1. Get into groups. Your professor will assign you to groups of four or fi ve students. One student will be given the role of HR attorney for the applicants, two students the role of nursing shift (day/night) managers at Montclair Hospital, and the remaining student(s) will be assigned the role of senior hospital administrator at Montclair Hospital.

Scenario: Montclair Hospital needs to hire new nurses. In fact, the hospital is in a bit of a crisis. Three nurses were recently fi red for using drugs while on duty.

In the ensuing publicity, a journalist uncovered that two of these nurses were convicted felons. As if these problems were not enough, nurse turnover is up 20 percent this year over last, and productivity of the remaining staff is substandard. Absences are also up lately, particularly those related to child-care or elder-care issues.

Both the day and the night nursing shift managers need to hire some quality nurses—and fast. Hospital administrators have made it abundantly clear that they do not want a repeat of the headline “Felons and Drug Users among Montclair Nursing Staff.” Your compensation and benefi ts are competitive, and, with the exception of the recent news coverage, your hospital enjoys a strong reputation. The nursing labor market is tight

(there are fewer nurses than openings), and most new hires are recent nursing school graduates.

Nursing shift managers need to work together to develop a plan to achieve the following:

1. Hire top-fl ight nurses to fi ll vacancies left by recent fi rings and resignations.

2. Stem the turnover of quality nurses already employed by Montclair.

3. Reduce absenteeism, especially unplanned “emergency”

absences that wreak havoc with planning the work of an upcoming shift. Managing human resources in today’s complex business and legal environment is not easy. Not only must companies hire the creative and hard-working employees that will fuel growth and competitive advantage, but they must be careful to do so legally and ethically. Unfair discrimination in any HR process will result in poor placement, turnover, and legal woes.

This exercise will give you some practice in navigating the challenges of legal and effective recruitment and selection of employees