Health and Safety
The
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA)
directly mandates the provision of safe working conditions. It requires that employers
(1) provide a place of employment that is free from hazards that may cause death or
serious physical harm, and (2) obey the safety and health standards established by the
U.S. Department of Labor. Safety standards are intended to prevent accidents, whereas
occupational health standards are concerned with preventing occupational disease. For
example, standards limit the concentration of cotton dust in the air because this contami-
nant has been associated with lung disease in textile workers. The standards are enforced
by OSHA inspections, which are conducted when an employee files a complaint of unsafe
conditions or when a serious accident occurs. Spot inspections of plants in especially
hazardous industries such as mining and chemicals are also made. Employers who fail to
meet OSHA standards may be fined.
Investigators have been looking into claims that chemical agents in the butter
flavoring used in microwave popcorn are harmful to workers where such products
are made. At least 30 workers at one plant in Jasper, Missouri, contracted a rare
lung disease, and some doctors believe that it resulted from conditions on their job
site. Although federal health officials point out that there is no danger to those cooking
or eating microwave popcorn, research is ongoing into potential hazards to those who
work in the industry.
8
Emerging Legal Issues
Several other areas of legal concern have emerged during the
past few years. One is sexual harassment. Although sexual harassment is forbidden under
Title VII, it has received additional attention in the courts recently, as more and more
victims have decided to publicly confront the problem. Another emerging HRM issue is
alcohol and drug abuse. Both alcoholism and drug dependence are major problems
today. Recent court rulings have tended to define alcoholics and drug addicts as disabled,
protecting them under the same laws that protect other disabled people. Finally, AIDS
has emerged as an important legal issue as well. AIDS victims, too, are most often
protected under various laws protecting the disabled.
ATTRACTING HUMAN RESOURCES
With an understanding of the environmental context of HRM as a foundation, we are
now ready to address its first substantive concern—attracting qualified people who are
interested in employment with the organization.
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