1) Labor movement continues to fight for workers’ rights on a range of issues, including

the following; Discuss thoroughly;

a. Wages and Benefits – are two of the most important employment-related concerns
for many workers. Wages are monetary compensation paid by an employer to an
employee in exchange for work done. It can be calculated as a fixed amount for
each task completed, or at an hourly or daily rate, or based on an easily measured
quantity done. It is an income derived from human labor. Wages also identify which
workers are entitled to receive overtime pay for working longer hours. Benefits, on
the other hand, covers anything that the employee receives other than cash wages.
It is a form of compensation paid by employers to employees over and above
regular salary or wages. It comes in many forms and are important part of the
overall compensation package offered to employees. Some benefits are family and
medical leave, life insurance, bonuses, retirement, fringe benefits, etc.
b. Human Trafficking – is the process of trapping people through the use of force,
violence, fraud, deception or coercion to obtain some type of labor, commercial sex
act or financial/personal gain. Traffickers might use violence, manipulation, or false
promises of well-paying jobs or romantic relationships to lure victims into trafficking
situations. The victims can be any age, race, gender, or nationality and can happen
everywhere. Language barriers, fear of their traffickers, and fear of law enforcement
keep victims from seeking help, making human trafficking a hidden crime. The most
common types of human trafficking are sex trafficking, forced labor, and debt
bondage.
c. Workplace Discrimination – is a prejudicial treatment in the workplace, which may
affect hiring, firing, promotions, salary, job assignments, training, benefits and
layoffs. It happens when an employee is treated unfavourably and unequally based
on a person’s age, gender, hair, skin color, sexual orientation, race, religion, national
origins or disabilities. It is illegal to discriminate when hiring or in the workplace.
d. Whistle-blower Protections – a whistle-blower is a person who exposes any kind of
information or activity that is deemed illegal, unethical, or not correct within an
organization that is either public or private. Protecting whistle-blowers can make it
easier to detect passive bribery, the misuse of public funds, waste, fraud, and other
 forms of corruption. Encouraging employees to report wrong-doings or to blow the
whistle, and protecting them when they do, is essential for corruption prevention in
both public and private sectors.
e. Sexual Harassment – is unwelcome sexual behaviour, which could be expected to
make a person feel offended, humiliated, or intimidated. It can be written, verbal, or
physical and can happen in person or online. The victims can either be a man or a
woman. Some forms of sexual harassment include physical acts of sexual assault,
requests for sexual favors, verbal harassment, unwanted touching or physical
contact, unwelcome sexual advances, feeling pressured to engage with someone
sexually, unwanted sexually explicit photos, emails or text messages, and many
others.

2) There is always the built-in clash between management prerogative and the labor rights.
Identify at least 10 each and explain.
Management Prerogative:
1. The Right to Hire – the company has the exclusive right to purchase labor from any
person whom it chooses.
2. The Right to Dismiss (Fire/Terminate) – the company has the right to dismiss
employees in accordance with the causes and procedures established by law. This
particular right must be exercised with caution and without abuse of discretion because
termination affects the right of the worker to Security of Tenure.
3. The Right to Transfer – the company has the right to transfer the employee from one
office to another within the business establishment provided that there is no demotion in
rank, salary, benefits and other privileges.
4. The Right to Promote and Demote – the company has the right to promote
employees. A promotion is a scalar ascent of an employee to another position higher in
rank or salary. The right to promote carries with it the right to demote.
5. The Right to Discipline – there can be no success without efficiency. There can be no
efficiency without discipline. The employer has the right to subject his employees to
disciplinary measures and the need for discipline have been judicially noticed.
6. The Right to Lay Down Policies – the employer is free to regulate, according to his
own discretion and judgment, all aspects of employment, including work assignments,
working methods, time, place and the manner or work, tools to be used, processes to
be followed, supervision of workers, and working regulations.
7. The Right to Establish Working Hours - the employer is free to regulate, according to
his own discretion and judgment, all aspects of employment, including work
assignments, working methods, time, place and the manner or work, tools to be used,
processes to be followed, supervision of workers, and working regulations.
8. The Right to Organize and Reorganize – the employer is free to regulate, according to
his own discretion and judgment, all aspects of employment, including work
assignments, working methods, time, place and the manner or work, tools to be used,
processes to be followed, supervision of workers, and working regulations.
9. The Right to Expansion and Growth – the company endeavors to increase its profit
and in the process it may adopt or devise means designed towards expansion and
growth.
10. The Right to Reasonable Return on Investment – the company endeavors to
increase its profit and in the process it may adopt or devise means designed towards
expansion and growth.

Employees Labor Rights:

1. Equal Work Opportunity For All – the State shall provide equal work opportunity,
protect labor, promote full employment regardless of gender, race, creed; and regulate
relations between employees and employers.
2. Security of Tenure – no employee can be dismissed from work except for a just or
authorized cause and only after due process. Just cause refers to any wrongdoing
committed by an employee while authorized cause refers to economic circumstances
that are not employee’s fault.
3. Work Days and Work Hours – an employee must be paid their wages for all hours
worked. If they work over eight hours a day, they are entitled to overtime pay. If their
work hours fall between 10 PM to 6 AM, they are entitled to night shift pay in addition to
their pay for regular work hours.
 4. Weekly Rest Day – the employer should schedule the worker upon consultation that
there should be a day-off of 24 consecutive hours after six days of work.
5. Wage and Wage-Related Benefits – the employees must get wages and wage-related
benefits in exchange for the services they rendered to their employers. Wage is the
amount paid to the employees and may be fixed for a given period.
6. Payment of Wages – wages should be paid directly to the employee in cash, legal
tender, or through a bank. It should be given not less than once every two weeks or
twice within a month at intervals not exceeding 16 days.
7. Female Employees – women are prohibited from engaging in night work unless the
work is allowed by the following rules: industrial undertakings from 10 PM to 6 AM,
commercial/non-industrial undertakings from 12 MN to 6 AM, or agricultural takings at
night provided that she has had nine consecutive hours of rest. Also, welfare facilities,
such as separate dressing rooms and lavatories, must be installed at the workplace.
8. Employment of Children – The minimum age of employment is 15 years of age. The
minimum age of employment for hazardous jobs is 18 and 15 years for non-hazardous
jobs. Any worker below 15 years of age should be directly under the sole responsibility
of parents or guardians provided that work does not interfere with the child’s schooling
or development.
9. Safe Working Conditions – employers must provide workers with every kind of on-
the-job protection against injury, sickness or death through safe and healthful
conditions.
10. Rights to Self-Organization and Collective Bargaining – every worker has the right to
self-organization. In other words, the workers has the right to form or to join any
legitimate worker’s union, free from interference of their employer or the government.
All workers may join a union membership on the first day of their employment.

3) Explain an employer’s duty to provide “reasonable accommodation”. Give an example of

reasonable accommodation.
 A reasonable accommodation is assistance or changes to a position or workplace
that will enable an employee to do his or her job despite having a disability. If
 you have a disability and believe you need alterations to some aspects of your
job, you can request reasonable accommodation. Examples of reasonable
accommodation includes making facilities accessible; job restructuring;
scheduling; physical space adaptation; acquiring or modifying equipment;
changing tests, training materials, or policies; the use of interpreters and
personal care attendants; and reassignment to a vacant position.
Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified
employees with disabilities. This will enable the individual to have an equal
opportunity to participate in the application process and to be considered for a
job, unless it can show undue hardship.

4) Analytical Practice:
TOPIC: Kmart’s Joe Boxer Controversy

An ethical issue is an identifiable problem, situation, or opportunity that requires

a choice among several actions. In the advertising area, deciding if a specific and is
ethical or unethical can fall into a gray area. Some stakeholder might view the ad as
acceptable, while others may be offended by the ad and consider it questionable. Many
people assume that marketing ethics is black and white, right or wrong, and you just
have to do the right thing. Unfortunately, there are many close calls. Kmart experienced
an ethical issue concerning its advertising when it released its “Show Your Joe” around
the holiday season.
Kmart has become known for its viral advertisements “Ship My Pants” and “Big
Gas Saving” that uses wordplays to create humor. Toward the holiday season in 2013,
Kmart released another video to advertise its Joe Boxer Shorts. The ad achieved viral
status – but also plenty of complaints. Developed by agency DraftFCB, the same
company that made its previous two viral videos, the advertisement features six men
whose lower halves are covered with a curtain. With only the top part of themselves
visible, they start off ringing bells. Then the curtain is removed, and it is revealed that
the men – wearing tuxedo jackets – are in their Joe Boxer shorts. They proceed to play
 out the song “Jingle Bells” by swivelling their hips. It is apparent that the music is
coming from somewhere inside their shorts.
The advertisement’s intent was to convince people to go shop at Kmart for the
holidays. It came out amidst mixed reviews. According to the advertising Benchmark
Database, the ad scored “below average” in effectiveness. However, according to Ace
Matrix, the advertisement scored above normal for retail advertisement. Consumer
reviews were just as mixed. The ad scored highest in the “dislike” category. Many
parents were not happy when trying to explain the “jingling” to their children. Yet it also
scored second highest in the “like” category.
Many analysts view the advertisement – which have been described as “risqué”,
“ballsy”, “naughty”, and “fun” – as an attempt by Kmart to instill new life into its tired
brand. The Kmart brand has last much market share, and these advertisement help
portray the brand as hip and fun. On the other hand, some question how these
commercials really fit into the brand. The name Kmart is not even mentioned until the
end of the advertisement, and in one study only 8 percent of respondents who viewed
the ad mentioned Kmart by name. Is this advertisement a fun and whimsical way for
Kmart to instill its brand with new life? Or was this a tasteless advertisement meant
merely to get viewers’ attention through sheer shock value?

QUESTIONS:

1. Some stakeholders were offended and viewed the ad as highly questionable. Should
Kmart have voluntarily pulled the ad from national television to be socially responsible?
Yes/No and Why?
 To be socially responsible, it is just appropriate to pull the ad from national television.
Even though it shows humour, we can’t deny the fact that it is indecent and vulgar.
There are children who could watch the ad and we need to protect them.

2. If Kmart embraces the principle of maintaining trust with stakeholders, will this affect
the decision whether to use ads such as Joe Boxer ads?
 Yes. Somehow, the stakeholders’ opinions matter. Since the Joe Boxer ad tops as 2 nd
highest in “likes” category and highest in “dislikes” category, it’s a 50-50 situation
whether to use the ad or not. But, if they want to maintain the trust of stakeholders,
they should leave a positive impression.
3. How would you defend the decision to keep running the Joe Boxer ads?
 On the other thought, if Kmart still wants to promote the ad despite of the complaints,
the only way to defend the decision to keep running the Joe Boxer ad is the rating in
the “likes” category. It will somewhat humor the viewers with its content, but they
should change the style of the jingle bell sound in order to make the ad appropriate for
all the viewers.

4. If you were the marketing manager that had to attend an internal meeting with the V.P.
of Marketing, the Ethics Officer, and General Counsel, which of the following would be
important to address?
 There are many important parts to address. The content of the ad, the feedbacks of
the viewers and the stakeholders, opinions of every officer, the decision, and the effect
of the ad and decision made.

5. What is the best approach to avoid developing controversial ads like Joe Boxer that
could damage the firm’s relationship with stakeholders?
 The best approach is to consider the ethical issues that might affect the relationship
with stakeholders. Consider also the stakeholders’ suggestions and decisions, and the
culture of other people. Humor can be one to amuse audience but don’t forget the
different types of audience. Just be sensitive enough to make the ad as rated G as
possible.