This document outlines the coursework for an HRM 445 course on the legal environment of human resources. It includes individual and group assignments over 5 weeks that require analyzing hiring situations, employee privacy issues, and other HR challenges for legal compliance. Assignments include papers, presentations, and executive summaries. Students must apply employment laws to scenarios and recommend legally compliant solutions. The course aims to develop students' understanding of the operational and strategic roles of HR professionals in maintaining a legally compliant work environment.

1. HRM 445 Entire course
(Legal Environment of Human Resource)
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Week 1
Individual
Employer–Employee Relationship Paper
Write a 750- to 1,050-word paper in which you identify and discuss the
employer–employee relationship. Make sure you include the following points:
· The point at which a prospective applicant becomes an employee
· The difference between a contractor and an employee
· The legal implications and obligations of the employer–employee relationship
· The laws that address the employer–employee relationship
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
Week 2
Individual
Hiring Situation Paper
Select three situations from the list below.
· Situation one: The application process requires an employee to complete an
online application, submit some additional documents, and take a written exam.
The applicant does not indicate on the application any need for accommodations
during the hiring process. The applicant comes into the office to submit
paperwork and take the test. Based on the applicant’s physical situation, the
applicant may need assistance. At no time does the applicant request assistance.
· Situation two: You receive a request to fill a department head position. In
looking at the current demographics, the department heads are 95% male and

2. 5% female. You have three well-qualified applicants: a white male who is a
disabled veteran, a Hispanic male, and a white female.
· Situation three: You are recruiting for a medical facility that provides both
inpatient and outpatient care in Niagara Falls, NY. You have difficulty locating
nurses in the United States, but you have received several applications for
qualified individuals who reside in Canada.
· Situation four: You are hiring for a call center that is located across the street
from a day care, five blocks from a private school, and is next to a church. The
position requires the individual to receive inbound calls only. The individual will
have access to personal information that could expose the caller to identity theft if
the information is misused.
· Situation five: You work for a company that has a service contract with the U.S.
Department of Defense to provide nursing staff for a military hospital. As part of
that contract, you are to provide 50 nurses and 100 nursing assistants. Of these
nurses, four are nurse practitioners who will be responsible for the controlled
substances on the unit. You are permitted to have three administrative staff onsite
to support and manage the contract. The contract requires each employee who
has patient contact to receive a physical exam and to complete a drug test. Your
company requires any employee handling financial matters to have a drug test
and a polygraph test. You are requested to review the legality of the tests
administered to employees and to make recommendations to ensure compliance.
Write a 700- to 900-word paper that discusses the three selected scenarios. In
your discussion, include the laws that address the particular hiring situation and
what an employer must do to comply.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
Week 3
Individual
Employee Privacy Memos
Select three scenarios from the following list:
· Situation 1: A recent report from the store’s loss prevention director identifies
that losses have increased by 10%, but actual customer traffic has remained
steady, and, on a few days, decreased slightly. Store management is concerned
with employee theft. A number of the women in the store carry large handbags
that can easily conceal merchandise. The store also employs both male and
female students who bring their backpacks, which is another way employees can
remove merchandise without detection. The store director has decided that all

3. female employees are required to carry their personal items in a company-issued
clear vinyl bag.
· Situation 2: The CEO read in recent business news that the average time
employees spend working is 6.5 hours. The report identified personal e-mail use,
online browsing, and phone calls as primary sources for detractors from work
time. The CEO now wants e-mails and phones calls to be monitored, not for
quality control, but to discover work-related violations and abuse.
· Situation 3: Your organization has just merged with another company. The state
in which the main office is located does not have a concealed gun law. One of the
new locations has a concealed gun law. The company banned firearms and
weapons of any kind from the property, which includes the parking lot. You are
concerned that employees may leave firearms and weapons locked in their cars
now that guns are prohibited from the physical premises. The CEO wants random
searches of cars.
· Situation 4: With health care costs rising, some organizations are using genetic
testing in the preemployment, postoffer medical exams. The organizations claim
the tests are for employee safety (employees with a specific illness may be
affected by the chemicals produced during product production); in reality, some of
the organizations are attempting to reduce their risk of incurring higher health
care premiums by avoiding individuals with potential health issues. The executive
team at your organization is considering a similar action.
· Situation 5: An organization provides lockers for employees to store personal
items securely. The employees are required to provide their own personal lock.
The company, as part of their risk management program, wants to begin random
and regular searches of the lockers.
· Situation 6: The board of directors and CEO are filling some vacancies on the
executive team. As part of the executive perks, the organization provides
comprehensive insurance, which requires a medical history.
· Situation 7: The organization has done drug testing for some time; however,
they want to switch to a method that detects past use. Some say that a hair
follicle test can detect drug use up to three months prior. Some employees
became aware of this through the company grapevine and threatened to shave
their heads. Your CEO suggested requiring blood tests from those who did not
provide a hair follicle.
· Situation 8: Through a postoffer, preemployment physical exam, the employee
is noted to have a health issue that is not inhibiting the person from performing
the essential functions of the job, but could raise the organization’s insurance
premium.

4. · Situation 9: An employee is injured while on the job. The employee is up for a
promotion in another area of the company. The supervisor wants all the
information related to the injury.
· Situation 10: The supervisor comes to your office and wants to see the
employee’s file. You provide the supervisor the file. The supervisor asks for the
results from the drug test, the medical follow-up for the work-related injury a year
ago, and the employee’s legal right to work in the United States.
Write a 350-word memorandum for each selected scenario in which you clearly
state the challenge and risk to the organization, the laws that govern the situation,
and a course of action to ensure compliance. For each situation, select a different
audience for your memo from the following list:
· Employee
· Executive leadership
· Management
Be sure to include in-text citations in your memo, as appropriate, using
APA format and include a list of references.
Learning Team
Supervisory Training Presentation
Develop an organization’s supervisory training that includes a 10- to 15-slide
Microsoft® PowerPoint® presentation. Your team must identify and discuss the
laws that affect the retention of employees, management of employee
performance, and the termination of employees. In the presentation, identify at
least one or two laws other than Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and its
subsequent amendments for each area. Your presentation must also include a
discussion of the legal challenges presented in each stage of employment
(retention, performance management, and termination).
Please remember not to crowd your slides. If graphics are included, they must be
appropriate to the presentation and slide topic.
Include detailed speaker notes. Be sure to include in-text citations in your
speaker notes. Include a references slide at the end of your presentation.
Cite sources consistent with APA guidelines.
Week 4
Individual

5. Work–Life and Diversity Challenges Executive Summaries
Management has approached you on a number of work–life and diversity
challenges. You have been asked to evaluate the situation and provide a
recommendation that is legally compliant.
Select two of the following work–life and diversity issues.
· The employee began working on January 1. It is July 15, and the employee
requires time off for a family emergency.
· The employee has worked 10 years for the company. Six months ago, the
employee returned from a family medical leave of 10 weeks and is now
requesting another 3 weeks. The company does not have an extended leave
policy.
· The company provides a variety of work situations to include flexible schedules
and telecommuting. The company has customer service positions available in all
work situations: in-house 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., flexible schedule, and telecommuting.
An employee who has a customer service position is required to be in-house from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. is now asking to be switched to a telecommuting position
because the employee lacks sufficient childcare.
· You are hiring for a position that requires a person to work irregular hours, be
on call, and travel, but you have not had much success with employees that do
not have familial commitments. The supervisor has narrowed it to four candidates
and asks for your guidance. Applicant one is a male candidate who meets the
minimum qualifications and has received positive references. Applicant two is a
male candidate who exceeds the qualifications and has exemplary references. In
checking one of the references for the second candidate, the reference stated,
―Despite being a single father with three school-aged children, he was an
outstanding performer.‖ Applicant three is female who exceeds the qualifications
(but not to the degree applicant two does) and has received positive references.
Applicant four is a female, self-identified single parent of young teenagers who
matches the qualifications of applicant two and has positive references.
· An employee has worked a steady schedule of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. for over 2
years. The employee decided to go to school in the evening, checking with his
supervisor who said it would be no problem because the employee worked during
the day. The plant manager is changing the production plan, which will result in
changing shifts. The supervisor who told this employee to attend school now has
to place this employee on the evening shift.
· The company is approaching the holiday season. The company has employees
of Jewish, Islamic, and Christian faiths and the owners of the company are of the
Christian faith. Because of the diverse faiths within the organization, and out of
respect for each belief, the company refers to the days in December as

6. the holiday season. During the scheduled holiday break, which begins on
December 24th and ends on January 1st, the company must maintain a skeleton
crew. The supervisor must decide which two of the six employees to schedule:
o Employee 1: Programmer—a single female of the Jewish faith
o Employee 2: Programmer—a single female of the Islamic faith
o Employee 3: Programmer—a married woman, no children, of the Christian faith
o Employee 4: Senior Programmer—married man, three children, of the Jewish
faith
o Employee 5: Programmer Intern—a single man, two children, of the Christian
faith
o Employee 6: Lead Programmer—a married man, two children, of the Islamic
faith
· An employee is injured. The employee contacts his supervisor stating that he is
unsure how long he will be out, but would let you know his status after his
doctor’s appointment in a week. Three weeks pass and the employee has not
contacted the supervisor nor returned the supervisor’s two calls. You contact the
employee via a certified letter. After 10 days, the employee is terminated. The
employee challenges his termination under FMLA.
· Dan began working for your organization part-time over a year and a half ago,
averaging 30 hours a week. Emma, his wife who also works for the organization,
shares with you that they are in the process of adopting a child and will need to
take some time off, at first sporadically, then, when the adoption is final, at least 2
weeks. Dan and Emma would like to take their leave at the same time.
· Diane has worked full time for your organization for 1 year. She shares with you
that she was recently diagnosed with an illness, and to stabilize her health
medically, she needs to take off 1 1/2 days a week for 12 weeks for treatment.
She does not anticipate needing more time, but there may be a chance. In the
third week, she was absent the entire week.
· The Desert Sun is a company that serves communities on the Mexican-
American border. To serve their clientele effectively, they require their frontline
personnel to be bilingual. The primary language of some of the individuals that
Desert Sun hired is Spanish; English is their second language. The company
realizes that not all employees are bilingual and are considering an English-only
policy in all areas except the frontline service.
Write a 350-word executive summary for each issue you choose, in which you do
the following:

7. · Analyze the issue presented in the scenario, citing any relevant laws or
regulations.
· Provide a recommendation and solution that is legally compliant.
· Explain how you would advise the employee of management’s decisions.
· Discuss the employee’s legal rights and responsibilities.
· Include any other information you deem appropriate in communicating to the
employee.
Be sure to include in-text citations in your summary, as
appropriate, using APA format and include a list of references
at the end of each summary.
Learning Team
Court Case Application Paper
Select a case from your reading as a team.
Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper based on the case your team chose that
includes the following information:
· Provide the facts of the case, citing references appropriately.
· Summarize the court ruling and accompanying opinions.
· Each team member must provide an application of the case to his or her own
organization or to an organization with which he or she is familiar.
· Summarize the similarities and differences found in each team member’s
application to the organizations. Make sure you include the implications for
businesses not complying with the case law.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
Week 5
Individual
Roles of the HR Professional Paper
Write a 700- to 1,050-word paper in which you compare the operational and
strategic roles of the HR professional in sustaining a legally compliant work
environment. Address the following areas:

8. · Operational Role
o Employee advocate
o Reducing costs and risks
o Role in legal proceedings
o Providing functional services
· Strategic Role
o Developing a competitive advantage through talent and knowledge
management
o Aligning HR and HR related programs to support the organization’s mission
and goals
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
Learning Team
Legally Compliant Policy Paper
Address one of the two noncompliant policies as a Learning Team:
· Policy 1: Access to Personnel Files
Information for employees relating to their employment will be kept in one file.
Personnel files are the property of Company XYZ. Supervisors and management
officials who have verifiable reasons to review the files may do so. Employees
may review their files at any time during business hours. Information in the
personnel file will be retained and maintained by the HR department and will not
be disclosed without a release of information or judicial order.
Employees who question the accuracy of information in their personnel file can
request the removal through HR.
· Policy 2: Employee Conduct and Rules
The purpose of this policy is to provide both management and employees some
basic guidelines in governing employee behavior, to ensure consistency in the
quality of production, and to ensure fair treatment of all employees.
Employees found in violation of the following can be subject to immediate
discharge:

9. o Actions infringing on the rights of other employees
o Consuming alcohol or illicit drugs on the premises
o Working under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs
o Falsifying information and official documents
o Behaving in a gross, obscene, or immoral manner
o Sabotaging the organization’s revenue efforts
o Stealing or misappropriating funds or property
o Defacing property
o Fighting
o Possessing a weapon
o Being arrested or convicted of an offense outside of work that could negatively
affect the image of the organization
The employee will first receive a written warning for other disciplinary actions that
do not warrant immediate dismissal, such as sleeping on the job, disregarding
department rules, insubordination, and so forth. If the employee repeatedly
commits the same offense, the employee may be subject to discharge.
Finally, employees who commit infractions—such as having poor hygiene,
disregarding safety practices, annoying or harassing other employees, or
damaging property through improper use—will first receive an oral reprimand,
then a formal written reprimand, and finally a written reprimand, at which time the
employer must decide whether or not to terminate the employment relationship.
Employees who are on probation (first 90 days of employment) can be
discharged immediately without cause.
Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper that analyzes the policies addressed in the
case. Include the following information:
· Identify the challenges the policy, in its present state, brings to the HR
professional and the organization.
· Describe the legal risks that result from these challenges.
· Identify and discuss the verbiage that makes this policy noncompliant, including
the laws that address the area in question.

10. · Develop a new policy that ensures the organization is legally compliant.
· Summarize how the new proposed policy supports either the strategic or
operational role in maintaining a compliant work environment.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.