Human Resource Management
Practice Questions
Course Introduction
Human Resource Management explores the strategies, policies, and practices essential for efficiently managing an organizations workforce. The course introduces key concepts such as recruitment, selection, training and development, performance appraisal, compensation, labor relations, and employment law. It emphasizes the role of HR in supporting organizational goals, enhancing employee motivation and engagement, fostering workplace diversity, and navigating ethical and legal responsibilities. Through theoretical foundations and real-world case studies, students will develop the skills necessary to address contemporary HR challenges and strategically contribute to organizational success.
Recommended Textbook
Work Industry and Canadian Society 7th Edition by Harvey Krahn
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14 Chapters
375 Verified Questions
375 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Historical Perspectives on Work 1700-1950s
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Sample Questions
Q1) Adam Smith argued that an extensive division of labour could lead to immense increases in productivity in a factory setting. What did Charles Babbage propose to further increase profits for factory owners?
A) Increasing the length of the working day.
B) Paying workers less, since they would require fewer skills.
C) Outlawing trade unions.
D) Making workers pay for their own tools.
Answer: B
Q2) Which of the following assumptions is most central to Émile Durkheim's assessment of the positive social outcomes of the division of labour?
A) Workers doing very different jobs must recognize that they depend on others with different responsibilities.
B) An extensive division of labour is typically most profitable.
C) While workers are doing very different jobs, they all should be paid about the same.
D) People with more skills must be paid the most.
Answer: A
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3
Chapter 2: Contemporary Debates on Work 1950s to Present Day
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is the best example of "emotional labour?"
A) A live-in caregiver who develops strong personal relationships with the family she or he works for.
B) An Oscar Award-winning dramatic performance.
C) A fast-food worker who is forced to smile when interacting with customers.
D) The performance of emotions in relationships with family members.
Answer: C
Q2) "Creative destruction," according to Joseph Schumpeter, is best characterized by which of the following?
A) The impact of the "managerial revolution" on traditional family-run businesses.
B) The breaking down of old industrial structures and their replacement by more competitive, efficient, and high-technology alternatives.
C) The demise of state socialism and the emergence of capitalism in Russia.
D) The impact of "free trade" on Canada's cultural industries.
Answer: B
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4
Chapter 3: Canadian Employment Trends
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements most accurately describes educational attainment trends in the Canadian labour force?
A) In 2012, there were more male workers than female workers with a university degree.
B) In 1975, more than half of labour force participants had at least some postsecondary education.
C) In 2012, over half of labour force participants had a university degree.
D) In 1975, over half of labour force participants had a high-school education or less.
Answer: D
Q2) Which of the following best describes recent labour force participation trends in Canada?
A) Unemployment rates for Aboriginal Canadians are similar to the rest of the population.
B) Labour force participation is equally distributed across age groups.
C) Labour force participation is equally distributed across regions.
D) Male labour force participation decreased in the 1990s.
Answer: D
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Chapter
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is correct about the average number of hours worked per week in Canada today?
A) Fewer employed Canadians are working part-time compared to several decades ago.
B) Part-time employment rates declined during the recessions of 1981-82 and 1990-92.
C) Compared to a decade or two ago, more Canadians are working part-time and more are also working more than 40 hours per week.
D) The average number of hours worked per week declined until the 1950s, and then slowly increased again.
Q2) Which of the following is correct about part-time employment in Canada?
A) Part-time employment rates have remained stable over the past few decades.
B) There are more men than women working part-time in Canada.
C) The part-time employment rate is higher for workers under the age of 25.
D) Part-time employment for women 25 and over has increased dramatically in the past few decades.
Q3) Based on the trends you have read about in Chapters 3 and 4, describe what you see as the most pressing issues facing Canadian employers and workers for the next few decades to come?
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6
Chapter 5: Labour Markets: Opportunities and Inequality
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is correct about Pierre Bourdieu's discussion of "cultural capital?"
A) It suggests that industrial capitalism will not be successful in some cultures.
B) It extends human capital theory to make it more applicable to different cultures.
C) It provided Durkheim with many of his ideas about the division of labour.
D) It helps explain why children from more affluent families do better in school.
Q2) After two years of being unable to find work as a journalist, Abdul went back to school and began an engineering degree. Upon graduating, he quickly found a high-paying and rewarding job in the field. Which of the following best accounts for Abdul's successful experience?
A) Human capital theory.
B) Bourdieu's conception of social capital.
C) Labour market segmentation theory.
D) Gender-role socialization.
Q3) In a few sentences, outline the dual economies perspective on labour markets. Provide examples of occupations found in the core and periphery sectors.
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Chapter 6: Gender and Paid Employment
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is correct about the occupational distribution of women and men in Canada?
A) In general, the gender distribution is even across occupations.
B) A larger percentage of all women work in natural and applied science occupations, compared to all men.
C) Sales and service occupations are comprised of roughly 50 percent women.
D) A larger percentage of all women work in health occupations, compared to all men.
Q2) Which of the following best characterizes the gendered nature of nonstandard work?
A) The "standard" job can be understood as a masculine norm of employment.
B) There is a gendered, but not a racial, dimension to nonstandard work.
C) After increasing in the 1980s and 1990s, the percentage of women in nonstandard jobs is now declining.
D) Very few women choose self-employment or other forms of nonstandard work.
Q3) Define employment equity and pay equity policies and discuss how they differ. How effective have they been in Canada? How might these policies be improved to help ensure that their goals are met?
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Chapter 7: Household, Family, and Caring Work
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following best describes the convergence in weekly hours of housework completed by women and men in Canada in recent decades?
A) Men are putting in more hours; women are working as many hours as before.
B) Men are putting in a bit more time; women have reduced their housework by a larger amount.
C) Men are doing as little as before; women have reduced their housework considerably.
D) More housework is being done by female hired help.
Q2) In a few sentences, explain what Arlie Hochschild means in The Outsourced Self. What factors might impact a family's ability to outsource work?
Q3) Which of the following is correct about women's participation in paid work in the 20th century?
A) Participation steadily increased throughout the century.
B) The 1920s saw participation rise dramatically.
C) Participation spiked in the 1940s, only to decline in the 1950s.
D) Participation remained fairly low throughout the entire century.
Q4) Describe what is meant by the terms household work and caring work. What types of activities do these terms refer to?
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9
Chapter 8: Organizing and Managing Work
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Sample Questions
Q1) Alfred D. Chandler Jr. wrote that, "The 'visible hand' of the corporate manager replaced the 'invisible hand' of market forces." Explain what Chandler means by this statement?
Q2) Joan Woodward argued which of the following on the basis of her research on the best fit between production technologies and management approaches?
A) Bureaucracies are most appropriate in industries with mass-production technology.
B) Modern work organizations need managers who have strong human relations skills.
C) The more complex the technology, the more bureaucratic rules are required.
D) Assembly-line technologies are a poor fit with bureaucracy.
Q3) Which of the following criticisms did Alvin Gouldner make about bureaucracies?
A) Promotions and dismissals tend to be predictable.
B) Rules that reduce uncertainty for management reduce job satisfaction for workers.
C) Efficiency is often more important than authority.
D) They are often created to give managers more power over workers.
Q4) Briefly describe human relations theory and outline one of its major criticisms.
Q5) In a few sentences, describe the basic principles of scientific management.
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Page 10
Chapter 9: In Search of New Managerial Paradigms
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is <b><u>not</b></u> one of the characteristics of a "winner" work organization, according to Tom Peters in his book Thriving on Chaos: Handbook for a Management Revolution?
A) Obsession with responsiveness to customers.
B) Leadership that loves change.
C) Constant innovation in all areas.
D) Clearly outlined bureaucratic control systems.
Q2) Which of the following is the best explanation for Japan's strong economic performance after its economy was basically destroyed during World War II?
A) The strong work ethic of Japanese workers.
B) Unique management approaches and organizational structures.
C) Access to cheap labour in South Asia.
D) Rapid introduction of automated technologies.
Q3) List the key features of what organizational analysts call a "high-performance workplace" (HPW). Which of these features, if any, are unique to the HPW approach to management?
Q4) Briefly define and give an example of each: pay flexibility, functional flexibility, and numerical flexibility.
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Page 11
Chapter 10: Conflict and Control in the Workplace
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements best defines "surplus value" as discussed by Karl Marx?
A) The profits remaining for capitalists after they paid workers for their labour.
B) The additional value generated by introducing new technologies to the workplace.
C) The greater societal wealth generated under capitalism compared to feudalism.
D) The contribution to national wealth generated by the petit bourgeoisie.
Q2) "Technological innovation is the engine of both economic growth and social development." Critically evaluate this claim, making reference to theories and empirical evidence presented in this and other textbook chapters.
Q3) The concept "survivor syndrome" is best defined by which of the following?
A) Young people who spent years in university and now have to pay off massive debts.
B) The costs employers face trying to rehabilitate workers injured on the job.
C) Manufacturing firms that have remained competitive despite out-dated technology.
D) Negative effects of downsizing on employees who kept their jobs.
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12
Chapter 11: Unions and Industrial Relations
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Sample Questions
Q1) Union X represents the 1,200 workers employed in a Canada Bicycle Corporation (CBC) factory in a large Canadian city. The union has not been all that successful in negotiating higher wages for its workers, but it has been able to convince management to allow workers to make decisions about how to do their jobs and to listen to workers' suggestions for improving health and safety in the factory. Which of the following perspectives on unionism is Union X highlighting, according to Richard Freeman and James Medoff?
A) The "managers of discontent" perspective.
B) The "social unionism" perspective.
C) The "monopoly face" of unionism.
D) The "collective voice" face of unionism.
Q2) "Unionism is essentially a 20th century phenomenon, and will likely not be a significant factor in the 21st century." Critically discuss this statement with reference to current and past unionization trends in Canada and elsewhere.
Q3) Workers face a number of dilemmas when deciding whether to join a union and, if already a member, whether to become an activist. Describe the "free rider" problem and the "exit vs. voice" methods that workers can use to express discontent with unsatisfactory working conditions and employment contracts.
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Chapter 12: Alternative Approaches to Economic Organization
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Sample Questions
Q1) In a few sentences, explain what is meant by Germany's "codetermination" (or dual-representation) approach to industrial democracy.
Q2) What is the purpose of Sweden's Wage Earner Funds, introduced in 1984?
A) Set aside funds to cover the costs of benefits paid to injured workers.
B) Redirect corporate taxes into company share purchases for employees.
C) Reduce the gender wage gap within companies.
D) Pay for daycares and other benefits to make workplaces more family-friendly.
Q3) Which model of worker ownership has delivered more of the democratizing and work-humanizing outcomes promised by the new managerial paradigms that emerged over the past several decades?
A) Employee share ownership plans (ESOPs).
B) Worker buyouts.
C) Producer co-operatives.
D) High-performance workplaces.
Q4) Briefly explain the key difference between a "worker buyout" and a "producer co-operative."
Q5) Briefly discuss at least three different workers' rights that current Canadian health and safety legislation attempts to protect.
Page 14
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Chapter 13: Work Values and Work Orientations
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following conclusions best reflects recent Canadian research on the work orientations of adult women and men?
A) Women continue to be more focused on extrinsic work rewards, compared to men.
B) Men continue to be more focused on extrinsic work rewards, compared to women.
C) Gender differences in both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards have disappeared.
D) Gender differences in both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards exist only among recent immigrants.
Q2) Which of the following arguments is made by Jeremy Rifkin in his book The End of Work?
A) New technologies are creating many more jobs than they are destroying.
B) As more people acquire postsecondary education, fewer people will view their jobs negatively.
C) More knowledge-intensive jobs will be created as the service sector expands further.
D) New work values are needed to make working in the voluntary sector more attractive for people who can't find paid work.
Q3) Briefly discuss some of the manifest and latent functions of work. Make reference to research on unemployment which helps us understand the latent functions.
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Page 15
Chapter 14: Job Satisfaction, Alienation, and Work-Related
Stress
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following generalizations best describes the relationship between gender and job satisfaction?
A) Similar proportions of women and men say they are satisfied with their job.
B) Women are less likely than men to say they are satisfied with their job.
C) Men are less likely than women to say they are satisfied with their job.
D) Younger women are more satisfied with their jobs compared to young men, but the relationship is reversed for older women and men.
Q2) Canadian research on the gap between work preferences and work rewards reveals the largest gap for which of the following job characteristics?
A) Interesting work.
B) Opportunities for career advancement.
C) Good pay.
D) Opportunities to make decisions.
Q3) Which of the following job characteristics would be called an "extrinsic" work reward?
A) Friendly workmates.
B) The opportunity to join a union.
C) Job security.
D) The opportunity to make decisions about one's job.
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