Wednesday, October 30, 2019

The impact of Korean TV dramas on Taiwanese consumers Annotated Bibliography

The impact of Korean TV dramas on Taiwanese consumers - Annotated Bibliography Example The paper also shows how globalization has affected the consumers in Taiwan (Chih, & Yang, 2008). The article is reliable because it establishes its conclusions on a research from the field; participants were asked to fill survey questions both online and offline. The study has also used a variety of references, but there is no clear conclusion in the paper. The author narrates how Korean television soap operas have influenced Taiwanese students’ preferences for various clothing. Hsu has found out that varying frequency of watching the soap operas influence students’ preferences for clothing differently (Hsu, 2012). Students prefer various clothes based on the attention they attract, period, and motivation to purchase such attire. The researcher’s conclusions are based on real data from nine hundred and thirty seven students of Taiwan. The paper has also used sufficient references, but the author has failed to include a literature review section in the discussion. The literature review would help to show the previous clothing purchase behavior of students in the country. Kim, S., & Wang, H., 2012. From television to the film set: Korean drama Daejanggeum drives Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese, and Thai audiences to screen tourism. The international communication gazette 74 (5). 423-442. This paper discusses how a Korean drama known as Daejanggeum influenced Taiwanese consumers to travel to South Korea to watch the drama live at Daejanggeum Theme Park (Kim, & Wang, 2012). The article also gives an account of behavioral changes among the consumers. The authors have used simple language and numerous resources, and they have based the discussion on a research in which consumers participated by filling in questionnaires. However, the findings of the article are based on responses from consumers belonging to different

Monday, October 28, 2019

A House to Remember Essay Example for Free

A House to Remember Essay I have moved in and out of many houses throughout the years, but none of them were as important to me as the house in which I grew up. I must admit that this house, although enormous, was neither the nicest nor the most comfortable house, yet my nostalgic nature has propelled me to treasure that house above all others. Having parted it for almost ten years, some details of the house are out of my grasp. The memory of the house now stands as a symbol of my childhood. It is the only place that I remember nothing but pure happiness, suffused with youthful innocence and carefree laughter that would never fade. The front yard of the house was a vacant space with a large concrete sink conspicuously imposed in one corner. Grandma used to stand upon the red brick pavement in front of this sink every morning; cleaning vegetables for meals, washing clothes from the day before, or scrubbing pots and bowls in soapy water. When grandma was doing her chores at the sink, I would stagger into the yard with my little green wooden chair dragging behind, set it a few feet from grandma, sit down and watch her hands maneuver among the items with fascinated eyes. Every now and then, along the clanks of hardware, some bubbles struggled free of gravity and rose into the air. That was when I would routinely utter an excited yelp and kick back my chair to chase the bubbles, which reflected sunlight more colorfully than crystal balls in the cheerful crisp mornings. If I were lucky, grandma would give me a little basin with water and a few drops of dish soap in which to play with. The procedure was always the same: I lowered my face almost to the surface of the water, intently stared at the spreading yellow solution without a blink, as if to hurry the process. As soon as the solution faded into the water, I shoved my hands into the basin and gave the water a fanatic stir, laughing,  panting, as shiny bubbles magically foamed in the entire basin. Most of the time, I could scoop up the bubbles with both hands and blow at them as hard as I could. The aftermath was predictable, bubbles were everywhere: in the air, on the ground and over my face. At this point, grandma would turn around to look at me with feigned solemnity. After helping me wipe soap away from my face, she retreated into the house to prepare lunch, while I sat alone in the yard, watching bubbles pop in a hurried manner. The refreshing lemony scent of the soap lingered in the air long after the bubbles were gone. Around noon, the hunger pain in my stomach and the delicious smell of food from kitchen attracted each other like opposite sides of a magnet. Without knowing, I was already tripping over the tall threshold that led to the living room. The living room was the dominant structure of this ancient house. It was profusely furnished with mahogany antiques that had carvings of dragons, phoenixes and other traditional Chinese symbols on it signifying its venerable history. The room itself was equally old; the whitewash on the walls was starting to peel, the red paint on the wooden doors appeared rather flaky. I would usually stop at the giant gate of the living room to peel off a few flakes of paint from its already-marred surface. But the need to go to the kitchen appeared more urgent to me at that moment. The kitchen was a moderately sized cubicle positioned at the rear of the living room. Squares of tidy white tiles covered its lower half of walls and floor. The kitchen counter and the stoves were lined up against the inner side of the wall. It seemed to me that grandma always had something cooking on the stoves, thus constantly diffusing the house with a faint yet pleasant aroma. The counter was home to a large collection of kitchen utensils; from plain enamel bowls to elegant porcelain plates, from iron woks to stainless steel pots, all of which had found their righteous place on the counter and lined up haughtily. The most repulsive piece was the pressure cooker, but for some reason grandma loved to use it. I remember countless times when I watched in awe at this strange apparatus restlessly ejecting streams of white vapor from a revolving black knob, while making incessant hissing sounds, loud and repelling, as if foretelling some imminent danger. Lunch was held at the little round table placed in the center of the kitchen. Usually, grandma would be at the table as I entered the room, kitting, strings of wool ascending tirelessly out of a basket near her feet as she skillfully transformed them into garments. While I climbed into a chair next to her, she would lay down her needlework atop the colorful balls of wool and start transporting plates of food to the table under my anticipatory watch. As soon as my bowl of rice arrived, I would launch a ravenous attack into the foods; chopsticks clicked hungrily amongst the different dishes as I mounted palatable delicacies on top of my steamed rice. In contrast, grandma ate her meal with suaveness; she had told me rules like dont eat with your mouth open dont make noises when you eat, but they were luckily never enforced (at least not then). Slow down, she would say benignly, watching me munch on my mouthful. I would mumble something in reply, but kept on devouring my favorites. Despite all these, my avarice still had its payback on me, I was never able to finish all the foods I hoarded in my bowl, thus by the end of each meal, I could find myself begging for grandmas pardon. Im so full. I whined, meanwhile searching for traces of relent on grandmas face. You shouldnt waste food, the farmers worked hard for those. Grandma said sternly. I wont next time, I promise. Alright then, just go take your nap. Upon the hearing of this acquittal, I slipped out of my customized tall chair at once and started to scurry to the master bedroom, which was located on the left side of the living room, a few feet from the dinning table. Once inside the bedroom, I immediately approached the main attraction an old 18-inch colored TV that was placed on a tarnished cabinet. With great eagerness, I reached my arms upward and stretched my body to its fullest extent; my fingertips fumbled among a row of smooth buttons. Finally, I felt  the round indent I was looking for and pressed it laboriously. Loud voices from the TV suddenly filled the entire room; I slouched heavily into grandmas oversized bed with relief and gasped for air, as if I had finished racing with a neighboring kid. But a minute later, I was already comfortably reclining against the bedrail and enjoying the exuberant cartoons. I would stare for a long time at this little black box with uttermost attention until sleepiness prevailed. The images were no more than blobs of colors and the voices were reduced into a vague humming sound as I slowly drifted into a deep sleep. When I woke up again, the fierce afternoon sunlight has softened into a tinge of warm orange. I could hear noises in the living room as my parents and grandpa returned from work. With a sudden jolt, I swung myself out of bed and wobbled hastily into the living room. There, everyone was already seated around the large dining table. Still a bit hazy from sleep, I found myself a spot between my parents, snuggled against them obsequiously in order to receive trinkets they have brought me. Dinner soon ensued; I played with my new toys heartily as the adults chatted and joked, occasionally laughing along with them at some jokes that I could not then comprehend. Congenial happiness was written on everyones face, which shined brightly under the white florescent light The house has vanished among the tides of citys reconstruction, but the reminiscence I have of it will never fade. I envisioned my mind as a vast coastal beach; passing time would hide pieces of my memories like fine sands over beautiful shell. Although they can be temporarily out of my reach, I knew they were out there, somewhere hidden, and waiting for a tide to reveal them to their righteous owner.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Global Warming :: Environment Global Climate Change

Global warming is a matter of great concern that is unfortunately quite often overlooked in light of other problems that seem to be more immediately demanding. However, for all the attention that this issue does not draw, that is how dire it is growing to be. There are many problems that are causing global warming, and if they are not rectified, or at least prevented from here on out there are going to be some severe ramifications in the near future. Greenhouse gases, holes in the ozone layer and the decay of the atmosphere are just a few of the problems that need to be at the very least understood by the general populace. Greenhouse gases are chemical compounds that are found in the atmosphere. Because of their chemical make up, they allow energy from the sun to enter the atmosphere freely. â€Å"When sunlight strikes the Earth’s surface, some of it is reflected back towards space as infrared radiation (heat). Greenhouse gases absorb this infrared radiation and trap the heat in the atmosphere. Over time, the amount of energy sent from the sun to the Earth’s surface should be about the same as the amount of energy radiated back into space, leaving the temperature of the Earth’s surface roughly constant.† (Greenhouse gases, climate change, and energy) So this heat that is formed in these gases merely sits there and radiates more heat than it should. Another great concern to everyone on earth should be the hole in the ozone that is above Antarctica. Last recorded in September of 2000, the hole was 28.3 million square kilometers. (Antarctica’s Record-setting Ozone Hole) Such a hole in the ozone allow rays from the sun to enter undiluted into our atmosphere with their unhampered intensity. Since this hole is present in one of the coldest parts of the world, where there is so much ice, the potential for melting is extremely dangerous. Already, our world’s core temperature has risen 1 degrees. It is predicted that before the turn of the century, the core temperature will rise another 3 to 9 degrees. Such a great change would cause water levels to rise, coastal cities would start to flood, people who lived on the edge the beaches and coasts would have to move or lose everything they possessed to floods. This drastic change in temperature also effects the weather patterns.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Introduction to International Relations

In the context of the idea of â€Å"Nationalism†, what are the differences between the Scottish National Party and the British National Party? BODY OF WORK Being today a central issue of the modern world, Nationalism, a term from nasci which means â€Å"to be born†, has most of the time been considered as a 19th century phenomenon, connected to the development and creation of nation-states .While seen by a large number of critics as outdated in other word old, not just because it is inherently expansionist but also destructive, others in meantime see it as a strength to re-enforce order and solve conflict. Thus, the issue of nationalism will therefore depend on a system every country adopts. If we take the United Kingdom(UK),a constitutional monarchy and unitary states which is composed of four(4) countries :England(London),Northern Ireland(Belfast),Wales(Cardiff) and Scotland(Edinburgh) has been governed by a Parliamentary system.However,it is argued that nationalism w ithin the UK is both reactionary and progressive . The simply reason of this statement is that in different parts of UK,the notion of nationalism has components of both looking towards the future inclusively and progressively but ,also looking to their past regressively thus hoping to bring back their historical period.Britain and Scotland, being among these parts of UK, have for a centuries had political parties sometimes based on similar ideas but most of the time different from each others. The British nationalism referring to the nationalist ideas and policies’ application to the United Kingdom tends to promote the UK as a goal for national identity, social movements, comprises political and sentiment inspired by the love of British language, culture , history and ot forgotten the pride of being British. Supported ,politically from the Euro scepticism of the conservative United Kingdom Independence Party and far-right British national party to the centre-right conservativ e Party and the left-centrist Liberal Democrats, British nationalism has had a progressive cause characterised by â€Å"a powerful but ambivalent force in British politics†.From this British nationalism, a party called the British national party will be one of our aim studies in this topic. As for Scotland, Nationalism being a political ideology and created in 1921 as primarily body based in London and largely influenced by Sinn Fein ,has most of the time supported greater autonomy for Scotland as part of the United Kingdom, but also the creation of a sovereign state.In which case Scottish nationalism can be referred to three (3) main elements: -The Scottish Independence with the advocacy of Scotland becoming a sovereign state -The Scottish national party with the main political party that support Scottish Independence. -The Scottish home rule, an organisation knew before the Devolved Scottish Parliament was created in 1999 that had for purpose to give Scotland the autonomy w ithin the British Empire. From this nationalism , derived a national party called the Scottish national party.It is therefore in the process Nationalism that, our aim target will be to identify the differences between the two major national parties in the United Kingdom known as the British National Party (BNP) and the Scottish National To begin with, we should start by saying that the Scottish National Party (SNP), a civic party with strong democratic leanings and non-nationalist was first created in (1934) having as aim to promote justice, caring and enterprising community by making Scottish potential as an independent nation in the mainstream of modern Europe.Wishing to be completely independent from Britain, the Scottish national party has always wanted to be a separate state making its own decisions not just in Europe but throughout the world, this is why Scottish political parties such as, the SNP encourage progressive attitudes that are principally based on two main(2) things :the long term desire to become but also the ambition to be entirely inclusive with global organisation such as Europe . While the British National Party, reated in (1982) by a group of the National Front with John Tyndall, is a far-right, fascist political party combined with a white supremacy organisation that stands for anti-non british,because it believes that there are significant differences between races, one of the party’s main objectives is to restore by legal methods white ethnicity, which existed prior to 1948 in a way that anything that does not fit their narrow stereotype is meant to be kept away from the party.Adding to this, it has to be said that the British national party adoring men like Adolf Hitler of German Nazi is almost claimed to be a Nazi political party as well. Another reason that makes the difference between the two parties is that, the Scottish national party has always wanted an open door to all races and nationalities in the sense that even non- Scottish people have been accepted to be members of the party without forgetting the fact that this was the first party to have a Muslim MSP as member.After independence, anyone living in Scotland could claim a Scottish citizenship under the SNP constitution with an open door policy on immigration compared to Britain ,where immigration still a dominant issue thus blaming immigrants for any possible problem . It is even believed that the British national party has for wish to put the white British- born before immigrants and non- british,stopping immigration and repatriate people of different races, presently living in the UK to the respective countries .In a speech given by Nick Griffin ,the actual leader of the British national party(BNP),he declared that â€Å"it is probably now too late to anticipate a return to the status quo ante 1948 â€Å" therefore suggested a new model of â€Å"milti-culturalism†. This model was meant to lead by a policy of cultural and biological separation ,not by principles of integration, this could allow people to enjoy each other’s culture and tradition but each staying on their own in order to avoid â€Å"diversity† which could be but a short –lived stepping stone to nothingness.An expected outcome of the method as Tyndall said, was going to be in the image of a south-African apartheid-style system with like he said â€Å"separate communities of people –Indian ,Pakistani, Bangladeshi(Hindu and Muslim),African and Afro-Caribbean and heaven knows what else-living side by side in Britain in separate enclaves†. This is to show that although immigrations issues were trying to be solved there were nevertheless still based on strict principles that had to be followed. Principles that were completely different from the one the Scottish national party made.These days, the Scottish national party does not have a lot to deal with national parties in eastern and central Europe particularly becaus e most of them are rather right wing ,among them men like, Michal Kaminski of the polish law and justice party. Also, in the European parliament for Freedom and fatherland party, it will be noticed that men like David Cameron will definitely be comfortable to sit with Latvia whereas it would be hard if not never for the Scottish party to Roberts Zile from the FFF to the next Bannockburn shindig.This is to prove that racism is not a big concern in Scottish nationalism because there is no race problem in Scotland. Moreover, there are also differences regarding the concern of the British and Scottish public as a whole. While Scotland is much more concerned about the unemployment as a big problem to face, Britain on its side is more worried about the economic field which is very frequent nowadays.In the other hand, crime, law and order are very serious matters in Britain than in Scotland where it is more likely to be concerned about the education. Furthermore ,another difference between the British national party and the Scottish one is that, the Scottish national party, being left wing is very focused on what people living in Scotland will be in the future regardless what the religion or skin colour are, while the British national, being right wing wants to go back to their old values.In terms of Military issue, providing that it is the government in Westminster that is in charge to send soldiers at war, Scotland plays a very small part in sending soldiers for defence ,war and terrorism compared to Britain that is more concerned about this issue. To conclude with this topic, it shall be said that although, these two are different parties in different countries, the differences between them is all about Racism, Immigrations and Political issues.In terms of racism, the British national party states that their constitution has for purpose, the preservation of the ethnic and national typical character of the British people themselves . David Blackburn writes for the spectator coffee house that â€Å"the BNP is no longer a racist party, but a party of racists† in respond to the news that the British national party membership look to vote in favour of allowing the non-whites and non-British to join the party while the Scottish national party has always wanted an open door to all races and nationalities no matter colour, gender and creed there are.In terms of political issues, Scotland is a minority within the UK (United Kingdom) which means the decision-making process stays in the goal of the majority included Britain . Therefore; policies that suit Scotland are often not taken into consideration. In terms of immigrations issues, differences have also been seen above with the British national party wanting to repatriate all immigrants or sometimes create strict principles that have to be followed by all immigrants. Whereas, the Scottish national party has and still fighting against immigration, thus giving citizenship to those claiming for it.So basically, these are some of the differences in brief between the British national party and the Scottish national party, although there could others points according to different points of viReferences and Bibliography David B. , Nick G. ,†Changing course or changing Clothes? †Reflection on the ideological evolution of the British national party 1999-2006 , pp81 Iain M. , gardian. co. uk, Monday 8 June 2009 14. 00 BST IN Last night was the SNP’s night Arthur A. ,†Nationalism, Devolution and the Challenge to the United Kingdom

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Continuous I In Managing Health And Safety, Along With Quality And Environmental Considerations

Introduction Organizations today, in addition to ensuring customer satisfaction and loyalty, must also demonstrate to its broader stakeholders a corporate strategy which underscores social, environmental and health and safety concerns. It should demonstrate commitment to continuous improvement in the management of the health and safety, and working environment of their employees; and should take into account the environmental impact of the business operations and its impact upon the communities and society. A business’s operation in term of what it produces should also be responsible, hence legislation concerning ‘health and safety at work, environmental protection and prohibiting the use of substances hazardous’ have been put in place. Government and other regulatory bodies for instance, Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Environment Agency (EA), have also been set up to ensure enforcement of these regulations. Stakeholder expectations with regards to the organisations corporate responsibility in respect to the above legal requirements has grown in recent years and also incorporates factors such as, corporate image, the reputation of the organisation and competitive advantage. Numerous management standards including ‘ISO 9001 (1994), ISO 14001 (1996) and OHSAS 18001’ are put in place to deal with these requirements. Each of the standards outlines the requirements for management systems to enable organisations to control or eliminate its health a nd safety and environmental risks and to continually improve its performance and the quality of its product, services and operations. The move towards an integration strategy for an organization’s management systems has largely arisen because of Stakeholders’ expectations of continuous improvement, increasingly stringent legislation and greater market demands (Griffiths, 2000). This essay discusses how an organization can improve its performance in terms of health and safety, and environmental and social impact by adopting a total quality management strategy. It will further discuss how the total quality management system should integrate the aforementioned quality standards to implement a integrated management system. Importance of Integrating Health/Safety, Environment and Social Concerns in Business Operations The benefits of an effective corporate strategy in improving health and safety measures, and environmental and social impact include an improved financial performance and turnover for an organization. Secondly, it can improve an organization’s relations with its external stakeholders including investors and community, which can subsequently create better opportunities for it to access capital (Scheme, 2012). Thirdly, such a strategy is good for employee relations and can enable a favorable corporate culture (Scheme, 2012). Continuous improvement can also enhance risk management capabilities or an organization. Lastly, it could foster stronger relations with legal regulators (Scheme, 2012). One of the reasons that make a corporate strategy with health, safety, social and environmental concerns at its core important for a business’s performance is the growing prevalence of social media (Truist, 2012). Such a corporate strategy can help a company create a positive image (Truist, 2012). Moreover, such a strategy can enable an organization to engage with its audience/customers in ways beyond its products or services (Truist, 2012). Another benefit of such a corporate strategy is that it fosters a positive relationship of an organization with governments (Truist, 2012). Companies who continually improve their operation and thus have a positive social perception are better positioned to cope up with government regulators (Truist, 2012). On the other hand, an organization can be faced with a bad public image which can have significant impact on its financial and business performance in case it fails to address these management issues. It has become very important for organizations to implement and accredit with quality, health and safety systems and environmental due to the increasing pressure from their internal and various external stakeholders. These include governments and regulatory bodies, local communities, customers, workers, and suppliers and business partners. However, organisations require considerable amount of resources to implement and maintain of such systems or to make changes to existing ones. This may have a direct affect on the bottom line of the business corporations. Accreditation with quality standards and acquiring certifications can incur hefty costs. If in-house expertise is not available many companies may need the services of external consultants to assist them in adhering to such quality standards. These costs, for many small or medium sized businesses can therefore be prohibitive. Irrespective of this, organisations have to face the demands of their various stakeholders to ensure a p ositive engagement with them. These issues greatly affect what firms decide and what they do. Continual improvement to the complete customer satisfaction implies that business corporations should aim at a point where they meet the requirements of quality in terms of environment and safety standards in addition to product and service quality. It can be critiqued here that adhering to high quality standards has better pay off in long term and thus quality does not incur additional costs. Philip Crosby supports this view in his work titled as Quality is Free (1979). The book turned a light on for many of its readers. The book contended that contrary to the common perception, quality does not add any costs to a product. Indeed adding quality is a break-even proposition at its least and highly profitable at its best since quality always pays off in the long run (Crosby 1979). During the 1970s and 1980s when Crosby proposed this contention, corporate strategies were mainly focused on tasks such as achieving efficiency in manufacturing or improving sales. Corporate managers generally had low priority for quality related issues and similarly lacked experience in such matters. This entire period was generally marred by negligence of quality. However, quality in its various forms has become an integral part of the modern day organ izations and an important corporate agenda due to the highly competitive business environment and increased social awareness. Customers nowadays are judging brands more and more based on ‘how’ these have been sources and produced (De Oliveira Matias and Coleho, 2002). This has implications for a wide array of factors that affect the overall quality of various business processes. These include the quality of the goods/services and business functions, and the overall these operations in terms of environment, workers health and safety and ethical standards. The growing influence of these factors is a shift away from just economic sustainability towards economic, social and environmental sustainability. There is generally more awareness regarding how business entities treat the environment and workers. In a step further, a large segment of the consumers are taking these factors as benchmarks for judging the quality of goods/service produced by corporations (Schema, 2012). With the growing popularity of such wider interpretations of quality standards, companies are required to integrate quality re lated management systems (and related certifications) in their corporate strategy. Management Systems Adherence to Quality Management Systems (QMS) such as ISO 9001 and ISO 9004 can be considered as a starting point for improving quality. This can then be extended to systems related to the environment, social responsibility and occupational health and safety through systems such as ISO 14001 and/or EMAS, SA 8000, and OHSAS 18001 respectively. Adherence to these standards can be accompanied by the development of the model of quality through a shift from simple quality control system towards a Total Quality Management (TQM) approach (Matias and Coelho 2002). TQM,† is an integrative philosophy of management for continuously improving the quality of products and processes† (Ahire, 1997). This philosophy is aimed towards continuous improvement in all processes.Total Quality ManagementTQM system was put forth by Dr. W. Edwards Deming (Deming 1986). He proposed that by adopting appropriate practices of management, businesses can improve quality while reducing costs (due to th e reducing in waste, rework, staff attrition and litigation). According to him, in order to increase quality and reduce costs simultaneously, businesses would have to practice continual improvement and consider manufacturing as a system rather than bits and pieces (Reilly 1994). Deming proposed 14 points as a framework for transformation of organizations from the present style of Western management to a total quality culture. These points can form principles for continuous development in various business aspects including health and safety, and social and environmental responsibility. The points do not constitute much as an action plan but more of a philosophical code for management. These fourteen points are: â€Å"Create constancy of purpose. Adopt the new philosophy. Cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag. Improve constantly Institute training on the job. Institute leadership Drive out fear Break down barriers between departments Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force asking for zero defects Eliminate work standards, Substitute leadership Eliminate management by objective. Substitute leadership. Remove barriers that rob the worker of his right to pride of workmanship. Institute a vigorous program of education and self-improvement. Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation†. (Deming 1986) Organizations can implement such a management system to ensure continuous improvement in managing health and safety, along with quality and environmental considerations.Quality Management SystemFor realizing this management philosophy, the implementation of a formal Quality Management System (QMS) is a desirable objective. To address these specific corporate goals, organizations seek accreditation to specific standards. The ISO 9000 is one such standard which comprises of â€Å"a set of essential elements that enable the design and implementation of quality management systems† (ISO 9001. Generally, the application of these standards will raise the abilities of a company; for instance; improving performance of operations, reputational value, cutting costs, and supplier and sub-contractor selection. Along with the fundamental requirement of quality, many organizations now strive to achieve and demonstrate to their stakeholders a sound environmental performance, by curtailing t he impact from their activities, products and services on the natural environment. These environmental issues are considered in the ISO 14000 Standards (Standards for the Environmental Management Systems). These standards, (quality and environment) emphasize on the importance of similar managerial aspects such as top management commitment, leadership and continuous improvement in performance. Moreover, the OHSAS 18001 standard aims to assist organizations in management and control of their health and safety risks and in the overall improvement of the OH&S performance. Organizations with quality and environmental management systems, which are certified, or aspire to ISO 9001 and ISO 14000 standard’s certification should in addition incorporate a system of management of health and safety such as OHSAS 18001. A strong commitment to these standards can advance to a complete corporate strategy by amalgamating all these three standards into an integrated management system (IMS ).Integrated Management Systems (IMS)An IMS is â€Å"the organisational structure, resources and procedures used to plan, monitor and control project quality, safety and environment† (Griffith 1999). Other definitions are comprehensively detailed in Wilkinson and Dale (2000). The case for integration of the three standards described for quality, occupational health and safety and the environment is now widely discussed in literature and IMS is increasingly seen as part of the organisation’s management portfolio. There are several requirements and points that are common to the three management systems, such as: â€Å"system requirements, leadership (management responsibility), management of resources, management of processes, system implementation and monitoring and measuring† (Griffith, 1999) These three sets of standards con be combined under a common underlying principle of continuous improvements based on Deming’s (1982) TQM cycle of Plan-Do-Check-Act. Furthermore, these three sets of standards can share the same managerial resources such as (1) system documentation, (2) business process records, (3) corporate policies, (4) project planning, (5) managerial responsibility, (6) strategy implementation, (7) management controls, (8) communication standards and systems, (9) audits, (10) conformity, among others. With regards to leadership, these standards require process leadership from the top management in order to allocate maximum responsibility to the top management. Regarding prevention, these standards demand the identification of preventative actions for the mitigation of potential `non-conformities’. Concerning continuous improvements, these standards underscore the improvement of management system in a continuous manner. The structure of OHSAS 18001 has been developed to advance compatibility with the quality management (ISO 9000) and environmental management (ISO 14000) systems. This compatibility eases the integration of the three systems in the organization.Benefits of IntegrationAn organization may attain a number of tangible and non-quantifiable benefits from the implementation of an integrated management system. In term of operational management, IMS ensures that the daily operations are being performed effectively without the need for high level management intervention and input, thereby freeing up of management time to concentrate upon tactical issues and focusing on strategic management. Decision making processes are improved as the IMS provides up-to-date information from a single source. It achieves improvement in resource utilisation through reduction in the duplication of processes and procedures and the time spent in the review of documentation; this accomplishes a tangible cost benefit, as opposed to the duplication of effort required for three totally different systems. An integrated system also provides for a higher level of management control than is the case for the management of separate systems. An integrated system overseen by a single person, who has an overview of all the operations of the company and can provide input into the development of the overall goals and objecti ves of the organization, thereby making it easier to implement changes, rather than the restricted, functional approach in fulfilling individual system’s objectives. The implementation of an integrated system can also lead to enhanced communications in the organization. By delivering effective IMS training programs, confusion can be avoided that may result in contradictory messages being conveyed through the separate system training programs. Hence employees at all level across different departments can exchange ideas and expertise in the same manner and utilise the same approach. As a tangible benefit, organisations can realise a positive cost benefits through efficient operational processes and procedures and improved resources utilisation. By keeping the overheads down through these improvements, organisations can maintain market share and achieve competitive advantage. With regards to reputation and corporate image, organisation may also undergo enhancement social perception, as having an IMS demonstrates environmental and social responsibility. In addition to the positive cost benefits illustrated above, another direct cost benefit that can be achieved by integration is in the internal and external audit requirements. Separate management systems require each individual system to have separate internal and external audits. However, since the procedures are amalgamated in the integrated system, this considerably reduces this requirement. Further, by focussing on issues pertaining workers’ occupational health and safety, for example, through the i ntensification of worker job satisfaction can lead to an increase in productivity which can imply greater efficiency and financial revenue for the organization. Adequate management of occupational health and safety would, thus, also bring a positive influence in shareholder interest and, consequently, in the organization’s suppliers, providing more opportunities for business. Moreover, benefits are also to accrue at the level of product compliance and conformity, bringing satisfaction to customers and a reduction of scrapped material with the implied environmental benefits. One can thus conclude that all the elements interested in the organization would be satisfied.Difficulties in Integration of SystemsThe existing systems of organizations may seem to be sufficient and work well and integrating new approaches in business operations and corporate strategy can threaten the structure and reliability of the current arrangements that may have the support of all within the organis ation. The IMS can become over centralised and over-complex and lack the flexibility to consider local needs and constraints, thus leading to employers and employees becoming unconvinced by what they see as a worsening of this scenario under integration. Organisational vulnerability to against change can cause unforeseen consequences during the integration implementation. Furthermore, whilst IS0 9000, the quality management standard and ISO 14001 the environment standard are internationally recognised and certifiable, OHSAS 18001 the occupational health and safety management systems – specification, though certifiable, is not internationally recognised. Health and safety and environmental management are often underpinned by law whereas quality management system requirements are in the main, established by stakeholder requirements (IOSH, 2012) Conclusions Nowadays, it has become important for business organizations to engage with its stakeholders as part of its corporate strategy. Understanding their concerns and aspirations is considered to be an important prerequisite of a successful and sustainable corporate strategy. With an increased understanding of the stakeholders concerns and aspirations, businesses will be better positioned to capitalize on upcoming opportunities which may include better-motivated employees and good relationship with external stakeholders. In today’s business world, various stakeholders have become active in their demand for a business to become socially and environmentally viable in additional to its economical viability. In general, an organization can improve its business operations in terms of health and safety, and environmental and social impact by adopting a total quality management corporate strategy. Particularly, an organization can adhere to specific standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 14000 and OHSAS 18001 to pursue a total quality management approach in the area of health and safety, environment and social responsibility. Adherence to such practices and standards can be amalgamated through an integrated management system that collectively dealswith quality, environmental, and health and safety management. The need for an IMS has also arisen as a result of the decision to implement an environmental management system (EMS) and/or an occupational health and safety management system (OH&SMS) in addition to a quality management system (QMS). IMS as a concept does not, emerge merely from the possibility for a company to exploit existing synergies between different management systems that it can adopt (saving money, time and human resources). On the contrary, it is something intrinsic to the cornerstones of quality, environment and health and safety, namely continual improvement and total customer satisfaction (Salomone, 2008). References Ahire, S. L. (1997), Management Science– Total Quality Management interfaces: An integrative framework. Interfaces 27 (6) 91-105. Beckmergan, L.A., Berg, H.P., Karapetrovic, S.V., & Willborn, W.O., (2003). Integration of management systems: focus on safety in the nuclear industry. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, Vol. 20, Iss: 2 pp 220-228. Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1988 Crosby, P (1979). Quality is Free. New York: McGraw-Hill. Cua, K. O., K. E. McKone, and R. G. Schroeder. (2001), Relationships between implementation of TQM, JIT, and TPM and manufacturing performance. Journal of Operations Management, 19 (6) 675-694. De Oliveira Matias, J.C., and Coleho, D.A. (2002), the integration of the standards systems of quality management, environmental management and occupational health and safety management. International Journal of Production Research, Vol. 40, No. 15, 3857-3866. Deming, W.E. (1982), Quality, Productivity and Competitive Position, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Centre for Advanced Engineering Study, MA Deming, W. E (1986). Out of the Crisis. MIT Press. Environmental Protection Act 1990 Griffiths A., (2000), Integrated management systems: a single management system solution for project controlEngineering Construction and Architectural Management 7 3, 23-240. Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 IOSH, (2012), Joined-up working. An introduction to integrated management systems. www.iosh.co.uk. ISO 9001, http://www.iso.org/iso/home/standards/management-standards/iso_9000.htm Karapetrovic, S., (2003), Musings on integrated managements systems; Measuring business excellence, Vol. 7, No.1, pp. 4-13 OHSAS 18001, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems Specification. Salomone R., (2008), Integrated management systems: experiences in Italian organizations; Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 16, Iss. 16, Nov. 2008, pp. 1786–1806 Reilly, N. B. (1994). Quality: What Makes it HappenVan Nostrand Reinhold. p. 31. Schema, (2012) The Importance of CSR. Schema Sustainability Partner. Available from http://schemaadvisory.com/the-importance-of-csr/ (cited on 30th April, 2013) Truist (2013) Why Corporate Social Responsibility is so Important in 2013. Available from http://truist.com/why-corporate-social-responsibility-is-so-important-in-2013/ (cited on 30th April, 2013). Walton, M. (1986). The Deming Management Method. Penguin Group. pp. 94 Wilkinson & Dale, (1999), Integrated management systems: an examination of the concept and theory; The TQM Magazine, Vol.11, No. 2, pp. 95-104. Winder, C., (2000), Integrating OHS, Environmental and Quality Management Standards; Quality Assurance, No. 8, pp. 105-135.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

The Best Quotes From 19th Century Feminist Lucy Stone

The Best Quotes From 19th Century Feminist Lucy Stone Lucy Stone (1818-1893) was a 19th-century feminist and abolitionist who is known for keeping her own name after marriage. She married into the Blackwell family; her husbands sisters included pioneer physicians  Elizabeth Blackwell  and Emily Blackwell. Another Blackwell brother was married to Lucy Stones close confidant, pioneer woman minister  Antoinette Brown Blackwell. On Equal Rights The idea of equal rights was in the air. I think, with never-ending gratitude, that the young women of today do not and can never know at what price their right to free speech and to speak at all in public has been earned. (From her speech, The Progress of Fifty Years) We, the people of the United States. Which We, the people? The women were not included. We want rights. The flour-merchant, the house-builder, and the postman charge us no less on account of our sex; but when we endeavor to earn money to pay all these, then, indeed, we find the difference. I expect to plead not for the slave only, but for suffering humanity everywhere. Especially do I mean to labor for the elevation of my sex. I was a woman before I was an abolitionist. I must speak for the women. We believe that personal independence and equal human rights can never be forfeited, except for crime; that marriage should be an equal and permanent partnership, and so recognized by law; that until it is so recognized, married partners should provide against the radical injustice of present laws, by every means in their power... On the Right to Education Whatever the reason, the idea was born that women could and should be educated. It lifted a mountain load from woman. It shattered the idea, everywhere pervasive as the atmosphere, that women were incapable of education, and would be less womanly, less desirable in every way, if they had it. However much it may have been resented, women accepted the idea of their intellectual inequality. I asked my brother: Can girls learn Greek? The right to education and to free speech having been gained for woman, in the long run every other good thing was sure to be obtained. Henceforth the leaves of the tree of knowledge were for women, and for the healing of the nations. On the Right to Vote You may talk about Free Love, if you please, but we are to have the right to vote. Today we are fined, imprisoned, and hanged, without a jury trial by our peers. You shall not cheat us by getting us off to talk about something else. When we get the suffrage, then you may taunt us with anything you please, and we will then talk about it as long as you please. On Occupations and a Womans Sphere If a woman earned a dollar by scrubbing, her husband had a right to take the dollar and go and get drunk with it and beat her afterwards. It was his dollar. Women are in bondage; their clothes are a great hindrance to their engaging in any business which will make them pecuniarily independent, and since the soul of womanhood never can be queenly and noble so long as it must beg bread for its body, is it not better, even at the expense of a vast deal of annoyance, that they whose lives deserve respect and are greater than their garments should give an example by which woman may more easily work out her own emancipation? Too much has already been said and written about womens sphere. Leave women, then, to find their sphere. Half a century ago women were at an infinite disadvantage in regard to their occupations. The idea that their sphere was at home, and only at home, was like a band of steel on society. But the spinning-wheel and the loom, which had given employment to women, had been superseded by machinery, and something else had to take their places. The taking care of the house and children, and the family sewing, and teaching the little summer school at a dollar per week, could not supply the needs nor fill the aspirations of women. But every departure from these conceded things was met with the cry, You want to get out of your sphere, or, To take women out of their sphere; and that was to fly in the face of Providence, to unsex yourself in short, to be monstrous women, women who, while they orated in public, wanted men to rock the cradle and wash the dishes. We pleaded that whatever was fit to be done at all might with propriety be done by anybody who did it well; that the tools belonged to thos e who could use them; that the possession of a power presupposed a right to its use. I know, Mother, you feel badly and that you would prefer to have me take some other course, if I could in conscience. Yet, Mother, I know you too well to suppose that you would wish me to turn away from what I think is my duty. I surely would not be a public speaker if I sought a life of ease, for it will be a most laborious one; nor would I do it for the sake of honor, for I know that I shall be disesteemed, even hated, by some who are now my friends, or who profess to be. Neither would I do it if I sought wealth, because I could secure it with far more ease and worldly honor by being a teacher. If I would be true to myself, true to my Heavenly Father, I must pursue that course of conduct which, to me, appears best calculated to promote the highest good of the world. The first woman minister, Antoinette Brown, had to meet ridicule and opposition that can hardly be conceived to-day. Now there are women ministers, east and west, all over the country. ... for these years I can only be a mother- no trivial thing, either. But I do believe that a womans truest place is in a home, with a husband and with children, and with large freedom, pecuniary freedom, personal freedom, and the right to vote.  (Lucy Stone to her adult daughter, Alice Stone Blackwell) I know not what you believe of God, but I believe He gave yearnings and longings to be filled, and that He did not mean all our time should be devoted to feeding and clothing the body. On Slavery If, while I hear the shriek of the slave mother robbed of her little ones, I do not open my mouth for the dumb, am I not guilty? Or should I go from house to house to do it, when I could tell so many more in less time, if they should be gathered in one place? You would not object or think it wrong, for a man to plead the cause of the suffering and the outcast; and surely the moral character of the act is not changed because it is done by a woman. The anti-slavery cause had come to break stronger fetters than those that held the slave. The idea of equal rights was in the air. The wail of the slave, his clanking fetters, his utter need, appealed to everybody. Women heard. Angelina and Sara Grimki and Abby Kelly went out to speak for the slaves. Such a thing had never been heard of. An earthquake shock could hardly have startled the community more. Some of the abolitionists forgot the slave in their efforts to silence the women. The Anti-Slavery Society rent itself in twain over the subject. The Church was moved to its very foundation in opposition. On Identity and Courage A wife should no more take her husbands name than he should hers. My name is my identity and must not be lost. I believe that the influence of woman will save the country before every other power. Now all we need is to continue to speak the truth fearlessly, and we shall add to our number those who will turn the scale to the side of equal and full justice in all things. In education, in marriage, in religion, in everything disappointment is the lot of women. It shall be the business of my life to deepen that disappointment in every womans heart until she bows down to it no longer. Make the world better. Source Quote collection  assembled by  Jone Johnson Lewis.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Tipos de visas de trabajo y casos en que aplican

Tipos de visas de trabajo y casos en que aplican Estados Unidos permite cada aà ±o que miles de extranjeros ingresen al paà ­s para trabajar legalmente en una amplà ­sima variedad de profesiones y ocupaciones. Este derecho se concede por medio de ms de una veintena de diferentes visas de trabajo, que pueden ser permanentes o temporales. En este à ºltimo caso, el titular debe renovarla, cambiar su situacià ³n migratoria o salir del paà ­s una vez que su visa expire. Visas de inmigrante: tarjeta de residencia o green card Las personas con habilidades extraordinarias puedan solicitar una visa EB-1. Aplica a deportistas, cientà ­ficos, educadores, empresarios y artistas de reconocido prestigio como, por ejemplo, los ganadores de un premio Nobel o de una medalla olà ­mpica. Estas personas pueden solicitar la visa por sà ­ mismas rellenando el formulario I-140 del Servicio de Ciudadanà ­a e Inmigracià ³n de los Estados Unidos (USCIS, por sus siglas en inglà ©s). Profesores universitarios, investigadores, ejecutivos de multinacionales, personas con estudios de doctorado finalizados o licenciados con al menos cinco aà ±os de experiencia laboral, deportistas, artistas, cientà ­ficos o empresarios con habilidades excepcionales pueden conseguir una visa de trabajo permanente EB-2. A diferencia de las EB-1, las visas EB-2 exigen que la peticià ³n sea realizada por un empleador de Estados Unidos. Es decir, requiere la existencia previa de una oferta de trabajo concreta. Adems, es necesario obtener una certificacià ³n laboral individual del Departamento de Trabajo de Estados Unidos. La à ºnica excepcià ³n a esta certificacià ³n es poder demostrar ante el USCIS que se tiene capacidad especial que puede favorecer los intereses nacionales de Estados Unidos. Asimismo, tambià ©n pueden obtener una visa permanente de trabajo, en este caso una EB-3, los profesionales con estudios universitarios, los trabajadores con conocimientos especiales con al menos dos aà ±os de experiencia o entrenamiento o, incluso, trabajadores sin habilidades especiales. En estos casos es necesario cumplir con los siguientes requisitos: que un empresario en Estados Unidos realice una oferta de trabajo permanente y a tiempo completo.que el empleador no encuentre en ese momento a una persona estadounidense o residente permanente que pueda cubrir el puesto de trabajo vacante.que el Departamento de Trabajo certifique la capacidad laboral de la persona extrajera.que el empleador presente ante el USCIS el formulario I-140 y demuestre la capacidad para pagar el salario que ofrece por el trabajo. Adems, situaciones muy diferentes como ser mà ©dico, haber trabajador en la Zona del Canal de Panam, ser monja o cura, trabajar para una organizacià ³n internacional, como la ONU o la OEA, o haber trabajador para la OTAN puede dar derecho a ser beneficiario de una visa de trabajo permanente EB-4. El formulario a rellenar es el I-360 y el cà ³nyuge e hijos solteros menores de 21 aà ±os de las personas que obtengan un visado EB-4 pueden residir legalmente en Estados Unidos. Por à ºltimo, la persona extranjera que invierta un millà ³n de dà ³lares -o medio millà ³n si la inversià ³n se hace en una determinada zona que el gobierno favorece con el objetivo de crear empleo- y genere un mà ­nimo de 10 puestos de trabajo tiene derecho a obtener la visa permanente EB-5. Visas de trabajo temporal Existen una veintena de visas temporales para trabajar en Estados Unidos y que solicitan profesionales tan distintos como modelos, ingenieros, enfermeras, trabajadores temporales del campo o personas con habilidades artà ­sticas o cientà ­ficas especiales.   Una de las visas ms populares es la H-1B. Salvo en el caso de los modelos, las personas titulares de esta visa deben poseer un tà ­tulo universitario y deben trabajar en un campo considerado por las autoridades estadounidenses como una â€Å"ocupacià ³n especial†. Entre los profesionales que pueden beneficiarse de esta visa se encuentran, entre otros, maestros, ingenieros, arquitectos, abogados y matemticos. Cada aà ±o se fija por ley el nà ºmero de visas H-1B que pueden concederse, siendo en la actualidad 65,000. Pero existen un cupo de 20,000 para las personas que hayan obtenido sus maestrà ­as o doctorados en universidades estadounidenses. Cuando el nà ºmero de solicitantes excede al cupo de visas disponible se realiza una  loterà ­a de visas. Asimismo, existen cupos especiales para los nacionales de ciertos paà ­ses como Chile, para quien se reserva un cupo de 1,400 visas. Y no estn sujetas a cupo las visas otorgadas a trabajadores de centros de investigacià ³n. Una buena alternativa para la visa H-1 son las TN para profesionales, pero sà ³lo pueden sacarla canadienses y mexicanos. Estas son las 60 profesiones que permiten aplicar por estas visas. Otras visas temporales populares son la O-1, para personas con habilidades extraordinarias en las ciencias, las artes, el deporte o el mundo de los negocios. La P-1A para deportistas reconocidos (incluidos jugadores profesionales de videojuegos, a quien Inmigracià ³n equipara a deportistas de à ©lite). Otras visas son la P-1B, P-2 y P-3 para los artistas de prestigio y la H-2A para trabajadores agrà ­colas y las H-2B para temporeros en actividades que no estn relacionadas con la agricultura o las C1/D para trabajar en cruceros para los que es necesario ingresar a Estados Unidos para embarcar en el barco en el que se va a trabajar. Los cruceros que inician sus viajes en EE.UU. contratan cada aà ±o a miles de personas en distintas calidades de trabajos, muchos son extranjeros. Frecuentemente, agencias de contratacià ³n seleccionan a los empleados para cruceros. Los sueldos que se brindan son superiores al salario mà ­nimo en Estados Unidos. Otra visa con particularidades propias en la B-1 para empleados domà ©sticos. Por à ºltimo, destacan las de la familia J-1 (visas de intercambio). Con ellas se puede trabajar temporalmente en EEUU en capacidades muy distintas, como por ejemplo: au pair (nià ±era)maestro (docente)prcticas profesionalesmà ©dicos que realizan la residencia en Estados Unidos para especializarsetrabajo en ONGs de Estados Unidos por programa J-1.Visa para universitarios extranjeros para trabajar en USA durante el veranoVisa para monitores de campamento en USA Familiares: cà ³nyuge e hijos Salvo excepciones, como en el caso de las visas L-1A y L-1B concedidas a ejecutivos y gerentes enviados por sus empresas a trabajar a sus oficinas en Estados Unidos. Otro caso es el de los supuestos de las visas tipo E otorgadas a cierto tipo de comerciantes e inversionistas, los cà ³nyuges de las personas beneficiadas por una visa de trabajo temporal podrn vivir legalmente en Estados Unidos, pero no podrn dispondrn de permiso de trabajo. Recientemente se cambià ³ esta regla pero sà ³lo para casos muy excepcionales de personas que tengan una H-4 En muchos casos se puede, adems, obtener una visa derivada para los hijos solteros menores de 21 aà ±os. Si estn estudiando la primaria o la secundaria es muy importante familiarizarse cuanto antes con las particularidades y opciones que brinda el sistema educativo de los Estados Unidos. Tramitacià ³n urgente de las visas de trabajo Por à ºltimo, destacar que varias visas de trabajo (pero no todas) permiten su tramitacià ³n por và ­a rpida, rellenando el formulario I-907 y pagando $1,225 a mayores. Asà ­ pues, la inmigracià ³n para trabajar en Estados Unidos est abierta. En algunos casos la misma persona puede optar por ms de un tipo de visa. Antes de elegir deber examinar con cuidado los requisitos de cada una, el nà ºmero de visas que se conceden anualmente en cada categorà ­a y los meses e incluso aà ±os de espera que existen en algunas de ellas. Tiempos de demora Verifica las semanas o meses (o aà ±os) que hay que esperar para diversos trmites migratorios: Corte, visas, residencia, PERM para obtener autorizacià ³n del Departamento de Trabajo o solicitudes al USCIS. De interà ©s Estas son las 30  profesiones donde ms crecer la demanda de empleo en los prà ³ximos ocho aà ±os, segà ºn el Departamento de Trabajo de los Estados Unidos. Este artà ­culo es informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.