Cost Estimation and Budgeting
An important aspect of cost budgeting is personnel. A current professional issue in the engineering field is companies using contract engineers like employees but refusing to actually make them employees. Thus, they effectively work for a company for years in a contract status rather than in a full-time employee status. Labor and tax law may motivate the employer and perhaps the ‘employee' to maintain a contingent status. On the other hand, there can be an ethical issue with refusing to transition an ‘employee' to full-time status. Discuss what motivates an employer to use temporary or contingent employees, and explain the ethical implications on the individual, society, and the profession of keeping an individual in that status. What criteria might be used to determine when to change an individual's status? Consider ethical problem solving strategies from ET100 where appropriate. You MUST have references.