Role of Employee and Society in an Organization

abhishreshthaa

New member
Employees:

  • When IBM restructured its organization in the early 1990’s, it terminated more than 100,000 employees, many at the middle-management level.

  • Just expected, as the economy was absorbing the shock of layoffs at IBM, AT&T announced that it expected to lay off 40,000 employees.

  • Both IBM and AT&T had been known as companies that provide jobs security. Employees felt betrayed, and the media vilified AT&T’s CEO Bob Allen.

  • In the end AT&T made fewer layoffs than he had originally announced. Many people believe that the company decided against laying off so many people because of public’s adverse reaction.

  • It sent a message that laying off so many people was ethically untenable.

  • Pay and benefits are another area of concern to employees. Of nearly equal importance to employees are fair pay, secure and affordable health insurance, paid sick leave, and assured pension and retirement benefits.

  • A decade after it made headlines with its layoff, IBM was again been criticized for treating employees unfairly. This time it was because the company announced a new benefit plan, called a cash balance plan.

  • Cash balance plans are relatively new approach to helping employees prepare financially for retirement. Such plans tend to be good for younger employees because they allow employees to take their retirements savings with them when they leave the company.

  • But for older employees who have been at a company a long time-these new plans can reduce retires annual retirement incomes by several thousand dollars.

  • What employees lose, the company saves. Employees were out-raged, and everyone in the country heard about it. Soon IBM executives worked out a solution that minimized the negative impact of the new plan on the company’s most senior employees.

  • However they go about it, progressive companies understand that satisfying employees concerns and views about financial benefits plan.


Society:

  • When discussing stakeholders in the broader society we are referring to all the communities affected by an organization, including those at the local, national, and international levels.

  • Socially responsible organizations stay attuned to public opinion and use it as one source of information that may shape their own managements practice.


  • For example, the Post Division of General Foods donates cereals to a national school breakfast program. Ann Fudge, president of the division says, “Lots of kids go hungry, which does not put them in a position to learn. Working with public school systems, we donated cereal to help these kids get the nutrition they need. Every company can find a way to improve the lives of kids in their community.”

  • Being able to give back to the community is one of the few reasons to bother making profit, according to the cofounder Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s. Each year, 7.5% of Ben & Jerry’s pretax profits go to social causes.

  • Often, voluntary, labor is a community’s biggest need. One of the most ambitious volunteer programs---one that often serves as a benchmark for other companies---is the We Are Volunteer Employees (WAVE) program, supported by the Fannie Mae Foundation.


Owners and Shareholders:

  • For many non-profit and government agencies who are supported primarily through taxes, the concerns of owners and shareholders are essentially those of society at large.

  • But for privately owned companies and those whose shares are publicly traded, the concerns of owners-that is shareholder-may be quite different from those of society in general. Most shareholders invest their money in companies for financial reasons.

  • At a minimum, they want to preserve their capital for later use. The responsibility of social organization towards shareholders is to give 100% dividend to them.

  • Bonus shares should also be issued time to time.the shareholders should be provided with complete information of how is their money been used. They should be given necessary documents like Annual Reports etc.



Arguments For Social involvement of Business:

  • - Public needs have changed, leading to changed expectations. Business, it is suggested, received its charter from society and consequently has to respond to the nedds of society.

  • - Business has a great deal of power which, it is reasoned, should be accompanied by an equal amount of responsibility.

  • - Social creates a favorable public image. Thus a firm may attract customers, employers and investors.

  • - Business should try to solve the problems which other institutions have not been able to solve after all, business has a history of up coming with novel ideas

  • - Business has the resources. Specially, business should use its talented managers and specialists, as well as its capital resources, to solve some of society’s problems.


Arguments Against Social Involvement of Business:

  • - The primary task of business is to maximize profit by focusing strictly on economic activities. Social involvement could reduce economic efficiency.

  • - Buisness has enough power, and additional social involvement would further increase its power and influence.

  • - There is lack of accountability of business to society. Unless accountability can be established, business should not get involved.

  • - There is not complete support for involvement in social actions. Consequently, disagreements among groups with different viewpoints will cause friction.
 

jamescord

MP Guru
Employees:

  • When IBM restructured its organization in the early 1990’s, it terminated more than 100,000 employees, many at the middle-management level.

  • Just expected, as the economy was absorbing the shock of layoffs at IBM, AT&T announced that it expected to lay off 40,000 employees.

  • Both IBM and AT&T had been known as companies that provide jobs security. Employees felt betrayed, and the media vilified AT&T’s CEO Bob Allen.

  • In the end AT&T made fewer layoffs than he had originally announced. Many people believe that the company decided against laying off so many people because of public’s adverse reaction.

  • It sent a message that laying off so many people was ethically untenable.

  • Pay and benefits are another area of concern to employees. Of nearly equal importance to employees are fair pay, secure and affordable health insurance, paid sick leave, and assured pension and retirement benefits.

  • A decade after it made headlines with its layoff, IBM was again been criticized for treating employees unfairly. This time it was because the company announced a new benefit plan, called a cash balance plan.

  • Cash balance plans are relatively new approach to helping employees prepare financially for retirement. Such plans tend to be good for younger employees because they allow employees to take their retirements savings with them when they leave the company.

  • But for older employees who have been at a company a long time-these new plans can reduce retires annual retirement incomes by several thousand dollars.

  • What employees lose, the company saves. Employees were out-raged, and everyone in the country heard about it. Soon IBM executives worked out a solution that minimized the negative impact of the new plan on the company’s most senior employees.

  • However they go about it, progressive companies understand that satisfying employees concerns and views about financial benefits plan.


Society:

  • When discussing stakeholders in the broader society we are referring to all the communities affected by an organization, including those at the local, national, and international levels.

  • Socially responsible organizations stay attuned to public opinion and use it as one source of information that may shape their own managements practice.


  • For example, the Post Division of General Foods donates cereals to a national school breakfast program. Ann Fudge, president of the division says, “Lots of kids go hungry, which does not put them in a position to learn. Working with public school systems, we donated cereal to help these kids get the nutrition they need. Every company can find a way to improve the lives of kids in their community.”

  • Being able to give back to the community is one of the few reasons to bother making profit, according to the cofounder Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s. Each year, 7.5% of Ben & Jerry’s pretax profits go to social causes.

  • Often, voluntary, labor is a community’s biggest need. One of the most ambitious volunteer programs---one that often serves as a benchmark for other companies---is the We Are Volunteer Employees (WAVE) program, supported by the Fannie Mae Foundation.


Owners and Shareholders:

  • For many non-profit and government agencies who are supported primarily through taxes, the concerns of owners and shareholders are essentially those of society at large.

  • But for privately owned companies and those whose shares are publicly traded, the concerns of owners-that is shareholder-may be quite different from those of society in general. Most shareholders invest their money in companies for financial reasons.

  • At a minimum, they want to preserve their capital for later use. The responsibility of social organization towards shareholders is to give 100% dividend to them.

  • Bonus shares should also be issued time to time.the shareholders should be provided with complete information of how is their money been used. They should be given necessary documents like Annual Reports etc.



Arguments For Social involvement of Business:

  • - Public needs have changed, leading to changed expectations. Business, it is suggested, received its charter from society and consequently has to respond to the nedds of society.

  • - Business has a great deal of power which, it is reasoned, should be accompanied by an equal amount of responsibility.

  • - Social creates a favorable public image. Thus a firm may attract customers, employers and investors.

  • - Business should try to solve the problems which other institutions have not been able to solve after all, business has a history of up coming with novel ideas

  • - Business has the resources. Specially, business should use its talented managers and specialists, as well as its capital resources, to solve some of society’s problems.


Arguments Against Social Involvement of Business:

  • - The primary task of business is to maximize profit by focusing strictly on economic activities. Social involvement could reduce economic efficiency.

  • - Buisness has enough power, and additional social involvement would further increase its power and influence.

  • - There is lack of accountability of business to society. Unless accountability can be established, business should not get involved.

  • - There is not complete support for involvement in social actions. Consequently, disagreements among groups with different viewpoints will cause friction.

Hello Abhi,

It was really appreciable and i am sure it would help many people. Well, i found HR Role in Organizations and Its Impact on Business Strategy and wanna share it with you and other's. So please download and check it.
 

Attachments

  • HR Role in Organizations and Its Impact on Business Strategy.pdf
    618.6 KB · Views: 0
Top