The simplified employee pension (SEP) is a definedcontributions pension plan. The SEP is also known as a SEP-IRA because companies contribute to INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNTs (IRA) for their employees.

The shut-down point is the point at which a firm would be better off closing its operations and producing zero output. Shutting down is not the same as going out of business; it is temporarily suspending production. If a firm shuts down, it will still incur fixed COSTS, often labor, rent, and other payments the firm has committed to paying.

Short selling is an INVESTMENT technique that makes MONEY when the price of stock is falling. The investor sells stock that he or she does not own for delivery on a future date. At first glance this seems impossible.

The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 was designed to prevent the concentration of economic power in the hands of a few firms and individuals.

Shareholders are individuals, MUTUAL FUNDS, and other groups who collectively own a CORPORATION. The concept of shareholders and joint-stock corporations evolved in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. In the United States, WALL STREET in New York City became the center of stock trading during the early 1800s.

See POISON-PILL STRATEGIES.

Sexual harassment is a form of employment discrimination. It involves unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature at a workplace.

Services are intangible activities that are the main object of a transaction between a buyer and seller. They are probably best described by what they are not: PRODUCTs. Services are the fastest-growing component of the U.S. economy. Approximately two-thirds of U.S. GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT is comprised of expenditures for services. Spending on services tends to be higher in developed countries than developing economies (EMERGING MARKETS).

Seniority is a system of job allocation and EMPLOYMENT protection based on how long an employee has worked for a company. The length of continuous employment until resignation, transfer, discharge, or LAYOFF often defines seniority. Seniority systems are most prevalent in UNION and government work environments.

Securitization is the process of pooling and repackaging homogeneous FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS in the form of marketable securities. In each pool of LOANS, the financial instruments are similar with regard to maturity and type of loan (MORTGAGE, automobile, consumer, etc.).

The Securities Industry Association (SIA) is the Wall Street trade association representing the interests of the stock market industry in the U.S. political and regulatory environment.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is a federal agency created to oversee the U.S. securities market.

Section 301, Special 301, and Super 301 refer to trade remedies available to the United States under the Trade Act of 1974 and subsequent revisions of that act.

See PRIMARY MARKETS, SECONDARY MARKETS.

Congress enacted the S corporation (originally called subchapter S corporation) rules in 1958 to minimize the role of tax considerations in the type of business form choice, to allow single-level (pass-through) taxation at the shareholder level, and to allow owners to offset losses against other INCOME at the shareholder level.

Savings and loan associations (S&Ls;), also known as thrifts, are depository institutions serving as major FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES. Among all depository institutions, they are second in size of ASSETS only to commercial banks.

In economics, saving is not spending one’s INCOME (i.e., postponed CONSUMPTION). Saving is distinguished from savings in that it is a flow of income over time, while savings is the accumulated amount of funds not spent (i.e., the result of past saving).

Government officials use a wide variety of tools to influence the policies of other governments: diplomatic persuasion, public appeals, economic and noneconomic sanctions, and military action.

See STUDENT LOAN MARKETING ASSOCIATION.

A sales promotion is a marketing effort other than ADVERTISING, PUBLIC RELATIONS, and PERSONAL SELLING designed to stimulate consumer sales. In the United States, expenditures on sales-promotion activities grew significantly in the 1990s, attributable to the increased power of retailers in marketing channels; slow growth in population, creating COMPETITION for existing customers;

Sales management, a critical component in the success of any business, includes recruitment and selection, training, organization, supervision, motivation, compensation, evaluation, and control of salespeople to ensure their effectiveness and to accomplish the firm’s objectives.

Sales forecasting is used by businesses to estimate future sales or income.

Sales force compensation is the basis for paying salespeople for their efforts. Compensation is a critical component in SALES MANAGEMENT. An effective sales-compensation plan • bases rewards on results and efforts • provides equal rewards for equal results • provides rewards that are competitive in the marketplace • is easy to understand and implement Most salespeople want to be rewarded for their effectiveness.

Safety and health rules assure that employees work in an environment that is free from recognized hazards. Although safety and health activities are usually MANAGEMENT- led, everyone in an organization shares responsibility for safety.