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CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, BAKERSFIELD
Department of Economics
Instructor: Dr. Margaret M. Malixi ECON
3008 (online) – Fall 2016
Office: BDC 258a Gender and
Diversity in the Workplace
Office phone: (661)654-2464/2181 email:
[email protected]
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:50 p.m. –
5:20 p.m. and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The demographic composition of the labor force is changing
around the world. In the United States,
a growing number of demographically and culturally diverse
individuals are working together more
than at any time since the Industrial Revolution. Yet, despite

these developments in the workplace,
economic inequalities along the lines of earnings, labor force
participation, employment,
occupation, and education, continue to persist. The course
addresses the issues of labor market
discrimination according to the following dimensions: race,
gender, ethnicity or national origin,
age, sexual orientation, and mental/physical abilities and
characteristics. Differences are addressed
from the views of the organization, the individual, and society.
The effectiveness of public policies
designed to address discrimination will be evaluated using
various measurable indicators such as
labor force participation rates, income and wage differentials,
occupational distribution, human
capital accumulation, household production and time allocation.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
The main objective of this course is to provide students with the
appropriate perspectives, tools and
information for the critical assessment of multidimensional
diversity issues in today’s workplace.

The following are the specific goals and objectives of ECON
3008:
Upon completion of ECON 3008 students will be able to:
1. demonstrate an understanding of the basis of human
diversity: biological, cultural,
historical, social, economic, and ideological;
2. identify and analyze issues of labor market discrimination;
3. identify the major economic and societal consequences and
impacts of discrimination from
the perspective of the organization, individual, and
society;
4. evaluate the effectiveness of public policies designed to
address discriminatory behavior
using measurable indicators such as labor force
participation rates, income differentials,
occupational distribution, human capital accumulation, and
household production and time
allocation; and
5. recognize, discuss, and demonstrate an understanding of
their own beliefs while
maintaining respect for differing world views.

mailto:[email protected]
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ECON 3008 is a Junior-Year Diversity Reflection Course in the
General Education program. The
following are the General Education goals and outcomes
Goal 1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of their
academic pursuits by reflecting on
their studies of the General Education curriculum.
Outcome 1A. Students will demonstrate how the study of the
basic skills and ways of
knowing gained through their General
Education study contributes to an
understanding of their major.
Outcome 1B. Students will demonstrate how study of the
basic skills and ways of
knowing gained through their General Education study
contributes to an
understanding of their future and career aspirations.

Goal 2. Students will demonstrate an understanding of, and
appreciation for, diverse cultures,
values, and belief systems.
Outcome 2A. Students will demonstrate an understanding of
the basis of human diversity:
biological, cultural, historical, social, economic, and
ideological.
Outcome 2B. Students will be able to recognize, discuss, and
demonstrate an
understanding of their own beliefs while maintaining respect
for differing
world views.
ECON 3008 is an economics elective. The course fulfills the
following program learning
objectives of the Economics Major:
Objective 1: Communication skills (formal memo to
management providing an economic
analysis of a current workplace
gender or diversity issue based on a real
world case study, evaluation and recommendation)

Objective 4: Application skills (workplace-relevant skills:
economic evaluation of
workplace issues focusing on gender and diversity issues,
formal memo to
management describing the issue, providing economic
analysis and
recommendation)
ECON 3008 reinforces the following goals of Area D:
Goal D-1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of
major principles, theories, and concepts
in the social and behavioral sciences.
Outcome D-1: Students will define and use basic
principles, theories, and concepts in
the social and behavioral sciences to
predict and explain behavior as it
relates to the specific area of study.
Goal D-2. Students will demonstrate an understanding of how
disciplinary knowledge in the
social and behavioral sciences can be used to make
sense of the world in which we

live.
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Outcome D-2: Students will apply disciplinary
knowledge in the specific area of
study to the understanding of
individuals and groups as it relates to
local, and global issues and problems
in their contemporary and
historic contexts.
Goal D-3. Students will demonstrate an understanding of how
knowledge progresses in the social
and behavioral sciences by understanding the
scientific method and an acceptance of
diverse perspectives.
Outcome D-3: Students will explain how social and
behavioral scientists establish
and evaluate theories in the area of
study using the scientific method
and demonstrate an understanding of
the challenges and opportunities

in integrating diverse perspectives
and achieving epistemological
consensus.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: (See Schedule of Classes)
Exam 1 25% of Final Grade
(Friday, Oct. 7, 2016, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., online)
Exam 2
25% of Final Grade
(Friday, Dec. 2, 2016, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., online)
Discussions
(weekly, the Discussion Board will be locked
30% of Final Grade
on Sundays at 9:00 p.m.)
Case Analysis 20% of Final Grade
(Due Date: Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016, 9:00 p.m., online)
REQUIRED READINGS:

Francine D. Blau, Marianne Ferber, and Anne Winkler, The
Economics of Women, Men and Work
seventh edition (New Jersey: Pearson –Prentice Hall,
2014).
: ISBN-10: 0132992817 | ISBN-13: 9780132992817
Various supplemental readings listed in the Course Schedule
found on the Blackboard Course
Homepage folder entitled, “Readings”.
Various case studies listed in the Course Schedule found on the
Blackboard Homepage folder
entitled, “Case Studies”.
Various videos/DVDs listed in the Course Schedule found on
the Blackboard Homepage folder
entitled, “Videos”.
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MAKE-UP EXAM AND PAPER SUBMISSION POLICIES:

Exams are scheduled at the beginning of the quarter. As a rule,
there are no make-up exams. If you
cannot take an exam at the scheduled time, you need to make
arrangements with me in advance to
take the exam earlier. The weekly discussions must be done on
time and cannot be made up. The
Case Analysis is due on date and time, online. No late papers
will be accepted.
UNIVERSITY POLICY ON ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:
Although this is an online class, university policies on academic
dishonesty will be applied strictly.
There are certain forms of conduct that violate the university's
policy of academic integrity.
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY (CHEATING) is a broad category
of actions that use fraud and
deception to improve a grade or obtain course credit. Academic
dishonesty (cheating) is not limited
to examination situations alone, but arises whenever students
attempt to gain an unearned academic
advantage. PLAGIARISM is a specific form of academic
dishonesty (cheating) which consists of
the misuse of published or unpublished works of another by
claiming them as one's

own. Plagiarism may consist of handing in another person's
work, copying or purchasing a
composition, using ideas, paragraphs, sentences, phrases or
words written by another, or using data
and/or statistics compiled by another without giving appropriate
citation. Another example of
academic dishonesty (cheating) is the SUBMISSION OF THE
SAME, or essentially the same,
PAPER or other assignment for credit in two different courses
without receiving prior approval.
When a faculty member discovers a violation of the university's
policy of academic integrity, the
faculty member is required to notify the university's
Coordinator of Student Discipline and Judicial
Affairs of the alleged violation, including the name(s) of the
student(s) suspected, the class in which
the alleged violation occurred, the circumstances of the alleged
violation, and the evidence
(including witnesses) supporting the allegation. The faculty
member shall also formally notify the
student(s) suspected of violating the university's policy of
academic integrity, the department chair,
and the school dean. The Coordinator for Student Discipline
and Judicial Affairs shall conduct an

investigation, confer with the faculty member, student(s), and
any witnesses identified, and review
all evidence submitted by the faculty member and student(s).
Normally, the Coordinator for Student
Discipline and Judicial Affairs shall make a settlement
agreement with the student for his/her first
violation of academic integrity with the following sanctions:
• final course grade of 'F'
• one-year 'academic probation' requiring a meeting with the
Coordinator of Student Discipline
and Judicial Affairs prior to registration for each
subsequent academic term of the
probationary year.
ACCOMMODATION FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:
To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please
contact the Office of Services for
Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible. Their
office is located in SA 140, and they
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may be reached at 661-654-3360 (voice) or 661-654-6288
(TDD). If you have an accommodations

letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a
disability, please present the letter to me
during my office hours as soon as possible so we can discuss
the specific acco mmodations that you
might need in this class. Further information on the SSD office
and support services available to
you can be found at http://www.csub.edu/UnivServices/SSD/.
The campus accessibility policy can be found here:
http://www.csub.edu/UnivServices/SSD/CampusAccessPolicy.p
df.
NOTES: PLEASE PRINT OUT AND CONSULT THE COURSE
SCHEDULE AND THIS
SYLLABUS REGULARLY THROUGHOUT THE
SEMESTER.
(1) Discussions: You are to participate in discussions a
minimum of five times each week. You
should make significant and original contributions in at
least three different forums (topics).
Learning to navigate the discussion board in Blackboard is
your responsibility.
Discussion Leaders: During the week in which you are
one of the assigned discussion
leaders, you are to post questions and participate in the

discussions each day of the week.
There are a number of assigned discussion leaders each
week. As one of the discussion
leaders for the week, you are responsible for managing and
maintaining the discussions for that
week. I will post some questions to get things started.
Make sure that all topics are covered.
The forums (topics) are organized around the assigned
readings for the week. Please do not
miss your turn as discussion leader. You have only one
chance to earn these points. Click on
the “My Grades” folder to check on your assigned week.
Discussion Participation: Click on the “Discussion Board”
icon to participate in the
discussions. Each Monday discussion topics will be
posted. I will post some questions and
will participate in the discussions when necessary. The
assigned discussion leaders for the
week can begin posting their discussion questions on
Monday morning. You are to confine
your discussions to the topics for the week. If there
appear to be problems with the material I
will step in to clarify or redirect the discussion. I will

also post discussion questions on
important material that should be covered and could help
prepare you for the exams.
Although you may participate in the discussion any time
during the week, you must do some of
the readings, review the case studies and/or watch the
video(s) prior to participating in the
discussions. The discussions should be based on the
course material. Any irrelevant
discussions will not receive credit. You may not cut and
paste material. Any plagiarized,
inappropriate or irrelevant material will be penalized.
Thirty percent of your final grade will
be devoted to the quality (not the length) and consistency
of your participation. You are
expected to make original and grammatically correct
statements, be brief and concise, and be
courteous and respectful of other students. You have the
ability to edit your own postings in
Blackboard. Discussion grades will be determined at the
end of the quarter. Follow
instructions and you should be fine.
The Discussion Boards for the week are available on

Mondays through to the following
http://www.csub.edu/UnivServices/SSD/
http://www.csub.edu/UnivServices/SSD/CampusAccessPolicy.p
df
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Sunday. You will not be able to contribute to the
discussions after 9:00 p.m. each Sunday. The
Discussion Board is available for your participation a
week at a time. Pay close attention to
the discussions. Discussions will be a basis for a major
portion of the exam material.
Important Note: Some course topics may be sensitive and
controversial. We will all
behave like adults and observe the rules of civility,
and respect and
be tolerant of one another’s opinions.
The same rules of discipline that
apply in traditional classes will be observed online.
Unreasonable
disruptions in our virtual classroom
could result in disciplinary
action ranging from removal from the
class to suspension from

campus. Please reference university policies on
classroom behavior.
GE Reflection Discussions: After Exam 1, we will begin
with the General Education
Reflection Discussions. Students will make two
additional postings over and above
the five required weekly postings for the course.
Two separate forums will be
dedicated to GE postings for a five-week period
covering different areas of general
education. One forum will be devoted to student
reflections on how a specific area
of the CSUB’s general education program (for
example area A1 (Oral Communications))
contributes to an understanding of their major. The
second GE forum will be devoted to
student reflections on how a particular area of
CSUB’s GE program contributes to an
understanding of their future and career aspirations.
The GE Reflection discussions will
be done over a five-week period (see your Schedule
of Classes).

(2) Exams: There are two required exams (Exam 1 on
Friday, Oct. 7, 2016, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00
p.m., online and Exam 2 on Friday, Dec. 2,
2016, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 pm., online).
No make-up exams will be given. Each exam
is worth 25% of your final grade.
The exams are not cumulative.
(3) Case Analysis: There are specific instructions for the
research project which is a case
analysis on a current workplace gender or diversity
issue. You need to have the case that
you are planning to analyze approved before
proceeding. The deadline for submission of
the case analysis selection is date and time. Please
download the instructions for
the project from the course homepage. See
“Submissions” folder. Submit your Case
Analysis to the “Submissions” folder by the 9:00 p.m.,
Thursday, December 8, 2016
deadline.
(4) Communications and Trouble Shooting: You are to
communicate with me and with each

other through Blackboard email. All communications
pertaining to ECON 3008 must be
done through Blackboard email. Check the ECON 3008
Blackboard homepage regularly for
any announcements or new postings. This is your
responsibility. If you are not online,
then you are not in class. Report any technical
problems to Help Desk (661-654-2307) on
the Bakersfield campus.
PLEASE SEE THE SCHEDULE OF CLASSES FOR A
WEEKLY SCHEDULE OF
READINGS AND ACTIVITIES AS WELL AS ALL
SUBMISSION DEADLINES.