IPMA-HR PO-EL flashcards

33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Merit System Principles

Statutory rules requiring public hiring and advancement based on ability and fitness, prohibiting political affiliation, nepotism, and reprisal for whistleblowing.

Pendleton Act of 1883

Federal law that established the merit-based civil service, created the Civil Service Commission, and ended the spoils system for covered positions.

Span of Control

The number of employees directly supervised by one manager; wider spans flatten hierarchy and require more delegation and clearer standards.

Job Analysis

Systematic process of collecting task and KSA information that produces the job description and job specification used for selection and classification.

Content Validity

Evidence that a selection procedure samples the actual knowledge, skills, and tasks required on the job, typically supported by subject-matter expert judgment.

Rule of Three

Selection practice allowing an appointing authority to choose any of the top three ranked eligible candidates on a certification list.

Four-Fifths Rule

Adverse impact guideline: a protected group's selection rate below 80 percent of the highest group's rate indicates potential discrimination requiring justification.

Structured Interview

Standardized interview using the same job-related questions and anchored rating scales for all candidates, increasing reliability and reducing bias.

Cost Per Hire

Recruitment metric computed by dividing total recruiting costs, including advertising, travel, and staff time, by the number of hires made.

Onboarding

Planned process spanning preboarding, orientation, and socialization that integrates a new employee into the organization's mission, culture, and work unit.

Point-Factor Classification

Method assigning points to compensable factors such as knowledge, complexity, and scope, then grouping scores into pay grades.

Pay Comparability

Principle that public pay should be reasonably aligned with private-sector pay for similar work, implemented through salary surveys and locality adjustments.

Total Compensation

Sum of base salary, premium pay, benefits, and employer retirement contributions used to compare public and private sector rewards.

Pay Compression

Condition where pay differences between supervisors and subordinates become too small, often because new hires enter near the top of ranges.

Weingarten Rights

Right of a union-represented employee to request union representation during an investigatory interview reasonably believed could lead to discipline.

Just Cause

Arbitral standard requiring notice of rules, reasonable investigation, sufficient proof, equal treatment, and a penalty proportionate to the offense.

Progressive Discipline

Escalating response to misconduct, typically verbal warning, written reprimand, suspension, demotion, then removal, with documentation at each step.

Mandatory Subject of Bargaining

Topic such as wages, hours, or working conditions that the employer must negotiate with the exclusive representative in good faith.

Grievance Procedure

Contractual multi-step process for resolving employee complaints, usually ending in binding arbitration with mandatory filing deadlines.

Disparate Impact

Facially neutral employment practice that disproportionately excludes a protected group and is not shown to be job-related and consistent with business necessity.

Reasonable Accommodation

Adjustment to a job or workplace enabling a qualified individual with a disability to perform essential functions, absent undue hardship.

Hostile Work Environment

Unwelcome conduct based on protected status that is severe or pervasive enough to alter working conditions and create an abusive atmosphere.

Affirmative Action Plan

Written program with utilization analysis, availability comparison, and good-faith placement goals plus action steps, required of certain federal contractors.

Kirkpatrick Levels

Four-level training evaluation framework measuring reaction, learning, behavior change, and organizational results in sequence.

Needs Assessment

Three-level analysis of organization, tasks, and persons that identifies performance gaps and determines whether training is the appropriate remedy.

Halo Error

Rating bias in which a supervisor's impression of one trait or recent event colors ratings on all other performance elements.

Performance Improvement Plan

Written document specifying deficiencies, measurable standards, support provided, review dates, and consequences if performance does not improve.

General Duty Clause

OSHA requirement that employers provide a workplace free of recognized hazards causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Hazard Control Hierarchy

Preference order for reducing risk: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment last.

Turnover Rate

Separations during a period divided by average headcount for that period, usually expressed as a percentage for benchmarking.

Role-Based Access

Security model granting HRIS permissions according to job duties so employees see only data needed for their work, with audit trails.

Hatch Act

Federal law restricting partisan political activity by public employees while on duty, at work, or using government resources.

Whistleblower Protection

Legal prohibition on retaliation against employees who disclose waste, fraud, abuse, or illegality through authorized channels such as inspectors general.