Discrimination and David Batty People Essay

Discrimination and David Batty People Essay Discrimination and David Batty People Essay In today’s society equality and the art of â€Å"being fair† is ever so popular, as it should be. The amount of opportunities in front of any American is mind blowing, and everything seems to be a competition with someone else. Discrimination is a harsh to the point word with a much more extraordinary definition than the one given by the dictionary. â€Å" The unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things.† The art of judging someone by how the look or how you perceive him or her to be has been around since the beginning of man. There are ways to eliminate discrimination and do without it. Over the years the way people are judged or looked at has changed and will always continue to over time. Discrimination is todays society is far different than discrimination in the 1930’s or 1950’s. Women’s rights are something that is still present in today’s society as well as back in the early 1900’s. Men have always seen themselves smarter or above women just in general. This is not the case at all, all men and women are equal and no man should be looked at as â€Å"better† or â€Å"more suited† than any woman. Women were discriminated against because they were not said to have been as smart as the man so they were given lesser duties. Ever since man and woman were made equal women have risen to the occasion and not let any personal judgments by people hold them back. Even though two things are said to be equal under law, that can never change anyone’s beliefs or what they believe should be happening. â€Å"We run from things that we don’t understand and when we can’t run, we demonize the people who are differen t from ourselves.† (Scott Benner) This leads me to the discrimination of African Americans and how to this day people are still racist toward someone of another skin color. This is probably the most used example of â€Å"discrimination† and it is very serious. Since the civil war and the so-called â€Å"end to slavery† there have been people who do not agree. It is human nature almost to stand for what you believe in. Racism and discrimination towards people of the opposite race can be a very touchy subject and can be sensitive to a lot of people. Although it is a sensitive topic it really is a huge problem in the world we live in. And not just Whites and Blacks but other races that have prejudices assumed about them as well. â€Å"The moment a little boy is concerned with which is a jay and which is a sparrow, he can no longer see the birds or hear them sing.† (-Eric Berne) When man is not seen as one whole, there is no more harmony for one is seen as dif ferent. Our society right now is so contradictive with any news that is put out. All black colleges are allowed but if there was an all white college? Wouldn’t that be labeled racist? When in the end it is just fair? This is just one example of how discrimination and racism have affected everyone growing up in this world and how it will continue to with the help from our parents. There really is no way to completely put an end to racism and discrimination because it is a part of our American history and no one will ever forget what happened and erase their own beliefs. Parents are a large contributing factor because they are the ones that ultimately instill beliefs upon their kids, which every parent does. Discrimination of the mentally handicapped is something else that is not only a big problem but something that is just so rude and mean. All because someone is different than you, you exploit him or her. Some challenged people I have met

Deferred Compensation

Deferred Compensation Deferred compensation plans are arrangements by which a part of an employee’s compensation is paid at a later date, or put into investment instruments that the employee can only access at some point in the future Benefits and Hazards of Deferred Compensation There is a large variety of deferred compensation plans, arrangements by which a part of an employee’s compensation is paid at a later date, or put into investment instruments that the employee can only access at some point in the future. There are two basic reasons for deferred compensation. From the employee’s point of view, it reduces  or at least postpones his income tax liability. For employers, deferred compensation helps to manage payroll costs and can be used as an incentive for better employee performance. Types of Deferred Compensation The most common type of deferred compensation plan is the â€Å"defined contribution plan†: A  portion of the employee’s pay is deducted and invested on his behalf, usually in some form of mutual fund.   These are familiar to workers in the US as the â€Å"401(k)†, named after the section of Internal Revenue Code that pertains to them. The deferment from the employee’s salary is made before income taxes are withheld, which is a benefit to both employees and the employer. Employees do not pay taxes on their investments until they withdraw them sometime in the future, and employers are able to reduce the amount of withheld taxes they must remit to the government. Many employers also match all or part of the employee’s contribution, providing an extra incentive for employees to participate in the program; this helps to reduce the company’s transactions costs for maintaining the investment package. In the US, 401(k) programs have the added security of being protected by law from creditors in case of the company’s bankruptcy, although the value of the employees’ investments can fluctuate; in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, millions of US workers saw the value of their 401(k) savings drop as stock markets plummeted. Other kinds of deferred compensation packages not covered by the same regulations as 401(k) programs are more risky, although they generally offer higher returns. Non-401(k) programs are generally only offered to the highest-earning employees who also pay the highest rates of income tax. The main reason for these kinds of programs is that there are legal limits on the amount of money that can be deferred into a 401(k). The main risk is that there is much less regulation of non-401(k) programs, and they are not protected from bankruptcy. Many workers in the US discovered they had lost their investments in the wake of the financial crisis when their employers declared bankruptcy. Read also:  Financial Rewards  |  Money Makes the World Go Around Stock purchase plans and stock option plans are also common forms of deferred compensation: In a stock purchase plan, the company establishes a trust to receive employee contributions, which are converted to shares of the company’s stock.   Stock purchase plans are regulated in much the same manner as 401(k) programs, the only real difference being that instead of contributions being invested in an array of mutual funds, they are only reinvested in the company. The plan is popular with employers and employees alike; for employers, the stock purchase program is reflected in better cash flow and tax savings and is seen as a useful tool to increase employee productivity. Employees benefit by gaining an ownership stake in the company, and some small degree of control over the growth in value of their investments. Stock option plans differ in that the employee is not actually compensated in the form of stock, but â€Å"earns† options to purchase the company’s stock at a low fixed price in the future.   A stock option plan has most of the same benefits as a stock purchase plan  but allows the company to keep control over its shares for a longer period. Employees in rapidly-growing companies benefit the most from stock option plans; a well-known recent example is Facebook, which launched a highly-publicized – and unintentionally controversial – IPO in 2012. Facebook employees who had exercised their options prior to the IPO were able to profit handsomely from the high price Facebook shares fetched in the market, but their returns were reduced somewhat by a condition that they hold their shares for a time before selling them; Facebook’s share price dropped rapidly after the IPO, so employees who waited too long to sell shares saw very little profit, or even lost money in some cases. Another less well-known version of a stock-based deferred compensation plan is called the â€Å"phantom† stock plan: It provides employees benefits similar to those they would receive from owning company stock, without actually giving stock to the employees.   For example, employees might be compensated in â€Å"stock credits† equivalent to shares of stock, from which they can receive bonus payments based on the stock’s performance or dividends paid. Because phantom stock plans are hard to regulate and do not provide many benefits to employers as conventional purchase or option plans. What Should  Employees Look for in Deferred Compensation Plans? Because deferred compensation programs are based on investments that can lose as well as gain value, employees considering a compensation offer should make sure they understand the details of the deferred compensation package. 401(k) programs are the most highly-regulated and most secure  but vary in the specific funds or investment instruments they contain. In the 2008 financial crisis, many 401(k) holders watched their investments vanish  because a large number of 401(k) funds were heavily invested in popular but ultimately worthless mortgage-backed securities. For stock-based deferred compensation plans, the biggest issue is what part of the employee’s compensation the plan is supposed to represent since it is very difficult to quantify the future value of stock. Employees should ask for details about whether a certain level of returns or other incentives is guaranteed, and what limits are imposed on stock purchases or sales. Compensation is compensation, whether deferred or not, and it is up to an  employee  to decide whether or not what he can expect to earn, in whatever form he will receive it, is a fair exchange for his work.