Walmart Unethical Behavior

Ciara Vensel Principles of Management Individual Research Project Part VI 2/15/13 Wal-Mart, is one of the biggest well know companies in the United States and in the world since 1962 when founder Sam Walton created Wal-Mart. It has been the place where a lot of people usually do their shopping for the low prices and variety of products. This is why it is so controversial Wal-Mart continues to grow even with the accusations of unethical business practices.Wal-Mart has been accused of sexual discrimination and unfair pay for employees, and destruction of small towns, excessive amounts of corporate power through the government and how Wal-Mart is turning into a monopoly. With all of these allegations, Wal-Mart is still one of the leading discount retailers in the country, and as a corporate office, they still stand tall and state that they follow fair ethical values. Walton was an entrepreneur with a vision that started his own company and made into the leader of discount retailing like it is today.Walton borrowed some money from his father-in-law and opened a variety store after serving as an Army captain in World War II. A chain of drugstores followed, Walton went into business with his brother and by 1960 the Walton’s' had 15 stores that were taking in $1. 4 million a year. However, Walton soon saw a new competitor arise, which was the discount store. The Walton brothers opened their first Wal-Mart in 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas. Specializing in name brands at low prices, the chain of Wal-Mart stores sprang across rural America.Walton's management style was popular with employees and helped to spur growth. As the years past, the chain of stores grew sporadically. The sales grew to $26 billion by 1989. (Store Wars, www. pbs. org) However, as sales grew ethical standards lowered throughout the company. Wal-Mart’s poor labor practice consists of avoiding non-unionizing of all employees, low wages, expensive benefit packages, and sexual discrimination. T hey insist on keeping full time employees to minimum to avoid handing out benefit packages and yet they are making employees work full time hours.There is dozens of wage and hour suits against Wal-Mart accusing the company and its managers of various illegal practices. Those included forcing employees to work unpaid off the clock, erasing hours from time cards, and preventing workers from taking lunch and other breaks that were promised by the company or guaranteed by the state laws. In 2008 Wal-Mart announced that they have agreed to pay between $352 million and $640 million to settle 63 wage and hour lawsuits filed against the retailer in 42 different states.The lawsuits accused the company of cheating hourly workers by forcing them to work through breaks and not paying them for overtime. (Wal-Mart to Settle Suits over Pay, NYTimes. com. ) Full-time employees are eligible for benefits, but the health insurance package is so expensive employees pay 35 percent which is almost double the national average. (Store Wars, pbs. org) Wal-Mart is also the leading employer of diversity and different cultures in the United States and the majority of this is men.More than 125,000 African Americans and more than 74,000 Latinos work at Wal-Mart nationwide. Two Latinos sit on the board of directors along with two women out of 15 board members. Only one woman serves as an executive officer of the company. Almost 2,000 women in 48 states claim that Wal-Mart discriminated against them for pay and promotions. The filings state women who say Wal-Mart systematically favors men for raises and promotions. (Wal-Mart Sex Discrimination Claims Filed by 2,000 Women, huffingtonpost. om) Wal-Mart’s  London Kentucky Distribution Center denied jobs to female applicants  from 1998 through February 2005. During  that time, Wal-Mart regularly hired male entry level  applicants for the warehouse positions, but excluded female applicants who were  equally or better qualified. W al-Mart regularly used gender stereotypes in filling entry-level order filler  positions. Hiring officials told  applicants that order filling positions were not suitable for women, and that  they hired mainly 18 to 25 year old males for order filling positions.Excluding women from employment or  excluding them from certain positions because of gender violates Title VII of  the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Wal-Mart ended paying $11. 7 million in back wages and compensatory damages to settle the sex discrimination lawsuit. (Wal-Mart to Pay More Than $11. 7 Million to Settle EEOC Sex Discrimination Suit, 2013) The amounts of unethical business practices that are evolving throughout the years regarding Wal-Mart really does amaze me; how a business can be so disrespectful to their employees and still be the leading retailer in the world, and have millions of consumers.Wal-Mart’s employees for the first time in Wal-Mart history went on strike in the fall of 2012. Wal-Mart w orkers across the country  coordinated  a Black Friday walkout in an effort to build awareness about the retailer’s low wages and poor working conditions. (CNN Host, Calls Out Wal-Mart Executive over Poverty Level Wages, 2013) â€Å"Wal-Mart employs more people than any other company in the United States outside of the Federal government, yet the majority of its employees with children live below the poverty line. †(Store Wars, www. bs. org) There was an interview conducted on CNN by host Carol Costello with Wal-Mart’s Vice President of Communications David Tovar regarding the Black Friday walkout, when Tovar is confronted about these labor practices he is unsure of his answers. Currently in the United States, the poverty level is $15000 for a yearly income and a Wal-Mart employee is making an average of $15350, Costello is arguing this level of income with Tovar because he claims that they provide more support for their employees then the average retailer.S he states, â€Å"Is it Wal-Mart’s responsibility to make sure that its employees can support a strong middle-class lifestyle? † Tovar’s response is, â€Å"We’re working hard every day to provide more opportunities for associates. † (CNN Confronts Walmart Spokesperson Over Retailer's Low Wages, Poor Working Conditions | ThinkProgress, 2013) Costello abruptly argues, â€Å"But if a lot of them are making $15,000 a year, you can’t live a strong middle-class lifestyle on that! (CNN Confronts Walmart Spokesperson Over Retailer's Low Wages, Poor Working Conditions | ThinkProgress, 2013) Tovar also tries to justify the average wage of a Wal-Mart employee by not giving a straight answer and showing how to help their employees by stating, â€Å"Our average rate is about $12. 40 an hour for a full time associate. We also offer comprehensive benefit packages as low as $17 a pay period, which is very affordable and we also pay quarterly bonuses, which is something that not a lot of retailers do. In addition, we know that they appreciate that. They also get a 10 percent discount card.So you have to factor in all of those things when you’re looking for how we’re helping associates. † (CNN Confronts Walmart Spokesperson Over Retailer's Low Wages, Poor Working Conditions | ThinkProgress, 2013) In reality, he is just working his way around stating the obvious that employees are getting paid low wages for today’s economy. Wal-Mart CEO Michael Duke has an average income of  $18. 1 million; it would take more than 700 employees salaries to match his total compensation package. Not only does Wal-Mart treat employees unfairly, but also it is unethical to the communities it develops in.It is certainly true that Wal-Mart has a tendency to crush competitors. The more successful Wal-Mart is, the more there will be bankruptcies of smaller businesses. According to the National Bureau of Economic research it’s been proven that Wal-Mart has adverse effects on small town stores. They did a study on Wal-Mart store in Arkansas; the employment results indicated that a Wal-Mart store opening reduces small town retail employment by about 150 workers, meaning that each Wal-Mart worker replaces approximately 1. 4 small town workers.This represents a 2. 7 percent reduction in average retail employment. The payroll results indicate that Wal-Mart store openings lead to declines in small town retail earnings of about $1. 4 million. (The Effects of Wal-Mart on Local Labor Markets, 2013) I myself come from a small town with a population of less than a 1000 people; we are mainly a tourist town because we are located right next to Mille Lacs Lake, which means we are only seasonally making a profit. Whenever it is fishing season in our area is where we have the most profitable seasons.Coming from a small town, I know that it is very hard to keep small businesses going; Wal-Mart thrives on making new estab lishments in these types of areas. This is very profitable for Wal-Mart but not for the community’s small businesses this causes these family businesses that have been around for years to come to a screeching halt, because it is more convenient to get everything at Wal-Mart for a low price then go to each individual small business for different items. Without these small businesses, small towns like mine gradually disappear. How Wal-Mart is destroying America (and the world) and what you can do about it, Quinn, B) With that said Wal-Mart has taken over some many rural areas and they pay their employees at such low wages that Wal-Mart is increase in corporate power through the government and are becoming a monopoly. A monopoly is a situation in which a single company owns all or nearly all of the market for a given type of product or service. Everywhere you go you see more and more Wal-Mart’s even if there in cities that is 10 minutes apart from each other.Especially wi th most Wal-Mart’s, now being super Wal-Mart’s there profit is immensely growing to outrageous amounts. (Corporate Power, Wal-Mart and the Undermining of the Democratic Process Dollars ; Sense, http://dollarsandsense. org) With all the controversy surrounding Wal-Mart the corporate office still claims that they are an ethical company that favors their employees. There website has a statement of ethics stating all of their policies are for the employees. They state to be a non-discriminative work place and that they offer fair wages.This is obviously something that is corrupt within their company because there would not be that many lawsuits and complaints about Wal-Mart’s business practices if they abided by their statement of ethics. They also claim that Wal-Mart builds small communities by offering more employment in the rural areas. The website states, â€Å"It’s our mission to create opportunities so people can live better. We consider it our respons ibility to make a positive impact in the communities we serve.Whether it is through the grants we provide to the thousands of organizations that share our mission or through the inspiring volunteer efforts of Wal-Mart associates, we are passionate about helping people live better. One community at a time. † (Wal-Mart Corporate – Our Story, http://corporate. walmart. com/ourstory/) Companies like this that survive these major ethical issues are the ones that can spot the issues and correct them before they become a problem. In the case of Wal-Mart, it failed to acknowledge these potential problems and they are probably going to pay for it in the end.Wal-Mart’s unethical business practices have hurt its company’s reputation. Although millions of people still shop at Wal-Mart knowing the rising allegations still many consumers have stopped shopping at Wal-Mart. This includes my mother who is very against shopping at Wal-Mart and will avoid if it is at all pos sible. If Wal-Mart wants to survive they will have to try harder to improve their image; not only at the corporate level but also within in each individual establishment level.They need to show that they care about ethics by treating employees fairly, and the communities that are allowing Wal-Mart to establish their stores. As a result, it will attract good employees and consumers and keep this business thriving to its full potential. A company this large should admit its faults to overcome any obstacles to obtain success. Bibliography Peled, M. (n. d. ). PBS Store-Wars: The Story. PBS: Public Broadcasting Service, Retrieved January 18th 2013, from http://www. pbs. org/itvs/storewars/story. html Greenhouse, S. 2008, December 23) Wal-Mart to Settle Suits over Pay – NYtimes. com, the New York Times, Breaking News, World News ; Multimedia, Retrieved January 18th 2013, from http://www. nytimes. com/2008/12/24/business/24walmart. html? _r=0 Wal-Mart Corporate – Our Story. ( n. d. ). Wal-Mart Corporate – We save people money so they can live better. Retrieved January 18, 2013, from http://corporate. walmart. com/ourstory/ Harrison, J. A. (n. d. ). Corporate Power, Wal-Mart and the Undermining of the Democratic Process Dollars ; Sense.Dollars and Sense: Real World Economics. Retrieved January 18, 2013, from http://dollarsandsense. org/archives/2011/0211harrison. html Quinn, B. (2000). How Wal-Mart is destroying America (and the world) and what you can do about it (Rev. ; updated. ed. ). Berkeley, Calif. : Ten Speed Press. CNN Confronts Walmart Spokesperson Over Retailer's Low Wages, Poor Working Conditions | ThinkProgress, 2013, http://thinkprogress. org/economy/2012/11/20/1221081/cnn-confronts-wal-mart-spokesperson-over-retailers-low-salaries-poor-working-conditions/Wal-Mart Sex Discrimination Claims Filed by 2,000 Women, 2013, http://www. huffingtonpost. com/2012/06/06/walmart-sex-discrimination-women-_n_1575859. html Wal-Mart To Pay More Than $ 11. 7 Million To Settle EEOC Sex Discrimination Suit. (n. d. ). EEOC Home Page. Retrieved February 15, 2013, from http://www. eeoc. gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/3-1-10. cfm The Effects of Wal-Mart on Local Labor Markets. (n. d. ). The National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved February 15, 2013, from http://www. nber. org/papers/w11782

Math in Early Childhood Article Review Essay

Math Journal Review The purpose of this article was to explain the use and importance of programs such as the, â€Å"What’s the Big Idea† program instituted at the Bennington Library in Vermont. The â€Å"What’s the Big Idea† program aims to provide librarians with techniques and tools for introducing preschool and kindergarten students to science and math through literature. Picture books and stories are used a lot because stores are great conveyors to memorable messages about since and math. It also gives children the tools they need to be able to look at books and seek out math and science concepts and connections within the text. The program focuses on child directed and hands on explorations rather that adult directed instruction allowing the children to gain personal acts of discovery through play. â€Å"What’s the Big Idea† focuses on four main math and science concepts; numbers and operations, patterns and relationships, changes over time, and geometry and special sense. For each topic there are activities, projects, and books that correspond with the chosen topic. There are different activity centers that are also set up. Some are set up for large group and small group and some are set up for independent exploration. They offer things such as interactive graphs, geoboards, jars with small objects for sorting, blocks, and other manipulatives. Something new that I learned was that I didn’t know that libraries offered programs like that. I knew that had reading groups and programs but I didn’t realizes that there were also libraries that offered programs to also promote math and science concepts as well. I like how they use books first to gain an idea and then tie it into math and science by exploring the concepts in the story a little further to better their understanding not only of the story but of the math and/or science behind it. A way that I can see this information being useful in the future is to have programs like this available to all libraries nationwide. In the article it said that it started out in Vermont and spread to libraries in New York, Delaware, and Texas. With children having access to programs like this from the preschool level they will then enter kindergarten with a greater knowledge base and with deeper understanding of the math and science concepts that they will need for the rest of their lives.

Dalit Empowerment in India Essay

Dalits movement for empowerment started way back during second half of the nineteenth century with reformatory efforts to uplift the backward groups of Indian society, especially ‘Dalits’. Later on, it turned into seeking state intervention and generating the idea of paying special attention to Dalits/untouchables. Dalits/Untouchables have been described as â€Å"The oppressed of the oppressed and lowest of the low†, who have not been benefited from the opening up of modern economic, social, political and cultural opportunities. It is said say that at present, millions of people, belonging to Dalit community have been the victims of discrimination, violence, exploitation, untouchability, poverty, illiteracy, ignorance, other hate crimes and consequential disabilities for a very long time. They are treated as lesser human beings. Dalit’s movement for empowerment was initiated by non-Brahmins of South India. It had economic and social thrusts. It demanded education and land for backwards and freedom from caste rigidities. Some economically strong but educationally backward non-Brahmins groups resisted the hold of Brahmins on land, wealth, jobs in government and education. Access of modern education to all and spree of Reform Movements of early 19th century led anti Brahmin currents to gain momentum. By the end of the 19th century, it turned into a political movement. Non-Brahmin leaders, supported by other backward communities – Muslims, Indian Christians, untouchables and tribals, desired to secure a place for themselves in modern callings, to obtain legal rights and position of power through govt.’s intervention. They succeeded in fixing up quotas for them in the state Government jobs. During 1874 and 1885, Mysore state reserved 20% of middle and lower level jobs in the police department for Brahmins and 80% for Muslims, Non-Brahmins Hindus and Indian Christians. From Government jobs, it spread to educational field too, in order to prepare non-Brahmins for Government jobs. Around 1909, for the first time, the lowest strata of non-Brahmin Community or the service class, earlier known as Shudras, was conceptualized politically under the name of untouchables, when the Census Commissioner suggested excluding untouchables (comprising of about 24% of the Hindu Population and 16% of the total population at that time) from Hindu fold for forthcoming 1911 Census. The proposal had divided non-Brahmin Community into two Backwards and untouchables. Also, it had immediately increased the importance of untouchables in political circle, in social circle, and in their own eyes too. It had also made numbers important in taking political decisions. The suggestion to exclude untouchables from Hindu population was not acceptable to prominent National Hindu leaders at any cost, for whom continuous decline of the number of Hindu population had already been a matter of concern. Granting special electorate to Muslims had already weakened the National movement of Independence. They were concerned that such a proposal was made intentionally to divide Indians. That was a crucial point. Since then, the assertion of Dalit leaders has travelled a long distance and has passed through various stages. The whole of 20th century, especially the first and last two decades have been especially important for political empowerment of Untouchables/Dalits. Different terms have been used for Dalits at different points of time. Each one assumed importance, as Dalit movement has passed through various stages – ‘Shudras’, ‘Outcasts’ and ‘Panchamas’: Till the beginning of 20th Century, the lowest strata of Hindu Community were known as Shudras, Panchamas or outcastes. Existence of Shudras (at present referred as untouchables/Dalits) was recognized, as early as, Pre Mauryan Period (6th century BC to 3rd century BC). Though given a lower status, they were always an integral part of Hindu society. In ancient India, Shudras performed essential social and economic tasks as well as in agricultural sector. Segregation of lower castes in Hindu Society was not based on economic status or their incapability to do any intellectual work, but on cultural grounds – unclean habits, in-disciplined life style, speaking foul and abusive language etc. Conquered groups or individuals, groups engaged in menial or unclean occupations, groups clinging to the practices, which were not considered respectable, persons born illegitimately or the groups engaged in anti-social activities were treated as Shudras and were given lowest status in the society. Breaking the caste rules meant loss of caste, meaning complete ostracism or having no place in the society. Permanent loss of caste – out-caste- was considered to be the greatest catastrophe for an individual, short of death penalty. By the beginning of Christian era, the out-castes themselves developed caste hierarchy and had their own out-castes. In Western and Southern parts of India, they were kept outside the four Varnas. In the Northern and Eastern parts of India, they were very much belonged to fourth Varna â€Å"Shudra†, which was divided into two parts pure or non-excluded and excluded or untouchables. In ancient India all the social groups were placed more or less as a series of vertical parallels. All of the people living in a local area, whether high or low were bound together by economic and social ties and had a strong bond of mutual dependence. They cared and supported each other in fulfilling different kind of their needs. Socially, Shudras were supposed to do all sorts of menial work and serving the upper castes of the three Varnas. Respect to a person or group was never given on the basis of material success or control of power. There was hardly any room for any section of society to consider itself, as being placed in greater or lesser disadvantageous position with reference to another. Concept of forwards or backwards or feeling of exploitation of lower strata by upper castes was almost non-existent at that time. Many studies have shown that Hindu system always kept masses reconciled, if not contended in the past. Hindu Dharma taught the people that instead of holding others responsible, for all their sufferings, exploitation and miseries it was their own â€Å"Adharma† (immoral behaviour), â€Å"Alasya† (laziness) and Agyan (ignorance) which were to be blamed. It never prevented Shudras or others to rise in the scale of society or to earn respect of the society. In many parts of the country, people belonging to lower strata held position of power/superior status or earned respect of Hindu society. Many warrior kings of Shudra and tribal origin sought Brahmins’ help to acquire Kshatriyas status for themselves. Many Shudras were accepted and revered as philosophers or spiritual teachers. All troubles of lower strata of society started after the downfall of Hindu Raj and old Hindus values. Continuous invasions by Turks, Afghans and Mughals who earlier drained out the wealth of the nation to foreign lands and afterwards made India their homeland and ruled the country for centuries. Feudalistic attitude, extravagance and luxurious life style of rulers and those at the helm of authority, increased the disparity between the rulers and the ruled. Therefore, it can be said that it was not out of malice, but the circumstances, which has pushed Shudras away from the mainstream. The low status and sufferings of Shudras or their exclusion from the mainstream for centuries has gradually stopped growth of their personality and made them completely dependent on others for their livelihood. Centuries old enslavement, ignorance, suppression and ostracism shook their confidence, deteriorated severely their condition and made them to suffer inhuman treatment by other sections of the society. Depressed Class: During the nineteenth Century, in official circles lower castes were addressed as ‘Depressed classes or ‘Exterior classes. British government in India regarded these people as ‘Oppressed of the oppressed and lowest of the low’. Missionaries were trying to convert this section of society into Christianity. British rulers passed many Legislative regulations and administrative orders and declared denial of access to untouchables to schools, well, roads and public places as illegal. Till now, untouchable activities were combined with the intermediate castes’ non- Brahmin movement. But now all these developments inspired them to enter into the political arena under the name of â€Å"depressed class† and desired to a share in political power separately in India. Harijans: The attempt of British rulers in 1911 to exclude untouchables from Hindu population and continuous decline of number of Hindus cautioned the national leaders. In order to retain their Hindu identity, Gandhiji and his followers called them Harijans meaning the â€Å"people belonging to god†. On one hand, Gandhiji tried to create compassion in the hearts of forward communities for Harijans and on the other he appealed to Harijans to observe cleaner habits, so that they could mix up freely with other sections of society. Dalit leaders did not like the word Harijan as it symbolized a meek and helpless person, at the mercy and benevolence of others, and not the proud and independent human being that they were. During this period, the attention of humanitarians and reformers was also drawn towards the pathetic condition of untouchables. They took the path of Sankritisation to elevate them. In order to prevent alienation of untouchables from Hindu community, they drew the attention of forward communities towards inhuman condition of lower strata of society and tried to create compassion in their hearts for downtrodden. They gave top most priority to the abolition of untouchability. They tried to clarify that Untouchability was neither an integral part of Hinduism nor an outcome of Varna/caste system, nor have any religious sanctity, but an external impurity and sinful blot on Hinduism. They laid emphasis on education, moral regeneration and philanthropic uplift. They also appealed to untouchables to observe cleaner habits, so that they could mix up with other sections freely and become proud and independent human beings, which they were. Untouchables By 1909, the lowest strata of Indian society came to be known as untouchables. Emergence of Dr.Ambedkar on the political scene provided the leadership and stimulus to untouchable movement. He insisted to address untouchables just as untouchables. He regarded the terms ‘Depressed classes’, ‘Dalits’, ‘Harijans’ either confusing or degrading and contemptuous. Dr.Ambedkar made it abundantly clear, ‘It was through political power that untouchables were to find their solution, not through acceptance by Hindus’. He gave untouchable movement a national character and a distinct identity during late twenties and early thirties. Other prominent Dalit leaders like Mahatma Phule, Ambedkar or Gopal Ganesh vehemently criticized Hindu hierarchical structure and regarded untouchability as an inevitable concomitant of Varna/caste system. They taught the lower castes to get united and make eradication of caste system their major plank as it engaged them to forced labour or unsavory jobs, imposed many restrictions on them and prevented them from joining the mainstream of the society. According to them, Hindus treated lower castes as lesser human beings, meek and helpless persons, who should always remain at the mercy and benevolence of upper castes. They tried to find the solution of their problems through political power, not through acceptance by Hindus. By 1920’s, numerous caste organizations, especially in the South and West, organized themselves into larger collectiveness by keeping contacts and alliances with their counterparts at other places; formed associations and federations at local and regional levels and emerged as a powerful political force. Together, they demanded special legal protection and share in politics and administration on the basis of caste. In 1928, Simon Commission established their separate identity at national level, independent of intermediate castes as untouchables. It readily accepted their demands through Communal Award of 1932. Gandhiji along with other National leaders regarded it as the â€Å"Unkindest cut of all†, which would create a permanent split in Hindu Society, perpetuate casteism and make impossible the assimilation of untouchables in mainstream. Dr.Rajendra Prasad said, â€Å"The principle of dividing population into communal groups, which had been adopted in the Minto Morely Reforms, had been considerably extended, even beyond what had been done by Montagu Chelmsford Reforms†¦.The electorate in 1919 was broken up into ten parts, now it is fragmented into seventeen unequal bits†¦ Giving separate representations to Schedule Castes further weakened Hindu community†¦ Th e British introduced every possible cross-division†. Untouchables in Independent India: After Second World War emergence of the concept of ‘welfare state’ swept the whole world. Independent India, as a civilized democratic society, considered it its humanitarian obligation to uplift and empower the submerged sections of society. The overwhelming poverty of millions belonging to lower strata of society and their near absence in echelons of power at the time of Independence has led the government to of India to intervene. The Constitution of India has directed the Government to promote social justice and educational, economic and other interests of the weaker sections with special care. It instructed the Government to remove the poverty and reduce inequalities of income and wealth and provide adequate representation to the downtrodden in power echelons through Affirmative Action Program/Reservation Policy. Public facilities, which were denied to untouchables so far, should be made accessible to them. The successive governments both at national as well as provincial levels initiated various Welfare Plans and Policies for employment generation and their social, economic and political growth from time to time. Dalits: Dalit, a Marathi word means suppressed. The term was chosen and used proudly by Ambedkar’s followers under the banner of various factions of Republican Party of India (Formed in 1956). The Mahars of Bombay (8%), Jatavs of UP (Half of the SC Population in UP) and Nadars and Thevars of Southern TN being numerically significant, played a decisive role in taking forward Dalit movement. Maharashtra Dalit movement has a longest and richest experience. In 1972, a distinct political party, in the name of Dalit Panther was formed in Maharashtra. It organized the lower castes under the banner of ‘Dalit’ throughout India. One of the founders of Dalit Panther, Mr.Namdeo Dhasal widened the scope of Dalit by including SC, tribes, neo-Buddhists, landless labour and economically exploited people. Its orientation was primarily militant and rebellious. Dalit Sahitya Movement legitimized and reinforced the use of the term Dalit. Since then, this term is very popular amongst the unto uchables. Earlier, a few leaders of untouchables had at least some regard for the cultural tradition of India. They did not reject Vedic literature or the foundations of Hinduism, out-rightly. Dr.Ambedkar accepted that all parts of Manusmiriti were not condemnable. Gopal Baba Walangkar had said that Vedas did not support untouchability. Kisan Fagoi, another Mahar leader of pre-Ambedkar era had joined Prarthna Samaj. But present Dalit leaders are vehemently against cultural traditions of India, which according to them, are based on inequality and exploitation. There is always a fear of upper caste or intermediate caste backlash. In mid sixties, an aggressive Dalit movement started under the banner of Shoshit Samaj Dal in Central Bihar, which has, presently, become a major center of Naxalite movement. Dal was founded by Jagdeo Mahto, who began to mobilize the lower castes against economic repression and exploitation of women by upper caste feudal elements. The new phase of Dalit assertion is most prominent in the most populous state of UP, where the upper caste domination has been challenged by BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party) formed in 1984 under the leadership of Kanshi Ram and Mayavati. They redefined Dalit politics especially in north India. Their approach to Dalit issues was more socio-political rather than economic. BSP has started pursuing power with militancy since 1990. Of late, BSP has made significant inroads in UP, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. BSP has borrowed all their phraseology from Dalit Panthers. Most of their utterances are arrogant, revengeful and opportunistic. Political and economic vested interests of its leaders have aroused militancy among discontented youths of different castes and communities all over the nation. They care only for rights and pay scant attention to their duties. There started a cutthroat competition for scarce positions of power and prestige. Once again, the tendency of ‘divide and rule’, as was there during British domination, has emerged in national scenario. The growing desire of Dalits to rule has made them very sure of their friends and foes. Dalit leaders, even after so many years of Independence has identified Upper Castes as their enemy and intermediate castes sometimes as their friends and sometimes as their enemies. Kanshi Ram, a BSP leader initiated a formula of DS4, meaning Dalit Shoshit Samaj Sangarsh Samiti, taking into its fold untouchables, STs, Muslims and OBCs. OBC leaders also know that Dalit parties now control a large vote bank. Therefore, from time to time, they try to please Dalits leaders in order to increase their own political strength. But Dalits are in no mood to play a second fiddle to other national political parties. They are aware of their growing influence and crucial role as a kink-maker in today’s highly competitive and unstable political atmosphere. All the three major national political formations – Congress’s UPA BJP’s NDA and National Front – are wooing frantically Dalit leaders and competing with each other to have a pre or post poll alliance with them. Instead of demanding a share in power structure, equity or social justice, Dalits now want to reverse the power equation and to transform the society by capturing all political power. Their aim is to get hold over the posts of PM-CM (Political Power) through electoral politics and control over administrative authority – the bureaucracy – through Reservations/Affirmative Action Program. There is an elite section amongst Dalits, which protects its turf under the banner of Dalits at the cost of poorest of Dalits. It does not care much to bring Dalit masses into the mainstream. For some, presence and miseries of large number of Dalits is a recipe for Dalit vote-bank, for others enjoying all the benefits of affirmative action programs initiated and implemented by the Government of India and other concessions given to them. Whatever might be the condition of Dalit masses, but the political power and arrogance of Dalit leaders and intellectuals are at rise. And here lies the crux of Dalit politics. Dalits at International platform Dalits are not satisfied even after having growing influence in ballot-box politics and attaining enough places in the government jobs. Since 2001, these activists have been pushing the cause internationally arguing that Indian Dalits are like blacks in US till 1950. They faced problems in workplace, at school and in temples. In 2005, some Dalit leaders belonging to All India Confederation have sought intervention USA, UN and the British and EU Parliaments on the issues of ‘untouchability’. UN recognizes religion, race, language and gender as main causes of inequality in the world. Dalit activists want caste to be included too in this category. They desire to have Global alliance, global involvement and intervention of the international community to put pressure on the government of India to address the problem Dalit marginalization. They feel that globalization and privatization has made it difficult for Dalits, tribals and OBC’s to compete on equal footing or fi nd enough space in the job market within the country or abroad. At the behest of the Republican Congressman from New Jersey, Chris Smith, the US Congress had held a hearing on 6.10. 05 on the subject. A resolution on the issue – â€Å" India’s unfinished Agenda: Equality and Justice for 200 million victims of the caste system† was prepared by the house committee on International Relations and US Human Rights to be tabled in the US Congress. â€Å"Despite the Indian government’s extensive affirmative action policies, which aim to open government service and education to Dalits and tribes, most have been left behind by India’s increasing prosperity†¦. Much much more remains to be done.† The resolution says, â€Å"It is in the interest of US to address the problem of the treatment of groups outside the caste system†¦ in the republic of India in order to better meet our mutual economic and security goals†¦.† So far, intensive lobbying by Dalit groups including followers of Ravidass sect succeeded in getting passed the Equity Bill on March 24, 2010 in the House of Lords. It empowered the government to include ‘caste’ within the definition of ‘race’. In 2001, India was able in keeping caste out of the resolution adopted at 2001 Durban Conference. Along with it, staunch supporters of Human Rights, some Scandinavian countries, Church organisations around the world and Lutheran World Federation have shown interest and expressed their solidarity with Dalits. Recently the comment of UN Commissioner for human rights, Navipillay asking India that â€Å"time has come to eradicate the shameful concept of caste† and proposals of UN Human Rights Council’s or US based Human Rights Watch (HRW) to recognise caste as a form of discrimination ‘based on descent and birth’ appear not to be based on rational understanding of caste system. Their opinion about untouchability is greatly influenced by the lobbying of powerful/influential Dalit leaders and Dalit intelligentsia. No one knows where the Dalit assertion will lead the nation to? It is not the paternalistic policies, (which have failed to yield so far the desired results) that are required for the upliftment and empowerment of submerged sections of society, but there is need to educate, make them aware of their rights and duties, provide enough employment opportunities and other civic facilities like health etc at the grass root level for the sustainable growth of backward communities.

Leadership and managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Leadership and managment - Essay Example They integrate tasks, structure, technology, resources, and people into a productive configuration. Managers plan, organize, direct and control. In the end, however, they achieve goals through the efforts of other people. They have to influence the behavior of other people in order to get things done. This requires leadership, and, managers have to be leaders as well. At St. Luke’s Medical Center in the Philippines, leadership is governed by the Board of Trustees. It is in the light that this essay is written to analyze the company in terms of its leadership, vision and mission, strengths and weaknesses, and the underlying factors which assist the company in achieving their goals. St. Lukes Medical Center (SLMC) is located in the Philippines and has provided high-quality healthcare for over a century. Founded in 1903, its mission is to provide outstanding out-patient care. Today it is the foremost and most admired hospital in the Philippines and an acknowledged leader in Asia. (SLMC About Us 2009 par. 1) †St. Lukes delivers on its mission of healing by gathering under one roof the finest medical expertise, the most sophisticated medical technology and facilities, and a deep-rooted culture of compassion. It supports this mission with research and continuing education for those who serve. The total dedication to quality and caring of the St. Lukes family is what distinguishes the hospital as a center of healthcare excellence in Asia. The 650-bed hospital is home to nine Institutes, 13 Departments, and 19 centers. These centers of excellence bring to the Philippines the latest medical advances and treatment modalities. Over 1,700 hospital-affiliated medical consultants see out-patients in more than 450 private clinics. SLMC is the undisputed leader in virtually all medical specialties, including cardiovascular medicine, neurology and neurosurgery, cancer, ophthalmology, and digestive and liver diseases. It is the first choice of medical

Entrepreneurial Thinking in Multinational Organizations Essay

Entrepreneurial Thinking in Multinational Organizations - Essay Example Many multinationals are resorted to entrepreneurial thinking to formulate tactics for consolidating their positions in the market, making a dent into unexplored markets as well as maintained a steady growth rate. The term 'entrepreneur' comes from the French word 'entreprendre' which means 'to undertake.' It signifies a person who undertakes or operates a new enterprise or venture, while also taking responsibility for the risks involved in setting-up a new operation. Entrepreneurs are not limited to any one field, nor are they limited to the for-profit world. (Arti Pandey, 2006) External environment: While entrepreneurial organizations seek to identify opportunities in the external environment, traditional organizations look at the external environment for threats to their core business, rather than for new opportunities. (Hornsby, 1993) Strategy - Proactive strategic positioning is adopted by entrepreneurial organizations whereas traditional organizations take a more defensive position focusing to protect their core business. (Hornsby, 2002) Control Systems: Control Systems at traditional organizat... s at traditional organizations underlined by expense-based budgets whereas entrepreneurial organizations look at longer-term business planning and forecasting to guide their business. (Guth, 1990) Structure and Communication: Traditional organizations are hierarchical, centralized and formal, while entrepreneurial organizations are more decentralized and have informal communication flow.(Dess, 1999) Observations: Changes in entrepreneurial culture of Audit Big 4 firms Market trends in the financial markets such as Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other variations in the regulatory environment have necessitiatd corporates to modify their strategies to face these changes as well as remain competitive in the market environment. Some of the observations made in the changes in the entrepreneurial culture of the Audit Big 4 Firms are as detailed below: 3.1 Deloitte In the early ninties Deloitte was growing at a sedentary 11%/year, when it set itself the goal of doubling this rate. It realized that achieving this goal from a business-as-usual strategy was impossible, it therefore established a team known as the Strategic Business Development (SBD) team to look for new revenue-generating opportunities. With little bureaucracy to slow them down, the Strategic Business Development (SBD) team produced a clutch of initiatives: a customer relationship management business; an ethics and fraud hotline, Tip-Offs Anonymous; a joint venture with Citadel to establish Deloitte Private Client Advisors; and Deloitte Human Capital Corp. By creating these businesses to serve emerging and established markets, the unit contributed more than R300m to Deloitte's top line within three years. (Deloitte, 2006) In 2002 the Deloitte Innovation Programme was launched. The Innovation Zone was

Voice Command Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Voice Command Technology - Essay Example Once the software is correctly set up, it should be able to recognize approximately 95% of the speaker’s utterances when spoken clearly. The software has been subject to develop for the purpose of providing a faster method of writing to the electronic device and also be able to help people having various disabilities. The technology is similarly useful to those people having physical disabilities but often find typing to be difficult, painful, or impossible. The same technology may also be helpful to those people having spelling difficulties since the recognised words are easy to spell out correctly (McGee, 2004). Engineers have been working on the voice command technology for over 40 years now. Scientists believe that around 90 percent of the face-to-face communication consists of body language (Gardner-Bonneau & Blanchard, 2008). One can only realize on this when speaking or emailing a message. The same concept explains why the cell phone was subject to invent and the protocol of telephone voice adopted. Through the vast increase in the computing power, backed up with relatively growth in the mobile communication technologies, more renewed interests into voice and speech recognition technology have occurred. Having all these reasons in mind, voice command technology has been gaining availability over years. Through its growing use, voice command technology is difficult to use in environments that require maximum silence. For example, it is difficult to use in classroom settings because of the noise interference that it will cause. Looking at the future of technology in society and individual capacities, voice recognition technology will be able to revolutionise on the manner of which people will be conducting their activities and businesses.

Sociology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 29

Sociology - Essay Example t perspective, this development is good because robots make the production process more efficient thereby making goods more readily available and cheaper because they can now be produced in scale with lesser cost. From the conflict theorist however, this is not at all good because it will displace the jobs of humans by machines which are cheaper and easier to maintain. This can be gleaned in the comparison in the Philips assembly line in Drachten where robots dominated the factory requiring only few personnel while the same company also has a plant in China manned by thousands of employees doing the same thing. By this comparison, it showed the stark conflict of how robots in inimical to worker’s interest because it replaces them. This was highlighted by an article’s comment wherein it is said that humans are like animals which gives him headache to maintain stressing that human beings are also prone to conflict. For the symbolic interactionist however, there is a way that the two entity can exist in mutually beneficial interaction. It starts with a premise that human beings will not lose its place in our manufacturing plants and warehouses only that their interaction with work will be evolve such as their transfer to jobs that requires problem solving and creativity which robots cannot do such as those jobs in design. Markoff, J. â€Å"Skilled Work without the Worker†. August 18, 2012. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/19/business/new-wave-of-adept-robots-is-changing-global-industry.html?pagewanted=1&_r=3. Retrieved on February 01,