Membership makeup of this unions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Membership makeup of this unions - Essay Example Firstly, with regards to the demographic makeup of these unions, it must be understood that the German unions are almost exclusively made up of individuals that it been within the workforce for a period of time. As such, the average age group that is demonstrated by these individuals is necessarily higher than would be for entry-level employees; represented within the German system as an average age of 43. Comparatively, did the fact that unionization is requirement within the Chinese system, the average age is much lower at 37.5 years of age. It is of course necessary to note the key differential is economies is the fact that the German unionization system is voluntary; although heavily impacted by the extent to which government oversight integrates with economic development (Fitzenberger et al 148). Moreover, with respect to the Chinese system, the Communist party insists that any and all enterprise must necessarily be overseen by and ultimately managed by the state. Although a gre at degree of liberalization is taken place in recent years, the level and extent to which unionization has dropped in China is not indicative of a fully capitalist system. Similarly, with regards to the overall level of minority composition that is represented within these two systems, Germany has a minority representation within the unions of approximately 14%. This is somewhat interesting due to the fact that the minority population Germany only registers around 8%. With respect to the Chinese system, the dynamic is considerably different. Due to the fact that minorities make up only around 8% of the Chinese population, the reality of union representation is surprising. As a result of the fact that the Western regions of China represent the lion’s share of the minorities and due to the fact that these regions are on the whole un-industrialized, the level of union participation among minorities is approximately 2% (Wang 680). Likewise, with regards to the sexes and their ove rall representation within the unions, Germany represents a gender representation of males to females that is nearly 3:1. However, as has been previously discussed, the nature of government involvement within the unions of China means that a much larger precentage of participation by females is realized. Due to this fact, the level of participation among the female population within China is much higher and represents an overall dynamic around 1.5:1. Although it may be assumed that the ratio would be closer to 1:1, the fact of the matter is that no matter how industrialized the economy or the region, there continues to be a differential with regards to the total integration of the workforce based upon males and females. Moreover, with regards to the relatively lower level of female participation within the unions of Germany, this of course can be understood as a dynamic that is the result of the overall percentages of industrial workers that make up the broad majority of union membe rs. Due to the fact that these are traditionally male dominated jobs, the level of female participation within the unions of Germany are necessarily constrained. Work Cited Fitzenberger, Bernd, Karsten Kohn, and Wang Qingwei. "The Erosion Of Union Membership

Individual Portion of Group Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Individual Portion of Group Project - Assignment Example Year 2011 Profit Margin = (864 / 13,198) * 100 = 6.55% Question 29 a. Days in Inventory = (Average Inventory / COGS) * 365 b. Year 2012 Average Inventory = (1,365 + 1,174) / 2 = 1,269.5 Days in Inventory = (1,269.5 / 8,763) * 365 = 52.88 days c. Year 2011 Average Inventory = (1,174 + 1,056) / 2 = 1,115 Days in Inventory = (1,115 / 8,046) * 365 = 50.58 days Profit Margin Profit margin is one of the most important financial metrics that helps to evaluate the profit making ability of the company. It measures the capacity of the company to control its direct and indirect costs. The ratio is normally classified as a profitability ratio and calculated as: Profit Margin = (Net Income / Net Sales) * 100% Kellogg’s net profit margin improved in 2012 by 20 basis points. The company contributed 6.77c in 2012 as compared to 2.55c in 2011 to the net income for every unit dollar sales made. The improvement in the margin was due to the company ability to control its indirect expenses in 2012 . The company was able to reduce its selling and administrative expenses by 100 basis points despite an increase in the sales figure. However, the increase in the net profit margin could have been higher if the company had been able to control the growth in the direct costs. The cost of goods sold as a percentage of net sales increased by 70 basis points; which ultimately reduced the gross margin of the company. Another entity that reduced the profitability of Kellogg was the high interest expense. The company is highly leveraged and pays a massive amount as interest each other. In 2012, the company paid $261 million as interest expense as compared to $231 million in 2011. (SEC 2013) The increase in the profitability will have a positive impact on the Kellogg operations. It will allow the company to retain more of the earnings and invest in the company operations. This will allow the company to expand into the new markets each year and increase the profits of the company in the foll owing year. Similarly, the increase profitability impacts the investors psyche – they are more prone to invest in the company with better margins and payout ratios. The management at Kellogg needs to effectively control its growing direct costs. The resulting decrease in the cost of goods sold will increase the profit margin. Likewise, it needs an effective and efficient inventory management system that will allow the company to reduce its inventory costs as well. Similarly, the company needs to efficiently reduce its selling and administrative expense which will again directly affect the profits. Kraft is one of the biggest competitors to Kellogg in the food products industry. Kraft contributed 9.0c in 2012 as compared to 9.5c in 2011 to the net income for every unit dollar sales made. Although, Kraft’s net profit margin declined in 2012 by 50 basis points; it still has a better net profit margin compared to the Kellogg. (MSN Money, 2013) The main reason behind the hi gh margin is the company’s ability to control its direct costs as well as indirect costs. With higher margins and profits, the company reinvests a massive amount to expand and test the new markets. Similarly, these margins allow the company to maintain an effective advertising plan to stay at the top of the consumer’s mind. (MSN Money, 2013) Works Cited Bloomberg Businessweek. "KELLOGG CO (K:New York): Stock Quote & Company Profile."