrial peace and higher productivity. Human Resources Management (HRM) is mainly concerned with the human relation in industry because the main theme of HRM is to get the work done by the human power and it fails in its objectives if good industrial relation is maintained. In other words good Industrial Relation means industrial peace which is necessary for better and higher productions. IR may be understood in both inter and intra terms-that is between employers and employees, between employees and employees and also between employers and employers. Such diverse relations are the outcome of modern industrial production, entailing an enormous body of collective work and involving the corporate labour of a huge number of people in an enterprise. Of all these relations, however the one between employers and employees is of paramount importance under the system of capitalist relations of production. Some authors define the term industrial relations also as either the full range of rule governing the work place (Dunlop, 1958), or a study of the institutions for job regulations (Allen,1975) or even the maintenance of stability and regularity in industry(Richard,1981) IR is also concerned with determination of wages and conditions of employment. IR and human relations are distinctly two indispensable factors in industry, one depending on the other we can have good industrial relations in an industry, but bad human relations in the same establishment and vice versa. Good industrial relations provide the necessary background for human relations. In any undertaking, good relations between the management and workers depend upon the degree of mutual confidence, which can be established. This, in turn, depends upon the recognition by the employees of the goodwill and integrity of the management in the day-to-day handling of questions, which are of mutual concern. The first requisite for the development of good industrial relations is a good labour policy. The aim of such a policy should be to secure the best possible co-operation of the employees. Every employee should have the opportunity to contribute not only his services, but also his suggestions and ideas towards the common effort. The basic needs of an industrial worker are freedom from fear, security of employment and freedom from want. Adequate food, better health, clothing and housing are human requirements. The human heart harbors secret pride and invariably responds to courtesy and kindness just as it revolts to tyranny and fear. An environment, where he is contented with his job, assured of a bright future, and provided with his basic needs in life means an atmosphere of good IR. IR has several roles in the industrial development in any country; two fold objectives of good industrial relations are to preserve industrial peace and to secure industrial-operations. If we have to establish industrial peace, the workers must be assured of fair wages, good conditions of work, responsible working, holidays and minimum facilities of life. The objectives of good industrial relations should be development and progress of industry, through democratic methods, stability, total well-being and happiness of the workers, and industrial peace. Hence, industrial peace is the fruit of good industrial relations. The following objectives have been considered. To understand the philosophy and concept of IR; To focus on present scenario of IR policy in Japan,Bangladesh and Sri Lanka; To suggest some possible solutions for developing and improving the IR to Bangladesh, Sri Lankan from Japanese perspectives. Material and Methods Given the nature of the present study, it was required to collect data from the secondary sources. The authors were always careful of the objectives of the study and collected data accordingly to achieve those objectives. Secondary data were collected from research studies, books, journals, newspapers and ongoing academic working papers. The collected data may be processed and analysed in order to make the present study useful to the practitioners, researchers, planners, policy makers and academicians of the concern area. Analyses and Findings The analyses of findings have been discussed under the following sub-heads. Industrial Relations IR plays a critical role in establishing and maintaining industrial democracy (Monappa, 1995). IR indicates the status of the relationship between the employers and employees in general. Better relationship is always designed which, however, rarely remains in a satisfactory stage and in a static position because of various internal and external factors. The concept of IR has a wide meaning. The expression IR by itself means relationship that emerges out of day-to-day working and association of labour and management. But when taken in its wider sense it includes the relationship between an employee and employer in the course of running of an industry and may project itself to spheres which may transgress to the areas of quality control, marketing, price fixation and disposition of profits among others (Johri,1969). IR, thus, when taken in its wider meaning, is a set of financial interdependence including historical, economic, social, psychological, demographic, technological, occupati onal and legal variables (Singh, 1968). Industrial Relations in Bangladesh Democracy in the larger society is a prime and essential condition for the development of industrial relations. In Bangladesh, the extent of democracy is very poor. It is surprising to note that after independence, the frequent changes in government and emergence of military rule during 1975-1979 and 1982-1990 hampered the democratic environment for industrial relations in general and trade unionism in particular. Since independence, every government has been found to participate in the trade union activities directly through the formation of labour front. Due to government interventions, the industrial peace and productivity were affected a number of times. For example Awami League government maintained close contact with the workers through Jatiya Sramik League (JSL) the Bangladesh National Party (BNP) government did so through Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal (BJSD), and Ershad government did the same through Jatiya Sramik Party (JSP). The level of industrialization in Bangladesh is very poor. The level of employment is very poor too. Here the supply of labour is always much higher than that of the demand for labour. So the labour cost is low. Out of a total civilian labour force of 70 million about 2 millions are unemployed. Here the industrial workers are not at all class conscious. Due to very poor literacy level, workers of Bangladesh are completely in the dark about their rights and obligations. The labour force participation rate in trade unionism is only 12%. Due to improper physical fitness and lack of sufficient skill the productivity of our workers is very low. As a result, they cannot contribute towards the higher level of profitability to the employers, thereby causing their level of wages to remain low. Till now the Government of Bangladesh could not ensure a satisfactory level of minimum wage for the workers (Khan Taher, 2009). Multiplicity of trade unions is one of the great weaknesses of labour politics in Bangladesh. As a result of weak strength, trade unions in Bangladesh is facing a number of problems like increasing political influence, inter and intra-union rivalries, unhealthy competition in collective bargaining agent (CBA) election, employers, tendency to avoid CBA process and develop opportunities among the trade union leaders etc. The opportunistic nature of trade union leadership has been responsible for poor labour movements. Most of the time, the trade union leaders acted as agents of employers and of the political governments. Industrial Relations in Sri Lanka IR in Sri Lanka has arrived at the cross roads which makes an interesting study for the Human Researches Specialist. The Sri Lankas shifting from a centrally planned economy to a market economy in 1977. Since 1977, the socio-economic changes were greatly influenced by the radical changes in the external environment, globalization, information technology (IT) revolution and changing consumer needs. These changes in the socio-economic system of the country have resulted in contradictions and conflicts in the sphere of IR. With the emergence of the market economy and resultant competition, the achieving of the desired economic growth was the challenge for the government.   At micro level, business corporations fought for their survival in a competitive environment. This situation has provided a new challenge to partners involved in IR. Historically, the state has played a key role in managing IR in Sri Lanka. The state intervention has more in the nature of labour legislation and in the area of dispute settlement. Since early 20th century, these laws have been enacted to protect the less privileged partner i.e. Labour/Employee. Hence the labour laws in Sri Lanka have a bias towards the employee and this rigidity has adversely affected the progress of business. For example, the Termination of Employment Act 1971 prohibits the termination of employment except in case of disciplinary matters without the permission of the Commissioner General of Labour. Even though plethora of labour laws protects the employees, it has been a hindrance to the business activity. The business community has made several appeals to the Government to effect appropriate such changes in labour laws to meet the current environment. Such changes in the form of entrepreneurial labour laws are urgently required not only to meet the needs of the S ri Lankan economy, but also to facilitate the working population. Being a developing country, it is natural that the state needs to protect certain less privileged class of the society from the economic transformation. In addition, in a democratic country, the working class is a source of strength to political parties. In this context, the present Peoples Alliance Government formulated the Workers Charter to safeguard the rights and privileges of the working people. The salient features of the Charter: (a) The commitment to the principles of the Declaration of Philadelphia and the labour standards adopted by the International Labour Organizations (ILO); (b) Recognition of trade Unions; (c) Encouragement of Collective bargaining; (d) Strengthening of existing laws to protect employees interest; (e) Defining casual, temporary and others forms of non permanent employment and; (f) Bringing forth a code of industrial harmony. Employers strongly felt that their views have not been duly considered and it was not the opportune item to bring forward this piece of legislation. The employers argued that the requirement was not for a workers Charter, but for an Employment Charter. Even though six years have lapsed, the government has still to bring in legislation for this purpose except an amendment to the Industrial Disputes Act providing recognition to trade unions and prevention unfair labour practices. The reluctance on the part of the government to provide legal enforcement to the workers Charter indicates that the government despite, an election pledge, has realized that such labour laws should not be allowed to restrain the development of a free market economy. De Silva stated that Labour law always presents the perennial problem of balancing the interests of capital and labour and at the same time protecting public interest. Again, more than any other branch of the law, labour laws reflects governments o r societys moral tone and attitude towards social issues. The Employers Federation of Ceylon (EFC) was established in 1930 as a counter measure to deal with trade unions under this manner employer to be united and disciplined to managing labour issues; and more importantly, the need for building up a mutual understanding between employers and workers. EFC has taken 50 years or more to reach the 200 mark in membership. However, since 1980, during the period of 20 years, the membership grew to over 500. The reasons for this growth besides the free market policies introduced in 1977, was the direct result of the need for industrial relations service. The lack of expertise within the workplaces to handle industrial relations prompted the employers to seek support and assistance of EFC. It is also significant to note that since 1980, the EFC has made a fundamental change in their approach. It shifted from their emphasis of providing legal services to assist the employers in adopting better Human Resources Management (HRM) practices in managing p eople at their workplaces. At the micro level, the relationship between the employees and the trade unions has been adversarial. The history of numerous conflicts between the employers and employees during the colonial rule and the post-independence era has greatly contributed to the development of this situation. Amongst other reasons: (a) Being unaware of the significance of trade unions in national and organizational context; (b) Lack of understanding in modern management techniques, (c) negative approach of Trade Unions; (d) Lack of professional management in HR; (e) Concealed hostility of the employers based on bounded rationality. Nevertheless, the experience have made employers realize that such antagonistic approach would lead to unsatisfactory relationship, loss of work hours resulting in from industrial disputes thus affecting the productivity. With the emergence of market economy, this would adversely affect the ability of the enterprise to be competitive. In this context, many employers have begun to adopt an approach of understanding towards trade unions and also making concerted efforts to establish cordial relationship with the workforce by adopting sound HR practices. From the inception of the trade union movement in 1930s, trade unions have adopted an antagonistic approach towards management. This may be due to Sri Lankan trade unions becoming appendages of Marxist/Leninist political parties espousing a class struggle and having a history of agitation against colonialism/establishment. Despite the rapid disappearance of Marxism/Leninism globally, some trade unions continue this class struggle approach without understanding the changes in socio-economic environment. Trade unions have been comfortable in adopting this adversarial attitude and make every endeavour to keep their membership away from the management. Another significant characteristic of the trade union movement is the politicization in which major trade unions are linked to major political parties. The political parties continue to treat unions as source of power. It has been observed that on certain occasions, the behaviour of trade unions has been motivated by political objectives r ather than the interest of the working class. This along with multiplicity of trade unions have had an adverse impact on the unity and strength of trade unions. However, since 1977, this situation has been subjected to gradual change. (1) The competition in the marketplace has prompted the trade unions to review their approach. The antagonistic approach would affect the business, which could result in loss in employment. (2) New generation of workers are more concerned about their welfare and personal interest rather than espousing political ideologies. This is amply demonstrated from the fact that the number of trade Unions have decreased from 1636 in 1977 to 1428 in 1996 and the membership has been static at 1.6 million of 7 million of working population. The ratification of ILO Convention 144 on Tripartite Consolation by the Sri Lankan Government signifies the acceptance of the need to consult the employer and employer organizations by the government in regard to matters of mutual interest. The significance of this event is that the acceptance of the principle that the government should consult the other two social partners at national level make sit morally obligatory for the employers to consult the trade unions at organizational level. The structures of tripartism have existed in diverse forms, but there has been little effort to co-ordinate and harmonize the interest and work of the social partners or to provide them with the role of active participation at national level such as: (a) Minimum wages fixed for 40 trades by Wages Boards set up by the Labour Ministry under the Wages Boards Ordinance, are tripartite in character. These boards permit a consultative approach to the fixing of terms and conditions; (b) A National Advisory Council was set up in 1989, with the objective of having a permanent consultative mechanism within the Ministry of Labour. The objectives of the council were broadly to consult worker and employer interests on policy matters and implementation of proposed changes in Labour law; (c) Employees councils were made obligatory by the Employees Council Act No. 32 of 1979, in public corporations and government owned undertakings, to encourage participation of employees in the affairs of these org anizations; (c) In the Free Trade Zones (FTZ) administrated by the Board of Investment (BOI), companies are expected to set up Joint Employees Councils as a condition of licensing. Tripartism cannot be strengthened or placed on a stronger base by passing legislation. If the desired results are to be achieved, the implementation of the laws must be monitored and enforced to some extent. Persuasion and educating the workers as well as employers on advantages of consultation and dialogue at all levels are considered desirable than enforcement of laws. It is imperative that the attitude of officials should change. They should be facilitators rather than regulators in promoting good industrial relations. It has been observed that at national level, there seem to be a tendency for some unions to affiliate and also employers interested in working together to deal with problems on a common front. It also appears that more and more bipartism is exhibited at work place which is a good sign of collaboration by social partners. EFC in 1989 suggested to ILO a strategy to build up a tripartite consultative process to be the joint responsibility of the EFC and the Trade Union s. The first phase was a join body on Safety and Health. This industrial Safety and Health Association (ISHA) brought the parties together in a spirit of co operation on Safety and Health. This led to a seething up of another mechanism called Labour Management Consultative Committee (LMCC). The collective bargaining/agreement is a mechanism under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act to resolve disputes and to maintain industrial peace. The government has ratified ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and 97 on Collective Bargaining. One of the key reasons for the employees to organize themselves was for the purpose of collective bargaining, and the EFC has been instrumental in encouraging this process in the private sector and responsible for the many collective agreements signed to date. Even though this is a mechanism that could be used to the benefit of both parties, due to numerous reasons the use of this process in a greater extent has been restricted. Firstly, the employers have found that apart from industrial peace, Unions in general do not wish to offer in return, other benefits such as productivity, rationalization of work arrangements. Industrial Relations in Japan The central features of the Japanese industrial relations system include workplace focused enterprises unions, lifetime employment systems, broad based training and seniority based wages. Another outcome of the Japanese institutions such as the Keiretsu system and the system of production organization (subcontracting and quality-focused, team based work) is the simultaneous achievement of stability in labour market terms and considerable functional flexibility in work place level industrial relations through the development of internal labour markets. The Japanese follow permanent employment system, consensus decision making and patriotic leadership. The Japanese respect the senior and senior behaves just like a guardian not like a boss. Management treats all as team members whether executives or workers. They emphasize on continuous customer focus improvement in quality and total involvement. There is disagreement on the date of institution of the Japanese industrial relations system. Taira (1970 as cited in Khan Taher, 2009) suggested that the lifetime employment practice developed in the late 1800s in the silk industry where employers, forced to compete for scarce labour, instituted lifetime employment to create stable employment conditions. The key practices were encouraged by the government, which institutionalized several of them during the inter-war period in its Factories Act of 1938. Enterprise unionism emerged post war based on the structure of the firms (the large employers who accounted for a significant share of employment). Jacopy (1993) and Gordon (1985) (as cited in Khan Taher, 2009) also suggested that precursors to the current system could be seen in the company unions of the 1920s, with institutional occurring during the interwar period. Cusumano(1985) argues that it was the early labour-management crises in the post-war period, coupled with the revolution in production management that account for the creation of the more advanced aspects of the internal labour market in Japanese industry. Okayama (1986) also credited the industrial strife of the 1950s as the most important variable in the development of the Japanese Industrial Relations system, a view also held by Kenney and Florida (1994) and Takahashi (1997) who argued, The main stimulus (for lifetime employment) was the experience of large-scale conflict between labour and capital in the early post-war years, partly in response to many workers being made redundant as the war industries shut down. Employers sought a way to end or reduce this conflict, not a social or political norm impervious to pressures of economic change. (as cited in Khan Taher,2009). There were several changes in the Japanese system over the 1970s and 1980s. Notably, there was erosion in the seniority based wages concept, as wages began to be tied increasingly to skills acquisition and productivity, while employers had started the practice of mid career hires in white collar and technical occupations. The practice of Shukko- transferring employees to other parts of the Keirestu during downturns-had gained in prominence over the last two decades. Recent Changes in Industrial Relations of Japan In the 1990s, there has been acceleration in the change already underway, as well as changes in other practices that constitute the core of the Japanese (IR) system. This has been due in large part to the effect of the recession of the 1990s, as Berggeren, argues, which has been the deepest one since the 2nd World war. Thus, in the 1990s, there has been a significant questioning of the lifetime employment concept, with severe declines in job security on an unprecedented scale, changes in hiring practices from schools and universities, a dramatic increase in outsourcing strategies, the introduction of limited term employment contracts for some occupations, increased wage flexibility, and some degree of union restructuring, along with evidence of breaking up of some Keiretsus. By themselves, any one of these changes might suggest a gradual adaption to new economic circumstances, but all of these happenings together in the 1990s suggest the critical importance of the 1990s recession in forcing employers to question the existing practices and act to change them. These changes came as a movement towards transformation of the industrial relations system given that the evidence suggests changes in most aspects of employment relations in Japan, such as job security, hiring, corporate governance, wages and wage flexibility and the role of seniority, as well as union structure, and would seemingly consist of a significant eroding of the three pillars and a move towards and a move towards a more individual based system such as in the United States (Brown, Nakata, Reich and Ulman,1997). There is also some evidence that the Keiretsu system is breaking down after the crisis, possibly as a result of firms capital requirements, and thus one major source of the stickness seems to be weakening ( as cited in Khan Taher,2009). Lessons for Bangladesh and Sri Lanka from Japanese Perspectives Proper industrial relations imply harmonious and peaceful relations between labour and management. In such a situation both labour and management realise their mutual obligations toward each other and resort to actions that promote harmony and understanding. For making a fruitful comparison in the characteristics of industrial relations in between Japan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, we need to make a systematic analysis. The main lessons for Bangladesh and Sri Lanka may be summarized as follows: The level of organizational commitment among the workers and employees should be increased; Human Resources should be treated as organizations assets rather than a money making machine; Management of conflict and employee grievances should be handled effectively which ultimately would lead to innovation and productivity improvement of a concerned organization; During selection and promotion of candidates (employees) a human resource manager should follow a standard method and all candidates can get equal treatment without bias; The activities of industrial relations in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka should be free from the influence of party politics; Organizational polices and strategies should be formulated and also implement through general consensus between the workers/employees and the employers. Policy Implications Although the present study was confined to IR in Japan: Lessons for Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, it may be appropriate to state briefly the policy implications for the study. In this context, the following policy actions may be considered worthwhile. Proper Demographic Environment It is essential that in order to ensure effective IR, a proper democratic environment in the greater society is essential. In the absence of democratic environment the employers may try to exploit the workers and even the workers may try to adopt unfair means, thereby disturbing industrial harmony. Efficient management Efficient management, capable of performing its duties professionally and thereby satisfying both the parties- the employers and the employees-is indispensable. Sprit of Collective Bargaining The relationship between an employee and the employer will be congenial only when the differences between them are settled through mutual negotiation and consultation rather than through the intervention of any third party. Existence of Strong and well organized trade unions Industrial relations will be sound only when the bargaining power of the workers unions is equal to that of management. A strong trade union can protect the workers interest relating to wages, benefits, job security, etc. Existence of sound and organised employers unions These associations are helpful for the promotion and maintenance of uniform Human Resource (HR) policies among various organizations and to protect the interests of weak employers Concluding Remarks In fine, it can be said as to industrial relations in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka that despite a much smaller number of work stoppages in recent years the industrial relations have been far from being sound. There were attitudinal problems of mistrust, multiplicity of unions, political affiliation of unions on deep ideological grounds, employers reluctance to part with information, their undermining the importance of unions and by passing laws, unions not representing the interest of the workers but of the political parties and overwhelming emphasis on third party settlement which has not proved too effective. The recommendation would be helpful to the practitioners, researchers, planners, policy makers and academicians, who are involved in the concerned area Text and References Allen, F., Industrial Relations: What is wrong with the System, London: Faber, 1975, p.10 Cole, G.D.H.,.An Introduction to Trade Unionism, London: George Allen and unwin Ltd,1955 Cunnison, J., Labour Organization, London: Pitman and Sons, 1930, p.13. Dunlop,J.T.,Industrial Relation System, New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1958, p.5. Johri, C.K.., Normative Aspects of IR: Issues Indian Labour Policy (Ed.), New Delhi: Shri Ram Centre of India, 1969 Khan A.A Taher, M.A., Human Resources Management and Industrial Relations, (3rd ed), 2009, pp.18-45. Monappa, A., Industrial Relations, New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Company Limited, 1955, p.9. Richard, H.(1981). Industrial Relations: A Marxist Introduction, London: Macmillan Press Ltd, 1981, p.11. Singh, V.B., Climate for Industrial Relations, A Study of Kanpur Cotton Mills, Bombay: Allied Publishers, 1968, p.1. Webb, S Beatice., A History of Trade Unionism Longman: London, 1910,p.13.

Employment Law

Introduction This report will outline key arguments surrounding contemporary debates on UK employment law, which will provide a critical analysis from those that argue there is too much legislation and those that suggest there is not enough. It is beyond the scope of this report to generalise on employment law as a whole; it will therefore focus on the right to request flexible working, such as under the Employment Act 2002 and The Work and Families Act 2006 that has been subject to various reforms, amendments and regulations. This legislation has formed a significant debate as to whether such interventions ensure that individuals achieve a work-life balance, promote efficient working practice or create an unnecessary burden on UK businesses (Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD), 2005, British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), 2010). This analysis will also look at the introduction of new employment legislation for flexible working, and discuss the impact on working practices today, with a glance toward the shape of new legislation in the future (Chartered Management Institute (CMI),2008). FindingsBackground and ContextThe last three decades have seen a trend toward increasing employment legislation. At the same time the United Kingdom (UK) still has lower levels of employment protection and more labour market flexibility than other European states (Keter, 2010). The flexible market in the UK was inherited through the general laissez-faire attitude, where industrial labour and relation laws have been less state regulated than other European countries (Biagi, 2000). Keter (2010) suggests that today’s flexible market is also the result of more recent trends, which from 1979 saw the introduction of more labour regulations in terms of statutes enacted, but with the aim of setting labour free of interference from state control and what was seen as unnecessary social partners, such as trade unions (ibid). The introduction of a New Labour administration however saw a shift toward more family friendly employment legislation. A European directive from 1997 (European Coun cil Directives 97/81/EC and 98/81/EC) provided that part-time workers be entitled to the same rights as comparable to full-time employees. The directives required European member states to implement laws, regulations and provisions to eliminate discrimination against part-time workers. The aim was to facilitate the development of part-time and other working time arrangements, that were flexible and met the needs of both employers and employees (Danzinger & Waters Boots, 2008). In order to promote citizens full participation in the labour market, the enactment of The Employment Relations Act 1999, while continuing to ensure that labour relations were free of state control, provided a floor of rights, such as increased rights for fixed and part time workers, (Biagi, 2000). Along this trajectory, the Employment Act 2002 introduced legislation providing employees with young or disabled children the right to request flexible working arrangements by their employers, that was subsequently extended in The Work and Families Act 2006 to allow the same rights for carers of adults (Davies, 2011). Lewis and Campbell (2007) suggest that New Labour’s concern with promoting a ‘work-life’ balance underpinned it’s ideological approach to welfare, that saw active citizenship for all achieved principally through labour market participation (Levitas,2005). For all to participate, legislation has provided for the extension of childcare services and ma ternity leave and the introduction of parental and paternity leave. Further, rather than reducing working hours, the Labour government promoted the right to request flexible working hours as a way for families to manage their working patterns with their caring responsibility timetables (Busby and James, 2011). Hill et al (2001) describe flexible working to include activities such as; part-time, job sharing and homeworking or any variation outside of working the traditional nine until five working day. For example, working from home, where such practices are facilitated due to advances in mobile technologies (Civicus, 2008). Lewis & Cooper (2005) argue that although in principle flexible working can take many forms, in reality, the main flexibility that UK employers offer is a reduction of working hours. From an employer’s perspective, employment legislation can also be seen as promoting the creation of work patterns and arrangements in order to maximise employment productivity, customer satisfaction and staff efficiency (Pettinger, 1998). This demand, Pettinger suggests, has come about as a result of the expansion of global markets, competition and choice, pressures on resources and increasing customer demands, together with changing patterns of consumption (ibid). Therefore, Pettinger (1998) suggests that against this backdrop, flexibility can be seen as a corporate attitude, whereby a fully flexible labour market is seen as generating a more effective workforce. Faulkener (2001) argues that while it is recognised that it is the above drivers that have influenced the development of flexible working practices, there is also another important agenda. Here, Jones and Jones (2011) identify that family friendly legislation is more representative of the ‘business case’ for flexible working legislation, which revolves around the identification of recruitment pools, particularly women, and the older population, who have yet to be fully exploited (Faulkener, 2001, Jones & Jones,2011). Arguments Against more Employment Legislation According to a British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) (2010) report on employment regulation, a survey of British businesses see an emerging consensus that the proliferation of legislation providing flexible working conditions has become increasingly problematic. The report argues that the shift from the regulation of collective bargaining to individual employment contracts, later evolving into the volume and complexity of statutory legislation today, has led to difficulties with understanding and compliance (ibid). The report specifically attacks the piecemeal legislative approach to flexible working shown by the latest introduction of laws and regulations (see Appendix 1) According to the BCC (2010), such an approach has been criticised by businesses. The problem for companies is that constant changes in the law mean that employers must incur the cost of familiarising themselves as each new law is enacted, where there is a greater risk of mistakes. As a result, businesses need to bring their knowledge up to date since the previous change in the law, such as through employment law books and guides or paying for legal advice. Consequently, the report argues, employment legislation can act like a tax, by raising costs (ibid). The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) (2006) argue further that even if there is a belief that the increase of employment law can improve the flexibility of the labour market, there are still questions as to whether such legislation is fit for purpose. Against a backdrop of increasing employment legislation, a National Audit Office (2009) research paper also casts doubt over whether governments are able to understand business enough to design effective legislation. The BCC (2010), representing one hundred thousand businesses, suggest that due to the volume and complexity of employment legislation, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), now need professional legal advice to settle disputes. In reality, the BCC argue, it is less expensive to settle disputes with the employee and prevent reputational damage than it is to defend a claim. The BCC therefore recommends streamlining and reducing the amount of legislation, for example, in a similar way that the anti-discrimination laws became consolidated by the Equality Act 2010 (ibid, 2010). Despite such criticisms, not all the findings in the business sector are negative. According to a Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD) Survey Report (2005), who surveyed Human Resources professionals from over six hundred companies, the majority saw employment law as making a positive contribution to their businesses. This research suggested that the main barrier to effective implementation of employment law is the perception that there is too much employment legislation (ibid). In response, the Annual Employment Law Review by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) (2012) aims to tackle perceptions that there are ‘too many’ e mployment laws, through lobbying for reform, while ensuring that reforms are not at the expense of compromising fairness for individuals. The report argues that although businesses complain about the amount of employment legislation, in reality the UK has one of the most lightly-regulated labour markets among developed countries. Only the United States and Canada have lighter overall employment regulation (OECD Indicators of Employment Protection, 2008: cit in: BIS, 2012). Arguments in favour of more Employment Legislation The UK’s ‘light touch’ employment regulations may be reflected in their flexible working legislation. The right to request flexible working does not enforce employers to comply with individual requests, only to offer the procedures for them to do so. It is therefore argued that it is individuals (particularly with dependents) and the social organisations who support them, who favour increasing employment legislation, in order to provide fairness at work that ensures a work life balance (Burnett et al, 2012). In a 2012 report by Working Families and One Plus One, Happy Homes and Productive Workplaces, from a sample of over two thousand respondents, nearly eighty percent of respondents felt that flexible working was the most beneficial working arrangement (Burnett et al, 2012). However, the report argued that in order to support flexible working, further legislation was needed in order to promote arrangements that are mutually beneficial and embedded as a culture of flexibility, rather than an approach that manages requests as an exception to the norm (ibid). Along with relationship and family support organisations, a growing number of business and HR associations support further employment legislation and reform to push forward the benefits of flexible working (CIPD, 2013). Drawing on the findings of the 2011 Workplace Employment Relations Study (WERS) the CIPD suggest that employment legislation needs to increase, due in part to a lack of effective mechanisms to tackle labour relations. The report points to recent socio-economic and political changes in the UK where an increase in employment law is becoming ever more essential. For example, the facilitation of employment legislation during the 1980’s and 1990’s discouraged union membership and reduced collective bargaining powers. This is reflected in the WERS study, in 2012, which shows very low levels of employee engagement in collective bargaining, only six percent in privat e businesses, with fourteen percent of employee trade union membership in the same sector (Wanrooy et al, 2011). The near absence of collective bargaining, although removing employer constraints on freedom of action, raises concerns over employee voice, where employment legislation may be seen as an attempt to close this gap (CIPD, 2012). Danzinger and Waters Boots (2008), argue that in reality flexible working legislation does not go far enough. Unions and parent advocacy groups argue that many workers who would benefit from flexible arrangements do not ask for them out of fear of being refused, or because of a fear that asking may jeopardise their careers. Research suggests that employees will only ask for flexible work if they believe their requests will be approved. It is also argued that flexible working legislation may reinforce gender inequalities by linking flexible work and care responsibilities, reinforcing a ‘mother career track’ that pairs women with demotions of pay and position. Further, unfair dismissal claims, involving refusal of flexible working, tend to favour women, who can rely on anti-discrimination legislation, such as in Adedeji v The City of London Corporation (2007) (see Appendix 2), in order to strengthen their claims (ibid). Future Changes to Flexible Working Legislation New flexible working employment legislation to come into effect in 2014 appears to address some of the above criticisms. The government plans to extend the statutory right to request flexible working arrangements to all employees (with over twenty-six weeks service) whether they are a carer or not. This removes the present requirement that the employee must have caring responsibilities. In addition, the procedure for considering flexible working requests, which is currently very prescriptive, will be relaxed and employers will instead be required to consider requests in a ‘reasonable’ manner and within a ‘reasonable’ time frame (ACAS, 2014). Currently, it is possible for an employee to claim compensation due to the employer’s failure to comply with the procedures laid down in the Flexible Working (Procedural Requirements) Regulations 2002. In Bryan v Corporate Advertising Ltd ET/2105111/10, although the tribunal rejected Mrs Bryan’s claim that she was constructively dismissed and subjected to indirect sex discrimination, it was however held that the company had breached the procedures laid down by the 2002 Regulations. This procedural breach may no longer by relied upon under the 2014 legislation. However, successful claims may still be used under anti-discrimination legislation. In Commotion Ltd v Rutty [2006] IRLR 171 (EAT), it was upheld that the employee had been subject to constructive unfair dismissal and indirect sex discrimination, due to the employer’s failure to have any lawful reason to reject flexible working conditions. However, in Winfindale v Debenhams Retail plc (ET/2404134/10, 20 Aug 2010), it was held that there was no indirect sex discrimination where an employer showed that they took seriously a request to return from maternity leave on a part-time basis to a manager’s role. According to a Equality and Human Rights Commission report (2009), proposed changes in flexible working legislation will continue to fail to encourage workers in management positions to request flexible arrangements (EHRC, 2009). The report suggests that under current legislation, employee’s in management positions are less likely to make a request for flexible working, and when they do, they are less likely to succeed (ibid). In the government’s Consultation on Modern Workplaces Report (2012), it is argued that current legislation that prioritises certain groups reinforces the idea that flexible working is only for those in caring roles, whereas the aim of the new legislation is to promote a culture where flexible working is a legitimate ambition for all employees (HM Government, 2009). Although the legislation proposes to ‘allow’ but not ‘require’ employers to prioritise competing requests, employers will continue to have to show that all competing requests cannot always be accommodated, in their entirety, on business grounds (ibid). Drawing on the CIPD report (2005), a large majority of employers find compliance with the current legislation relatively straightforward. Of those who have had problems, the main barrier to compliance is that managers find it difficult to manage employees on different flexible working arrangements. Given that the new legislation attempts to widen the right to request flexible working to all employees, employers may face an increased challenge to accommodate competing requests. However, according to the same report, since the introduction of the current legislation, less than one-tenth of employers have faced grievance or disciplinary proceedings, or an employment tribunal claim. Further, research shows that it is large multi-national companies that benefit most from flexible working arrangements. Among those benefits are improvements in staff retention, improved morale and a reduction in costs (CIPD, 2005). These reported benefits need to be balanced against arguments that oppose mor e legislation promoting flexible working (ibid). More significantly, the statutory provision to enable greater flexibility in the workplace looks set to increase in the future. In a recent report, Management Futures – The World in 2018 (2008), the findings predict that organisations will become more virtual, the premium for talent will increase, with new aspirations and ambitions of a multi-cultural, widely dispersed workforce (Chartered Management Institute (CMI),2008). Conclusion This report has attempted to provide an insight into the contextual background surrounding employment laws in the UK today. The focus on flexible working legislation may be seen as a salient debate, given the competing claims from employers, employees and the organisations that support them (Burnett et al, 2012). At the same time, against a backdrop of socio-political and economic changes there has been an increasing legislative response to address both the rights of individual workers and a drive to improve competition, efficiency and development in the market (Pettinger, 1998). Given the predictions of further changes in the labour market, statutory provision looks set to increase in response. The debate for or against increasing legislation surrounding flexible working therefore needs to be balanced with the benefit to both businesses and the rights of individuals (CIPD, 2005). Word count: 2644 Bibliography Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) (2014) Employment Law Update. Available [online] from: http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=3909 [Accessed on 4th January 2014] Anderman, S.D (2000) Labour Law:Management Decisions and Workers Rights:4th Edition. 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