The British and Global Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The British and Global Economy - Essay Example Britain and International Financial Institutions Britain, Japan, China, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Russia, France and the United States hold permanent positions on the executive board of the IMF. The remaining sixteen directors are elected from other groups of countries. Even with equal representation on IMF board, Britain exercises global economic influence via its membership with the IMF, the World Bank, Commonwealth of Nations, the World Trade Organization, the United Nations, the G20, the G8, the G7, the OECD, and the European Union. The IMF and the World Bank, collectively referred to as International Financial Institutions (IFIs), play a major role in globalization. The IFIs are designed to help control the global financial system and have enhanced economic integration of all countries in the world. These institutions provide financial and advisory assistance to countries in need of the support in their policymaking and economic development. Nonetheless, the IFIs have been attacked by critics over four interrelated aspects of the implementation of the IFIs’ strategy. ... financial crisis hit the old industries until the United Kingdom suspended the gold standard permanently and facilitated the conditions necessary for economic recovery. The global pre-war balance of power collapsed and the world war ensued. Britain and France were forced into action in 1941. The costs of Britain’s military action weakened further and lost its position to the United States as the global economic superpower. Nevertheless, Britain still plays a crucial role in the world economy. After the World War II, the British economy flourished for about twenty eight years (1945-1973) without a major recession. The economy also enjoyed a tremendous growth in prosperity especially in the late 1950s and early 1960s. This encompassed low rates of unemployment; less than 500, 000 unemployed until the late 1960s. According to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), the British economic growth rate averaged 2.9 per cent during 1960-1973. The other Europe an nations: Italy, France, and West Germany, had a far much higher growth rate. Nevertheless, the British economy was hit again by the 1973 financial recession and the stock market crash. Britain experienced escalating unemployment rates. Moreover, the economy was blighted by over 20 per cent inflation after 1973. The British economic crisis persisted even after the global economy recession had ended. The inflation rate never went lower than 10 per cent. Being a permanent member of the IMF, Britain was forced to acquire a loan of 2.3 billion. The IMF achieves its goals through three main activities which are surveillance, financial and technical assistance. Financial assistance is the central activity undertaken by the IMF. Member states experiencing balance of payments problems can obtain

Job satisfaction paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Job satisfaction paper - Essay Example Having good people skills helps a lot, and I was lucky that I grew up with people who taught me how to be sensitive to what other people needed so that I could help them meet those needs. I also love to spend time thinking after I learned from an older friend who was an up and coming management trainee that this is what successful managers do: think. At first, I thought it was a waste of time, but one day, when I tried it out as I planned for an important event (actually, a party for some cousins who were visiting from out of town), it dawned on me that it was cool. Spending an hour thinking, writing things down, going through the plan over and over again saved me some hours that I would have used correcting mistakes, changing plans, or saying I'm sorry for screwing up. Since that day, I invested some time to think things through instead of attacking each activity without a plan, based on sheer determination alone. This was how I learned to clarify goals, think of the best people who can take the assignment, and knowing how to communicate the goals, the assignment, and the deadline in a way that encouraged them. I also learned to make the most out of mistakes others committed, making them (and myself) see the positive side, the things we learned from those mistakes, instead of wasting time finger-pointing that got us nowhere. So much time is wasted looking for someone to blame that if people only used that time learning, they could have accomplished much more. Thinking also helps me improve my productivity. Before I work on anything, I think about why I am doing it (goal), how much time I have (time), and what I need to reach the goal within the time limit (resources). If I needed things I didn't have, I would ask for it; and if I didn't get it, I would think how I could improvise. I learned that in the real world, we cannot get everything we want, but the world still expects much from us. That's the way the world turns, so instead of whining about not having everything I needed, I instead find a way to use my creative imagination to move forward and start getting to work. I also make it a point to teach these same skills and work habits to the people I work with, more so with those whom I want to do things for me. And I am not afraid they would replace me or get higher pay, because making myself dispensable also makes me promotable. How can I be asked to work on bigger things if I don't train people to take my place More than knowing how to work and motivate others to be productive, I also have a higher goal, a mission to see the world and help other people, because I have always wanted to reach out and make a mark in other's lives. This is why I enjoy working as part of a team. One summer, I read a book (Maxwell, 1998) a friend gave me. In fact I still have it on my bedroom shelf, and it struck a raw chord inside. Right then and there, I knew that I wanted to be a leader, to make my life useful, to be different by studying and working harder and doing things not because others were doing them, but because it was the good and right thing to do. This thought has served me well ever since. What keeps me satisfied in my job The first thing is the nature of the job itself. I want to grow, learn, and contribute to the

Compare And Contrast Situational Crime Prevention

Compare And Contrast Situational Crime Prevention A democratic society is one in which all supreme powers lie with the people of that community. It requires individuals to answer for his or her actions and requires people to know what they can and can not do. It is a system that promotes individual accountability and responsibility with an oversight to judge ones actions. Democracy promotes rights and freedoms and guarantees society criminal punishment when these rights and freedoms have been infringed upon. This means that in order to live in a democratic society, individuals must value and respect others around them, follow the norms and standards of society, and understand that sanctions apply if they infringe upon anothers standard of life. Crimes are simply the acts or omissions that violate what is acceptable in society. Crimes theory underlines why certain actions are unacceptable and improper; it illustrates reasons why people commit crime and demonstrates why there must be consequences in order to deter others. In most western societies there are codes of conduct or laws that regulate how society is to function and how individuals are to behave. However, no matter how many rules, there remain individuals insistent on partaking in crime and unacceptable behaviour. Born is crime prevention, one approach to dealing with crime. Crime prevention is an attempt to reduce victimization and to deter crime and criminals. It is applied specifically to efforts made by governments to reduce crime, enforce the law, and maintain criminal justice.  [1]  It can be divided into people, place and situation.  [2]  The approach that focuses on people is generally known as crime prevention through social development, where as the approach that focuses on place is generally known as crime prevention through environmental design . When these two approaches are combined with situational crime prevention it has been found that there can be serious reductions in actual crime and delinquency. For the purpose of this essay we are concerned with situational crime prevention and defensible space, a form of crime prevention through environmental design. Situational Crime Prevention Situational crime prevention (SCP) is a strategy which tries to reduce the opportunity for crime by increasing the risks and decreasing the rewards of committing crime.  [3]  SCP focuses on preventing the opportunity for crime to occur by addressing factors within a given location that create a crime hotspot. This also includes diminishing characteristics that may make some people more vulnerable to victimisation because of certain situations.  [4]  Increasing the risks of detection, reducing the rewards for offending and increasing the difficulty of offending are all ways to prevent situational crimes. Preventative measures can include installing locks and alarms, increasing surveillance through lighting and making buildings harder to enter. SCP is based on the theory that most crimes committed are contextual and opportunistic. Therefore, an individual about to commit a crime is simply responding to the situation around them. SCP examines the circumstances and environment in which individuals may commit crimes, it then identifies possible risks or future crimes, and then searches for solutions specific to those situations. SCP solutions could include: Increasing the effort required to commit a crime, making it less attractive Increasing the risk of being caught Reducing the potential rewards of crime Reducing provocations and temptations Removing excuses for committing crime SCP consists of three sub theories: Routine Activity Theory Every crime involves three elements: an offender, a target, and an insufficiently guarded environment (thus, must address one or all three). Rational Choice Theory Criminals make rational choices (and not randomly) and thus can be deterred from crime. Offender Search Theory Crime is very opportunistic; offenders respond to cues given out by the environment (thus, must focus on reducing opportunities). Basically, situational crimes occur because of the situation and environment that an individual is in. Therefore to prevent crime, the theory illustrates that we must change the environment and setting of not only criminal hotspots, but also all areas where possible crimes may take place. An example of an effective SCP campaign is that of the Victorian Governments new measures on street crime. There have been a growing number of intoxicated individuals in the CBD of Melbourne and some individuals and groups have been involved in fights and drunken and disorderly behavior. Situational solutions included education of bar staff and patrons about responsible drinking; regulations addressing the number, size and location of bars and their closing times; police presence at closing times; and availability of public transport. This one form of SCP has worked in that assaults in the CBD of Melbourne have decreased on average 5.6% since 2008-2009 to 2009-2010.  [5]   This leads us in to the term defensible space. Defensible Space Defensible Space (DS) is the idea that crime and delinquency can be controlled and mitigated through community and environmental design. The idea is important because it associates an individuals environment to his or her expectation of crime in the community or society to which they belong.  [6]  The difference between DS and SCP is that DS is concerned with the residential environment whose physical characteristics (building layout and site plan) function to allow residents themselves to become the key agents in ensuring their own security  [7]  , SCP on the other hand relies on governments or authorities assessing the situation and environment of a crime, and then provide sustainable measures in dealing with the setting so as to provide a crime free zone. DS argues that a community is safer when the people feel a sense of ownership and responsibility for their piece of society. It asserts that the criminal is isolated and cut off because his turf is removed  [8]  when all land and property is owned and cared for individuals or members of the community. If an intruder can sense a watchful community, he feels less secure committing his crime  [9]  . The idea is that crime and delinquency can be controlled and mitigated through environmental designs. There are four factors that make a defensible space:  [10]   Territoriality the idea that ones home is sacred Natural surveillance the link between an areas physical characteristics and the residents ability to see what is happening Image the capacity of the physical design to impart a sense of security Milieu other features that may affect security, such as proximity to a police substation or busy commercial area These factors that make a defensible space are crucial to effectively prevent crimes. DS goes further then SCP because it does not rely on crimes to take place, then be analyzed by a third party, and then enacted upon by future deterrent by lack of opportunity. DS can simply prevent crimes because individuals are not likely to offend when they know that there is a member of the community watching them. SCP Strengths SCP prevents the opportunity for future crimes to exist by addressing the environment and setting to which past crimes have occurred. With the opportunity gone, the theory states that there can be no crime. SCP makes use of mechanical and organizational measures such as CCTV cameras and security guards. This is an effective way to observe crime and keep the public out of harms way in that individuals do not need to confront offenders. This is in the publics best interest in that it is harm minimization for all members of society. DS Strengths DS is inexpensive on the public purse in that it is the people that are policing society. Governments dont need to spend endless amounts of money into new crime prevention techniques and gadgets. DS promotes public awareness and natural surveillance to crime; with the public all looking for crime then individuals have little chance of getting away with crime. This fact deters individuals from offending in that the risk of getting caught greatly out-weighs that of not. It also promotes public unity, in that the people of society can unite as one against the face of crime and report everything they see. Contrast and Critique In analysing DS we can establish the notion that it attempts to be the only preventative measure against crime. DS is individualistic and private, and SCP is collective and public. However, the theory of DS does embark on the opportunity to make SCP and other crime prevention theories obsolete. DS is about changing the environment so as to deter individuals from crime. So therefore, we could engender the concept that if all environments were changed to a private setting, and all individuals take on all four characteristics illustrated in DS, then there is no opportunity in theory for crime to be committed. If natural surveillance increases the threat of being caught by taking steps to increase the perception that people can be seen, then that should be enough to deter possible offenders. Natural surveillance through environmental design should, if effectively rolled out, be enough to take opportunity away from possible situations, and thus make SCP invalid in that DS has managed to d o what SCP aimed at doing. We can see that whilst in theory DS can effectively deal with preventing crime in the public and private arena, it is wholly unrealistic to suggest that DS, based on environmental design is ever going to be put into one hundred percent practice. Like most theories and ideologies, we can only implement parts and elements of the theory. It is unrealistic to suggest that in Australian society, let alone the world, DS can be permitted and effectively rolled out. There is simply not enough money to pay for the infrastructure needed to create such an ideology present, and that is assuming that it would be a joint venture between both public and private financing. Not everyone can afford to upgrade their house so as to convene the philosophies of DS. It is obvious that both DS and SCP need to work together to create sustainable and effective crime prevention. Both share common ground in that both rely on some form of surveillance to effectively deny an opportunity to prevent crime occurring. Natural surveillance measures can be complemented by mechanical and organizational measures. For example, CCTV cameras can be added in areas where window surveillance is unavailable. This combines the strengths of both SCP and DS in that CCTV prevents the opportunity for crime because offenders can be identified. This is one example of how SCP and DS can both work together to achieve crime prevention. More security guards in shopping centers is both a SCP and DS preventative measure in that the individuals are less likely to offend with a security guard is about, the visible presence is an SCP tactic. If there is crime, the people in the shopping centre can notify the security guards, who as an authority, can act accordingly, this is a DS tactic. Conclusion I started off this essay by talking about two things, democracy and its relationship with crime. DS and SCP as ideologies and theories, to an extent, whilst protecting some of our rights, actually take away what we most prize; our fundamental rights to freedom and privacy. These essential rights and freedoms are inhibited upon through the enactment of DS and SCP; it brings us to the question therefore at what price must we pay to feel safe and secure, to be a crime free society? This question is beyond me because I have mixed views, I like the notions behind DS and SCP and agree more so with philosophies behind DS, however, I also understand that to protect rights we infringe on others.

Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

Beowulf   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Since the dawn of time, the forces of evil have always tried to gain an upper hand over the forces of good. The battles between these two forces have transcended time in both different forms and in different places. Every culture since the birth of man has background stories of creation and the battles that are waged between the two forces of light and dark. Leaving in the aftermath, stories and legends that are passed down from generation to generation through the vast cultures and civilizations. Beginning with the use of oral traditions that took these stories and the use of spoken word to both inform and entertain the people of a given society. These tales also had another purpose, which was to remind the people of the evils that were around them. Lurking in the shadows, waiting to claim another victim in the war of good and evil. Such stories fed on the fears of the people and the uncertainty of the world around them. Although the stories themselves may differ considerably from region to region, the basic underlying theme has always been identical. With the coming into being of written word, these stories could now be put down for people to read and serve as a reminder of their folklore. Not only to them, but to future people who come to read these documents. We have been lucky in the fact that over the last few hundred years, we have recovered many works from all over the world, dating back through years that had been long forgotten to many of us. In a great many of these works we have come into contact with many tales of heroism and the fight between good and evil. Just as the heroism in these stories may take on different faces, so does the evil present itself in many different guises. This brings us to one work in specific, Beowulf, one of the earliest Old English poems that we have today. It is the embodiment of the struggle between good and evil. The poem begins with the funeral of Scyld, the mythical founder of the Danish Royal House. One of his descendants builds a great hall called Heorot, and it is here that the people gather to rejoice and sing the praises of G-d. This singing angers a vile fiend named Grendel, that inhabits the nearby bog. The poet describes Grendel in this way:

Discrimination In The Work Environment

Discrimination in places of work is unfair treatment of workers by their employers or by their fellow workers. In workplace discrimination, the employers pay no attention to complainants who are discriminated and in many instances they ignore the kind of harassment these particular people experience. This has a tremendous negative impact on job performance since the discriminated individual are discouraged to perform effectively and this in turn affects the output in that particular company or organization. In the US, the state laws prohibit unfair treatment of people in their respective places of work.Discrimination in the workplace is mainly based on age, sex, race, religion, disability, nationality, intelligence and pregnancy. All the forms of discrimination are prohibited by the law in the United States and the employer is in no way entitled to harass one since he or she is not a U. S. citizen. In America discrimination is prevalent today just as it was in early 19th century. Som e observers have claimed that there has been tremendous improvement following the passing of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 by the government.The act provided for the prosecution of those accused of discriminating workers on basis of their religion, race, skin color, age or nationality. The 1964 Civil Right Act provided for equal treatment of employees in the workplace. However, discrimination in the workplace continues to increasingly becoming common in the modern America (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). There are two major categories of discrimination: disparate treatment and disparate impact. Disparate treatment is an incidence where by one is treated differently from other employees by the employer on the basis of gender, age, sex, race, nationality or disability.The state laws prohibit unfair treatment of workers such as one being allocated difficult assignments or more work load than other fellow workers under taking the same work. Demotions, less payments and being laid off unjustly are other forms of disparate treatments common in the work environment. Disparate impact is a liability theory which prohibits employers from practicing unlawful discrimination during employment. Although it may appear neutral, disparate impact negatively impacts against particular ethnic, racial or sex group. It can also have a negative impact on individuals of a given religious group or the disabled.In this case an employer, for instance comes up with tests or selection criteria that are facially neutral and not related to the job requirements so as to do away with people of particular race, nationality, and religion. The test may also include the lifting of requirement which is not correlated to the actual job so as to do away with nearly all the aged workers or women (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Sexual harassment is a very common form of discrimination experienced globally where one is coerced to provide sexual favors by the fellow workers, bosses or the supervisors.Sexual harassment fr om the fellow workers makes it difficult for one to work conveniently and peacefully. Sexual harassment from the boss or the supervisors comes about where one is coerced to admit a sexual affair so as to acquire a particular job, be promoted or be retained in the company or organization. Consequently those who fail to give in to the sexual requests are eventually fired, denied the job vacancy or demoted. This form of discrimination affects a wide range of groups particularly those belonging to different nationalities, race and skin color.In the U. S, sexual harassment in work places is illegal although this practice continues to affect workers leading to reduced output. It is recommended that those experiencing such discrimination should report immediately to the respective personalities. Those harassed by the fellow workers and supervisors should report the matter to the employer as soon as possible since the employer may claim later that he or she was never informed of that kind o f behavior when it was taking place.One should make a written complaint and remain with a copy as well. Those harassed by employers should take a legal action by filing a case and seek help from required administrative agencies or from lawyers (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Gender based discrimination is a form of harassment based on sex and it takes place in various places of work in the world. Although human rights dictate that individuals should not be discriminated on the basis of sex, women have always faced major discrimination in the work places and during recruitment.For instance, in different Wal-Marts in the United States, women are given heavy tasks to perform yet limited to further training privileges and the salary paid to them is not worthy the work they do. When the employers are asked about their actions, they readily defend themselves by accusing women of being psychologically emotional and cannot make critical decisions practically. Women are usually not given equal train ing as men so as to acquire relevant skills which can help them properly fit in the challenging world.The argument supplied in support of this treatment is that women can quit the job at any time since they are not the breadwinners in the house have little to care about. Moreover, other reasons have been suggested that women have other duties to meet in the house or may claim to have small babies to take care of and therefore training women in the same level with men could imply wastage of funds, energy and time. However, it is time for women to be treated equally as men since they have proved to attain similar qualifications as men and perform roles which were traditionally meant for men.Additionally, women are the cornerstone of every development and the thriving of an economy is determined by both men and women (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Another form of discrimination in the work environment is racial discrimination which has become a widespread problem in America and other Western states. For instance, in various places of work, the African-Americans are treated differently since they belong to the minority group in American population. Research reveals that a small number of African-Americans are employed in companies owned by Native Americans.The problem of racial discrimination also affects the Hispanic – Americans which further shows how racial discrimination has taken root in the work environment. Some of the employers have openly admitted that they don’t work either with Hispanic- Americans or African- Americans. Although equality is supported by civil rights laws and also protected by the constitution many have not changed their hearts on the practice of racism. Race victims facing harassment from co- workers normally work in a hostile and non- conducive environment which is not favorable for better production.Employees are also a bother to them especially when they are finding ways to get rid of them. Racial bias in work places determine s job quality and should be discouraged in every organization (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Age discrimination is another form of discrimination that mostly affects the old people in various workplaces. However, young people are also discriminated of their age and considered not competent even when they have the required qualifications while seeking jobs.The old people are regarded as mentally worn out and cannot continue to serve and execute their normal roles in companies and organizations. Employment Act of 1967 in United States protects persons who are 40 years as well as all the aged people. The act ensures those who are applying for the job are protected from discrimination because of their age with respect to terms and conditions of the job. The act ensures that these old people are recruited without any form of discrimination and protects them from being laid off from their places of work with no cause.The act also addresses the challenges encountered by these old people when they are searching new jobs after being fired from other jobs. The justification behind this form of discrimination claimed by employers is that aged people are not energetic dynamic and effective as the youth and this implies they perform poorly in the production process. This should not be the case since the old are endowed with work knowledge and experience. There is also youth discrimination also referred to as adultism. This form of discrimination is clearly evident where teenagers between 15-25 years are limited to acquiring jobs.But this kind of discrimination is craved as a paternalistic agenda of protecting the youth since they are supposed to be treated with care and respect by the older workers. Teenagers are also perceived to be rebellious, violent and drug addicts because they are in their adolescent stage hence not convenient to work with them. Moreover, they are also fond of listening to music and this could lead to wastage of time instead of one concentrating with the al located task (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Intelligence based discrimination is also another serious form of discrimination in America where people with low intelligence are highly underprivileged.This form of discrimination has not acquired prevalent attention and an enormous number of individuals have been limited to or denied access to certain opportunities and successes as a result their perceived level of intelligence. This kind of discrimination in some work places is exercised against those who have low IQ, those who work slowly, not fluent or smooth talkers. Favors are poured on the so called ‘smart people’ since they can finish the allocated task faster or tends to think faster . They are promoted and perceived as the intelligent.Others achieve bigger jobs since they can express themselves appropriately or are fluent talkers than others. The disadvantaged are the fools who to have work harder than smart people do work so as to reach the same goal and thus putting ext ra efforts is the only solution to raise them to the top despite terms and conditions in place. Intelligence is a trait inherited from birth just like skin color. Being not fluent in speaking, or a slow thinker should not be taken advantage of since such people are also human beings and should be treated fairly and should have equal opportunities with smart people.There could be aspects in them which can be utilized and lead to improved productivity in the workplace. Accurate measurements on one’s capabilities to perform a particular task should be the ones to be considered. Besides, many have no idea those perceived to be fools can do excellent work than the ones perceived to be the ‘smart people’. Fools also portray absolute perfect leadership roles. Their leadership has great gains to an organization because they adhere to observance of the rules and cannot devise plans of coming out with evil strategies against the company.Moreover, human beings are not creat ed with equal abilities and every one has unique talents which when appreciated can improve the performance of the organization effectively. Religious discrimination is another raging problem in several U. S work places (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). . Religious believers view their faith as their main source of good will and peace but in many situations it is the main source of enmity, hatred, violence and division. Civil rights act 1964 and United States constitution inhibits work places from discriminating individuals on basis of their religion in terms and conditions of employment.The act also protects employees belonging to different religions from harassments such as being fired, demoted or limited to salary increments or promotion since they belong to a religion which the employer hates. It is also illegal to hinder one from exercising his or her religious practices in the place of work. . The practices include religious holidays such as Christmas day, Sabbath day observance, wearin g of special gowns like those worn by Muslims . The employer is also supposed to consider those who request for prayer breaks during work sessions.The law also covers one’s ethnic beliefs. Nowadays Christians and individuals from other religions are suppressed by secular forces in their places of work. In America Federal laws are enacted to make sure religious discrimination is not exercised. This constituent of Christian liberty is a right to all people of every faith to get involved in every privileges of the society without encountering harassment on basis of ones religion. Civil Rights Division prosecutes criminal’s accused with the cases of arson and vandalism against worshiping houses.But there are occasions where by these laws are violated, for instance, a seventh day individual being commissioned to work on a Saturday,muslim forced to wear official clothes instead of their usual gowns, others fired by employers reason since he or she doesn’t like an empl oyees religious beliefs. While others are constantly harassed by fellow workers since they hate their religion. In other instances one is forced to be converted to another religion so as to receive fair treatment by the boss or supervisor. Those who resolve to stand strong for their faith and opt to quit the job (Hughes & Dodge, 1997).Pregnancy based discrimination is another key evident form of discrimination where by expectant mothers are not recruited or fired as a result of the visible pregnancy or probability coming to be pregnant. Others are denied pregnant benefits because they are not married. Others fail to be promoted because of their pregnancy. Employers don’t bear with pregnant mothers who come with claims of discomforts expectant women experience especially in early pregnancies such as morning sicknesses.Employer foresees this as an excuse to evade work load which could other wise result into low reproductive yield in the organization. Expectant mothers in Americ a are covered by Federal and state laws which are under civil rights act 1964 the law ensures pregnant mothers are to deliver their kids without loosing their work also to leave their jobs at appropriate duration before onset of delivery period, and prohibits employer denying to grant leave pregnant mothers who are under doctor’s instructions to go for medical examination by the appropriate doctor.Employers justify their discrimination by claiming that pregnant need attention every moment and sick off leaves they request are just means of running away from performing the allocated tasks . Eventually employers count this as a loss to a company as a result of low productivity. Employers also view pregnant women as weak personnel who are not effective and efficient since they can’t work at a certain rate..Under federal law employers who have recruited more than fifteen employers are not entitled to; deny a pregnant woman job vacancy , lay off or force an employee to quite job since she is pregnant, deduct ones accrued retirement benefits for previous years for the reason of maternity leave and retrench an employee who has done an abortion. Therefore pregnant women are in a position to work conveniently so long as the have the ability to work without any problem The supervisor or the employer is also entitled to offer maternity leave at the appropriate time and also treat pregnant women as potential workers .When a pregnant woman is not in a position to perform heavy tasks the employer is accorded to offer less difficult task (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). Disability discrimination in work places is also evident where one can be laid off or not hired depending on disability status. American Disability Act is the law explains disability as a condition of any form of impairment which hinders one from performing major activities in life. The law ensures people with such impairments are not discriminated.In different work places in Americans those who are HIV p ositive and those with cancer history cancers are prone dramatization and discrimination . Therefore the law ensures they protected appropriately. As the saying goes ‘disability is not inability’ thus disabled qualified applicants should not be denied a particular opportunity. The employer should treat this staff member equally as others according to terms and conditions of work . Disabled people are perceived not to perform effectively towards productivity of an organization since some may require frequent medical check ups and this could lead to wastage of time.Others may not be able to walk faster also leading to wastage of time and inefficiency in job performance. Those on wheel chairs could pose to the company extra costs such as transportation cost, repair and maintenance costs on wheel chair tires to be incurred by an organization and also this particular staff member requires special treatment. The disabled also face stiff competition from other healthy workers hence discouraging their efforts. Employers take advantage of discriminating them and showing favourism to the potential employees.Employers should ensure fair treatment of the disabled since no one decides to be in such a condition they should also put in place measures which protect these victims from other co- workers. When this is in place, the disabled are able to work in a permissive environment (Hughes & Dodge, 1997). In general, discrimination in the workplace constitutes racial, gender, religion intelligence, pregnancy, and age discrimination. The employers or other fellow employees may take advantage of other peoples’ weakness in exploiting and discrimination others in the workplace.People in the workplace take advantage of the underprivileged to retain them in the job. And also establish sexual affairs with employees working under them since they promise favors such as pay increments and promotion. This should be discouraged since one can contract incurable sexual diseases and also can lead to the spread of the same disease in an organization. Discrimination based on age and race should be discouraged since it curtails one’s effort in the job and in return this negatively affects the productivity. When workers are discriminated, their output is reduced since they are never comfortable in such environments.In other instances for example where religious discrimination is rampant and many are forced to withdraw from the company especially when many forced for conversion to other faiths. This automatically leads to either decline of the company or incur heavy losses which can lead to the closure of the company indeed. State law should ensure laws regarding work places are not violated and those charged with cases of discrimination should be punished or fined accordingly. Therefore discrimination in places of work should be ever legalized. Reference: Hughes,  D  &Dodge,  M.A.  (1997).African  American  Women  in  the  Workplace:  Relationships    Between Job Conditions, Racial Bias at Work, and   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Perceived Job Quality.  American   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Journal of Community Psychology. 25(5):   Ã‚  Ã‚   581-599.

Psycosocial Assessment of the Soloist

Running Head: Strengths Based Assessment 1 Strengths Based Assessment: The Soloist By Colleen Austin SOWK 587a University of Southern California Professor Brittani Morris Strengths Based Assessment2 Character Identification Describe the character you choose as your focus. Include race, ethnicity, age, religion, sex, marital status, living situation, educational level, internal strengths (coping mechanisms, skills, experience, ability to connect to others, resilience, determination, flexibility, commitment, loyalty, etc. ). Mr. Nathanial Anthony Ayers is a middle aged, black African-American man.He is spiritual but identifies with no specific religion, he does pray in the movie, saying the Our Father. He is unmarried, and is homeless. He displays signs of mental illness, most likely schizophrenic as evidenced by his paranoia and he hears voices. He began to hear voices in adolescence. At one point he thought his sister was trying to poison him, so he forced her to eat the food she bro ught to him. He lived in the basement of the home he grew up in. It wasn’t obvious, but he must have remained living with his sister after his mother died.When he went to Juilliard, he got an apartment and the voices became more prominent. There is no evidence that he was ever diagnosed with a mental illness. He has a difficult time maintain relationships with others because he is mentally ill and continually talks to himself. Nathanial has a high school education. He was also accepted and completed some classical music training from Juilliard, according to a teacher there, he just stopped showing up. What happened in his life from that point until the present is unknown. Although he is homeless, one of his possessions is a violin, which only has two strings.In doing this, Nathanial shows determination, because even though he doesn’t have a complete instrument he stills continues to play it. Strengths Based AssessmentPage 3 Nathanial shows loyalty to his music. He is a lways playing his violin and in fact talks about his loyalty to his music when he states that â€Å"he is holding on to his faith in the power of his music. † (The Soloist, 2009) Nathanial shows a lot of inner strengths. He has determination, which is evident by the fact that he continues to play the violin, although it only has two strings.He is resilient, evidenced by the fact that he has been homeless for many years, schizophrenic and yet he is surviving on the streets of L. A. Nathanial shows no flexibility. When Lopez brings him to the apartment, he says that he will play the violin there, but he will not stay there. It was not his apartment he said. II. Significant Relationships Describe 2-3 significant relationships this character has to other characters in the film, both in terms of role and in terms of the resources and/or challenges that this character offers to your focus character.Nathanial’s most significant relationship is with Steve Lopez, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times newspaper. Lopez is fascinated by Nathanial when he discovers that he is a classically trained musician, who is homeless and writes a column with Nathanial as his subject. It isn’t clear at first what Lopez’s motives are, other than to write a column that is entertaining and widely read by Los Angeles. Initially, it is obvious Lopez is using Nathanial as his focus. Lopez is divorced although he continues to have a relationship with his ex-wife who is also Strengths Based AssessmentPage 4 is boss at the Times. In fact his ex-wife tells him that there is possibly a book that could be written about Nathanial and essentially accuses him at one point in the movie of exploiting Nathanial. This relationship shifts over time. He is single and finds himself thinking about Nathanial’s â€Å"plight. † He becomes emotionally invested in Nathanial, in that he feels that he can help this homeless, mentally ill man toward a better life. What he do esn’t understand is that Nathanial is comfortable in his life. He has become accustomed to his homeless life.Lopez, although his latent motives appear to be altruistic, actually causes Nathanial a great deal of stress. He tries to convince the manager of the Lamp Community that he should force Nathanial to see a psychiatrist and be put on medication. David, the manager of the Lamp Community could be another of Nathanial’s significant relationships. He allowed Lopez to leave the cello that was donated by a reader at the facility, because that was the only place that Lopez would allow him to play it. He didn’t want him to have it on the street.David was instrumental in helping Lopez to finally learn what the best thing was that he could do for Nathanial. Lopez needed to be his friend, David told him. That was really what Nathanial needed. Someone he could trust. David was, in this sense, an advocate for Nathanial. He made Lopez understand that Nathanial didnâ€⠄¢t want to see a psychiatrist and even if he did, there were no guarantees that he would even take his medication. It is possible that Nathanial knew that on medication he would not be the same musician. Strengths Bases AssessmentPage 5Graham Clayton, the music teacher, was another character whose relationship to Nathanial was significant. He was teaching Nathanial to play music other than Beethoven, Nathanial’s favorite. In fact, there was a statue of Beethoven in a square and that was where Steve Lopez looked to find Nathanial. Not only did Clayton offer music lessons, but he also offered him spiritual guidance. He set up a recital for Nathanial, however when Nathanial showed up to play, he began to hear voices and when Clayton put his hand on his shoulder, Nathanial reacted with such fear that he nearly assaulted Clayton.Nathanial ran, which was one of his best coping mechanisms, that and playing music III. Community Analysis Describe the two most significant groups/commu nities that your focus character belongs to and/or aspires to belong to in the film. There is one significant community to which Nathanial belongs. And one community that it appears he would like to belong. The first community is the Lamp Community, a shelter for the homeless and often these homeless people are mentally ill. The other community is the music community. Nathanial wanted to be a classic cellist when he was younger.He was excited when Lopez brought him the cello and wanted to keep it with his grocery cart full of belongings. The Lamp Community offered Nathanial food, shelter and clothing. However, he spent most of his time sleeping on the streets, going to the facility only when he needed something. They did offer group sessions for the homeless, but it wasn’t clear what the topics of the group discussions were. The music community would have offered Nathanial the opportunity to advance his career as a musician, however because of the schizophrenia; the audience was a Strengths Bases AssessmentPage 6 barrier to Nathanial’s playing his cello.Lopez found an accomplished music teacher who was willing to teach Nathanial to bring him back to the level he was at when he was at Juilliard, and even brought him new music to play. Playing music and being part of the music community was something that Nathanial desired, however, his illness prevented him from becoming fully invested in pursuing it. I think the Lamp Community was a valuable community resource for Nathanial. It was a safe place for him to go, and in fact the night after the disastrous recital, Lopez found him there having a meal and David told him that he had spent the night in his apartment.When asked why he spent the night there, Nathanial alluded to the fact that he wasn’t a young man anymore and that his body couldn’t take the streets. I think that if Nathanial wanted to see a doctor and take medication, he could have gotten those resources from the Lamp Communi ty. The music community could have provided a less intimidating arena for a recital. Although it seemed to be a very relaxed outdoor atmosphere, putting Nathanial up on stage was asking for disaster. Perhaps the music community could showcase musicians like Nathanial in a much less intrusive setting.Analysis of the Symbiotic Relationship. (This wasn’t required but I wanted to add it. ) I think the relationship between Steve Lopez and Nathanial Ayers worked both ways. The scene where Lopez falls off his bike, goes to the hospital where everything is chaotic, then goes into an MRI and is claustrophobic has so many similarities to Ayers’ life it may have been purely coincidental. I think that was an experience that Lopez had to draw upon while he was trying to â€Å"help† Nathanial. Just like Steve Didn’t want the help at the hospital, neither did Nathanial want Strengths Bases AssessmentPage 7Steve’s help. The mere act of trying to get Nathanial out of his comfort zone was enough to trigger a schizophrenic episode. At the end of the movie, Steve realized that the best thing that he could offer Nathanial was his friendship. Nathanial trusted Steve by the end of the movie. When they first met, Nathanial wouldn’t shake Steve’s hand, but at the end of the movie when Steve offered him his hand, Nathanial took it. Strengths Based AssessmentPage 8 Resources Foster. G. , and Krasnoff, R. (Producer), & Wright, J. (Director). (2009). The Soloist  [Motion picture]. United States: Dreamworks Pictures.