Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 1
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography
School of Business, Liberty University
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Annotated Bibliography
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 2
Baum, B. (2019). Workplace sexual harassment in the “me too” era: the unforeseen
consequences of confidential settlement agreements. Journal of Business and Behavioral
Sciences, 31. 4-24,
https://www.asbbs.org/files/2019/JBBS_31.1_Spring_2019.pdf#page=4
The “#MeToo” movement began in 2017 when an influx of millions of people took to
social media to share their sexual harassment experiences. While many stories being
shared were from women, men also came forward because for the first time they felt
heard and seen. This article focuses on how women have historically faced sexual
harassment in the battle for equal rights. Baum goes on to give an example of a realistic
legal case and shows how confidentiality agreements in sexual harassment cases have
caused psychological effects as well as the physical effects of the event. HR departments
have started to implement new anti-harassment training that go a step further than a
simple video followed by a quiz so that employees are fulfilling the basic requirements.
The conclusion is that until the culture changes regarding sexual harassment, people will
not understand how significant of an impact this type of behavior has. A law, training, or
simple punishment is not the solution. Rather it is listening to victims and acknowledging
their trauma while enforcing a “zero-tolerance” workplace.
Bergemann, A. & Riphahn, R. T. (2023). Maternal employment effects of paid parental leave.
Journal of Population Economics,36. 139-178, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-021-
00878-7
Parental leave is a hot topic in many industrialized countries and there have been
different reforms, specifically in Europe, which identify how paid parental leave affects
the labor market. This article analyzes how a German parental leave program reform
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 3
affected maternal employment. The original maternity leave required mothers to take a
means test and then provided up to two years of earnings-related benefits. The reformed
maternity leave did not require a means test and was available for all mothers, but with a
maximum time period of one year instead of two. The empirical analysis found that the
reform increased the number of women leaving the labor force, but the statistics were
insignificant. However, there was an increase in mothers entering the workforce that
previously did not have the option of maternity leave. Bergemann and Riphahn provide
evidence that shows that offering paid maternity leave increases the number of mothers in
the labor force.
Cortina, L. M. & Areguin, M. A. (2021). Putting people down and pushing them out: sexual
harassment in the workplace. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and
Organizational Behavior, 8. 285-309, https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-012420-
055606
While many people think that sexual harassment is about romance or sex, social scientists
actually use sexual harassment as a general term that covers a multitude of different
behaviors. According to Cortina and Areguin, sexual harassment is about putting people
down not flirting with them or simply making crude jokes in the workplace. Sexual
harassment can be physically, mentally, and emotionally traumatizing and degrading. The
article highlights different forms of sexual harassment and highlights how detrimental the
effects can be considering that approximately half of women over their lifetime will be
sexually harassed in the workplace. The article goes on to give examples of ways that
people can decrease sexual harassment such as reporting and training. In comparison to
Baum’s article, the main action that has proven to make a difference is openly
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 4
communicating about sexual harassment and encouraging workers to report misconduct.
However, a follow-up action of punishing the harasser must also be taken for this to be an
effective strategy.
Davison, H. K. & Blackburn, A. S. (2023). The case for offering paid leave: benefits to the
employer, employee, and society. Compensation and Benefits Review, 55. 3-18,
https://doi.org/10.1177/08863687221131728
There are three traditional types of leave that employers offer; leave mandated by the
U.S. government, family and medical leave, and leisurely leave. While most companies
offer paid leave for every category to full-time employees, there are vast differences in
paid days off versus time off. The article details why having a work-life balance is crucial
in the productivity and satisfaction of employees. Many of the reasons listed as to why
employers should offer paid time off were more beneficial to the company than the
employee. Rather than seeing paid time off as a financial burden, it can actually be seen
as a financial benefit. If employees are satisfied with their time off, they are more likely
to stay at the company which will reduce costs in attracting, retaining, and training new
employees in the long run. Davison and Blackburn are in agreement with Cortina and
Areguin by recommending paid maternity leave which will in turn increase the number of
women who rejoin the workforce after childbirth. PTO can look different for every
company, depending on the size and industry, but the evidence shows how necessary it is.
de Bloom, J., Syrek, C. J., Kühnel, J., & Vahle-Hinz, T. (2022). Unlimited paid time off policies:
unlocking the best and unleashing the beast. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. 812847,
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.812187
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 5
Unlimited paid time off (UPTO) is a relatively new benefit being offered by some
companies. This article defines UPTO policies and offers suggestions of implementing
UPTO based on successful companies utilizing the benefit. UPTO has been wrongly
defined in the past because of the misconception that employees can take as much time
off from work as they want during any time of the year while getting paid their normal
wage. This is not the case. Instead, UPTO is a restructured approach to traditional PTO
that allows for employees to be more flexible in their work schedule. While no additional
scientific research was done for this article, a conceptual review of the literature
surrounding UPTO was done to understand the underlying themes of UPTO. The
conclusion was that UPTO can be beneficial or harmful depending on the individual
using it. There is not enough research on this topic for employers to decide if they should
add this benefit for their employees and there is not enough evidence to prove that
employees would reasonably use this modern approach to PTO.
Dobrotić, I. & Blum, S. (2020). Inclusiveness of parental-leave benefits in twenty-one European
countries: measuring social and gender inequalities in leave eligibility. Social Politics,
27(3). 588-614, https://doi.org/10.1093/sp/jxz023
Maternity leave is a common benefit that various organizations offer to women that are
pregnant and plan to take time off to recover from childbirth and spend time with their
newborn. In recent years, paternity leave has been offered to new fathers who wish to
take time off to care for their newborn and mother of their child. This article highlights
the benefits of parental leave which is offered to both mothers and fathers after their
maternity or paternity leave has been used. This study accounted for twenty-one
European countries and measured both entitlement and eligibility for parental leave
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 6
between 2006 and 2017. The findings show that great contributions have been made
towards gender equality. There is also clear evidence that the strict nature of being
eligible for parental leave is slowly becoming more attainable. Parental leave is much
more beneficial to employees than employers in the short-term, but it may be necessary
in the future for long-term employees.
Dorsey, E. R., Okun, M. S., & Bloem, B. R. (2020). Care, convenience, comfort, confidentiality,
and contagion: The 5 C’s that will shape the future of telemedicine. Journal of
Parkinson’s Disease, 10. 893-897, https://content.iospress.com/download/journal-of-
parkinsons-disease/jpd202109?id=journal-of-parkinsons-disease%2Fjpd202109
Confidentiality is not only important to government agencies or lawyers, but it is a
crucial aspect of providing quality care to sick patients. This article specifically
recognizes individuals with Parkinson’s disease and the need for confidentiality with
regard to patient records. The COVID-19 pandemic changed how patients could visit
with their doctors by offering a virtual appointment rather than an in-person visit.
Telemedicine is an example of how technology can open many doors of opportunity
while simultaneously introducing issues that were not of concern before. Any
organization that uses technology to store confidential information must be secure with
safeguards and employees that work for the company must also protect the information. It
is much easier to monitor if a paper file is missing from a safe than it is to manage
electronic files and where they are being sent and received from. Confidentiality is part of
every organization in some way or another, but medical practices must practice this
principle to the fullest extent.
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 7
Issa, W. B., Akour, A., Ibrahim, A., Almarzouqi, A., Abbas, S., Hisham, F., & Griffiths, J.
(2020). Privacy, confidentiality, security and patient safety concerns about electronic
health records. International Nursing Review, 67(2). 218-230,
https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12585
Similar to the previous article about Parkinson’s patients, this article delves into the
importance of confidentiality and privacy in healthcare. A mixed-method data analysis of
quantitative and qualitative data was performed to understand the concerns of nurses
regarding confidentiality and what technological or non-technological factors contribute
to those concerns. There were more concerns raised about privacy than confidentiality
because the overarching consensus of the nurses was that patients have unwavering trust
in them; therefore, they take all necessary precautions to keep patient data confidential.
Unfortunately, the current process of keeping information confidential has impeded the
time that could be spent caring for patients. The article’s results show a need for universal
systems and policies to be established when confidential records are being kept. It is also
too easy to access protected information by unauthorized users which puts the safety of
information at risk. HR is needed to enforce stricter guidelines and protect information.
Maran, D. A., Varetto, A., & Civilotti, C. (2022). Sexual harassment in the workplace:
consequences and perceived self-efficacy in women and men witnesses and non-
witnesses. Behavioral Sciences, 12. 326, https://doi.org/10.3390/bs12090326
Most studies that have centered around sexual harassment have focused on victims and
perpetrators with the occasional study of the consequences of these actions. However,
few studies have been done on people who witness sexual harassment in the workplace.
This article was about a study on 1500 participants in Italy that anonymously completed a
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 8
questionnaire. The data verified the hypothesis that witnesses of sexual harassment in the
workplace experience are psychologically affected. An interesting result of the analysis
found that male witnesses of sexual harassment suffered more than their female
counterparts which was unexpected. There is still research to be done, especially on men
in the workplace that either witness, are a victim of, or are a perpetrator of sexual
harassment. The article illustrates and describes a clear need for preventive measures to
be taken, not just reactive punishments. Sexual harassment affects everyone involved,
whether directly or indirectly. It is up to organizational leadership to provide a safe and
comfortable environment for all employees.
Täuber, S., Loyens, K., Oertelt-Prigione, S., & Kubbe, I. (2022). Harassment as a consequence
and cause of inequality in academia: A narrative review. eClinicalMedicine, 49. 101486,
https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.eclinm.2022.101486
Harassment does not only occur in a sexual nature and HR must account for the varying
types of discrimination that may become harassment. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 explicitly states that employees and/or job applicants are protected from
discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and nationality. This article provides
evidence that supports the idea that women in academia have been harassed and
discriminated against far more than their male colleagues. The inequality of men and
women can be seen in the workplace and higher education organizations. The power
imbalance fuels inequality which coincides with harassment directly. The authors
recommend that policies against harassment should be at the forefront of organizational
leaders’ minds. Failure to do so means that organizations should be held accountable for
their actions, in universities and the workplace. The rules in place are only as strong as
Human Resource Policy Project: Annotated Bibliography 9
those who are charged with enforcing them. One of the main points of this article is that
victims are not to blame for underreporting, but organizations should be held accountable
for inefficient consequences for the perpetrators.
