Assessing the completeness of a job analysis procedure

The current research analyzed employee perceptions of the completeness of a self-report, point-factor job evaluation system. Complementary qualitative and quantitative techniques were used to identify characteristics of jobs, characteristics of employees, and characteristics of the job evaluation procedure that affected employee perceptions of the system. Analyses indicated that the job evaluation instrument might describe some classes of jobs more completely than others. Situations where job evaluation is particularly problematic are identified and discussed.     

Preparing for ISO 14000: An assessment guide

With ISO 14000 expected to roll out in 1996, have you begun to evaluate how well your current environmental management policy, programs, procedures, and objectives conform to published national and evolving global Environmental Management System (EMS) standards?. The ISO expects to adopt a final standard by mid-1996 which specifies requirements for an EMS (e.g., ISO 14001). In addition, national EMS standards have already been developed and published by organizations such as The British Standards Institute and, in the United States, NSF International, for example, BS 7750 and NSF 110–1995, respectively. This article shows how managers can begin assessing their operations to prepare for these new standards and improve overall environmental performance.     

Perceived intra-organizational mobility: Reliable versus exceptional performance as means to getting ahead

‘Work hard and get ahead’ is a fundamental tenet of modern organizations, but employees have different interpretations of what it means to ‘work hard’ and perceive that there are multiple channels to ‘get ahead’. The current research explores employees' perceptions of the factors affecting their intra-organizational upward mobility. Results using a survey instrument in a large American medical college show that employees can distinguish among intra-organizational mobility channels based on reliable role performance, on exceptional role performance, and on non-performance factors such as personal characteristics (e.g. race and gender), or luck and favoritism. Perceptions of mobility channels are related to such organizationally relevant outcomes as employee satisfaction and turnover intentions. Occupational sub-groups, however, perceive different structures for upward mobility.     

Impact of cadmium on food utilization of the Indian major carp,Catla catla (Ham)

Catla catla, under the sublethal stress of cadmium exhibited depletion in food utilization parameters and it was concentration dependent. Heavy metal intoxication was found to exhibit reduction in biomass.     

Distribution of long-lived radionuclides of the 238U series in the sediments of a small river in a uranium mineralized region of Spain

A study is presented on the distribution and mobilization of the natural U isotopes (238U and 234U), 230Th, and 226Ra in the sediments of a small river crossing an uranium mineralized zone where a disused uranium mine is located. Due to the preferential directions for surface run-off waters and to the mine's situation, one sampling point along the river bed was identified as a point of accumulation of radionuclides. The average values of the activity concentrations (Bq/kg) in this sediment sample were 5,025, 5,055, 5,915 and 1,694 for 238U, 234U, 230Th and 226Ra, respectively, while the respective average values of the activity concentrations (Bq/kg) for the sediment sample considered to give the background level were 125, 124, 131 and 370. Isotopic ratios between the descendants of 238U served to clarify some paths of distribution, involving the soils nearest to the sampling points and the location of these points with respect to the disused mine. The differences in behaviour found between the uranium, thorium and radium isotopes were associated to the mobility of these radionuclides in the fluvial system studied. Correlations between the radionuclide activity concentration ratios and stable element concentrations in the sediment samples were also investigated.     

Risk perception and trust in the context of urban brownfields

Data are reported from a postal questionnaire completed by 747 residents of two urban local authority areas within which there were sites of brownfield land with significant levels of contamination. Respondents rated their perceptions of the extent to which their neighbourhood and own home were relatively vulnerable to contamination, their concern about possible effects of contamination, their satisfaction with their council in terms of consultation with residents on housing and development issues, and their trust in their council with respect to contaminated land risks. Satisfaction with, and trust in, the council was generally low in both areas, and especially so among those who perceived themselves to be more vulnerable to contamination. Nonetheless, dissatisfaction was less marked in the area where the local authority, according to background information, had pursued a more open and proactive style of risk communication and consultation with residents. The main predictors of trust, across both areas, were perceptions that the council was openly prepared to tell residents what they knew, and that the council had residents’ interests at heart. Implications are discussed for the impact of different modes of risk communication on trust.     

Ban on landfilling of wooden pallets in North Carolina: an assessment of recycling and industry capacity

Pallets literally move the world and an estimated 2 billion of them are in use in the U.S. every day. However, pallets have a short life span and thus consume vast quantities of resources. They are also responsible for 2–3% of all waste landfilled in the United States. This is despite the fact that technologies and markets exist that allow pallets to be reused, recycled, converted into other products or turned into mulch, boiler fuels or alcohols (ethanol). The State of North Carolina's legislature debated a ban on landfilling pallets for several years and has now enacted legislation to ban this practice beginning in 2009. This study provided information used to help reach that decision.North Carolina had 103 known pallet recycling operations that were surveyed in 2003–2004. Using 34 responses, the total pallet recycling capacity in North Carolina was close to 60 million units per year, while 34 million pallets were actually recycled in 2003. The average operation employed nearly 34 persons and recycled about 326,000 pallets per year. On average, 20% of the pallets received by a recycling operation were reused, 45% were refurbished, 19% were recycled, and 15% were ground. The industry generally thought that a ban on landfilling pallets was a good idea (56%) with 18% indicating it was a bad idea. Another 18% of respondents did not care and 9% had different ideas.     

Remediation process optimization: A status report

There are hundreds of contaminated sites with remediation systems that require evaluation and modification to accomplish cleanup goals. These systems are operating well past projected cleanup schedules, cost more than projected to operate, and may not be as protective of human health and the environment as planned. Remediation process optimization (RPO) is an effective method to assess the progress of a system toward achieving cleanup goals within desired time frames and to make the necessary changes in order to reach those goals. Eight main components to the RPO process are evaluated during a review and an implementation plan of recommended changes to the system is developed. Follow‐up and tracking are essential to successful RPO programs. In this article, the authors present a summary of a recent Technical and Regulatory (TechReg) Guidance Document (Interstate Technology and Regulatory Council [ITRC], 2004) and related Technology Overview Series on Advanced Topics in RPO (ITRC, 2006) in a distilled form. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Public participation and volunteer help in monitoring programs: An assessment

A number of opportunities exist for involving the public in environmental monitoring. This paper outlines some examples where this has been done, evaluates these examples, and then summarizes some of the benefits as well as the disadvantages of this approach.     

Framing an independent,integrated and evidence-based evaluation of the state of Australia's biophysical and human environments

A new approach was developed for Australia's 2011 national State of the Environment (SoE) report to integrate the assessment of biophysical and human elements of the environment. A Common Assessment and Reporting Framework (CARF) guided design and implementation, responding to jurisdictional complexity, outstanding natural diversity and ecosystem values, high levels of cultural and heritage diversity, and a paucity of national-scale data. The CARF provided a transparent response to the need for an independent, robust and evidence-based national SoE report. We conclude that this framework will be effective for subsequent national SoE assessments and other integrated national-scale assessments in data-poor regions.