Analysis Of Film Sunrise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Analysis Of Film Sunrise - Essay Example Summary and Plot analysis of Sunrise (1927)The Man leaves his wife after he hears the woman from the city whistling. His wife is left alone with memories of their once deep love relationship.The man and the woman from the city are in a love affair under the moon. The woman wants the man to sell his farm and follow her back to the society. She also suggests that the man drowns his wife. However, the man violently refuses. However, the woman convinces the man. The unsuspecting wife is taken for a boat ride where she is to be drowned. She later becomes suspicious about the trip while they are in the lake. The man is unable to drown his wife. He goes back to the shore, where the wife flees to the shore. The wife then flees and the man tries to follow her. The wife from the farm then goes to the city where she is overwhelmed with the city life and her husband is close behind her. The man then gives the woman flowers and other gifts and she is then convinced to stop crying. They reconcile and while in the city, they see a bride who gets married in a church. The man asks for forgiveness, after which they go back to the farmhouse. A twist in the plot of the film is when the woman and the man travel back to their home; a storm causes their boat to sink. The man saves the wife but he wakes up convinced that his wife has drowned. He asks the town people to help search for her body They do not succeed and when he gets back to their house, the woman of the city reappears thinking that the plan had succeeded. The man turns violent on the woman from the city. He tries to kill her before he is told that his wife survived. He is happy as he kisses her and lets the woman of the city get out of the town. Depiction of the City Woman as trangressive, problematic and having threatening presences in Sunrise (1927) F. W. Munrau’s depiction of women in the silent film, Sunrise is an approach of representing women in rural and city settings. The city woman is depicted as being pr oblematic, trangressive and even having threatening presences. The film pits the city woman against the rural woman. Victorian melodrama usually depicts the woman as either a vamp or a virgin. Munroe borrows this expression in his silent film, whereby the rural woman is represented as a ‘virgin’; the city woman is the ‘Vamp’. The city woman is problematic in the context of Sunrise (1927). Mary Livingstone plays a demanding woman. She demands that the farm man sells his farm. This is a challenge to the man who depends on the farm as his source of living. He also asks the man to kill his wife so that she can take her place. The man finds it a problem top sell his farm and go to the city. He also finds it hard to drown his wife. However, the power of the city woman is reflected in her seductive prowess. She easily convinces the man to go ahead with the plan. The city woman manages to bring problems to a small rural town. She causes problems amongst the wife an d the man. Their marriage and love was blissful and

Netflix Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Netflix - Case Study Example NetFlix has near zero rental charges for its subscribers and that is what sets it apart from its rival firms. Having satisfied the 3 basic criteria’s for successful business, this paper is aimed at examining what were the possible driving forces that led to such good market standing of the company. Along the same discussion we also point out various strategic and competitive challenges that the firm might face in near future and suggest means to minimize the impacts of those threats. Introduction At the onset, Netflix started off as a DVD rental provider that used internet to take orders. Subscribers made their selection over the portal and mailed in their orders. The DVD’s would then be delivered via mail. The entire system allowed the customer to keep the DVD’s as long as they wished to, without an extra charge. Netflix derived its major revenue from their subscription plans that incorporated costs of streaming, mailing and renting of videos. As we moved to the digital age, internet streaming and online viewing has caught up. NetFlix has welcomed the change and continues as leader by innovation i9n the video rental market. DVD renting, though, has not lost its value just yet (Hillary, Alex, & Ian, 2009). In this paper, we would analyze NetFlix’s market standing, its business model and its business and marketing strategy using various tools like the SWOT analysis and Porter’s five forces to determine the company’s key success factors and staying strength. Moving forwards, the discussion continues to determine the critical areas that might need immediate attention for NetFlix’s sustenance and also suggest some marketing and strategy recommendations that might prove useful in revenue and subscription improvement. Analysis Strategically speaking, video rental industry is more competitive that an oligopoly or a monopoly. This is believed to be in stark contrast with what the general opinion holds. An industry where instant availability drives the market, the paper tries to analyze what forces have led to success of NetFlix and what could be the possible challenges in the given scenario through various tools (Null, 2003). SWOT Strengths NetFlix is a well established brand and known to almost every Household Extensive and Assertive marketing has etched its name in memories of individuals Competitive Pricing has won the loyalty of the masses. Good relation and strong business with suppliers makes NetFlix, a good name among Video providers. NetFlix and a widespread presence which gives it an advantage due to ease of access. NetFlix has a wide array of offerings in videos, in both TV episodes and movies. The company has been constantly upgrading itself to higher technology and better capabilities. Weaknesses Damaged DVD’s demand a high cost of replacement. This might act as discouragement to frequent video buyers. NetFlix takes slightly longer time to procure and deliver videos. Speed in del ivery is the pillar of success in this particular and this drawback could put NetFlix in a fix if it sustains for long. Customers who are not very frequent with movie rentals rarely find something else that might catch their fancy Video streaming fails to include all movies within its program. Opportunities NetFlix could try selecting movies that might have a recurring demand with customers. Such movies could be displayed on their video streaming channels (Lewis, 2001). The company could experiment with creating a collection of movies and TV shows of the subscriber’

The Multifaceted Topic of Free College

The Multifaceted Topic of Free College In a world where blue-collar jobs are considered unappealing by many, an increasing amount of individuals have begun to choose to attend college in the hopes of achieving prestigious positions in the white-collar industry. Unfortunately, however, ones decision to further their education at post-secondary school can have one rather drastic unforeseen consequence: thousands of dollars worth of debt. As a result of this growing epidemic plaguing college students around the nation, rallying cries for free higher education have begun to spring up throughout the country. But, for as many logical, thought-out arguments that exist in support of free college, there are just as many against it. In fact, as highlighted in Dissent Magazines special issue titled Arguments on the Left, in which three different authors share their differing viewpoints regarding free higher education, this debate is anything but simple and is more complex than individuals would both hope and imagine. As a result, on e can only conclude that the idea of free college, while idealistic and tempting, is not completely beneficial nor easily achieved, especially after taking these three articles and their varying arguments into consideration. The first of the three articles, Tressie McMillan Cottoms Why Free College is Necessary, takes a die-hard stance on the supportive side of the free college debate. Believing that higher education should be free regardless of what it can and cannot achieve, Cottom preaches the words and ideas that every college student that has ever faced debt wants to hear. However, while Cottoms argument surely makes sense from the humanitarian side of things, it fails to delve into where the funds are going to come from. Logically speaking, funds from either the state or government that would help students attend college for free would come from the taxpayers own wallets. In a country that is already in a large amount of debt, with public institutions and services often taking the brunt of cutbacks, increasing the amount taxpayers have to contribute in order to provide students with a free college education shouldnt necessarily be a top priority. Additionally, Cottom states, An educational justice policy must include institutions of higher education but cannot only include institutions of higher education (Cottom). Unfortunately, this adds even more burden to an already overwhelming financial undertaking. According to this logic, this notion of free education must expand beyond the boundaries of college and into the realm of trade schools as well, which only increases the cost that cannot easily be paid. Furthermore, Cottom also points out that, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦free college would likely benefit only an outlying group of students who are currently shut out of higher education because of cost (Cottom). While I wholeheartedly believe that everyone who wants to learn should, regardless of their economic standing, looking at the situation from this point of view can cause one to question the validity of the whole endeavor. That is, what way does it make sense to undertake such a huge financial burden if free college wont necessarily benefit everyone? Much like Cottoms argument, Mike Konczals article titled, Generation Debt, also approaches the topic of free higher education from a rather positive stance. Konczal proclaims that education is a right that every human should have access to, and insists that the government be the ones responsible for providing the service. However, instead of insinuating that higher education be provided for free, Konczal points out that part of the root of the problem regarding student debt in particular is the fact that there has been large-scale disinvestment from and privatization of post-secondary education. Arguing that, Higher educationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦shouldnt be left to a handful of private schools, where administrators pursue their own objectives independent of public need, or to the market, which is only interested in how much it can profit at any given time (Konczal), he exposes the fact that colleges and universities around the nation are run more like businesses than anything else. In doin g this, students are placed at a disadvantage because they are merely pawns, often attending schools that exist not for the betterment of our nations citizens, but to exploit as much money as possible from the unsuspecting and undeserving. Only worsening the situation is the fact that, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦public disinvestment in the states has been paired with generous tax cuts for rich individuals and corporations (Konczal). Combined with the money-making machine that is higher education, the fact that states have chosen to side with the rich and powerful instead of standing with their own constituents only ensures that the rich will get richer and the poor, poorer. Furthermore, as stated by Konczal, National conversations on higher education are often dominated by a few elite schools, so they ignore the promise of mobility offered by the state system (Konczal). As a result of this, community college is often frowned upon and deemed obscure, despite the fact that attending a two year sc hool can save students thousands of dollars. In addition to falling into the trap of capitalist-oriented colleges, many students also choose not to attend community college simply because it is not prestigious, thus further sentencing themselves into debt. The final article, Matt Bruenigs The Case against Free College, takes a rather different approach than the previous two articles when it comes to the free college debate. Overall, Bruenig argues that students already receive various forms of assistance for college in the form of grants, loans, and subsidies, which, in his opinion, is already giving more than what students should expect. In addition to this, Bruenig also articulates that providing even more than what is currently offered, or even making college free, would simply bring more inequality than social justice. Specifically, this is due to the fact that, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦only around 20 percent of children from the poorest 2 percent of families in the country attend college. For the richest 2 percent of families, the same number is around 90 percent (Bruenig). So, providing a free college education to current college students would only continue to put those who are lower in the economic ranks at a disadvantage. Much like how Tressie McMillan Cottom admitted that free college would only benefit those who are currently excluded from higher education due to their economic standing, providing a free college education would only keep more money in the pockets of the rich. As a result, Bruenig states that, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦making college free for everyone would almost certainly mean giving far more money to students from richer families than from poorer ones (Bruenig). Sure, providing free college education would give deprived students an opportunity to continue their education, but would do little in the long run when it comes to trying to reach a more egalitarian society. Once again, what are the benefits of free college education if it has the potential to only worsen the inequalities within American society and benefits only a small percentage of individuals? As a current college student, I could only hope and dream that a plan may arise in the near future that would eliminate or drastically cut college expenses, namely tuition. However, after reviewing the three articles in Dissent Magazines special issue titled Arguments on the Left, it has become clear that free college is not as beneficial or easily obtained as one would hope. While this notion of free college is tempting to say the least, it is certainly not feasible without a redesigned tax system, complete overhaul of higher education institutions and their intentions, and careful consideration regarding just who would be benefitting the most from free higher education. As it currently stands, free college will only benefit a small percentage of individuals, failing to address the capitalist nature of universities nationwide, while also acting as yet another way for the rich to keep hold of their wealth. However, it also must be stated that we must not give up hope and abandon the idea altogether. Although the cons currently outweigh the pros, there will one day be a way to implement a free college education system that benefits everyone without continuing to make the rich richer. As a nation, we must work towards that day together, implementing a foolproof plan to become a more egalitarian society without continuing to put thousands of young individuals into debt with the help of our current college system. Works Cited Bruenig, Matt. The Case against Free College. Dissent Magazine, Fall 2015, dissentmagazine.org/article/matt-bruenig-left-case-against-free-college. Accessed 28 Feb. 2017. Cottom, Tressie McMillan. Why Free College is Necessary. Dissent Magazine, Fall 2015, dissentmagazine.org/article/tressie-mcmillan-cottom-why-free-college-necessary. Accessed 28 Feb. 2017. Konczal, Mike. Generation Debt. Dissent Magazine, Fall 2015, dissentmagazine.org/article/mike-konczal-generation-debt-free-college-argument. Accessed 28 Feb. 2017.

Early American Colonies :: Reasons for Colonization

There were various reasons why the American Colonies were established. The three most important themes of English colonization of America were religion, economics, and government. The most important reasons for colonization were to seek refuge, religious freedom, and economic opportunity. To a lesser degree, the colonists sought to establish a stable and progressive government. Many colonies were founded for religious purposes. While religion was involved with all of the colonies, Massachusetts, New Haven, Maryland, and Pennsylvania were established exclusively for religious purposes. Massachusetts's inhabitants were Puritans who believed in predestination and the ideal that God is perfect. Many Puritans in England were persecuted for their nihilist beliefs in England because they felt that the Church of England, led by the King, did not enforce a literal enough interpretation of the Bible. Persecution punishment included jail and even execution. To seek refuge, they separated to go to Holland because of its proximity, lower cost, and safer passage. However, their lives in Holland were much different than that of England. The Separatists did not rebel against but rather preferred the English culture. They did not want their children to be raised Dutch. Also, they felt that Holland was too liberal. Although they enjoyed the freedom of religion, they decided to leave for America. Pilgrims, or sojourners, left for America on the Mayflower and landed in Cape Cod in 1626. They had missed their destination, Jamestown. Although the climate was extremely rocky, they did not want to move south because of their Puritan beliefs. They thought that everything was predestined, and that they must have landed on this rocky place for a reason. They moved slightly north to Plymouth Rock in order to survive more comfortably. Also because of their Puritan beliefs, they had good relations with the Native Americans. Their pacifist nature led the Indians to help with their crops. In thanks, the Pilgrims celebrated the first thanksgiving in 1621. A second group of Puritans in England, the Massachusetts Bay Company, came to Massachusetts for more economically motivated purposes due to their non-minimalist beliefs. New Haven and Connecticut were two other colonies founded exclusively for Religious purposes. Many of the Separatists in Massachusetts felt that the religion was too liberal inside of the colony. They felt that the beliefs were not being enforced enough and that the people were not living through literal interpretations of the Bible. These Separatists further separated themselves from Massachusetts and formed a new colony, New Haven.

Failures: Failure and Entire Network Shutdown

Companies and businesses communicate with one another internally and with customer externally each day using different methods of technology but at the basis of this is the network, which makes it all possible to interact with one another. Companies and businesses have two types of systems they can set up to carry this out. They can design and set up a centralized system or a distributed system. The important factor no matter what the system is they have to be prepared for failures, which may occur in either system and have procedures in place to identify and isolate these failures to prevent an entire network shutdown and implement a solution for their network.Failures can occur at any level of a network and the network admin must be prepared in the wake of these occurrences. There are varying types of centralized systems that businesses can implement.The types of failures that can occur in centralized systems are; network failures, omission failures and halting failures. These type s of failures occur when a process crashes due to communication link failures that are detected during timeouts or in the process of sending messages.These failures typically only occur in the centralized system if it is connected via a general purpose or multi-user network setup.A distributed system simply is a group of â€Å"dummy† devices or computer that are connected to one network of distributed hardware which allows the devices to talk or communicate to one another and share other network assets and resources.This type of network is susceptible to four types of failures once they are set up. A fail stop occurs with some kind of notification to other components. A network file server telling its clients it is about to go down  is a fail-stop. Halting failures occur when a component just simply stops. The only way to detect this type of failure is by a timeout an example of which is when you computer freezes. The device stops responding to requests.A network failure al so can occur when network links break at some part of the process of traffic flow. Finally mission failures occur when there is a fault in the sending and receiving of messages due to lack of buffering space. This can lead to a device such as a router becoming overloading due to discarding of messages without notification to either the sender/receiver.Once these failures have been detected utilizing network research methods the next step in the process is to repair or fix the occurrence. These fixes can range from quick to time consuming, as each failure requires a different set of troubleshooting techniques. The simplest failure to repair is the network line break. The network admin would need to try and reach another device from the broken PC or device by utilizing the ping command to verify if the request was fulfilled which receiving a successful reply back from the device does. If the device fails to respond the admin would check other steps such as changing the network cable, configuration of the IP address or the network interface card.We typically solve the halting failure daily on our personal computer or our work device when it freezes. We typically use the ESC function or the Task Manager in Windows or the â€Å"kill† function in Linux to end an unresponsive process or we restart the device.Although we can’t always predict when a network failure will occur we can be ready to repair it in a timey manner by having diagnostic steps readily available when a failure is detected to prevent network assets being down for long periods of time.

How working environment can impact on motivation Essay

(A) Describe, with examples, how working environment can impact on motivation and contribute to an effective workplace in travel and tourism, covering:- * Job location In travel and tourism, the holiday atmosphere at resort contributes to a sense of well-being. Customers are happy to be on holiday and it is relatively easy to have a positive attitude to work. Whereas if you were working in a call centre where you are office bound and have to spend most of the talking to customer on the telephone. The organisation has to consider how this poorer environment can be improved so that staff remains motivated. * Working conditions and Hours of work Hours of work vary tremendously throughout the industry- some people are happy to work unsocial hours because it fits in with their lifestyle or they wish to have time off when everyone else is working. However, the overall number of hours per week should not exceed 40. * Health and safety Safety and security factors must be considered in the workplace, and legislation such as the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 must be adhered to. Specific regulations also apply where food is served or where the chemical hazards, for example in a swimming pool. All these requirements are important. For some organisations a lapse in safety procedures can mean the collapse of the business and even a prosecution. Companies that organise activity holidays for children, for example must make health and safety a priority. Health and safety is important for both customers and employees. Employees need to know that they can go about their work in a safe environment and work together to ensure their customers are safe. * Equipment and Resources Sate-of-the-art equipment and a pleasant environment are important to motivate staff. * Social event Most companies have a Christmas party or social outgoing for staff. These are useful events to create camaraderie amongst staff and build teams. * Theories of motivation The motivation and commitment of employees is key to success of a team and therefore to the company. Several theorists have come up with models of motivation. The two of that we will look at are Maslow and Herzberg. 1. Maslow Abraham Maslow was an American who in the 1940’s developed a theory of motivation. The theory is valid still for understanding how people are motivated in the workplace. Employers can use it to provide conditions that fulfil people’s needs at the different levels. Maslow theory is displayed as a pyramid because employees can only move up the levels once the lower levels are fulfilled. So, an employee can’t achieve level 4 at work if they are having problems in their personal life or working with colleagues (level 3). Similarly, if they have just been made homeless (level 1) their concern will be finding shelter not performing at work. 2. Herzberg Herzberg’s theory is also known as the ‘hygiene’ theory. Herzberg identified characteristics which make people satisfied with their jobs and those which make them dissatisfied: ‘satisfiers’ and ‘dissatisfiers’. The satisfiers are factors which give people long-term motivation and enable them to enjoy their work: * The type of work * Promotion prospects * Having responsibilities * Sense of achievement * Personal development * Gaining recognition This dissatisfiers or hygiene factors need to be operating well in an organisation but according to Herzberg do not ultimately motivate people. These are: * Salary * Working conditions * Relationships with others- colleagues and managers * Company policy (B) Describe, with examples, how working relationships can impact on motivation and contribute to an effective workplace in travel and tourism, covering:- * Management style Management is about motivating people to act in certain ways so that the team can achieve its common goal. A good manager must inform, motivate and develop the team. The four types of manager/management I will be talking about are:- 1. An autocratic manager An autocratic manager makes all the decisions and announces them to the team. This person is the boss and so has full control. The main advantage of this kind of leadership is that decisions are made quickly, as no consultation is involved. Its other advantages include:- * Where there is a need for urgent action the autocrat will take control * Some team members gain security from being told what to do. Disadvantages include:- * Team members may become frustrated at their lack of control * There may not be room for the team to express creativity * There may be over-dependence on the leaders Autocratic management belongs in a traditional hierarchical structure. 2. Consultative management With consultative management, the leader still makes the decisions but discusses them with the team. The advantages include:- * The team is informed of what is going on * Open discussion is encouraged * The manager spends time with the team The disadvantages are that the team feel involved but frustrated by having no real power. 3. Democratic management With democratic management, the decision-making is shared among the team. The advantages include:- * Ideas are encouraged from everyone * There is greater involvement and commitment from team members * The team is likely to be supportive of the leader * The team is fully informed The disadvantages include:- * Some team members may not be able to cope with being involved in decision-making * The democratic process can take too long * The leader may not agree with the decisions of the team * Powerful team members may take over 4. Laissez-faire management With laissez-faire management the team is left to sort itself out and get on with its work. The manager does not get involved and therefore is not leading the team. The advantages include:- * Highly motivated and skilled people are able to get on with their tasks * The team is empowered The disadvantages include:- * New team members will be uninformed * The team may be left with little or no direction * Teamwork Teamwork skills are essential in the workplace. You must be able to work with other people in a team even if you don’t happen to like them. A team is a group of people who are working together to achieve common objectives. Even when you are not physically with other members of your team, you can work together by contributing to a sequence of activities with a common aim. If you were working as a resort representative in Spain, you would still be working in a team with colleagues in head office in the UK. 1. Team roles Good teams achieve synergy; that is, together they can achieve more than the members could individually. More ideas, energy and resources are generated as a group because:- * The team solves problems and makes decisions together * The team focuses on the priorities, with everyone working towards the same aim * The team provides a sense of belonging and a sense of status * The team provides a support network Not everyone in a team is the same- each person has their own strengths and weaknesses. If each person had the same weaknesses, the team could not work; there needs to be a balance of skills. A method of recognising individuals’ strengths and weaknesses is needed in order to build an effective team. The management expert R.Meredith Belbin has outlined nine team roles necessary for a successful team. One person can represent more than one role, as most people have strengths in more than one area. Belbin’s roles:- > Chairperson/ co-ordinator = The group leader, likely to be relaxed and extrovert, also likely to be a good communicator. They will build on the strengths of team members and give them encouragement. > Plant = The ideas person in the team, a person who is creative in looking for solution to problems, but not always good at details, and so may make careless mistakes. > Shaper = The task leader, who unites ideas and effort. Needs to be dominated and extrovert in order to make things happen. > Monitor/ evaluator = The team analyst, who is not so good at ideas but pays attention to details, thus keeping the team directed towards its target. > Implementer = The organiser of the team, who is able to make the ideas of the plant and shaper and turn them into manageable and realistic tasks. A practical, stable and disciplined person. > Resources investigator = The person who is outgoing and will explore and report on ideas and developments outside the group; is sociable and enthusiastic and good under pressure. > Team worker = A very people-oriented person, sensitive to others’ needs. The team worker has good communication skills and will be good at motivating other. A natural mediator, who will deal with any conflict within the team, this person is very good to have around in a crisis. > Finisher = A person who sticks to deadlines and likes to get on with things. Will probably be irritated by the more relaxed members of the team. > Specialist = This person is single-minded and a self-starter and provides knowledge and skills in specialist areas each of Belbin’s roles acquires a different level of important according to the objectives of the team and the stage in the team’s life. 2. team development Formal teams are part of the structure of an organisation and are planned in order to meet that organisation’s objectives. The formal team will follow rules and regulations and may meet on a pre-arranged schedule and complete administrative procedures. Examples in travel and tourism includes sales teams and marketing teams Informal teams work within or outside formal teams. They are sometimes based on personal relationships between members rather than on work roles. When you complete group work for assignments, you often choose the colleagues you wish. You choose to work with people you like and ones you know will be as committed as you are to the work. This is an informal team. There are several theories of team structure and development, which will help you to understand the effectiveness of teams. Bruce Tuckman (1965) identified four main stages of team development:- * Forming – at this stage, team members form their first impressions of each other and establish identities. They are sounding each other out and finding out what is expected of them. * Storming- the team members have, by now, become more used to each other. Members are prepared to put forward their ideas forcibly and openly; they are also prepared to disagree and so there may be some conflict and hostility. * Norming – the team now begins to establish co-operation. Conflict is controlled, views are exchanged and new standards introduced. * Performing – the team is now working together; it begins to arrive at solutions and achieve objectives. There can also be a fifth stage, called ‘adjourning’ or ‘mourning’, where the team has disbanded and the members miss being part of the team. * Job roles and lines of responsibility An organisation chart shows the structure of the company and how the work is divided into different areas. It also shows the lines of responsibility between staff, so that it is apparent who is responsible to whom. An employee studying a chart will find the possible promotions routes. The chart may show a hierarchical structure or line relationship. This is a very traditional structure and shows a chain of command with each person responsible to the person above them. It is sometimes referred to as a pyramid structure. Many organisations today would be depicted in a chart with a flatter structure. There are fewer layers of management, and each manager has a broader span of control. Restructuring of organisations often involves getting rid of middle managers, hence the flattened structure. * Channels of communication Open communication must be encouraged and ideas should be freely expressed in the workplace. There should be trust and support between team members. An effective leader can encourage good communication and shape the way the team works. * Verbal Verbal communication is the process of sending and receiving messages with words, including writing and there are different ways a person can do verbal communication 1. Telephone 2. Word of mouth 3. Video conference 4. Face to face 5. Presentation 6. Walkie-talkie 7. Meetings 8. Bluetooth/ headset (mobile phone) 9. Radio 10. Sign language * Written Written communication guarantees that everyone concerned has the same information and it provides a long-lasting record of communication for future such as 1. Books 2. Brochures/ leaflets, newspaper 3. E-mail 4. Text (written + electronic + verbal) 5. Fax (written + electronic) 6. Notice boards 7. Minutes of meetings * Electronic Electronic communication means any method used to convey a message that has been transmitted via electronic means such as e-mail, video conferencing, radio, TV, mobile phone, internet, fax etc. * Equal opportunities Legislation exists to ensure that personal receive equal opportunities and that there is no discrimination. The arts of parliament that you should be aware of are:- * Race relations Act 1976 This act makes discrimination on racial grounds unlawful in employment, training, education and the provision of goods, facilities and services. The two main type of discrimination involved in this Act are:- 1. direct discrimination:- discrimination against colour disability, citizenship 2. indirect discrimination:- discriminating a racial group * Sex discrimination Act 1975 This act makes it unlawful to discriminating against someone on the ground of gender, marital status, Gender reassignment or sexual orientation. The act was updated in 1986 to remove restrictions on women’s hours of work and then it allowed women to take h=jobs with flexible hours. This act not only covers discriminations in the workplace but in job advertisements and interviews. * Disability discrimination act 1995 This act makes discrimination against people with disabilities unlawful in respect of employment, education and access to goods, facilities, services, and premises. Employers are required to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate people with disabilities. Examples include providing specially adapted keyboards for arthritis sufferers, facilitating wheelchair access and relocating people with limited mobility to the ground floor. * Equal pay act 1970 This act was introduced to address the problem of women being paid less than men for the same work. It allows employees to claim equal value in terms of demands made on them, such as effort, skills and decisions made. There is also an EU Directive that state that for the same work or work of equal value, sex discrimination must be eliminated in all aspects of pay. * Other forms of discrimination Discrimination at work is a very serious issue and can result in large amounts of compensation being awarded following successful tribunals, not to set up policies to ensure that the workplace is free from discrimination. Measures to be taken include:- 1. Setting up a comprehensive equal opportunities policy covering all aspects of discrimination 2. Training staff in discrimination legislation and on how to implement the equal opportunities policy 3. Setting up complaints procedures for instances of discrimination * Employment rights act 1996 When someone gets a job they can aspect to receive a contract of employment. This is a legally binding agreement between the employer and the employee. Under the Employment Rights Act, the employer must give the employee a written document including the following information, in writing within 2 months of starting work:- 1. Name of employer and employee 2. Date employment began 3. Rate of pay and interval of pay 4. Hours of work 5. Holiday entitlement and pay 6. Job title and brief description of duties 7. Place of work 8. Notice entitlement and requirements 9. Sick leave entitlement and sick pay 10. Pension and pension scheme 11. Disciplinary procedures and grievance producers 12. Date of end of employment it fixed term 13. Additional details about working aboard if appropriate. * Notice board After one month of continues employment an employee is entitle to one week of notice if the employment ends. After 2 years’ employment they are entitle to 2 weeks’ notice, after 3 years, 3 weeks’ notice and so on. After 12 years the legal maximum 12 weeks’ notice is reached. A employee must also give notice of leaving to an employer. After one month of continuous employment, an employee must give a minimum of one week’s notice. Employees are entitled to normal pay during notice periods as long as they are working or available for work. * Redundancy Redundancy pay is calculated according to the employee’s age, length of service and salary. Employees can claim for unfair dismissal if they suspect: 1. There is no real redundancy 2. They were unfairly selected for redundancy Dismissal is treated as redundancy if the whole business is closing or a particular job disappears or requires fewer employees. An employer may offer alternative employment. If the employee unreasonably refuses it they are not entitled to redundancy pay. * EU Directives on hours and pay The European Working Time Directive was enacted in the UK through the Working Time Regulations 1998. This lays down the following: 1. A maximum 48-hours week, averaged over 17 weeks 2. at least 4 weeks’ paid annual leave 3. a weekly rest period of at least 24 hours in each 7-day period 4. a daily rest period of at least 11 consecutive hours between each working day 5. an in-work rest break of 20 minutes for those working hours or more per day Some sectors are excluded from the regulations; one of theses is transport. * National Minimum Wage Act 1998 This Act provides workers with a minimum hourly rate below which their wages will not fall. Those who work part time benefit most, because they are often badly paid. The Low Pay Commission advises the Secretary of State on the value of the minimum rate. A special lower rate applies to 18-to 21years-olds. * Maternity and paternity leave The Employment Relations Act 1999 provides for basic rights for maternity leave. There are three periods of maternity leave. Ordinary maternity leave is for a period of 18 weeks which coincides with the period for statutory maternity pay. This applies to all employees. Compulsory maternity leave extends to a period of 2 weeks after the birth; the employer must not permit the woman to return to work during this period. Additional maternity leave follows immediately after the original 18-weekperiod and must end within 29 weeks of the birth. Employees with at least one year’s service with an employer are eligible for the additional maternity leave. Under the same Act there are provisions to allow parents 3 months’ leave in order to care for a child. This is intended to be taken before the child is five. It is intended to be available to men and to women, in addition to maternity leave. Paternity leave is available to men to: 1. Have or expect to have responsibility for the child’s upbringing 2. Are the biological father of the child, or the mother’s husband or partner 3. Have worked continuously for their employer for 26 weeks ending with the fifteenth week before the baby is due. Eligible employees can choose take either 1 week or 2 consecutive weeks’ paternity leave (not odd days) * Statutory sickness pay An employer must pay Statutory Sick Pay to employees who become sick and who normally earn at least à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½79 per week. After 28 weeks, Incapacity Benefit or Income Support must be claimed instead. * Grievance and disciplinary procedures These must be included in the employee’s written statement or contract, or at least there must be a reference to where they can be found. Disciplinary producers deal with such maters as warnings to be given before dismissal. Warnings might arise from the following:- 1. Lack of capability or qualifications-although the employer has a responsibility to give training 2. Misconduct-which includes habitual lateness 3. Gross misconduct (for example, assault or theft) leads to instant or summary dismissal. Grievance procedures deal with complaints by employees who are not satisfied with aspects of their employment. Employees must be given the name of a person to whom a complaint can b made and should be informed of right of appeal. * Investors in people Investors in people is a UK quality standard development in 1990. Those companies who gain the award have proved that they invest in the training and development of their staff. This is beneficial to employees and also to customers and suppliers. The standard for Investors in people is based on four key principals: 1. Commitment from the top to develop all employees 2. Regular review of training and development needs 3. Taking relevant action to meet those needs throughout people’s careers 4. Evaluating training and development outcomes for individuals and the organisation in order to continuously improve These principals are subdivided into 24 indicators of effective practise, and the organisation provides evidence for assessment against the indicators. Once the organisation gets the award it is entitled to display the Investors in People logo on company literature. * ‘Buddies’ and mentoring Mentoring schemes are growing in popularity. They offer employees a one-to one relationship with a mentor, someone with greater experience and a willingness to listen and advice. The mentor and the mentee meet regularly and discuss aspects of the mentee’s job, such as career development. The mentor does not act as a line manager or superior and is never judgemental, but acts as a sounding board and is able to offer ideas and a different outlook on work issues. The Hilton hotel chain runs a mentoring scheme for its staff at all levels. Its purpose is to support staff in their career development. Mentors at the Hilton chain are often colleagues of the mentees doing similar jobs, which departs from the traditional model. All of the mentors have had mentoring training. Some companies have similar, but sometimes less formal, schemes where a new member of staff is given a ‘buddy’ as a source of information and help. * Job security Many contracts today are fixed term, especially in areas such as visitor attractions. This means that the period of employment is not indefinite but lasts for a period of months or a year or two. The reason for such contracts is flexibility for employers- they can lose staff on fixed contracts at the end of the period without penalty. However, such contracts are demotivating for staff as they worry about their future income and job prospects. C) Describe with examples, how incentives can impact on motivation and contribute to an effective workplace in travel and tourism including: * Remuneration Remuneration means how much you get paid. You would imagine that this is very important as a motivator. In fact, it is an important factor in attracting people to a company but research shows that it is not the most important incentive. * Performance related pay Bonuses are often based on overall profits and awarded to all employees- usually performance related. * Incentive scheme An example of an incentive scheme could be a competition that staff are invited to enter. The competitions may be based on generating new ideas within the company, or how to boost sales, customer satisfaction or commissions on sales. * Discounts Discounts may be given on holidays or travel for those working in the industry. Many who work in travel and tourism receive cheap travel, perhaps by going on standby if they work for an airline or by going on fact-finding trips to a destination if they work for a travel agent. * Holiday entitlement In the UK employees can expect around 4 weeks’ paid holiday per year. In the public sector more holiday is often given, but this may be balanced against lower pay. * Pension schemes A good pension scheme can act as an incentive for many people who are concerned about security in retirement. * Perks As a perk, employees in the travel and tourism industry are often provided with a uniform. They may get to travel or live aboard and be paid to live there. They may be provided with a company car. * Opportunities for promotion and progression Many employees need a challenge and if they are in the same position, doing a job they find easy, they may become bored and less efficient. Thus, opportunities to move on and face new challenges are an important incentive. Opportunities may arise within an organisation and good people are quickly promoted. You may wish to let it be known that you are interested in progression and ask to be sent on relevant training courses and conferences. D) Described, with examples, how training can impact on motivation and contribute to an effective workplace in travel and tourism including: * Training Those employers who wish o ensure an effective workplace will offer ongoing training and development to staff. There are several benefits to organisations add to their workforces. Training can: * Improve individual performance * Improve team performance * Allow staff to be better informal * Equip staff to deal with change and emergencies * Make for a more flexible workforce * Improve morale * Allow managers more time to manage through delegation of other tasks. * Induction training Employers have to provide instruction and training to ensure health and safety, and this is usually a part of induction training. The induction is the first stage of training and is given to new employees; it is important as new employees need to be made welcome and become effective in their work as quickly as possible. Induction covers: * The nature of the job * Introduction to the workplace and to staff * The lines of responsibility * Facilities such as toilets, lockers, canteen * Health and safety basics * Training opportunities * In-house training Large companies offer their own in-house training and may even write their own materials. These training courses are very beneficial as they are tailor- made to meet the needs of the company. * External courses Thousands of external courses are available. These may be specific to travel and tourism or other professional qualifications in areas such as marketing or human resource management. They may be offered by colleges, by travel associations or by private companies. Companies may allow individuals or groups to attend such courses. Some may be long term, leading to advanced qualifications, so a great deal of commitment is required on behalf of the individual.