Introduction
Nations and states in the world have a responsibility of protecting the citizens against mistreatment and harsh conditions in their environment. In the same way, all countries and the international community has the responsibilities of establishing and enforcing the Human Rights and ensuring that the rights al which is fundamental and inherent to human beings are observed and protected. In the employment sector, there are employment laws which are set to protect the human rights and ensure fair and treatment of the employees by the employers. Employers are required to adhere to the employment laws in the country or state to ensure that the welfare of the organization is taken into consideration (Guerin & DelPo 13). Being a private organization, Dayton Phoenix Group has the responsibility of protecting its employees and enforcing the federal and the state laws on employment through the laws.
Problems to be collected under the new policies
Dayton Phoenix Group as a manufacturing company has had various issues relating to the employees which need to be addressed in the new organization policies. Firstly, three engineers have died in the course of working in the company under the heated working environment. The low ranking employees are treated very poorly by the employees in the high levels and the managers. They are said to be very dirty and hence not required to use the rest rooms as other employees do. The organization had many employees who are either salaried while many others are not salaried. Eight of them are temporal employees working on contracts. The employees union is only able to take the salaried employees from the organization. There is also poor communication in the organization, and hence, the situation is not friendly at all. These are among the issues which need to be incorporated in the new policies of the organization.
While seeking to improve the working condition and the morale of the employees, organizations are encouraged to put in place all the employment laws governing the codes and conducts of the employers and the employees (Twomey, 2010). To incorporate effective policies at Dayton Phoenix Group, which is a private manufacturing organization, our group have assessed the current working conditions at the organization and given recommendation during the development of the new policies. Having evaluated the current policies and the working conditions in the manufacturing factories and plants in this organization, our group would like to assess the effects of the Employment Laws and the need to incorporate the federal and state laws to enhance the establishment of employee-based working conditions and standards (Guerin & DelPo, 2013).
Recommendations
Dayton Phoenix Group as a manufacturing organization under the federal and state of Ohio laws is required to adhere to all the provision of the constitutions (both federal and state) on devising its employment policies. This ensures that the company is compliance with the set standards in the country for approval. Some of the critical employment laws to be focused are as follows.
Firstly, The Ohio Minimum Wage Laws under Ohio Constitution Art. II, Section 34a which states that employers earning more than $297,000 annual gross receipts shall pay the minimum wage rate of $8.10 while those earning less than that shall pay wages amounting to a minimum of $7.25 according to the Fair Labor Standards Act of the federal government. This law protects the employees in the Dayton Phoenix Group who are not salaried. It ensures that the employees are given rights for the sustainability and the morale. It protects the need for the employees who are not the union. This law is usually drafted each year to ensure that the consumer price index is taken into consideration (Twomey, 2010). It ensures that the welfare of the employees is catered for and that employees in the country can provide for themselves. Incorporation of this law in the new company policies protects the organization from strikes and complains from the workers. It also creates some form of market uniformity as it is the requirement enforced to all employers by the state.
Secondly, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) which makes it illegal to discriminate against someone by race, color, religion, nation, origin, and sex. The group has recommended that the incorporation of this employment law to the Dayton Phoenix Group policies would ensure fair and equitable treatment of all employees. The blacks and the whites will be treated the same, and the boardroom will be accessible by all as opposed to how it was in the past period. This law which was established in 1964 when the need to protect the employees was raised by the trade unions and the human rights activists makes it illegal to retaliate against person’s physical characteristics, origins, and personal characteristics.
The key provisions of this employment law are The Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which protects pregnant mothers from being discriminated, The Equal Pay Act of 1963 requiring men and women working performing equal work to be treated equitably. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and the Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 are also key aspects of this law (Guerin & DelPo, 2013). Incorporation of this law and the enforcement of the same would create a conducive environment for the working of all the employees without the fear of intimidations there have been. This employment law is also supposed to ensure that the managers in the organization get the responsibility of treating all the employees fairly during the working in the organization (Twomey, 2010). This will bring about organizational change where respect will bring about the friendly working environment and hence the change in the organization culture. This is also likely to introduce a culture which will be employees centered.
Thirdly, we have the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Act of 1970 which states that the employers shall assure of a safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women; by authorizing enforcement of the standards developed under the Act. The OSH' Act of 1970 state that the employer "shall furnish to each of its employees conditions of the employment and a place of employment free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious injury or harm to its employees." The OSHA Act ensures that safety standards in the manufacturing sector and all other sectors are highly maintained. The employer is therefore required to initiate the development of safety standards and measures in the organization (Goldman, Corrada & Goldman 201). Enforcement of this law in the case of Dayton Phoenix Group would ensure safety for all the employees working in the factory.
The research done by the group shows that the conditions in the factory where the locomotive parts are manufactured become very hot that the employees are not able to work under the adverse conditions. In working under such conditions, the employees are at risk of contracting respiratory and skin diseases. More so, there have been cases of engineers dying due to the effects of the unfriendly working conditions (Benedict & Winkler 204). Consideration of this law in establishing the new policies in the organization would ensure safety responsibility by the employer. It would also ensure that the working conditions are improved and hence eliminate the cases of death. The state Ohio in collaboration with the federal government in their role of protecting the employees conducts OSHA compliance audit to ensure that safety is the priority of the employers (Goldman, Corrada & Goldman 20). Having introduced the policy during the organizational change, the employer will be required to work on creating a better working environment.
Fourthly, the Fair Labor Standards Act FLSA provides the laws which protect the employees from being overworked without pay. Wages and Hour Worked Law provides for the payment of the overtime hours. The act does not limit the number of hours that an employee should work in a day or in a week. However, the Act states clearly that employers should pay the extra hours (exceeding 40 hours per week) to the employees. The extra hours according to the federal government are paid one and a half times more than the normal hours. However, the act gives various exclusive cases sin the implementation of this law (Benedict & Winkler 204).
Incorporation of this law in the Dayton Phoenix Group new policies for the business will ensure continuous positive changes in the organization. The employees who have been working for 60-70 hours in a week will get the motivation to remain productive in the organization. The incorporation of the law ensures that the compensation rights of the employees are taken into consideration. The employees working for the extra hours will get the motivation to remain productive during the long hours of working (Goldman, Corrada & Goldman 11). The need to continuously improve the performance of the Dayton Phoenix Group and the need to bring in a new organization culture will, therefore, entail the drastic changes in the human resource department and the treatment of the employees to enhance their morale.
Fifth, due to the high number of employees working at Dayton Phoenix Group, there is the need to encourage the existence of the labor unions for the employees which will work independently towards the protection of the employees. The federal government provides the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) of 1959 which is administered by the Office of Labor- Management Standards (OLMS). The Act protect the interest of the trade unions and explains on the relationship between the union and its members (Goldman, Corrada & Goldman 11). It also protects the funds of the union and ensures that all the activities undertaken by the union are democratic.
Our group, therefore, recommended that the employees union at Dayton Phoenix Group should be provided for under the Ac. This creates a culture of management where the actions of the unions in which the employees are affiliated to are supported by the employer. This, therefore, ensures continued collaboration among the employees under the union and the employer and hence improved efficiency and benefit to the employees. Under this Act, union officials, employers and the labor consultants are required to file reports constantly regarding certain labor relationships and the activities of the officials and also the elections in the union (Benedict & Winkler, 2004).
In response to the need for extended concern of the employees working with the Dayton Phoenix Group, the group sought to give credit to the retiring employees after a long period of service. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISO) was therefore recommended as necessary to be incorporated in the new policies. The Act regulates employers who offer pension or the welfare benefits plans to their employees during retirement (Benedict & Winkler 204). With the many health problems recorded to occur due to interaction with the conditions of work at Dayton Phoenix Group, the Act provides for Comprehensive Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) which provides for the continued health care to the employees even after the retirement of the employees. It also provides for the portable health care under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Incorporation of this Act will give a sense of security after the long service at Dayton Phoenix Group to the employees taking their retirement. This increases the morale of the employees through the feeling of health and pension security.
Lastly, having recorded some few cases of death in the company, the group recommends that the employer and the management of the company incorporate the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA), 5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq. in the protection and coverage of their employees. Under this Act, the employer is supposed to compensate the employees in the cases of disability, death or other injuries occurring during the normal duties or rather occurring as a result of the work done. Compensation to the employees shows some extended degree of support to the employee and his/her dependents to ensure their security even after an uncertain occurrence.
Works Cited
Benedict, M. L., & Winkler, J. F. The history of Ohio law. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press. (2004). Print
Goldman, A. L., Corrada, R. L., & Goldman, A. L. Labour law in the USA. Alphen aan den Rijn: Kluwer Law International. (2011). Print.
Guerin, L., & DelPo, A. The essential guide to federal employment laws. (2013). Print.
Twomey, D. P. Labor & Employment Law: Text & cases. Mason, Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning. (2010). Print
