WGU C236 Compensation and Benefits Study Guide QUESTIONS

Define Total Rewards All forms of pay and compensation, tangible benefits, and other intangible rewards that an organization provides. How are these three elements of total rewards connected? The three forms of rewards cash, benefits and intangibles act in concert to influence employee behavior. List an example of an employee benefit. Retirement Plan List an example of an intangible benefit. meaningful work and rewarding relationships Who will this course help? While the course has obvious value for the Compensation and Human Resource Manager, it also is very relevant for every individual working in an organization today. How will this course help HR Managers? This course will prepare you for one of the many roles that you will play in an organization. This course will help you see how your total rewards strategy fits with your business strategy and the other facets of your HR systems such as staffing, recruiting, and training. How will this course help all careers outside of HR? No matter your role in an organization, you are impacted by the rewards systems used in an organization. This topic will help you understand those reward systems to better see how your pay is determined, what benefits are being offered, and how those rewards are determined. This understanding can then help you either appreciate or seek to change those rewards to better meet your needs in the employment deal. Define cash compensation. Monetary pay that employees receive in exchange for their work. What is base pay? Salary or hourly wages What is variable pay? Can include performance-based rewards such as bonuses and commissions, as well as longer-term equity rewards such as stock options. Rewards that vary as performance varies. What is the first and foremost outcome of a Total Rewards System? The first and most prominent objective of a Total Rewards System is to direct organizational activities toward higher performance. Define the concept of Organizational Citizenship Behaviors. Represent those value-creating activities in which employees engage but which are not part of their job. What is an example of an Organizational Citizenship Behavior? Employees who go beyond their defined responsibilities to help a colleague at work contribute significantly to an organization's success. What three areas contribute to the overall performance of an organization? Employee performance, team performance, and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors (OCBs) each contribute to the overall performance of the firm. What can Organizational Performance include? Effectiveness at meeting customer needs, new product creation, and gains in market share, profits, and other measures of financial return on the firm's assets. Explain the different categories of Total Rewards outcomes. *The second category of outcomes by which Total Reward Systems are evaluated is Attraction and Retention. A primary function of organizational rewards is to attract the employees that the organization needs to do business. *The third category of results deals with the employees' reactions to the Total Rewards System, namely perceptions of Fairness and Satisfaction. These perceptions are important because when employees perceive that the reward system is fair and are satisfied with it, they are less likely to leave the organization. How are Cost and Efficiency related to the outcomes of the rewards System? Because people-related expenses make up a significant portion of the expenditures for many organizations, the levels of these expenditures have a big impact on the bottom line. In that sense, reward systems must be monitored to keep these costs under control. At the same time, however, it is important to remember that the reward costs are an investment in an asset (Human Capital) and a product or service (Performance), and simply reducing the cost without consideration for its impact on performance or future performance capabilities would be misguided. What additional items are a part of the benefits package? Vacations, holidays, personal excused absences, and other opportunities for not working are regarded as part of the benefit package. What are the different types of shift differentials? Overtime, Shift Pay (nights), Hazard Pay, On call Pay, Call Back Pay, Geographic Differentials, Holiday and Weekend Pay What is the Fair Labor Standards Act? The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 is commonly referred to as the Wage and Hour Law or FLSA. It sets minimum wage standards, overtime pay standards, and child labor restrictions. FLSA is administered by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, which tries to correct injustices via conciliation, the assessment of fines, or legal decisions through the federal courts. What is the difference between exempt status and non-exempt status? Employees who are exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act, such as outside salespeople and executives who have administrative or managerial responsibilities. As of January 1, 2020, the standard salary level needed for an employee to be exempt from overtime pay is $35,568 per year or $684 per week. (Non Exempt) Employees who are covered by the minimum wage and overtime pay provisions of the FLSA. Non-exempt workers are those who are generally paid on an hourly basis, such as blue-collar workers, maintenance workers, construction workers, technicians, laborers, and semiskilled workers. Are non-discretionary bonuses included in a non-exempt employee's overtime pay calculation? The regular rate of pay includes the basic hourly rate of pay plus any non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials, production bonuses, and commissions earned. Discretionary bonuses, such as a Christmas bonus, non-cash gifts, suggestion awards, expense reimbursements, and pay for unworked hours (such as holiday pay or sick pay) are not part of the regular rate of pay. What is the purpose of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ? An Act which specifies that employees are entitled to up to 12 weeks of time off to recuperate from medical conditions or to handle qualified family needs such as the birth of a child or to care for an elderly relation. What is considered the Business Strategy? The collection of decisions, approaches, and activities that allow an organization to compete and win What does a Cost Leadership Strategy emphasize?