Risk Assessment and Management Flashcards

During a workforce reduction, HR identifies a high risk of wrongful termination lawsuits. The FIRST step in managing this risk should be:

Answer: Establishing a risk register entry for the potential litigation

The first step in managing an identified risk is to formally document it in the risk register so it can be assessed, prioritized, and treated systematically.

Which type of employment law risk is specifically associated with failing to accommodate an employee's sincerely held religious beliefs?

Answer: Failure to provide reasonable accommodation

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation for sincerely held religious beliefs unless it creates undue hardship.

A multinational company is expanding operations into a country with high political instability. The HR function's primary risk concern should be:

Answer: Employee safety and evacuation planning

In politically unstable regions, HR's primary risk concern is ensuring employee safety and having robust evacuation and crisis response plans in place.

Which of the following BEST describes 'inherent risk' in HR risk management?

Answer: Risk exposure before any controls or mitigation measures are implemented

Inherent risk is the level of risk that exists in the absence of any controls, representing the raw exposure before mitigation efforts.

An employer conducts background checks on all job candidates without disclosing this practice. This creates primary exposure under which federal law?

Answer: Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

The FCRA requires employers to disclose background check use, obtain written consent, and provide adverse action notices before making employment decisions based on reports.

A manufacturing plant experiences three serious near-miss incidents in one month. From a risk management perspective, the MOST appropriate HR response is to:

Answer: Conduct a root cause analysis and implement corrective actions

Near-miss incidents are leading indicators of potential serious accidents; a root cause analysis followed by corrective actions is the proactive risk management response.

When building a business continuity plan for the HR function, which HR process is typically classified as MOST critical to restore immediately after a disruption?

Answer: Payroll processing

Payroll processing is a critical HR function because failure to pay employees on time creates legal liability and operational collapse, making it a top recovery priority.