Work And Inequality In Society

Question 1

Main characteristics leading to social stratification

Answer 1

1. Power
2. Prestige
3. Property
4. Wealth

There is a finite amount of each, which will lead to stratification as some classes receive more than others.

Question 2

Social Interaction Theory

Answer 2

1. Theory revealing patterns in the way we act and react to others
2. Achieved Status, Ascribed Status, and Master Status

Question 3

Underemployment

Answer 3

1. Occurs when highly skilled and educated people work in low-skill, low-paying jobs.
2. Includes part-time and seasonal workers.
3. Measured by dividing the aggregate number of underemployed by the aggregate labor force.

Question 4

Causes of underemployment

Answer 4

1. Skill and job vacancy mismatch among graduates.
2. Unqualified graduates
3. Outdated school curriculum
4. The poverty cycle (poor people unable to pay for an education)
5. Population growth
6. Technological changes
7. Business cycles (companies can’t hire full-time workers during recessions)

Question 5

Visible underemployment

Answer 5

1. When employees work less than the standard industry hours (part-time)

Question 6

Invisible Underemployment

Answer 6

1. Employees that work in jobs that do not match their skills.
2. Literature BA working as a waiter.

Question 7

Marginal Productivity

Answer 7

1. The pay rate at which an employee is neither making their company money nor are they costing them with their pay.
2. In some states, a higher minimum wage would raise workers’ pay above that state’s marginal productivity amount, thus costing the employer money.

Question 8

Cash Public Assistance Programs

Answer 8

These programs give money directly to people in need.

1. Temporary Assistance of Needy Families (TANF)
2. Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
3. Earned Income Credit (EIC)

Question 9

In-kind Public Assistance Programs

Answer 9

Do not provide individuals with cash, but with other ways to meet their needs:
1. Healthcare programs
2. Food Stamps
3. Housing assistance (rental assistance, public housing, housing vouchers)

Question 10

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

Answer 10

1. For people 65 or older
2. For blind or disabled.
3. Cash Assistance

Question 11

Earned Income Credit (EIC)

Answer 11

1. Tax credit given for each dollar earned by those whose income is below a certain threshold.
2. Gives the working poor money in the form of a tax refund.
3. Cash Assistance

Question 12

3 Types of Racial Discrimination in the Workplace

Answer 12

1. Disparate Treatment
2. Disparate Impact (policies, practices, rules, or tests that single out specific races- intentionally or unintentionally)
3. Racial Hostility

Question 13

Court Cases of Racial Discrimination in the Workplace

Answer 13

1. McDonnell Douglas Corp. v Green (1973)- disparate treatment
2. Griggs v Duke Power (1971)- disparate impact

Question 14

Davis-Moore Thesis

Answer 14

States that social stratification has beneficial consequences for the operation of society.

Argues that the most difficult jobs in any society are the most necessary and require the highest rewards to motivate people to fill them.

Question 15

Social class for Weber

Answer 15

Saw three dimensions of social stratification in terms of a continuum:
1. Power
2. Prestige
3. Property or wealth

Question 16

McDonnell Douglas Corp v. Green (1973)

Answer 16

1. Must be a member of a group protected by Title VII
2. Applied and was qualified for the job
3. Rejected for the position
4. Employer continued to look for applicants with similar qualifications or the position was given to someone who was not in a protected group.

Question 17

Griggs v. Duke Power (1971)

Answer 17

1. It is not necessary to prove that an employers selection methods are deliberately discriminatory
2. The burden of proof in showing that the qualification is a necessary requirement for doing the job is on the employer.

Question 18

EEOC

Answer 18

1. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
2. Agency that enforced laws that prohibit workforce discrimination
3. Enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, for example