An issue considered in the presentations or books Essay

An issue considered in the presentations or books - Essay Example This paper explores the concept of supply of labor, its dynamics, and key factors. Many economic theories describe supply of labor in unique ways owing to the dynamic nature of the concept. Perhaps it is imperative to note from the onset that the total hours and real salary rate are the fundamental components of supply of labor in any given economic system. The supply of labor curve, which is the graphical representation of supply of labor, depicts the theoretical wage rates versus labor. The vertical axis of the supply of labor curve represents the theoretical wage rate while the horizontal axis represents the amount of labor that workers are willing to toil for at any given wage rate (Chagny, Döpke, Plane, and Schmidt 61). The dynamics of the supply of labor depend on the compromise between leisure and labor. This tradeoff implies that workers earn more incomes by working for more hours and vice versa. However, such workers must cut down on the number of hours they spend on leisure in order for them to earn hire by dedicating more time for labor. Although this notion necessitates a delicate balance, it confirms the fundamental trade-off between labor and leisure. It means that a rise in the rate of real wage increases the opportunity cost for leisure. This trend leads to the substitution effect in the sense that the workers will develop a tendency to supply more labor (Soest, Das, and Gong 15). As workers dedicate more hours for labor, their earnings as well as their real wage rate goes up. Subsequently, the demand for ‘normal good’ leisure increases as the workers incomes rises. It means that workers will supply less labor in order to spend more hours on their ‘normal good’ leisure activities. They will develop the tendency of spending because of their higher income and they will dedicate more time (hours) on leisure activities. This tendency is called

Nothing Compares to Teaching Essay -- Teaching Education Statement

Nothing Compares to Teaching When I first started college I was not sure what I wanted to do with my life. I would ask myself â€Å"If I could do anything I wanted to do for eight hours a day and get paid for it, what would I do?† After thinking about that question a couple of times the answer seemed perfectly clear. Spending my career devoted to children would be the most rewarding thing I could do with my life. There are many other jobs that revolve around children, but none that could compare to teaching. The most important goal in my classroom will be to ensure that my teaching methods are effective. No matter what I am teaching from reading and writing, to how to line up quietly my approach has to be effective. Figuring out how to be effective can be a challenge. Progressivism and pragmatism have an interesting theory. Having knowledge at any age is useless if you do not know how to apply the knowledge. Holding a student’s interest is a very important part of the learning process. Children are naturally curious. Their curiosity can be very useful in the classroom. Being able to teach information in a way that strikes their curiosity is the first step of successful teaching. The students need to be able to connect with what is being taught on a level that interests them. Letting children have the opportunity to use the information they learn in a practical, hands on, way is very important. The diversity of students is a major factor when it comes to discipline and other methods of teaching. Students learn in a variety of ways. Of the five major educational theories, I believe an eclectic approach is the best. I will never have a classroom full of students in whic... ...fectively teach at the college level. After being a student for so many years, I have learned a lot from many of my professors and I feel that I may have something to share with those that may someday teach my children. There are many goals I hope to accomplish in my classroom each year. I’m sure as I gain experience in the classroom each year, my goals will change. Helping students realize the importance of education is very crucial. I believe the elementary level is the best time to begin to encourage children to take their education seriously. Everyday offers a chance to increase your knowledge and try something new. The opportunity to share this with children on a daily basis is a blessing. I hope to be able to instill one core belief in all of the students that enter my classroom; â€Å"The biggest room in the world is the room for improvement.†

Employee Discipline Essay

In keeping with the Mission of the Sisters of Providence, which requires respect, honesty, and justice in dealings with employees, PSJMC directs its disciplinary and corrective action efforts towards developing and coaching employees to achieve and maintain satisfactory conduct and performance. Although PSJMC may terminate the employment relationship at will without following any formal system of discipline or warnings, PSJMC exercises its discretion to use a progressive discipline to ensure a fair method of disciplining employees. The progressive discipline process is intended to give employees advance notice, when appropriate, in order to provide them an opportunity to correct any deficiencies in job performance or conduct. PSJMC is committed to providing a workplace that is free of harassment and discrimination (PROV-HR-4036 Policy). PSJMC does not tolerate any kind of unlawful discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment, or harassment based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, pregnancy, citizenship, ancestry, gender, marital status, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. Unlawful harassment, in any form including verbal, physical, or visual harassment will not be tolerated. The policy defines the procedure for reporting any occurrence of sexual or other unlawful harassment and applies to all employees and agents of the company as well as to nonemployees , including physicians, vendors, contractors, and others doing business with the company. Any employee or agent of the company who is found to have violated this policy will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including the possibility of immediate termination. This is an HR policy and is enforced by HR. PSJMC is committed to maintain a safe and productive work environment and expects employees to be reliable and punctual in reporting for scheduled work (PROV –HR 4687 Policy). Absenteeism and tardiness place a burden on the hospital and on other employees. In the rare circumstances when employees cannot avoid being late to work or are unable to work as scheduled, they should notify thei r supervisor as soon as possible in advance of the anticipated tardiness or absence as required by policy. Excessive absenteeism and tardiness is disruptive and may lead to corrective action, up to and including termination of employment. The policy does not apply to employees on an authorized FMLA leave, including intermittent FMLA leave, or other leaves protected by state or federal law including verified occupational injury or illness. This is an HR policy and is enforced by HR. PSJMC ensures and maintains a work environment that promotes the interests of employee safety, efficiency, health, and productivity. It also recognizes that employee involvement with drugs and alcohol can be extremely disruptive and harmful to employees, patients, and the public. It adversely affects the quality of work and the performance of employees, poses serious safety and health risks to the user and others, and has a negative impact on work efficiency and productivity. All job applicants receiving offers of employment shall be required to submit a drug-screening test as a condition of employment. Further, any employee observed with perceived impairment will be subject to a drug screening test when reasonable suspicion has been determined. The purpose of the policy is to provide a safe, healthy, productive and efficient working environment for employees, patients and the public. This is an Occupational Health and Safety policy and is enforced by HR (PROV-HR-4065 Policy). PSJMC complies with its ethical and legal obligations surrounding the appropriate use of social media. The policy aims to clarify what constitutes official Providence use of social media, to establish guidelines for the official use of electronic social networking, and to clarify the personal responsibilities and legal implications of personal use of electronic social networking while at work or while posting information about Providence (PROV-CE-1098 Policy). Social media may be used by Providence for business-related purposes and its employees for business and other purposes subject to the restrictions set forth in the policy. The policy is established to assure compliance with legal and regulatory restrictions and privacy and confidentiality agreements. This policy was created by the Office of the CEO and enforced by HR. Based off my research, PSJMC does an excellent job of ensuring that it has the appropriate policies in place to avoid legal litigation. That said, it is important that PSJMC look for more effective measures to educate employees about new or revised policies. The medical center relies on their intranet policy library as the policy depository and expects all employees to self educate. Most leaders and all of the employees I spoke to were not aware of several policies and did not know where to find them—resulting in a huge liability for the hospital as a result of poor implementation. When policies are violated or a manager needs to modify undesirable conduct after attempts of coaching, progressive discipline may need to be applied. The type of disciplinary action depends upon the nature and history of the employee’s misconduct. These disciplinary actions often include verbal warnings, written warnings, suspensions without pay, and demotions. Progressive discipline does no t mean that PSJMC does not fire an employee for a first offense; some misconduct is of such a serious nature that no second chance is warranted. Most undesirable behavior, however, does not result in immediate discharge, but rather in imposition of some lesser sanction. If the behavior is repeated, progressively more severe disciplinary action is taken, ultimately leading to termination. Managerial coaching is a growing alternative to formal discipline that attempts to get the employee actively involved in addressing performance slippage. Using company disciplinary procedures to address employee issues puts the ownership of the issue on the manager and human resources department. The employee will be asked to react to whatever course of action the manager and human resources group decides to take. A coaching approach puts ownership of the problem with the manager and employee. Any process of resolution is created between the manager and employee and it becomes the employee’s responsibility to find ways to solve the issue under the guidance of the manager. The manager-employee relationship is important in creating a productive workplace. Coaches try to work with their employees to improve employee performance and find the deep-seated reasons as to why conflict exists. This kind of interactive process can work to improve the manager-employee relationship. If a manager turns to official disciplinary action without attempting to interact with the employee, then that can damage the manager-employee dynamic and create a division that results in a decline in morale, loss of productivity and an increase in employee turnover. Union representation protects union employees from unfair discipline, wrongful discharge and preserves workplace rights. Unless circumstances warrant severe actions, PSJMC utilizes progressive discipline to address union employee disciplinary issues also. The progressive steps are specified in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and include, verbal counseling, written counseling, disciplinary suspensions without pay , and termination of employment. Union employees may request to have a union representative or steward present at any meeting if the employee believes that the meeting may result in disciplinary action. Copies of all written counseling(s) and all documentation are kept in the employee’s personnel file along with rebuttals. Corrective action or any reference to disciplinary action cannot be used against the employee for any purpose after twelve months—so, in essence progressive discipline has a twelve month window. If, the disciplinary action is grieved or arbitrated and the charges of the offense are determined to be without merit, all records are placed in a confidential envelope in the personnel file and cannot be used for progressive disciplinary action purposes. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a processes used for the purpose of resolving conflict or disputes informally and confidentially. The ADR Office at PSJMC offers all employees a resource that is informal, non-escalating and impartial . The goal is to identify possible strategies to resolve concerns before utilizing the traditional processes such as grievances and arbitrations. Although ADR does not displace those traditional processes it does reduce the number of grievances and formal complaints received by human resource and legal departments. Some of the ADR activities include serving as a sounding board, providing and explaining policies and rules, how to address or report unacceptable or illegal behavior from a coworker or supervisor, offering referrals to other resources, helping people help themselves around communication styles, help collect and analyze information, helping to draft a letter about their issues, coaching and role-playing. The activities handled by the ADR Office are vast and diverse. Overall, employees see this service as a benefit and the hospital executives view the ADR as a proactive measure to protect and mitigate risk. In addition to the ADR, PSJMC offers Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to assist employees with personal challenges that may affect their on the job performance. These challenges may fall into many categories including: drug and alcohol abuse, legal, marital, relocation, grief, abusive households, financial, childcare, eldercare, and outplacement services. Since all employees face serious problems at one time or another in their lives, and it is important to provide help during those times. EAP is structured to provide access to quality service providers. Participation in this plan is voluntary, and does not use information that impacts the employee’s chances of future employment or promotion. All contact, participation, and treatment remain confidential. All EAP services provided are available to employees free of charge. The cost of long-term treatment or rehabilitation services is provided as defined under the health care plans. To reduce liability requires that employers have solid policies in place, utilize coaching and progressive discipline consistently and know how to properly document disciplinary actions. The importance of effective documentation of disciplinary actions cannot be overstressed. Apply disciplinary actions is at times uncomfortable but is absolutely necessary in order to help defeat frivolous claims of discrimination and promote a healthy workplace. References Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center. (2012). Mission. Retrieved from https://california.providence.org/Saint-Joseph/pages/About-Mission.aspx Providence Health & Services. (2009). Attendance and Punctuality, PROV –HR 4687 Policy| Providence Health & Services. (2012). Counseling and Corrective Action, PROV-HR-4053 Policy Providence Health & Services. (2012). Sexual and Unlawful Harassment, PROV-HR-4036 Policy Providence Health & Services. (2012). Drug Free Workplace, PROV-HR-4065 Policy Providence Health & Services. (2012). Social Media, PROV-CE-1098 Policy

The Stranger by Albert Camus - 1115 Words

In the novel, The Stranger, by Albert Camus, the pointlessness of life and existence is exposed through the illustration of Camus’s absurdist world view. The novel tells the story of an emotionally detached, amoral young man named Meursault. Meursault shows us how important it is to start thinking and analyzing the events that happen in our lives. He does this by developing the theme of conflicts within society. Albert Camus’s novel The Stranger portrays Meursault, the main character, as a static, dispassionate person who shows indifference to the people who love him. A major component of The Stranger revolves around Camus’s philosophical notion of absurdity. The fundamental theme in this literary work is the irrationality of the universe explored through the first person of Meursault. The universal values that appear within The Stranger are somewhat complex, yet they have a tremendous influence on the actions of the characters. As a flat character, Meursault is not fully delineated, he lacks deep thought and significant change. Meursault is a contrast to the irrational world, just as absurdism is the opponent of the irrational or indifferent world from Camus’s perspective. The title of The Stranger, otherwise known as ‘The Outsider’ puts Meursault outside of the normal world, isolating him from hope and understanding. As an outsider, he exhibits behaviors that normal people don’t understand and so he is condemned in an irrational way. For example, it was more importantShow MoreRelatedThe Stranger By Albert Camus1391 Words   |  6 PagesThe Stranger â€Å"The Stranger,† written by the Algerian writer Albert Camus, is a novel about Meursault, a character who’s different and even threatening views on life take him to pay the highest price a person can pay: his life. This was Camus’ first novel written in the early 1940’s, in France, and it reflects the authors belief that there is no meaning in life and it is absurd for humans to try to find it places like religion. The main themes of the novel are irrationality of the universe and theRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1495 Words   |  6 Pages Albert Camus said, â€Å"Basically, at the very bottom of life, which seduces us all, there is only absurdity, and more absurdity. And maybe that s what gives us our joy for living, because the only thing that can defeat absurdity is lucidity.† In other terms, Camus is indicating that absurdity affects us all even if it’s hidden all the way on the bottom, but it’s the joy that comes from absurdity that makes us take risks and live freely without any thought or focus. Camus also specifies that the onlyRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1411 Words   |  6 PagesThe novel The Stranger, written by Albert Camus, encompasses contemporary philosophies of existentialism and absurdism. Existentialist and absurdist philosophies entail principles regarding that one’s identity is not based on nature or culture, but rather by sole existence. The role of minor characters in The Stranger helps to present Camus’s purpose to convey absurdist and existentialist principles. The characters of Salamano and Marie are utilized in order to contrast the author’s ideas about contemporaryRead MoreThe Stranger by Albert Camus720 Words   |  3 PagesAlbert Camus’ portrayal of the emotional being of the main character in The Stranger is an indirect display of his own personal distress. The use of symbolism and irony presented throughout this novel is comparable with the quest for such that death itself would be nonetheless happy. Camus’ irrational concept is based off the exclusion of any logical reasoning behind the events in the text. Meursault’s first impression given to the reader is that of ignorance and a nonchalant behavior to indifferenceRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1345 Words   |  6 PagesAbsurdism is a philosophy based on the belief that the universe is irrational and meaningless and that the search for order brings the individual into conflict with the universe. Albert Camus’s novel The Stranger is often termed an absurdist novel because it contains the elements of Camus’s philosophical notion of absurdity. Mersault, the protagonist, is an absurd hero that is emotionally detached and indifferent form society. Neither the external world in which Meursault lives nor the internal worldRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus Essay1591 Words   |  7 PagesThe Stranger was written by the French author Albert Camus, and was first published in 1942 in its indigenous French. It’s described as being the most widely-read French novel of the twentieth century, and has sold milli ons of copies in Britain and the United States alone. It’s known by two titles; the other being The Outsider. The backstory to this is very interesting but, more importantly, the subtle difference in meaning between titles suggests certain resultant translative idiosyncrasies whenRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1628 Words   |  7 PagesAlbert Camus’s novel â€Å"The Stranger† revolves around a young man estranged from society. This man, Monsieur Meursault, lives the majority of his life fulfilling his own physical needs and social obligations, but has little emotional connection to the world around him. Throughout the book Meursault attends his mother’s funeral, begins a serious relationship with his former co-worker Marie, kills a man without motive, goes through trial, and is sentenced for execution. His lack of emotional responseRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1365 Words   |  6 PagesThroughout The Stranger, Albert Camus uses routinesitu ations to demonstrate how the protagonist, Meursault is not just another ordinary individual. Camus depicts Meursault as an independent being, disinterested in his surroundings, contrasting him with the majority of his peers. Meursault traverses the entire novel, exhibiting little to no emotion. Instead, he displayscharacteristics synonymous to someone suffering from psychopathy. Regardless of the situation, Meursault refrainsfrom assigning meaningRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus Essay1844 Words   |  8 Pagesof the novel, The Stranger, written by Albert Camus, multiple debatable topics have risen. Does Meursault have a heart? Is he an existentialist? Why does he seem to not be phased by his mother dying? This novel is definitely on the more controversial side, which is somewhat strange because although it seems like a novel about almost nothing, everything seems to have a much deeper meaning than it puts off. However, one topic that seems to be overlooked is the fact that Th e Stranger relates highly toRead MoreThe Stranger By Albert Camus1488 Words   |  6 PagesIn the novel, The Stranger by Albert Camus there are three major themes established by the main character, Meursault. His detachment from his emotions and him essentially being a sociopath set’s a major tone for the novel. In The Stranger, the major themes introduced are Isolation, The Meaninglessness of Human Existence, and Lack of Human Emotions. These are the three most major because it’s all surrounding the main character, Meursault and these themes provide similarities between Lord of the Flies