Clarity on the winners and losers of the Republican tax cuts is important for taxpayers, because it signals what legislators aim to accomplish and the effects of the tax cuts on them. Tax cuts reduce government revenue and if government spending is not reduced by the same amount of the tax cuts, the deficit increases. When the government deficit increases, it crowds out private investments because the government has to borrow to cover expenses. Additionally, if the government reduces spending to accommodate the tax cuts, private sector suppliers of goods and services, as well as their employees, social security beneficiaries and so on will be adversely affected.
Understanding Profit and its Components
Profit is the difference between revenue and cost, where revenue is the selling price times the number of items sold, and cost is the sum of wages paid to inputs of the production process and it includes fixed cost. Businesses maximize profits by increasing revenue or reducing cost, or doing both. Thus, it is important to understand the components of profit: revenue and cost as well as their subcomponents. The production function for a firm is a technological relationship between inputs, such as capital, labor and materials; it determines the level and quality of outputs. Many production functions, however, lack best available technologies (BAT) and are unable to optimize output.
Building a Safety Culture
Organizations can prevent injuries by creating a culture of safety. Dilley and Kleiner (1996) argued that creating a culture of safety means that employees are constantly aware of the hazards in the workplace. According to Cooper (2001), many managers and safety practitioners do not know what a “safety culture” is. A safety culture integrates safety in all organizational systems. Thus, safety should be a principal and measurable organizational goal, known to all, and with accountability throughout the organization (Safety Management Systems, 2009).
Strategy, what is it?
Strategy is a plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim. However, many organizations do not have clearly defined plan of action or policy designed to achieve organizational objectives. Others do not clearly define or measure organizational goals across the organization. Thus, they implement initiatives with no metrics or accountability.
Senge (1990a) indicated that “Organizations learn only through individual who learn.” Unfortunately, many organizational managers often ignore individuals who learn. However, if organizational managers are not maximizing the comparative advantages of learning individuals, their organizations cannot learn.
Vinyl asbestos tile (VAT) contains asbestos. Therefore, they must be maintained in good condition to prevent airborne asbestos particles and should be labelled as asbestos containing materials (ACM). VATs are non-friable. However, the frictional forces exerted during routine floor-care can loosen the asbestos fibers and cause them to become airborne.
Often there is a lack of understanding as to what an engineering system is. Many confuse the performance of individual system elements with the performance or outcome of the system. “A system is a set or arrangement of interacting elements so related as to form an organic whole” (Menkes & Baldo, 1973, p.2).
Successful organizations often undergo periodic assessments to ascertain existing strengths, challenges, and opportunities. Assessing or benchmarking is the practice of evaluating performance against a standard. Assessments often reveal gaps between actual and desired conditions, as established by industry best practices or another applicable standard. Gaps often provide opportunities for improvements.
Accordingly, there are three types of benchmarking exercises: (1) Internal, where a multi-facility organization establishes organizational standards for all facilities, (2) Industry, where the organization measures performance against other organizations in the same industry, and (3) Best-practice, where the organization measures performance against industry leaders, regardless of industry.