Downsizing Definition Essay Example for Free

Downsizing Definition Essay Downsizing occurs when a company permanently reduces its workforce. Corporate downsizing is often the result of poor economic conditions or the company’s need to cut jobs in order to lower costs or maintain profitability. Downsizing may occur when one company merges with another, a product or service is cut, or the economy falters. Downsizing also occurs when employers want to â€Å"streamline† a company – this refers to corporate restructuring in order to increase profit and maximize efficiency. Downsizing results in layoffs that are often followed by other restructuring changes, such as branch closings, departmental consolidation, and other forms of cutting pay expenses. In some cases, employers are not fired, but instead become part-time or temporary workers to trim costs. In a business enterprise, downsizing is reducing the number of employees on the operating payroll. Some users distinguish downsizing from a layoff, with downsizing intended to be a permanent downscaling and a layoff intended to be a temporary downscaling in which employees may later be rehired. Businesses use several techniques in downsizing, including providing incentives to take early retirement and transfer to subsidiary companies, but the most common technique is to simply terminate the employment of a certain number of people. Recentll, countrys largest cell phone company Grameenphone, has embarked on major operational cost-cutting measures that include the downsizing of its manpower in some specific sections of the company. GrameenPhone is the largest mobile phone company in Bangladesh. In the midst of lack of communication means, GrameenPhone has introduced an effective and user-friendly mobile phone network. It has put a positive impact on the lifestyle of the people of Bangladesh.It is one of the largest cellular operator in the country. It is a joint venture enterprise between Telenor and Grameen Telecom Corporation. Telenor is the largest telecommunications company in Norway, owns 51% shares of Grameenphone. It is amongst the oldest, most sophisticated, and diversified telecom companies in the world. Grameen Telecom itself owns 35% shares, 9.5% shares are held by Marubeni Corporation in japan and the remaining 4.5% shares are held by Gonofone Development Corp in New York. In addition, three leading international financial institutions the International Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank and the Commonwealth Development Corporation are also shareholders of GrameenPhone. The three organizations each hold three per cent of preferred shares of GrameenPhone. It was the first company to introduce GSM technology in Bangladesh. It also established the first 24-hour Call Center to support its subscribers. With the slogan Stay Close, stated goal of Grameenphone is to provide affordable telephony to the entire population of Bangladesh. At present around 4800 employees, both permanent and contractual, are working in different sections of the GP. But the sudden decision to downsize its manpower has created panic among most employees of the company that saw substantial rise in its annual profit-earning in recent years. The victims of the latest cost cutting measures are in most cases permanent employees who worked in the sales and services departments. The company has abolished its logistics services in all regional offices and in the case of sales it has reduced the number of posts and declared the remaining post vacant. Interestingly, it has asked all the sales staff either to compete a fresh for the vacant posts or take an attractive exit package. Management is saying it is a part of the business alignment process, Through a so called performance evaluation process the company is conducting termination of permanent employee who were meant to be loyal and efficient. Even in many cases employees are being forcefully asked to leave the organization. some of the employees have complained that Grameenphone’s management has threatened them to submit their resignation letter otherwise they will be mentally humiliated as well as downsized at work. From employee source it is found that in many cases the company is violating the Bangladesh Labor Act 2006 but the government or the labor law enforcement bureau is not taking any actio n. The statistic shows that last year the company profit incensement was almost 205% and the employee of the company was suppose to get a potation of the profit as per the company policy. But it never happened. As Grameenphone’s profit already is in increase as per last year’s report than the company should provide a valid reason of termination of such a large number of employment within a short time. Recently the management have introduces a new system of re-interview within the company to ensure the existing position of the individuals. Management has claimed this process as a part of performance evaluation tool which has made the employee to raise their voice against this injustice. By using such words like ‘Business Alignment’ and ‘Change in structure’ actually the company is terminating the employment of permanent employee who has given his 8 hours of every single day with loyalty to built this organization to this height. Even in some cases the company had forced some of the female employee to attend the interviews during their maternity leave and terminated their employment contract as claiming the employee is less productive for the company which is a direct violation of Bangladesh labor Act 2006. Employees have claimed that the management is not providing any written announcement or instruction but verbally they are asking to leave the organization through phone calls and general meeting. This year the government has announced 11% inflation rate but Grameenphone being a multination company has provided only 0%-5% incensement to it’s employees though it’s quarterly report shows almost 81% increase op profit with is this year. Back in 2009 Almost 1500 permanent employees are asked to leave the organization without any valid reasons but based on performance evaluation process. So how come the number of termination became so high based on performance evaluation process after a certain period of time every year? And how downsizing a large number of senior employees into junior position became ethical practice or business alignment process? As a Norwegian company people had a better expectation from Grameenphone but now it seems to be the reason behind of distraction of hundreds of employee’s career.

Cultural Messages in Solomon Gursky Was Here Essay -- Solomon Gursky W

Cultural Messages in Solomon Gursky Was Here Solomon Gursky Was Here   is an epic novel spanning nearly a century and a half, from the mid 1800's to 1980's.   It is the story of the obsession of   Moses Berger, a Rhodes scholar turned alcoholic, with Solomon Gursky, the charismatic son of a poor immigrant.   Solomon, with his brother Bernard and Morrie, built the massive liquor empire of McTavish industries.   Moses is attempting to write a biography of Solomon, which becomes his life's work.   Through his investigations the complex story of five generations of Gurskys is revealed.   The eldest is Ephraim, Solomon's criminal, perpetually scheming grandfather.   Ephraim, is constantly associated with the raven, he escaped imprisonment in England in the mid 1800's by forging documents, also allowing him to join a crew searching for the Northwest passage, called the Franklin Expedition. The expedition turned into a total disaster, Ephraim, the sole survivor.  Ã‚   The youngest Gursky appearing in this story is Is aac, Solomon's grandson.   This complex tale unravels, as Moses recalls, all of the events in his life which pertain to it.   Ever present in this Canadian cultural satire is the theme of filial relationships and the exploration of Solomon and his re-incarnation as Sir Hyman Kaplansky, in conjunction with his family and their exploits.   Every character in this novel is in some way corrupt or failure.   Moses is an alcoholic who did not live up to his potential; Bernard is a greedy self-centered bastard;    Solomon is a cheat, when it comes to gambling, women and anything else you can think of.  Ã‚   Richler, through this exaggeration of corruption a... ...ursky family and their diverse interests, life-styles and undertakings allows Richlers readers to grasp many parts of Canada in many different time frames.   This in turn allows him to satirize the stereotypes of Canada, its people and their culture.   Adding to idea of corruption, which enhances this satire, are the filial relationships occurring in this novel. The fact that all these relationships are unsuccessful and non-cordial, enhances the idea that all Canadians roots are in some way corrupt or failures.   Richler, shows how these traits are passed through generation after generation.  Ã‚   There can be no doubt that Solomon, one of the most corrupt characters in the book, becomes Sir Hyman after his staged death.   Richler has tied his complex story of Solomon Gursky, his family and their exploits together with his cultural messages

Village by the Sea

The Village By The Sea (1982) is a novel written by the popular Indian writer Anita Desai. It is based on the poverty, hardships and sorrow faced by a small rural community in India. [edit] Plot The Village by the Sea is set in a small village called Thul in Western India and focuses on a family trying to make ends meet. The main protagonists are Lila, the eldest child who is 13 years old, and her 12 year old brother Hari. They also have two younger sisters. They live with their mother, who has been chronically ill and is bed ridden.Their father is an alcoholic, which forces Hari and Lila to manage the family. With two younger sisters to take care of, life for Lila and Hari is too hard. Hari decides that he has had enough and leaves for Bombay to find work. Lila is left alone to take care of her family, and struggles to do so. Help comes from an unexpected source, the rich De Silvas. Meanwhile, Hari is new in the great city of Bombay and all alone. A kind watchman at an apartment whe re the De Silvas live, The Seabird, brings him to a restaurant owned by Jagu who gives Hari a job there.Hari builds a strong friendship with Mr. Panwallah, the lovable watchmaker. Through his experience with Mr. Panwallah and Jagu and the chain of events that take place in Bombay, Hari realizes that he could actually make a career as a watchmaker. Meanwhile, Lila, Bela and Kamal are forced to admit their sick mother in town hospital through the help of the De Silvas. Their father turns over a new leaf, and accompanies their mother throughout her 7 month treatment. Meanwhile Hari returns home to the changing environment.Anita Desai has explicitly described in her very own style of writing, how Hari in the dilapidated conditions of the Sri Krishna Eating House finds warmth and affection through Mr Panwallah-owner and watch mender of the Ding-Dong watch shop. Mr Panwallah instills confidence in Hari and comforts him when he is terribly home sick. He even gives Hari a vivid and inspirin g future and teaches him watch mending. This shows that even in one of the busiest, rickety and ramshackled cities such as Bombay there is still hope, love and affection. edit] Themes The themes in ‘The Village by the Sea' are: †¢ Harsh living conditions in India †¢ Adaptations to changing environments †¢ Poverty, hardships and sadness of rural Indians †¢ Hari as a central character of this and teaches how to fight hardships as there are good times and bad times in a person's life †¢ The building up of factories in the village Thul and how it has an impact on the villagers(Effects of â€Å"Urbanization†) †¢ Never giveup †¢ Determination †¢ Progress [ Village by the Sea Anyone who knows India knows how strong the vitality of spirit is here even under the worst circumstances. Continuing in this spirit, Anita Desai narrates, â€Å"I did not hide the pain, but I also wanted to communicate this capacity for enjoyment†. And this is what gives us ‘The Village By The Sea beautifully narrated by Anita Desai. It is the exemplary story of Thul, a small village north of Bombay along the coast where for centuries and centuries, life has been punctuated by the rhythms of small-scale agriculture and fishing.And then suddenly, in the seventies, comes the wave of â€Å"progress† in the form of an industrial plant: a large pesticide factory. The initial suspicion turns to hope for a better life in spite of the obvious danger to health because the economic aspect of existence is too central to afford to challenge such a great opportunity. The story brings into contact with the humanity of its inhabitants through the story of Lila and Hari, brother and sister, who get used to helping themselves and become the bread earners for their family comprising of a mother corroded by mysterious illness and an alcoholic father, along with two other small sisters.In the process they become witnesses of a literary radical change that has marked all over India in recent decades. The young Hari, comes to the city of dreams- Bombay to improve his condition and is faced with a new world. He gets engaged in the restaurant through the kind-hearted Jagu, who is also a poor fellow like him. The friendly Mr. Panwallah, a very kind and wealthy man helps him in all ways especially by teaching a craft that can improve the condition of his life and his family as also is the rich DeSilva, who, for no apparent reason, offer to accompany their mother in the hospital and to pay for the medicines.It is also one of the recurrent violence of nature, the monsoons, which make life difficult for the people especially those living in shacks crowded together in l arge cities. In the last pages of this novel lies with a similar (albeit attenuated) sense of helplessness: no one can stop the environmental pollution and destruction of an entire area, which will surely bring with it a general crisis of local residents. It ‘a story that points out a little' unusual India compared to what we are accustomed to imagine.In all this the author exercises impressive description of solidarity between the rich and the poor, which touches lives in the pure realization that life is good. It’s a way of saying that with good will and good luck â€Å"there it can be done† and you can build a better future with the running wheel of destiny continuing to improve as also worsen things. Anita Desai joins the chorus of writers in the complaint of a collective drama often passed unnoticed by the rest of the world.The trait is light and gentle, the characters do not cry, but the voice remains etched indelibly in the reader. What remains at the bott om is a strange sensation of the ongoing quest for survival. There is sweat and toil, there is suffering and there is joy. Everyone is determined by the karma and everything is as it should be. Everything appears inserted in the ongoing wheel of life, eternal change always equals to itself.

Organic vs. Conventional Foods Essay - 1119 Words

With the world’s population continuing to increase, the demand for food is higher than ever. This increase in food demand also calls for more efficient ways of growing and providing the food. Two methods that are very controversial are the organic and conventional method. While many people support the organic method because of its known benefits, others feel that it is an over inflated industry that cheats consumers out of their money. But recently many studies have disproved those critics. These studies prove that Organic food is a better choice than conventional because it is better for the environment, avoids the use of chemicals, and is generally more beneficial. To help keep crops from being destroyed, conventional farmers use†¦show more content†¦It is also shown that pesticides are partly responsible for the rising cancer rates and birth defects among children (â€Å"Pesticides†). Organic farming methods avoid the use of these chemicals and rely on natural method to control crops (â€Å"Farming, Organics†). Examples of these methods are crop rotation, which consists of planting different crops every year and disrupts the life cycle of pests and provides a natural fertilizer (â€Å"Farming, Organics†). Organic farmers also use natural fertilizers such as sulfur and interplanting methods that alternate crops in the field, which discourages pests to live there (â€Å"Farming, Organics†). By not using multiple chemicals to control crops, organic farming also ends up being better for the environment. Organic farmers use natural fertilizers such as manure so that they do not release artificial chemicals into the ground (â€Å"Organic Food†). In June of 1999 a report made by the U.S. Geologic Survey, found that most waterways and ground water supplies in both urban and rural areas contained enough pesticides to endanger aquatic life (â€Å"pesticides†). These chemicals can also leak into streams and encourage the growth of algae and intoxicate the water (â€Å"298 John P. Reganold et.al†). Furthermore studies have found that water contaminated with pesticides may accumulate in theShow MoreRelatedOrganic vs. Conventional Food1235 Words   |  5 PagesOrganic vs. Conventional Food In the United States consumers are inundated with every option imaginable for food. Among those options is the choice of organic or conventional food. Health experts will tout the virtues of organic food as being better for the consumer and preventing many diseases, however, there seems to be more to it than that. When speaking with friends, especially those living on a budget, the philosophy leans more towards the difference between fresh and processed food, andRead MoreOrganic Vs Conventional Food Vs Organic Food Essay954 Words   |  4 PagesOrganic versus Conventional Food Are you concerned about the health of yourself and that of your family when walking through the grocery store? You should be. You might be surprised to learn about chemicals known to exist in the conventional foods we eat daily. Ever wonder why apples are so shiny? A coating of shellac is applied to apples to give them a shiny coating, prolonging their shelf life, and prevent bruising. You might reconsider the next time you reach for the shiniest red apple and rememberRead MoreOrganic Foods And Farming Vs. Conventional Foods1902 Words   |  8 Pages Over the last few years, awareness of organic food has risen. 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Body Part 1 Pros – Organic foods can beRead MoreEveryone Should Buy Organic Food.1228 Words   |  5 PagesPERSUASIVE SPPECH PREPARATION OUTLINE Title: | Everyone should buy organic food | General purpose: | To persuade | Specific purpose: | To persuade my audience to buy organic food | Central idea: | Organic food is the best food for consumers instead of conventional food | Organizational pattern: | Problem, problem, problem | I. INTRODUCTION | A. Open with impact/ Attention getter: | Let’s imagine. One day you are in a supermarket and you decided to buy vegetables. Well, they are allRead MoreOrganic Farming Produces Organic Food1220 Words   |  5 Pagescan Pronounce It The word Organic can be defined in multiple ways but what the word basically means that the product is derived from living matter. Organic farming produces organic food. The goal is to encourage soil and water conservation, reduce pollution, and constrain conventional methods to fertilize and control weeds. 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