Name: Waleed Bin Aamir ID#: S2019270006

Assignment # 1

HR Practices in Management (MG-560)

Question #1) Assume you are mediating this dispute. Discuss five creative solutions you would
suggest for how the grocers could reduce the health insurance benefits and the cost of their total
benefits package without making any employees pay more.

Answer #1)

 As they say prevention is better than cure so firstly they should develop a proper wellness
program and a prevention plan for the employees to ensure that the staff stays healthy to
avoid any illnesses and health problems as much as possible.
 Another way to cut costs is to reduce the health insurance coverage benefits. Instead of
having an extensive plan they could opt for a health care plan which covers the basic
health facilities and not all of them.
 The new employees can be compensated by being provided with other benefits like they
can be given an advantage of having flexible work timings.
 They could consider a Health Savings Account for the newly hired employee which is a
tax benefitted account which help people save for medical expenses unlike high
deductible insurance plans.
 They could cut costs by providing medical facilities of hospitals and medical centers that
provide services on subsidized rates.

Question #2) From the grocery chains’ point of view, what is the downside of having two
classes of employees, one of which has superior health insurance benefits? How would you
suggest you would handle the problem?

Answer #2) One of the downsides of having two classes is giving rise to the feeling of
unfairness and not being treated equally in the new group of employees which could lead to
employee rights discrimination. It could also lead to low morale in the newly hired employees
which could affect their competitiveness. The solution is to either hire the newly employees on a
slightly higher pay scale or bringing the old employees to the same health care plan as for the
newly hired employees to bring fairness.
Name: Waleed Bin Aamir ID#: S2019270006

Question #3) From the point of view of the union, what are the downsides of having to represent
two classes of employees, and how would you suggest handling the situation?

Answer #3) The union would have to deal with two different classes of employees within the
same workforce and have to treat both differently which could make things complicated for the
union. Another downside is that if they didn’t raise voice for the newly hired class they would
feel the union is being biased and not working hard for them which could make them lose trust in
union .The union has to be careful if they stand for the newly hired employees it could have
negative repercussions on the current employees as the company might drag them down. The
solution is that the union should stand by what is fair and that is to eliminate any discrimination
between employees even on the cost of offending some employees.