February already? What happened to January? Are you as shocked as we are that a month has already gone by in 2014? Don't freak out. I want you to take a look back at January. What did you accomplish? Remember to celebrate your successes. What professional resolutions did you make for 2014? Did you put any pieces in place that got you closer to your goal? Progress is a great thing, celebrate it! In December, we sent our our E-zine article about change being inevitable and it is. The strongest and most successful people are adaptable and embrace change. Albert Einstein, a very wise man indeed, once defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." If you want different results in your business, or just in your life in general, you have to embrace change. Too many people (our employees included) do not embrace change. When someone is in their comfort zone, change is scary. Business owners tend to embrace change more than their staff does. Entrepreneurs have to push through the fear in order to launch their business, launch a new program or product, hire their first or another employee, change locations, change their company name, and the list could go on and on. We've conditioned ourselves to embrace change. The question is, how do we condition our employees to embrace change? Employees don't like new systems, new methods of doing things, and sometimes they even frown at the new staff being added to your growing company. The unknown is scary for them. They realize that they depend on someone else for their paycheck, that their job is in the hands of someone else. They fear change because they are scared they won't be able to learn the new system, or because they are intimidated by the new employee. It is our duty as their employer to communicate with them open and honestly, to provide them with training that gives them confidence both in their jobs and the organization, to spend time with them to uncover and address their fears. It's not that hard, but we see many small business owners that keep themselves too busy to spend any quality time with their employees. Are you guilty of this? When you go to talk to one of your employees is it to ask about work? Get to know them as an employee, as a valued member of your team. Something that we launched within our own business at Elite HR Team is Dream Manager. We held a company-wide meeting where we "Dream-Stormed" with each other. It was very neat to see the team document their dreams, share their dreams, and it will be even better holding each other accountable to their dreams, and watching everyone achieve their dreams. In the process we learned a lot about each other and 'what makes us tick.' Dan Cozzi, our Excellence Manager, oversees the Dream Manager program internally for us and also as an external service for our clients. Contact him to learn more. Outside of the Dream Manager, other ideas to help your employees overcome fear are to have frequent meetings with them, identifying their needs, and their concerns, and putting goals and plans of action into place (and signed copies into their personnel files) to follow up on during future meetings with them. Simply asking your employees what they need shows and tells them that you care about them. 

Do you talk to your employees, or do you run past them in your hurried state? We know the challenges of small business owners all too well, but it's imperative that you stop for a few minutes and actually talk to your employees, not about work, but about their life, their family, and their concerns. Everyone has to eat, why not reward a job well done by taking an employee to lunch with you? Getting to know your employees and making them feel important will improve morale and productivity. 

Don't let the resumes pile up on your desk. There's a better way for small businesses to recruit. Streamline your efforts with our affordable online recruiting portal. Your first posting is free, and there are plans as low as $29/month! Claim your free job posting here:

http://register.hiringthing.com/partners/elitehrteam

Don't get caught in the mindset of thinking that providing your employees with a quality benefits package and good pay is bad for your bottom line. Not only are happy employees more productive and efficient, but they are more likely to stay, saving you the cost of finding and training new hires.

By: Kandi Mensing, SPHR, MBA 

In this blog post we address the following as it relates to employer obligations during inclement weather: 

1. Workplace Policies & Notification 
2. Payroll Obligations As Per The FLSA/DOL
3. Disabled & Handicapped Employees 
4. Employee Commute

First and foremost, you should have an employee handbook in place that includes a policy addressing bad weather situations. This policy should address employees reporting to work, employees calling off work, safety as it relates to inclement weather, telecommuting, and the company's procedures during inclement weather. The policy should be in place and communicated long before there is a need for it. 

You should also have a method of notification so that employees have a known way to verify whether or not they should report to work. This is not an obligation, but rather a good business practice. When you have a system, it makes your life a lot easier. Employees also like knowing what to expect. So, rather than leaving yourself wondering how you will notify your employees of a workplace closure, and leaving your employees wondering how they can find out whether the workplace is still open, put in place a policy and procedure to manage these situations. Your life will be easier. Your employees will be happier. 

Salary vs Hourly: One big question that always surfaces during times of inclement weather is whether you can dock an employee’s pay for not reporting to work due to the potentially hazardous weather conditions.

So, how do you handle pay questions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? If a company opens an hour late because of a snowstorm, should an employer pay employees who show up earlier because they didn't hear the announcement? What time does the workday end when employees are given the option to go home because of inclement weather? What do the payroll laws require if the company is closed for an all day snow day?

An employer should establish a policy covering emergency closing pay options before the need occurs, ensure that all employees are notified of the policy, and implement it consistently. To some degree, wages are governed by the FLSA. Many states have payroll laws covering this issue as well.

Nonexempt employees. Under the FLSA, employers are not required to pay nonexempt, hourly employees who report for work and then are told that there is no work for them. Neither are they required to keep employees working for any specific number of hours or to pay them for hours they were assigned to work, but didn't. The only exception to this is in the case of a union's collective bargaining agreement. 

Even so, most employers pay for time not worked when an emergency or snow day forces an early closing. However, if the facility is being kept open and employees are merely permitted to leave early at their option, hourly workers are usually not paid for the time off.

If employees show up and are asked to stay until the situation is assessed, they must be paid even if there is nothing for them to do. On days that the facility does not open (and especially when notice has been given) the FLSA does not require that hourly employees be paid. It is always a good practice to allow them to use their vacation and/or sick time to get paid for the time off. Even better, give them a bonus of sorts by paying them for the missed hours. 

Exempt employees. The payroll laws concerning exempt employees are more complicated. The FLSA does not require employer-provided vacation time. Where an employer has proposed a bona fide benefits plan, it is permissible to substitute or reduce the accrued leave in the plan for the time an employee is absent from work, even if it is less than a full day, without affecting the salary basis of payment, if the employee still receives in payment an amount equal to the employee’s guaranteed salary. However, an employee will not be considered to be paid on a salary basis if deductions from the predetermined compensation are made for absences occasioned by the employer or by the operating requirements of the business.

Therefore, if the employer closes the office because of a snow day or other disaster for less than a full workweek, the employer must pay the employee’s full salary even if:

·         The employer does not have a bona fide benefits plan;
·         The employee has no accrued benefits in the leave bank;
·         The employee has limited accrued leave benefits and reducing that accrued leave will result in a negative balance; or
·         The employee already has a negative balance in the accrued leave bank.

Since employers are not required under the FLSA to provide any vacation time to employees, there is no prohibition on an employer giving vacation time and later requiring that such vacation time be taken on a specific day(s); just make sure your policies are worded appropriately. A private employer may direct exempt staff to take vacation or debit their paid leave account in the situation presented above, whether for a full or partial day’s absence, provided the employees receive in payment an amount equal to their guaranteed salary. In the same scenario, an exempt employee who has no accrued benefits in their leave account or has a negative balance in the leave account still must receive the employee’s guaranteed salary for any absences occasioned by the employer or the operating requirements of the business.

If the employer’s offices remain open during inclement weather or other types of disasters, and an employee is absent for 1 or more full days for personal reasons, the employee’s salaried status will not be affected if deductions are made from the employee’s salary for such absences. An employee who is absent because of inclement weather, such as because of transportation difficulties, is absent for personal reasons. A private employer may require an exempt employee who fails to report to work to take vacation or make leave deductions without jeopardizing the employee’s exempt status. When the office is open, an exempt employee who has no accrued benefits in the leave bank account does not have to be paid (i.e., may be placed on leave without pay) for the full day(s) he or she fails to report because of such circumstances as a heavy snow day, but only for full days. 

We know this is complicated, so if you have questions contact us. 

So, what are your obligations around supporting an employee who's handicap or disability prevents them from reporting to work during inclement weather conditions? 

Attorneys suggest that you first address whether they are "handicapped" or "disabled" under state and federal anti-discrimination laws. Employees satisfy either definition as long as they are substantially limited in a major life activity such as walking or standing, or major bodily functions. If they satisfy the definition, the employer is obligated to participate in the "interactive process" which is a key mechanism for facilitating the integration of disabled employees into your workplace. This process requires open dialogue between you and your employee with the goal of identifying "reasonable accommodations" that will allow them to perform their job. An accommodation is deemed "reasonable" if it does not pose an undue hardship to your business. 

In these situations, it’s not uncommon for employers to take the position that, notwithstanding the employee's disability, the duty to accommodate does not apply to commuting because commuting to and from work falls outside of the work environment. In the related lawsuit, the court agreed with the employer, and the appeals court reversed the ruling, stating that “under certain circumstances the ADA can obligate an employer to accommodate an employee's disability-related difficulties in getting to work, if reasonable.”

Overall, if you can establish that an employee suffers from a handicap or disability, you must engage in the interactive process with them to determine if a reasonable accommodation exists that will ease the burden associated with their commute and disability.

The question of liability for an accident is a delicate one. All of the facts and circumstances will be taken into account in determining liability, but generally employers choose to allow employees to exercise their own judgment in determining whether roads are passable during severe weather. If the employer absolutely requires attendance at work and such a requirement is unreasonable, considering the weather and safety in travelling, the employer is more likely to be held liable for any injury that befalls the employee coming to work. 

Source(s): HR.BLR, FLSA, & DOL 

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By: Dan Cozzi

There were once two painters who were each hired to paint exterior walls of a two-story building with the exact same dimensions. The first painter was motivated and energetic with a “get it done” attitude. He jumped into painting right away using the agility and ease of a ladder. Grabbing his paint can and his brush, he started the job on the ground and began painting the building, climbing up each rung and reaching out to the sides as far as he could safely reach.

The second painter sat down in his office and thought out how he could best accomplish the job. He knew the wall was wider than he could reach, and he identified that he would have to paint the trim separately from the main coat of paint. He realized he’d have to be able to move both vertically and laterally to allow areas of paint to dry while he returned to previous areas to mask and paint the trim. He decided to construct scaffolding that would allow him the freedom of movement needed to cross the surface of the wall laterally and vertically at the same time. He began to construct his scaffolding.

Meanwhile the first painter made his way quickly about halfway up the ladder and came to the bottom of his paint can. He needed to refill his can, and he now needed to climb back down, but returning down the ladder was much more difficult than going up the ladder. He couldn’t look where he was going and he had to reach for each rung with his foot rather than look where he was going.

The second painter finished his scaffolding and placed his supplies at the center of the structure so he could access them while accomplishing the job. He started painting the wall covering just enough area to ensure where he started was dry enough to return and do the trim work.

Each time the first painter reached the top of his ladder, needed to move to the area at his side, or was ready to do his trim work, he had to descend the ladder, move it over and climb back up, a tedious and time-consuming process.

Although the second painter got started later, he finished the job sooner due to his forethought, and he was much safer while painting because he could see where he was going and could more easily maneuver across the full area of his exterior wall.  

Just like these painters, leaders who take the time to think, plan, and invest strategically will develop organizations that transition more smoothly between life-cycle stages, develop engaged workforces, and improve their business's "health" by developing and implementing processes that result in the right people and tools at the right places and times. They essentially build themselves scaffolding instead of using a ladder.  

Which painter are you running your business like? 

We are working on a workplace employee survey for a client. It is awesome when employers value their employees' needs.

Employee surveys are best done by a third-party administrator (like us!) because employees will feel the most comfortable and be the most honest in our confidential setting. Employers are given summarized feedback on what their employees are saying, but all information is kept confidential as far as what each employee said. We provide the employers with a summary, reports & statistics, and suggested action plan. When employee morale is bad, or when retention is poor an employee survey can uncover what action needs taken to make improvements. Happy employees are the most productive and loyal. Turnover is expense.