Internet Traps and False Information Essay

Internet very popular important with everybody. Nowadays, everybody also use internet. It connect people on the world. Traditional class and internet class very diffenrent Internet is the traditional system, it will help our have more knowledge, good information, good news†¦ In the past, people used internet is the search system. It have a lot of good thing in the internet. It help we have friends , forum , search everything we want. We can know more knowledge But everything will be have negative and positive. We just know a good thing in the internet , we do not need to know a lot of bad thing on the internet . Social also have two face and internet too . It has troubles , traps †¦ we need to be thought wise, we certainly know right from wrong. Therefore , we should fully exploit the advantages of the internet, that advantage should not do bad things or negative. Internet always contains interesting things. Internet is one of the greatest inventions of human history. When old does not have internet, humans can be difficult to share the necessary information useful life, thanks to the internet, today we know a lot of things good. We need to know to take advantage of the internet to be useful, or exploitation of useful things in this life. It will help you feel better love life, more interesting things. But sometimes we take advantage of it in a bad job, bad purposes will cause the opposite effect. It makes us inadvertently lead us to wrong path that they want and go against positive thinking. If we take advantage of the bad things on the internet, it will lose the good thing is its capital. Because the internet sometimes contain false information about the problem, negative nature, does not serve the purpose well. Traditional classroom is the class just come to class and do homework, construct and develop courses. Traditional classes can help students become more active in this life. Students can hardly develop the capabilities as well as their knowledge. Traditional classroom is very limited and restrictive. It is difficult to create a sense of comfort and good environment for students to learn. It gives the students a feeling extremely uncomfortable, passive. The school on the internet is extremely beneficial, it helps us to easily absorb everything without hard working. Classroo m based courses offer more focus than online courses. In a classroom, students are forced to be quiet and listen to the teacher or their peers. They can even switch to a different tab with their favorite social network instead of what they’re supposed to be learning. the Internet  classroom is convenient for professors, too! They can give us a quiz without any paper, which can reduce the consumption of trees. At the same time, it may be easier for some teachers to make corrections or comments on student’s work on the computer. In this way, the professors can concentrate more on teaching. They don’t need to care about students’ behavior like eating, talking on the cell phone, or going to the toilet. Traditonal class makes sense to attend classes in person if you decide to live in the dorms or are an incoming freshmen who wants the real college experience. There are certainly more opportunities to join clubs, associations, or fraternities/sororities while taking classes on campus.

Labor Unions in US

Labor Unions must be understood in the context of the economic structures that occurred within the United States and included the agrarian, industrial, and post industrial period (Cohen 27). In the year 1700, there were approximately 220,000 people living in the United States and approximately 95% were farmers (94 Almanac 53). The farmers comprised small communities and at that time there was no need for Unions as we know them today. Some of the earliest Unions were created in the 1700's when the shoemakers in Philadelphia formed a Trade Union for the purpose of regulating the wages that they would pay an apprentice and establish the length of time that apprenticeship would be necessary (Leap 29). In the mid-1700's small cities began to grow along the east coast of the United States. Although the cities began to grow, the society was still agrarian in nature (Cohen 28). As the country entered he industrial revolution, the population began to migrate to the cities (Cohen 28). The industrial revolution experienced a need for coal, oil, and food production, especially the meat packing industry (Cohen 29). The needs centered around the railroads which expanded greatly during the 1850's (Rogers 7). During this period the railroads became dependent upon massive amounts of information and organization to effectively run their operations. It is during this time period that the railroads developed management practices that included formalized accounting procedures and management techniques for supervisors dealing with the many people employed by the railroad (Rogers 7). In addition, the railroads began to establish their own codes, rules and regulations for operating the railroads (Yates 153). In 1910, the population of the United States had grown to 92. 2 million people (Census Bureau 26). Industry was expanding at a rapid rate and the companies that controlled them pushed for greater profits and efficiency. Industries also published their own magazine, such as â€Å"Factory Magazine† that was aimed at reaching a higher level of production (Yates 105). Also include for the first time were magazine articles written to improve the morale of the factory worker in an attempt to humanize the workforce through articles and illustrations (Yates 74). However, these article were also an attempt to educate the work force in the policies and procedures of the company. Many of these companies also had constructed â€Å"company towns† where the factory workers were employed, resided in company owned buildings in which they paid rent, bought food and clothing in company owned stores and also company provided recreation (Leap 32). Many of the factory workers, almost one-third, were uneducated immigrants that could not speak the American language and were frequently taken advantage of economically (Leap 30). The early 1900's also brought mass manufacturing and the interchangeable parts for equipment and machinery to the industries, based on the efforts of Henry Ford (Cohen 28). The United States had become the industrial leader of the world. The industrial giants in the United States gained so much control over their employees that the workers conformed to the organizational culture of that company (Gibson 29). Management theories and social theories during the early 1900's concentrated on managements side and the more effective production methods. In 1911, Frederick Taylor wrote â€Å"The Principles of Scientific Management† that emphasized time and motion studies, breaking large jobs into smaller ones and analyzing repetitive tasks in an attempt to find a more efficient way of doing the job. An employees pay quickly became dependent upon how many pieces could be produced in an hour or a day (French 69). Working conditions in factories were deplorable, with long hours, child labor and numerous industrial accidents that claimed many lives The issues that surrounded the early labor movement were centered around the redistribution of wealth of the companies that employees worked for. The labor movement in the United States began very slowly due to the oppressive actions taken by the large companies against the labor activists, which included firing employees, beatings, and killings. During the late 1860's to the 1930's, government actions supported big business believing that Unions would only interfere with private ownership (Cohen 113). Between 1876 and 1896, there were more injuries and deaths due to strikes in the United States than in any other nation in the world (Cohen 114). Companies hired private guards and security specialists to break up any strikers and protect company property (Cohen 114). Violence often was the result of result of early attempts at organizing labor movements. A riot in Baltimore lasted three days and claimed 13 lives. In Pittsburgh 20 people died as federal troops fired upon rioting workers and fires destroyed millions of dollars of railroad equipment (Leap 32). Violence also was occurring at the coal-mining companies when and secret societies such as the Molly Maguires that would threaten, beat or kill strike breaker at coal mines. Additionally the Molly Maguires, who often concealed their identity by dressing as as women, beat, killed and set fires to the homes of the supervisors and coal-mine superintendents who were not in agreement with the union cause. The Molly Maquires were broken up when the Pinkereton Detective Agency infiltrated the organization and exposed them which resulted in 14 Molly Maguires being tried and hanged (Leap 34). The public viewed much of this violence with an anti-union response, making it more difficult for the employees to unionize (Leap 33). With the population at over 92 million people in 1914, many who were now working in factories, the government began to recognize labor and created the Department of Labor in 1914 (Cohen 115). However, it was not until 1934 and the passage of the Wagner Act did labor really begin to unionize (Cohen 115). In addition, the government created the National Labor Relations Board to oversee union elections (Cohen 115). The Wagner Act allowed for employees to unionize and also allowed for the â€Å"closed shop† that required all employees of that factory or company to belong to the union once the union was voted in by the employees (Cohen 116). The Wagner Act legally permitted unions to organize and provide the much needed benefits for their employees. The goals of the unions during this time were to protect the jobs of their members and fight for increased wages and benefits (Leap 37). The benefits included safer working conditions, health care, sick leave, and vacation time (Leap 37). During these years the American Federation of Labor (AFL) became the largest single federation that began to organize craft unions. In 1938 the industrial unions were dissatisfied with the AFL federation and split off to form the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), which sought to organize more unskilled labor (Leap 46). After World War II, the United States had approximately fifteen million workers that belonged to unions. In 1946, the United States experienced more labor strikes than ever before in history and the labor unions finally had a firm hold on large industrial and manufacturing companies (Leap 47). The Wager Act had provided the unions with a great deal of leverage and some unions quickly became corrupt and had very little accountability within their organization (Leap 48). The Taft-Hartley Act was passed in 1947 which was designed to curb some of the activities of unions and provide for unfair labor laws against the union that would be enforced by the National Labor Relations Board (Leap 48). The Taft-Hartley Act was successful in re-balancing the Wagner Act that gave the unions an unfair advantage of management (Leap 73). The Act also gave the President of the United States the authority to impose an 80-day injunction on any strike that may result in damage to the national economy or national interests (Infoplease 1). The injunctions have been used frequently in the transportation industry, where a strike against the railroads or the shipping industry could effect the distribution of food, clothing, or fuel, that could impact the economic structure of the country (Infoplease 1-2). In addition the Taft-Hartley act prohibited jurisdictional strikes involving two unions attempting to gain control over company employees for the right to represent them in collective bargaining (Infoplease 1-2). The Taft-Hartley Act prohibited the use of coercion by union officials to force employees to join the union, set the guide lines for bargaining in good faith with management, prohibited secondary boycotts that involved unions striking or boycotting products and materials of other companies that management held an interest, and prohibited excessive union dues from its membership. The unions reached their highest membership in 1954 reaching approximately 32% of all non-agricultural workers in America (Cohen 119). The following year the AFL and CIO Federations merged to make one large federation called the AFL-CIO (Cohen 119). What made the Unions so popular up to 1954 and what caused their decline? Early unions attempted to seek higher wages, less working hours, better and safer working conditions (Leap 51). Early unions also recognized the working conditions of the employees were critical to the production effort and experiments like the Hawthorne Experiment proved this to be true. In 1927 a team of Harvard researchers conducted experiments at Western Electric†s Hawthorne Electric Plant near Chicago, Illinois (Stillman 157). The tests were designed to discover the most effective way to motivate workers and these tests began the human relations era in organizational theory and development (Stillman 157). What was discovered after a five year study was that the interaction between the workers themselves and the with their supervisors, had more impact on the production levels than did wages or type of physical plant that they worked in (Stillman 158). Most of what was need by the workers was the social acceptance and feeling of worth among co-workers and bosses (Stillman 158). In every work area the individuals formed themselves into groups that have their own customs, duties, and localities to each other and management (Stillman 167). The attention given to the workers by management created a team effort that produced exceptional results on the assembly lines (Stillman 167). The Hawthorne experiment developed the human relations model of management for dealing with workers that existed from the 1930's to the 1960's, and in some variation still exists today (French 70). Training for interpersonal skills to â€Å"humanize† the workplace Unions continued to initially prosper as they also followed the developments of social researchers as Abraham Maslow, who in 1954 presented his view in human motivation (French 71). What resulted is called â€Å"Maslow†s Theory of Self-Actualization† where Maslow outlines the basic human needs for survival, then the need of safety and security, followed by the need for social acceptance and belonging, to the forth level of self-esteem, and the fifth level of self-actualization or self-fulfillment in doing one†s work (Halloran 104-108). The unions quickly adapted to the needs and desires of its membership and sought for issues such as respect in the workplace, health and safety issues, sexual harassment policies, equal pay for equal work, and generous leave time allowing for recreational activities. The Unions also became a culture within themselves, sponsoring community events for its members such as bazaars, summer picnics, Christmas parties, and scholarships programs for eligible dependent children of its members. The Unions provided community structure and support for its membership when those needs were necessary (Leap 49). The humanist approach to negotiating worked well for the unions in their negotiations with management. The more progressive companies such as IBM provided benefits that could out perform the best of unions and therefore IBM never experienced a serious threat to unionize because the work force needs were met under Maslow†s Theory (Halloran 315). Other large organizations such as the Japanese automobile maker Nissan, has also met the workers needs and therefore has built cars in the United States without the being unionized by the United Auto Workers Union, which is one of the largest and strongest unions remaining in North America (Halloran 315). The decline of labor unions began in the mid-1950's as many of the needs of the workers were being met, either through the company†s individual effort or the passage of federal and state laws that enhanced the workers position in life. Some of the laws passed were the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) in 1970 that provides for safe and healthy work environments for employees (Leap 90). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) function is to make sure that the environment is regulated concerning emissions from cars and factories, which directly effects the workers that must work in those factories (Kuennan 4). The Fair Labor Standards Act brought into existence the minimum wage rate, established a 40 hour work week for hourly wage employee wages and also provided overtime at a one-and-one-half the normal hourly rate. The Act defined the number of hours that a child could work each week and restricted the type of employment that a child could engage in (Leap 89). Additional acts such as the Equal Pay Act was aimed at women in the work force as required equal pay for equal work. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act required that an employer treat the pregnancy as a temporary disability and to provide appropriate benefits (Kuennen 5). The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) also covered other disabilities and declared that discrimination against the disabled is illegal. The ADA also required that public buildings and private buildings that are open to the public, be handicap accessible, giving them unrestricted access (Leap 88). Discrimination laws, including sex, age, and disability discrimination, were issues that the unions previously fought to get for their membership are now being provided by federal and state law (Kuennan 5). The decline of the unions can also be attributed to the post-industrial age in the United States. Since the mid-1970's manufacturing has been leaving the United States and relocating in foreign countries where labor costs are much cheaper. Manufacturing such as steel production, clothing and textiles, and ship building have relocated to foreign countries over the past two decades (Cohen 110). The unions lobbied heavily against such trade agreements as the North American Free Trade Association (NAFTA) that created a free trading zone with the United States, Canada, and Mexico to avoid tariffs (Cohen 119). Many of the industrial jobs that were once in the United States are now in Mexico and even oversees (Cohen 119). While the unions have lost membership in the industrial and manufacturing areas, they have had some success in unionizing government workers (Cohen 120). The unions have targeted teachers, college and university professors, police, fire and other government workers such as the postal workers (Cohen 120). The latest groups to attempt unionization are the nurses, doctors and dentists within the health fields (Guadagnino 1). The public perception of unions was favorable during the mid-60's with approximately 70% of the people showing positive attitudes toward the unions. However, the public has lost a great deal of trust in the unions as corruption and a general feeling of not needing unions has evolved. By 1988 the confidence level or approval rate that was once 70% had dropped to 13% (Cohen 121). The public also blamed the unions for the high inflation in the 1970's and early 1980's in which the public believes that the unions drove up the prices of goods and services by their demands during contract negotiations. The non-union worker however suffered from this inflation while the unions upper level executives were getting paid salaries over $100,000 (Cohen 121). Governments also began to become more conservative in their treatment of unions. An example of this was in the early 1980's when the federal Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) when out on strike and crippled the airline industry. PATCO went on strike to seek better working hours and to force the federal government to hire additional air traffic controllers to help reduce the stress levels of the current air traffic controllers. The Reagan administration took quick action and fired all the air traffic controllers and immediately used military personnel until new employees could be trained (Cohen 122). The population of the United States is over 270 million people as of March of 1999 and only 14% of the work force is unionized. This work force includes government employees of which 44% are union members (Dine 1). The culture of the population has changed dramatically and a great deal of the people are younger, better educated than the classes that were previously sought by unions (Cohen 123). The new class of American society is more professional and white collar in nature that mirrors the service industry that has evolved in the United States (Cohen 124). To add to the union decline was the fact that the corporations that once held the edge over unions, only to loose that edge in the 1940's through the 1960's, have again regained that edge decisively by attending to the public†s needs and social attitudes (Cohen 124). Company†s like McDonald†s have well developed publications departments that donate millions of dollars to charities such as the Ronald McDonald half-way house for the parents of terminally ill children in distant hospitals (Ronald 1-4). Corporations also donate and participate in attempting to keep the environment clean. The corporations realize that reaching the social conscience of the public is good business and worth the investment. In the last two decades the corporations identified with the social issues in America much more than did the unions (Cohen 124). Quality of life issues have become major considerations of this post-industrial class of Americans (Cohen 124). Even though companies have made the worker feel more important and accepted, there is still a need for unions. Companies are doing everything they can to save money. By focusing on the worker, they are making labor less dependant apon unions. They are fighting a war with the unions, and the battleground is the American worker. If the companies win then they are sure to underpay and abuse their employees. It is critical that unions recruit more agressively, or a lot the progresss they have made will be lost.

Case Analysis Of ZipCar

Case Analysis Of ZipCar Zipcar was established in 1999 and it is a leading company in the car sharing industry in North America with a strong presence in the U.S., Canada and Europe (Goldman S., May 2008). The company has 200000 members in 50 markets and concentrates on businesses, residential areas and universities (Goldman S., May 2008). Their vision is â€Å"†Providing reliable and convenient access to on-demand transportation, complementing other means of mobility.†Ã¢â‚¬  (Goldman S., May 2008) The company car fleet consists of 5000 cars that include hybrid vehicles, SUVs and sedans (Goldman S., May 2008). Their business is concentrated on a small market where people need to rent a car on an hourly basis instead of daily basis. The customers can reserve a car online and use an RFID card called the zipcard to enter the reserved car by swiping the card on the reader near the driver’s windshield (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)). Other than having a unique service Zipcar employs pow erful technology to support its business model (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)). They have a patented wireless technology that is used to monitor car security, feul level, hourly usage and other features (Pearlson, K., Saunders, C. (2009)) . Zipcar has developed a unique business model and supported it with appropriate technology which makes it a unique business. Regarding the bargaining power of buyers, Zipcar service is considered unique and the market they are targeting is considered niche. Since it is hard to find a service like the one provided by Zipcar and the market is small the buyers bargaining power is low. The other substitute available is renting cars by day which is not convenient for some of the customers. Public transportation and car ownership is another alternative but it may be costly due to the rising fuel prices. In the other traditional car rental companies the customers have to wait for long to get their car. By using Zipcar they can find a nearby car witho ut waiting which is more convenient. In addition, Zipcar has an established brand name and a strong identity which makes the customers more attached to it. With a unique service and an established brand name Zipcar customers cannot be high on price sensitivity and their bargaining power is reduced. Concerning the bargaining power of suppliers, most of the suppliers for Zipcar are not concentrated. Insurers, gas providers and car agencies can be considered among the suppliers of Zipcar. All of these work in competitive markets. There are several insurers, car agencies and gas providers and Zipcar can chose among them which makes the bargaining power of suppliers low. However, Zipcar needs parking spaces and auto services which can be beneficial for the supplier. Parking spaces can be owned by a government authority or a business establishment. Zipcar may need to build and maintain relationships with these entities to get the parking spaces especially if the government or the establis hment owns a huge parking area. This way the supplier might have the upper hand since Zipcar needs those spaces near the customers. Also, the cars that Zipcar uses need services which makes the company limited to a very few suppliers to provide this service. Since cars are the basis for the business, Zipcar needs to choose one reliable supplier for the car service. Therefore, parking area owners and car service providers can be considered powerful suppliers.

Final year project computing with business Dissertation

Final year project computing with business - Dissertation Example 40 Appendix C 40 Abstract A search through literature from various secondary sources shows that there is not much focus on the salon business when it comes to electronic commerce. Even though there are isolated sources that talk about different and independent components of the subject of e-commerce and the salon businesses, there cannot be found much specific literature that relates e-commerce directly to the salon business. There could be a number of reasons accounting for such gaps in literature. E-commerce has actually been appreciated as a platform that makes the conduct of businesses very rapid and forthcoming. This is because it generally ensures that the small working place of a particular business venture gains a global status by having its presence registered in every corner of the world where internet services can be accessed. The study was conducted to bring out the problem with the numerous cases of congestion at salons and the frequent disappointments that customers enc ountered. The study was conducted with the notion that if the identified problem was adequately dealt with, salon operators and customers could adequately plan their times to ensure that customers are placed at the best times they could receive service. Once this is done on the wings of e-commerce, there can be the assurance that there will be improved satisfaction of work. This can also increase profitability for salon owners. Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study The impact of technology on human life is certainly overwhelming, specifically when mention is made of computers and for that matter the internet. Today, the internet has become a one stop centre where almost everything a person needs in a day to make his life complete can be found (Winner, 2008). But even as the popularity and usefulness of the internet advances, businesses and business operators in various industry sectors have taken advantage of the situation to advance their trade and make their revenues grow. One of the most crucial and important ways in which businesses make use of the internet is through electronic commerce, commonly referred to as e-commerce. Through e-commerce, a lot of activities take place on the internet, including advertisement of products and services, window shopping, search for products and services, sale and purchase of products and services, the booking of appointment services, and the payment of products and services (Virilio, 2008). It would however be noted that most e-commerce that take place among various companies and business ventures; no matter how large or small they are, take place via the use of specific websites. Such websites

English Language Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

English Language Learning - Essay Example The projection is that by 2015 over 50 percent of all students in K-12 public schools across the US will be ELL students, boosting the number of this school population that has the highest dropout rate and the lowest ranking in academic achievement and expectations. The phenomenon necessarily speaks ill of the American public school system. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was enacted precisely to address the problems being encountered by ELL students across the US, so that the educational system smoothens rather than retards their acculturation process. Among the salient features of the NCLB law is the provision that makes parental involvement a key component in the educational efforts to serve ELL needs. It defines parental involvement in children education as a regular, two-way and meaningful communication between parents and schools to ensure that parents are full partners in their children's educational experience. The NCLB includes testing requirements for ELLs. These test scores may be factored into the determination of whether a school is making adequate yearly progress. (Gray & Fleischman, 2005) The problem is that in some ... This explains the lack or at least low level of interest of most parents in the education process for their children (Gray & Fleischman, 2005). The NCLB Act makes it imperative upon the schools to overcome this cultural barrier to ELL (Tuite, 2003) by establishing means of communication with the parents. The schools could invite the parents of immigrant families to such school activities like classroom demonstrations of their culture or awarding for children's accomplishments. In communicating and coordinating with parents, it was suggested that the schools use the immigrants' language and may thus need to hire special translators for the purpose (Gray & Fleischman, 2005). Otherwise, this may reinforce another perception common to immigrant parents in America that has to do with the issue of power. A common perception among immigrant parents is that English is the language of a rich and powerful postindustrial society, whereas their native language is less impressive and commands les s respect (Walqui, 2000). Language learning, according to experts, is an interactive activity as dependent on social context as it is on cognitive transfer. All parents have the rights to choose the instructional program that best meets their child's needs, this choice to be indicated in writing. For the first three years, students may be enrolled in a bilingual, dual or English-as-secondary-language program. Afterwards, the parents may elect to continue with the program or change to the mainstream classroom. This choice shall be made at an orientation session at the start of the school year, which focuses on orienting parents to the school system, explaining to

Essay/Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

/Memo - Essay Example nt of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her humanitarian work, Mother Theresa has left an important legacy of humanism and self-sacrifice after years working to better humanity (Clucas, 1998). Mother Theresa was first and foremost a Christian who believed in the spread of the Gospel and the eternal redemption of the poor through the word of Christ. She was a humanist who left her native Albania to tend to the sick, frail and the poor and established an international charitable organization which sought to administer to the sick and dying around the world. Mother Theresa was known for her selflessness and the charitable nature of her life. Kindness and self-sacrifice were virtues that she lived by. Mother Theresa worked tirelessly to help others and based her life upon the compassionate teachings of Christ. A humanist in the truest sense, Mother Theresa tended to the poorest of the poor, irrespective of ethnic or racial differences. According to the Mother Theresa Center in Calcutta, India, Mother Theresa had the following to say about her worldview, â€Å"By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, I am Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus.† (Mother Theresa Center, 2009). Internal characteristics which Mother Theresa came to embody included a universalism which was not often understood in the context of the middle of the 20th century, an eternal compassion for the suffering of others and a call to duty to spread the word of God through help and self-sacrifice. Although she committed herself to a life of self-sacrifice and poverty, Mother Theresa’s charities were international in scope and established throughout the world. She worked with terminally ill patients and those inflicted with the scourge of leprosy in India while operating ministries in more than 100 countries by the late twentieth-century (Williams, 2002). Mother Theresa was a compassionate and

J.C Penny New Challenges in the Changing Workplace Research Paper

J.C Penny New Challenges in the Changing Workplace - Research Paper Example J.C Penny experiences the challenge of attracting and retaining highly experienced knowledge workers, including, engineers, physical and computer scientists. Particularly, J.C Penny has had to struggle with increased labor turnover among the knowledge workers. Nevertheless, J.C. Penny has been aggressive in developing strategies for effective management of these knowledge workers. Firstly, J.C. Penny continues to provide effective reward systems that ensure that the knowledge workers are satisfied and motivated towards ensuring organization success. Secondly, J.C Penny provides intensive and specialized training for the knowledge workers with the aim of improving their effectiveness, productivity and ensuring that their skills do not become obsolete due to the highly dynamic technological environment. Another contemporary challenge that J.C Penny faces is the management of contingent and temporary employees within the workplace. Griffin (2012) defines contingent employees are those working for the organization in under different employment arrangements other than full-time or permanent basis. The biggest challenge for J.C. Penny is striking a balance between permanent and contingent workers, and designing differential reward and incentive strategy for these set of employees. J.C Penny has however implemented a number of strategies for effective management of contingent and temporary workers within the organization. Firstly, J.C Penny engages in careful planning before engaging and integrating these employees within the workforce. Secondly, J.C. Penny engages in continuous assessment and evaluation of the costs and benefits of engaging these employees before reaching major decisions on the composition of the human

Individual Data Analysis Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Individual Data Analysis Report - Assignment Example Although he has enough knowledge needed to start such an upscale restaurant, he is unsure about the demand for such a restaurant in the city. The city had a population of nearly 500,000 but he could not provide any assurance regarding the taste or the income which would generate the demand for his restaurant. In such a situation, Michael requires to collect some additional information, on the basis of which he will succeed in promoting his restaurant properly and make the design, choices and price as per the preferable choice of the customers. In this context, the project aims to answer the questions raised by Michael and suggest him the most suitable way that he should choose to make his new business intervention profitable. The questions are as follows: Is there sufficient demand for such an upscale restaurant in the city? How much price are the patrons or the potential customers willing to pay? What should be the operating and design characteristics of the store? Where should the restaurant be located in the city? What should be the promotional strategy that the organization should follow? In order to find the answers to these questions, the study intends to frame certain hypotheses and find the answers to the questions by accepting or rejecting those. The study also uses descriptive analysis and frequencies to facilitate the process of finding the answers to the questions. Finally, the paper will be providing the necessary recommendations to Michael. Preliminary Analysis In the preliminary analysis, descriptive analysis and analysis using the frequencies is done and it is focused on finding answers to the questions raised by Michael. Frequencies of categorical variable The frequencies of the categorical variable when performed, it firstly found that the people of the metropolitan city where Michael is intending to open his business, about 100 percent of the people do eat in this type of upscale restaurant at least once in every two weeks. The analysis also revealed that maximum people is seen to pay $110 towards their meal in the restaurant for each month, which is unlike the expectation of Michael. When the survey participants were asked for their opinion on the average price charged for an evening meal entree, they are found to spend $16 for evening meal entree itself (See Appendix I). The analysis shows that about 96.3 percent of the respondents watch radio. Among those 96.3 percent, maximum of the respondents are found to be listening to rock music. The next higher percent listens to news or the talk shows. Among the participants of the survey, about 89 percent of the respondents are found to be the viewers of the local news channel. Out of these respondents, maximum percent is the viewers of 10:00 news. Among the 94.5 percent of the respondents who are the readers of newspaper, a majority of the respondents are more interested in the local news. Therefore, the overall analysis reveals that a majority of the sample who participate d in the study are interested in newspaper and radio as their most preferable media which they listen to often. The least preferred one is television. Thus, it can be suggested that among these three, Michael can choose

Communication management introduction Assignment - 1

Communication management introduction - Assignment Example Communication management is very diverse; it is also concerned with the process of developing corporate communication strategies, designing internal and external communications directives and strategies as well as managing the flow of information where online communication processes are also involved brand (May &Mumby2005). Development in information and communication technologies brings about the need for constant innovation on the part of communications managers in order to remain relevant in business practice (Pauley & Joseph 2009). Learners, who are organizational managers in this case, will be required to observe the following important rules in order to enjoy the program; first, it will be important that they make a good first impression in class. Research has always brought the important of a first impression in various instances, in this program; a good first impression to the professor especially on the first day will portray a serious and pleasant student, something that is likely to earn you the benefit of doubt as much as grades are concerned. Class attendance has to be done regularly and on time, this is an important rule in other areas of life. Students need to know that it is pretty hard for professors to notice you negatively wandering in class after the lecture has begun. This rule seems obvious that it ought not to be said, however, in every class, there will always be an absentee or one student who occasionally comes late. One should try to find a comfortable place to sit particularly at the front or center of the classroom; this is the best place where one is not distracted. In addition, sitting at this place makes one to follow easily the lecture proceedings and make notes. Students who like sitting at the back of the class are often assumed to be either lazy or shy, especially those who prefer positions in the corner of the room. Managers are expected to be alert all the

Personal Responsibility Paper Essay Example for Free

Personal Responsibility Paper Essay Personal responsibility is taking action so that one cant blame anyone but themselves, an education will help support their future because they are taking responsibility for their own actions and if one is responsible in their personal life they will be responsible in their college life. Education Supporting Ones Future Having a college education will definitely help when a person is shopping around in the job market. With the economy being in the state that it currently is in, a person without a college degree can easily be looked over when being compared to the person that does have the college degree. † Over their careers, full-time, full-year workers whose highest degree is a bachelors make 74 percent more, on average, than those whose highest attainment is a high-school diploma, the authors found. When those with more than a bachelors degree are included, the premium for higher education rises to 84 percent† (Supiano, 2011). If one is a college student that is going back after many years of working full time and taking care of a family an area that one may need to focus on for improvement might be time management. One will have to set up and follow an entirely new schedule so they can fit in their new duties as a college student. Setting clear starting and stopping times is a good planning strategy. â€Å"A variation of this technique is called time boxing. Time boxing is one way to overcome resistance to a task, focus your attention, and make a meaningful dent in large projects† (Ellis, 2011). Responsibility: Personal and College Life If one is responsible in their personal life one will be responsible in their college life. â€Å"When applied to education, personal responsibility means that students accept the responsibility to study hard and to learn as much as they can in courses that press against the limits of their capacity† (Haskins 2009). Being responsible is something one has to do in their everyday life whether it is going to work every day or taking care of their family. So if one can manage to be responsible in other aspects of their life one should be able to be a responsible student. Why Education Is Important To Ones Future The most important reason an education will help support ones future is because they are taking responsibility for their own actions. If one wants to better their life, whether it is successfully or just emotionally they are the one taking responsibility and are ultimately in control of how they handle it. Having a learning strategy will help to make your education a success. Everyone learns differently but one strategy that would be helpful to a person working through their education is metacognition: Metacognition usually deals with self-awareness of a student about his/her own capability in a particular learning area. The student evaluates his/her performance and tries to come up with better ways of learning. Self-critique, taking responsibility, personal reflection, individual monitoring, and changing study habits are some examples of metacognitive strategies. (Simsek, Balaban, 2010) The way a student could incorporate this strategy into their upcoming months would be taking responsibility and making sure friends and family know how important getting a college education is to them so they are understanding when times come up that they are not able to be around because they have responsibilities from class that may be more important. Personal reflection is another method a student could incorporate buy looking back and seeing what study methods worked best for them and their schedule. Conclusion By taking that next step to continue with education and work towards getting that college degree one is already helping to support their future. If one has been responsible in their life prior to starting their college education then one should be able to transition into their college duties with little disruption. Incorporating different learning strategies into their life will also assist with this transition to college student. References Ali Simek, Jale Balaban, Contemporary Educational Technology – Learning Strategies of Successful and Unsuccessful University Students; 2010, 1(1), p37 Ellis, D. (2011). Becoming a master student (13th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth, p75 Haskins, R. (2009, July). The Sequence of Personal Responsibility [Article], Retrieved from the Brookings Institute website: http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/2009/07/09-responsibility-haskins Supiano, B. (2011). Whats a Degree Worth? Report Has Answers, by Major. Chronicle Of Higher Education, 57(38), A20.

Signs of Elder Financial Abuse

Signs of Elder Financial Abuse CHAPTER 1: METHODS AND TACTICS OF AN ELDER FINANCIAL ABUSER Our families, communities and state legal system have worked in recent years to protect our loved ones from elder financial abuse. That said, families with elder adults still share a deep fear about the physical, mental and financial safety of their loved ones. Elder abusers, however reprehensible, often find ways to circumvent the protections that our families and society provide our senior citizens. Wrongdoers have their methods and tactics, and its our responsibility to counter them at every turn. If they think theyve gotten away with hijacking estate or trust assets, trust litigation attorneys should make them pay under the full weight of civil law. In my practice, which likely mirrors our country at large, the following are the five most common ways elder financial abuse happens: 1. Caregiver Abuse When a Michigan trial judge dismissed a familys lawsuit against a home care company for sending a caregiver with two felony criminal warrants to care for a man in his 80s, the national press erupted with questions about how this could happen. In this particular case, a caregiver company Kentucky-based ResCare sent a woman to a retired Detroit-area businessman to look after his ailing wife, who had dementia. It didnt take long until the wifes jewelry began to disappear, as well as the businessmans fortune. Court filings estimate the losses to be as high as $1.5 million. The caregiver, if she could be called that, moved the businessman out of his bedroom into the basement of his lakefront home and moved her mother into the home. The businessmans wife died, and within months the caretaker married the businessman. When the businessmans family members finally intervened and removed him from his home, his finances were in a shambles. He didnt have bank accounts with positive balances or working credit cards. He had his social security monthly payment thats it. The Michigan businessman and his family are simply representative of the widespread abuse affecting our growing elderly population. I have handled a number of cases where predators, posing as legitimate caregivers, soon take advantage of the elderly. This misconduct includes physical and medical neglect often coupled that with embezzlement and theft. The Michigan case didnt work out well not that any of these abuse cases by nature work out well. Even with a partial financial recovery, the seismic emotional repercussions stemming from misplaced trust dont easily recede. 2. Financial Exploitation Financial exploitation takes many forms. Every day, even though I have been counseling families for decades, I am regularly surprised. The sale of an elders medications; grocery bills more attributable to cash withdrawals taken by caregivers than bread and milk purchased for the elderly; lawn service for a small yard at $300.00 per week; money used for gambling; medical care and dental care neglected because of the theft of funds; and assignments of bank accounts into joint tenancy with a wrongdoer. Most families with victimized elders could readily add to the list of the ways elders are financially exploited. Vigilance helps. Here are some examples of vigilance: Be very careful and take precaution when hiring caregivers. Simply hiring a caregiver company is not an insurance policy against wrongdoing. Watch your elders bank accounts particularly withdrawal activity or changes in accounts. Sometimes the horse is out the barn door before you discover bank transfers but it is still better late than never (or a year later). Be careful and inquiring when you hear that your elder has been making frequent trips to the bank. Be vigilant in watching your elders mail. We have seen circumstances where financial information is hidden from the view of the elder and his or her relatives. This is a sign of great danger. Some financial advisors believe that an elders credit report should be ordered periodically. This could also be a good canary in the coal mine. We have seen cases where social security checks were cashed by wrongdoers. Direct deposit of social security checks, retirement and dividend checks provide some distance between a wrongdoer and your elders money. Review receipts from vendors (grocery store, pharmacy, Costco etc.) for goods purchased for your elderly relative. We have seen wrongdoing first discovered in this review. A $350.00 receipt from the local grocery store showing a $200.00 cash withdrawal can make even the most oblivious suspicious. Watch for service scams. New heaters, air conditioners, garbage disposals or lawn irrigation systems sold at a large premium are not unusual. Reverse mortgages can be a blessing or a curse. Reverse mortgages may provide a large lump sum payment or a stable predictable monthly income to senior adults, but money coming from reverse mortgages may also be a large tempting cookie jar for unscrupulous caretakers or relatives. More than once have I seen reverse mortgages paid to vulnerable senior adults with questionable capacity. The existence of a reverse mortgage is often not discovered by the senior homeowners family until the senior has passed away. 3. Misuse of Powers of Attorney Durable powers of attorney can be a great legal vehicle for senior adults to appoint a trusted agent to handle health, legal and financial matters. Such powers, when used with prudence by trusted family members or agents, provide legal protection when and if the senior becomes incapacitated or incompetent. Such powers when used correctly are an unfettered blessing. If misused, such powers can destroy a lifetime of planning. The effective and prudent use of durable or medical powers of attorney brings no headlines. In the same way, misuse of such legal vehicles is often kept secret and only met with incredulity by relatives when discovered. We have seen a number of incidents where powers of attorney were misused at the end of life of an elderly adult to benefit the holder of the power of the attorney. Examples of misuse include: The transfer of real property to the holder negating trust provisions that provide for a different distribution; entry and seizure of safe deposit personal property coupled with later denials of the existence of such properties; dramatic changes in bank accounts that are inconsistent with will or trust provisions; and transfer of vehicles. Some holders of medical powers of attorney have misused their powers to prevent family members from visiting the hospital bed of a gravely ill or dying relative. California has recently addressed this issue in legislation making such abuse much more difficult. In the meantime stories abound about how a son or daughter, grandson or granddaughter, could not visit a dying relative because a stepmother or stepfather prevented the visit. If these problems were not so common there would be little need to address it. For those who face the issue, they should immediately contact a lawyer familiar with elder abuse laws. Medical facilities should also be aware of their own limitations is preventing visits. 4. Isolation and Freeze-Outs Isolation of elders from their families, neighbors and loved ones is an all too common occurrence. Changed door locks, new locked front gates, mobile telephone seizures, failure to answer or open the door to visitors, and unreported removals of elders from their homes are part and parcel of isolation. These actions cause family members to fear for the safety of their loved ones and also may create a sense of helplessness. Unfortunately, such conduct is common. For Californians who encounter isolation or freeze-out abuse, the first step is to call Adult Protective Services or its equivalent. Local law enforcement agencies also often have task forces that deal with such abuse. Civil lawyers skilled and experienced in elder abuse issues can assist in such contacts and can also address such issues in civil filings that include restraining orders and other appropriate measures. Words of warning while isolation and freeze-out conduct might be obvious to the family member of the elder, such conduct may not be as obvious to authorities. Criminals and wrongdoers do not usually jump at the chance to admit guilt. While there is no excuse for elder abuse, wrongdoers will readily provide excuses. Common excuses include I had to keep everyone away because they just upset the elder; We had to move Grandpa to Arizona because they had the best medical care there; I had to keep Aunt Bessie from the phone because she only got upset when she heard from her relatives; Of course I had to keep my dad away from my sisters and brother because they are greedy and they only wanted to get his money; and I needed to protect my uncle because he was afraid that his children were going to hit him, push him down or lock him up in a mental asylum. Dont expect the isolator to readily admit that she bought her boyfriend a new Harley with grandmas money, that the house and surrounding are a pigsty because she is doing meth, or that all of grandmas jewelry was sold to support her drug habit. Youve got to dig at it when your loved one is isolated when you are frozen out. The process can be demanding, frustrating, and can cause anxiety. Still dont turn your back on your elder do something protect the vulnerable. 5. Unwarranted Transfers First, an obvious acknowledgment: families often have difficulty in transferring an elderly family member to an assisted living or nursing facility in situations where it is absolutely in the seniors best interests to have such a transfer. Id venture to say that most transfers are absolutely warranted and done with love and care for the senior. It is the unwarranted transfers, coupled with wrongdoing, that can petrify family members. The common setting for unwarranted transfers is the presence of a family member maybe a stepbrother or stepsister who is estranged from the seniors other children and family members. For whatever reason, and by whatever treacherous means, the wrongdoer is able to get the elder into his or her home and get the elders estate plan altered. Once the estate plan is effectively altered, it can be Katy bar the door for change. More than once we have seen circumstances that the senior is transferred against his or her wishes to a facility geographically removed from other family members. In the meantime, personal goods and family mementos are often discarded or hidden. These actions often cause even greater anger than money transfers. You simply cant replace photographs, family heirlooms, military awards, or personal collections with money. The discarding of important family treasures is an affront to the remaining family members a complete disregard of important family history and a glaring mark of the greed of the wrongdoer. Difficulties abound when trying to address unwarranted transfers. First off, the senior often lacks capacity. So what do we look at when the senior lacks capacity? One way to deal with an incompetent senior is to seek a conservatorship of his or her person and estate. This is not without complications. Does the senior really wish to be supervised by a stranger or even a benign family member? Conservatorships can be expensive and time consuming. Prospective conservatees are afforded counsel public defenders or otherwise. The costs of such counsel is paid from the conservatees estate. Courts are often reluctant to appoint conservators even for those with great impairment it is the taking away of ones freedom, even if such freedom increases vulnerability to scams and unscrupulous people. Detecting the Tactics of Elder Financial Abuse The sooner elder financial abuse is detected, the better the chance for recovery of estate and trust assets on behalf of the victims. So what are the typical signs or red flags to look out for? According to the guidelines of National Adult Protective Services Association, the following factors should be watched closely to avoid a potential personal tragedy and financial disaster: 1. Liabilities Unpaid Bills: What if an elderly loved one should have the means to pay the bills every month, but somehow their utilities get shut off? There might be more in play than just a seniors faulty memory a bad actor may have made off with money from the elders accounts, leaving the victim high and dry. 2. Surrender of Oversight: Very often we see cases of a new friend, neighbor or opportunistic relative appearing on the scene to offer their help in managing the elders financial account. At times they even succeed in gaining power of attorney. This effective forfeiture of oversight should be looked into closely for other indicators of suspicious activity. 3. Suspicious Withdrawals: As any good investigator will tell you, follow the money. When financial accounts begin registering unexplained withdrawals or checks set to cash, its time for you to speak with bank employees and get further details on whos making these transactions. 4. Vanishing Assets: Another tell-tale sign of elder financial abuse is when valuables begin to disappear. Suddenly an elders jewelry, cash or financial documents like stock certificates vanish, and the perpetrator takes to living lavishly with new purchases of fancy attire, vehicles, property, etc. 5. Changed Estate Documents: Wrongdoers who commit elder financial abuse will often seek to legitimize their predatory behavior with the stamp of legitimacy. Exercising undue influence on the elderly victim, theyll shop around for any lawyer who will agree to change a will or trust document in their favor. Ask your elderly loved one about any such changes if you are faced with such a situation, it may be time to consult an experienced trust litigation attorney. 6. Creditors Come Knocking: Is the elder encountering financial trouble where there should be none? Find out the explanation for property liens or foreclosure warnings. The reason behind creditor claims may be more than just a mistake your elderly family member might have been financially exploited by an abuser who cleaned out their accounts. Identifying Financial Exploitation and Scams As the population of senior citizens in California continues to grow, so too will the challenge posed by fraudsters who want to prey on our elderly and steal their money. To help seniors and their loved ones identify and avoid scams, Ive compiled a list of the most common ploys, tricks, and tactics financial criminals use against the elderly. So watch out for the following forms of fraud: 1. Grandparents Scam A senior will receive a phone call beginning with, Grandma? The caller will cleverly elicit the grandchilds name. Posing as the grandchild, the scammer will then say theyve gotten into some form of deep trouble they might tell the senior theyre in jail or stranded in a foreign country. Its an emergency, and they need help immediately! With the grandparent now upset and ready to assist their supposed grandchild by any means possible, the scammer will ask them to wire money to their bank account, often by Western Union. To avoid falling for the grandparent scam, dont let a caller drag you into the guessing game, whereby you willingly provide them with the names of your grandchildren and other relatives. If a scammer is more sophisticated, they might research their victim on social media sometimes theyll run the scam on platforms like Facebook. Call your family members and check on the whereabouts of your grandchildren, no matter how convincing a story you may hear over the phone or through social media. 2. Secret Shopper To your surprise, you receive a check in the mail for several thousand dollars to Wal-Mart or another big-box store. Youve been chosen for the secret shopper program! In reality, youre being conned into depositing a bad check. Once youve deposited, the scammers will ask you to mail them a check with the difference and thats in addition to your being responsible for the fraudulent check youve cashed. Secret Shopper is a nasty scam that leaves its bewildered victims thousands of dollars poorer. Keep elderly loved ones away from fraud schemes like Secret Shopper by using the too-good-to-be-true rule: if its too good to be true, its not true someones after your money. That means Secret Shopper offers are as good as garbage. 3. Email Scams Email scams have been around a long time and arent going away its cost-effective for swindlers to send out millions of spam emails, even if they only get one or two responses from potential victims. If you have an email account, youre going to receive these from time to time, even with the best spam filters. The most notorious email scams are Nigerian prince letters, which inform recipients that they have been selected to share in an enormous royal fortune in Nigeria or some other West African nation. All the recipients have to do to gain their riches is wire money to the esteemed prince to pay the transaction fee. Naturally, there is no pot of gold at the end of the Nigerian rainbow, with the net result of your bank account being emptied. Another common type of email scam is known as phishing, the imitation of real websites to elicit personal and financial information. You might very well receive a bank alert that seems to be from your bank; the message will inform you that your bank account is overdrawn, you are the victim of identity theft, etc. Even the layout of the email and fake website will look convincingly real. Yet the actual purpose of the phishing scam is to get you to enter your bank account ID, password, Social Security Number, etc., into the phony website, all in order to defraud you. In addition to Nigerian prince emails and phishing schemes, you may also receive emails marked urgent, etc. Often theyll seemingly be sent from friends and relatives. Theyll have attachments in the form of letters or videos youre told to open. In reality, theyre fake letters with harmful attachments viruses or malware that are designed to infect your computer and steal your personal information. Online criminals can even mask their spam messages to make it appear they come from friends, family, and colleagues in their attempt to trick you into opening the attachment in order to unleash their virus. To steer clear of email scams, the best policy is simply to delete unfamiliar emails and not engage too-good-to-be true offers to share in African riches. If you get a bank alert email that youre unsure of, check your account online (dont click on any link in the message) or simply call your bank to check your account. Also remember to never open attachments in unknown messages, and be very weary of vague requests from seemingly familiar senders who might very well be identity thieves and con artists. 4. Investment Fraud Investment fraud is an all-too-common form of elder financial abuse, and scammers find numerous ways to perpetrate the crime against seniors. The first variety are classic Ponzi schemes, where elderly clients are recruited into dubious investment ventures promising big returns, but which in reality generate no profit investment proceeds are simply skimmed from client funds. Ponzi schemers will pose as legitimate entrepreneurs or investment advisors, sometimes offering free meals to attend their wealth seminars. By the time a Ponzi scheme collapses (as it inevitably will if authorities dont intervene), victims are often left penniless and effectively unable to recover any of the funds they had invested in the scheme the perpetrator likely spent all the money and distributed it out as false profits. Its unfortunate but true that there are also a few bad-faith brokers out there who are willing to defraud their elderly clients. Investment advisors and brokers who violate their clients trust can sometimes go years stealing before they finally get caught. To keep a financial predator from looting your accounts or those of your loved ones, make sure to review their background through FINRAs BrokerCheck it never hurts to get a second opinion on a firm or particular advisor. Along with Ponzi schemes and outright abuses by bad-faith brokers, also watch out for multi-level marketing schemes (MLMs). MLMs, otherwise known as pyramid schemes and network marketing, are technically legal business models that require the new member to recruit others into the venture in order to sell whatever product might be on offer. Senior citizens, at times lonely and in need of companionship, can be vulnerable to these schemes, some of which will send them box-loads of products and charge them whether they agreed or not. So while MLMs are technically legal, they are often highly exploitative of senior citizens through their deceptive terms and conditions. To steer clear of investment fraud, apply the too good to be true rule to investment offerings that boast sky-high returns and near-zero risk chances are its a Ponzi scheme. Conduct due diligence and consult a reputable advisor who can help you or your elderly loved ones make sound investment decisions. And stay away from MLM pyramids, the only point of which is to enrich their very top layer while exploiting everyone else below them with largely empty promises of wealth. 5. Telemarketing Fraud Often connected with investment scams are predatory telemarketing schemes, another way fraudsters look to entrap seniors. Many elderly Americans receive several phone calls a week from slick salesmen pitching everything from penny stocks to flimsy-sounding premium retirement programs for their portfolios. Quick-talking telemarketers will pressure lonely, confused seniors into once-in-a-lifetime investments in dubious or non-existent oil and gas holdings, foreign currency exchange, real estate, and even blockbuster movie productions. Another ploy is to hit up the victim for contributions to a supposed charity. Finally, dont be fooled by con men (and women) who pretend to be calling from your bank, hospital, insurance provider, etc. Theyre looking to elicit your personal information to commit identity theft against you. Its sad but true that financial abuse is made easy over the telephone. To prevent telemarketing fraud, make it an express policy to never sign onto anything over the phone. Courteously hang up and make sure to register for the US governments Do Not Call list. Keep it simple never give personal or financial information to unknown callers, no matter who they might claim to be. 6. Repair Fraud Seniors are frequently targeted for elder financial abuse right in their own home through the common tactic of repair fraud. If an elder is forgetful or possibly suffering from dementia, wrongdoers will look to exploit this weakness by overcharging for home repairs and yardwork. Sometimes scammers will even come around repeatedly, performing the same task several times over a given period and defrauding the victim in the process. Even unscrupulous auto mechanics have been known to jack up prices for elderly, confused customers and engage in dishonest, unethical practices like changing tires every few months. Another updated form of repair fraud is the antivirus scam, which can be perpetrated in person, online, or over the phone. You might receive a fake email, a telephone call, or even a door-to-door visit from someone claiming to check your computer for viruses. Theyll tell you your computer is infected and repair it, charging you for a non-existent service and possibly even stealing your personal and financial information while they access your computer. Countering repair fraud might mean going to the doctor and getting an evaluation over possible memory loss or increased confusion. Seniors with conditions like dementia must be protected from financial exploitation one effective way to shield vulnerable elderly loved ones from repair fraud is to obtain financial power of attorney. When a responsible younger relative takes on this legal duty, its sometimes possible to recover funds lost to repair fraud. 7. Sweepstakes Scams Fake sweepstakes, lotteries, and raffles represent a widespread form of fraud perpetrated against senior citizens. Youll get a flashy mailer informing you of your amazing prize winnings, or perhaps a telephone call or spam email. A fabulous fortune is yours to be had, youre told, and all you have to do to attain your winnings is pay a phony tax, shipping fees, or other made-up charges. Your social security number and bank information might even required to claim the supposed prize. In reality, of course, the sweepstakes is a scam meant to trick you out of hundreds or even thousands of dollars, potentially putting your identity at risk. The too-good-to-be-true rule applies to most scams, and ridiculous sweepstakes mailers are no exception. A real raffle or lottery wouldnt require you pay or provide sensitive personal info to access your prize. Sweepstakes offers and other contest winnings should be promptly tossed in the trash, and whoevers sending them through the postal system should be regarded with strong suspicion. Seniors should have a trusted loved one help them sort through mail and identify all such deceptive mailers. Countermeasures Heightened Vigilance What are some initial steps you can make to prevent elder financial abuse? Several measures are available for family members, lawyers, financial professionals and medical caregivers. Along with basic awareness, coordination and ongoing communication between parties translate to increased protection. Here are some basic actions you can take to keep elderly loved ones safe from exploitation: 1. Financial Oversight: A family member and financial professional at the local bank or advisory firm should establish a system of oversight over an elders accounts. In addition to setting up bill payment, keep a sharp eye on any excessive withdrawals or irregular transfers. Consider joint accounts with the elder, and look into the possibilities of a limited credit card for an elder susceptible to financial exploitation. 2. Revocable Trust: With a revocable trust in place, a trustee has access to a trust account without enjoying the status of legal ownership. Stopping irresponsible or just plain bad trustees from squandering assets translates to building in effective safeguards. 3. Communication: The human element is vital in preventing elder financial abuse, and that means maintaining effective lines of communication between all interested parties, whether it be the attorney, investment advisor or medical caregiver. Just as importantly, a loving relationship with an elderly family member makes all the difference in shielding them from harm. If a senior is lonely, theyll be more vulnerable to fraud or unethical sales pitches. Just visiting an elder regularly, talking and showing them you care is an enormous boost in keeping them safe. 4. No-Contact Lists: Boiler room telemarketers and deceptive mailers target elders who suffer from cognitive impairment. One way to block most, if not all, of these unwelcome solicitors is to contact the FTCs Do Not Call Registry, Nomorobo and the Direct Marketing Association. Speak with your elderly loved one about the harmful nature of these calls and fliers to help them spot when theyre being scammed. Protecting your elderly family member is virtually a full-time job for many it becomes a full-time job of care, comfort, housing, medical visits, and protection. Such duties may be embraced with love, but it is a love coupled often with real suffering. It is never easy to care for a parent with dementia or with chronic physical or mental problems. Both physical and mental exhaustion often accompany such care. Sibling issues arise between those who are near the elder family member and those who are geographically removed. Friends of the elder might be critical of the care or protections that are put in place for the elders benefits. Not all is black and white. Taking care of an elder adult often reminds us to reflect on the meaning of the Fifth Commandment: Honor thy father and thy mother. Doing this honor is a day-to-day process, and is not without its challenges.