Globalization at Levi Strauss Case Study 1

Description/Paper Instructions

Globalization at Levi Strauss Case Study 1

Globalization at Levi Strauss

Blue jeans are a legendary component of American culture. They were created in the United States in 1873, when Levi Strauss patented the riveted denim jeans that proved so successful among customers that they launched an entire industry. Yet, the one company that has perhaps been most synonymous with blue jeans—Levi Strauss—doesn’t actually make its blue jeans in the United States.

In the late 1990s and early part of this decade, Levi Strauss undertook a substantial shift in the location of its manufacturing operations. In 1997, Levi Strauss closed 11 plants and laid off 7,400 employees to cut excess production. In 1999, Levi’s announced a large-scale layoff of almost 6,000 jobs and the closing of more factories in Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Texas, Tennessee and Arkansas in an effort to move production to foreign facilities. Over time, the layoffs and the closing continued.

Once a mainstay of U.S. manufacturing, plants in areas such as San Antonio, San Francisco, El Paso, and Brownsville, were closed, and by 2004, Levi Strauss had shut its domestic operations and moved production facilities to foreign countries such as Mexico and China. Costs were a major factor for this decision. What might cost $6.67 to make in the United States costs about $3.00 in Mexico and $1.50 in China. While Levi Strauss was reluctant to move these jobs, it faced a competitive market operating with lower costs and lower prices.

Questions:

How did the four environmental factors discussed in this chapter influence Levi’s decision to move its manufacturing outside the United States?

How would you evaluate this decision from a business perspective? What about from an ethical perspective?

Assume that you are an employee working for Levi Strauss and are assigned to the management team in one of the manufacturing facilities in Mexico. What differences would you anticipate in terms of how you manage your Mexican employees versus how you manage employees located in the United States?

Case Study 2

Are Affirmative Action Plan Goals Evidence of Discrimination?

Xerox Corporation manufactures and markets copy machines and also provides facilities management services through Xerox Business Services (XBS). In the 1990s, Xerox started a Balanced Workforce Initiative (BWF) that involved the publication of specific affirmative action goals for each job and each salary grade level within the company. This plan was started in an effort to ensure proportional representation of all racial and gender groups throughout the company. The BWFs were based on government labor force data and established annually. Part of the annual performance evaluation for managers was how well they met the desired racial and gender compositions for their locations. In one instance, BWF reports compiled for the Houston office indicated that black employees were overrepresented and white employees were under-represented. Over a period of five years, steps were taken to reduce the percentage of black employees in the office in an effort to correct this imbalance.

Six black employees filed suit against Xerox stating that they were denied promotion opportunities in the Houston office even though they were qualified for the jobs into which they wanted to be promoted. They also indicated that they felt the BWF data adversely affected their opportunity for advancement. Each plaintiff had a slightly different situation, but they collectively raised concerns that included denial of promotions, salary disparities, hostile work environment, and termination.

Questions

Based on the evidence presented, has discrimination occurred? If so, which type of discrimination (i.e., disparate treatment, disparate impact, both)? If you aren’t sure, what questions would you want to have answered to make your determination?

Which party (plaintiffs or defendant) has the burden of proof in this case? What defense could Xerox offer if the plaintiffs make a case of discrimination? Discuss how successful you think the company will be at defending its actions.

Could Xerox have achieved the same goals in a less discriminatory manner? If so, how? If not, why not?

How do the actions in this case differ from the intent and recommended practices for affirmative action

RUBRIC QUALITY OF RESPONSE NO RESPONSE POOR / UNSATISFACTORY SATISFACTORY GOOD EXCELLENT Content (worth a maximum of 50% of the total points) Zero points:  Student failed to submit the final paper. 20 points out of 50:  The essay illustrates poor understanding of the relevant material by failing to address or incorrectly addressing the relevant content; failing to identify or inaccurately explaining/defining key concepts/ideas; ignoring or incorrectly explaining key points/claims and the reasoning behind them; and/or incorrectly or inappropriately using terminology; and elements of the response are lacking. 30 points out of 50:  The essay illustrates a rudimentary understanding of the relevant material by mentioning but not full explaining the relevant content; identifying some of the key concepts/ideas though failing to fully or accurately explain many of them; using terminology, though sometimes inaccurately or inappropriately; and/or incorporating some key claims/points but failing to explain the reasoning behind them or doing so inaccurately.  Elements of the required response may also be lacking. 40 points out of 50:  The essay illustrates solid understanding of the relevant material by correctly addressing most of the relevant content; identifying and explaining most of the key concepts/ideas; using correct terminology; explaining the reasoning behind most of the key points/claims; and/or where necessary or useful, substantiating some points with accurate examples.  The answer is complete. 50 points:  The essay illustrates exemplary understanding of the relevant material by thoroughly and correctly addressing the relevant content; identifying and explaining all of the key concepts/ideas; using correct terminology explaining the reasoning behind key points/claims and substantiating, as necessary/useful, points with several accurate and illuminating examples.  No aspects of the required answer are missing. Use of Sources (worth a maximum of 20% of the total points). Zero points:  Student failed to include citations and/or references. Or the student failed to submit a final paper. 5 out 20 points:  Sources are seldom cited to support statements and/or format of citations are not recognizable as APA 6th Edition format. There are major errors in the formation of the references and citations. And/or there is a major reliance on highly questionable. The Student fails to provide an adequate synthesis of research collected for the paper. 10 out 20 points:  References to scholarly sources are occasionally given; many statements seem unsubstantiated.  Frequent errors in APA 6th Edition format, leaving the reader confused about the source of the information. There are significant errors of the formation in the references and citations. And/or there is a significant use of highly questionable sources. 15 out 20 points:  Credible Scholarly sources are used effectively support claims and are, for the most part, clear and fairly represented.  APA 6th Edition is used with only a few minor errors.  There are minor errors in reference and/or citations. And/or there is some use of questionable sources. 20 points:  Credible scholarly sources are used to give compelling evidence to support claims and are clearly and fairly represented.  APA 6th Edition format is used accurately and consistently. The student uses above the maximum required references in the development of the assignment. Grammar (worth maximum of 20% of total points) Zero points:  Student failed to submit the final paper. 5 points out of 20:  The paper does not communicate ideas/points clearly due to inappropriate use of terminology and vague language; thoughts and sentences are disjointed or incomprehensible; organization lacking; and/or numerous grammatical, spelling/punctuation errors  10 points out 20:  The paper is often unclear and difficult to follow due to some inappropriate terminology and/or vague language; ideas may be fragmented, wandering and/or repetitive; poor organization; and/or some grammatical, spelling, punctuation errors 15 points out of 20:  The paper is mostly clear as a result of appropriate use of terminology and minimal vagueness; no tangents and no repetition; fairly good organization; almost perfect grammar, spelling, punctuation, and word usage. 20 points:  The paper is clear, concise, and a pleasure to read as a result of appropriate and precise use of terminology; total coherence of thoughts and presentation and logical organization; and the essay is error free. Structure of the Paper (worth 10% of total points) Zero points:  Student failed to submit the final paper. 3 points out of 10: Student needs to develop better formatting skills. The paper omits significant structural elements required for and APA 6th edition paper. Formatting of the paper has major flaws. The paper does not conform to APA 6th edition requirements whatsoever. 5 points out of 10: Appearance of final paper demonstrates the student’s limited ability to format the paper. There are significant errors in formatting and/or the total omission of major components of an APA 6th edition paper. They can include the omission of the cover page, abstract, and page numbers. Additionally the page has major formatting issues with spacing or paragraph formation. Font size might not conform to size requirements.  The student also significantly writes too large or too short of and paper 7 points out of 10: Research paper presents an above-average use of formatting skills. The paper has slight errors within the paper. This can include small errors or omissions with the cover page, abstract, page number, and headers. There could be also slight formatting issues with the document spacing or the font Additionally the paper might slightly exceed or undershoot the specific number of required written pages for the assignment. 10 points: Student provides a high-caliber, formatted paper. This includes an APA 6th edition cover page, abstract, page number, headers and is double spaced in 12’ Times Roman Font. Additionally, the paper conforms to the specific number of required written pages and neither goes over or under the specified length of the paper.
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