In the world of Human Resources the difference between being in compliance with the myriad of state and federal HR regulations and taking the position that nothing has ever happened to your company so it probably never will, could cost you dearly in penalties and fines – regardless of the size of your company.

Not only has the amount of both state and federal regulation increased many times over in recent years, but increasingly these statutes apply to smaller and smaller companies.  In addition, both state and federal agencies have increased enforcement actions dramatically.  A recent Department of Labor action against a company in Novato, California was the result of the company’s misclassification of only 29 employees as exempt from overtime.  The judgment was a whopping $209,000, or more than 7,000 per employee!

Add Heath Care Reform, where the IRS released updated rules on December 22^nd that could affect your health insurance offerings to your employees, to the NRLB’s recent proposal regarding union organizing activities, and how is a small business owner to keep up?  And, don’t forget that ignorance of the law is not a defense that would protect you from fines and penalties.

While there are many resources to help you stay abreast of rules and regulations that you need to know, one thing is for sure; you can’t afford to simply assume that everything is OK since nothing has ever happened in the past.  The current world of HR compliance is very different than in the past and the savvy business owner will take proactive action to stay informed and protect their business and profit.

At YPP, we help our clients stay informed and in compliance as needed.  As regulations are release or updated, our HR experts immediately assess the risk to each client and then recommend actions that keep them compliant with the least disruption to their business operations.  You should have the same awareness set up for your business.  If you need help, give us a call!

If your company is like most organizations, change takes time.  And, changes in HR are even more difficult to make because often the decisions affect all employees and are not seen as time critical.  In fact, January 1^st is the best time to implement updates and changes to your HR policies and practices.  First, it naturally coincides with the beginning of the annual cycle for payroll and other government compliance and reporting regulations.  And, January often begins a new company planning cycle, which changes in HR policies can be designed to support.

HR Compliance Now is the time to look at how well you are doing and allocate time to fix little problems before they become big, expensive ones. Here are a few areas to be sure to look at:

Employee Handbook – Your Employee Handbook is your first and best line of defense against employee claims.  Honest answers to these questions will protect you and your company:

• When was it last reviewed and updated?
• Do you have documentation that employees signed off on the latest version?
• Are there changes that need to be made to stay in compliance with newly enacted regulations for 2011, including California specific ones?

Employee Recordkeeping – Documentation, not just the minimum set of required paperwork, is also critical to not only protecting yourself but to motivating and coaching your employees.  Do your employee records include:

• Updated  and/or correctly completed forms (e.g. I-9, W-4, employment application,  handbook acknowledgement, changes to payroll/employee profile information, etc)
• Separation of protected and confidential information
• Documentation of verbal coaching, performance, goals and objectives and other trends (good and bad)
• Documentation of any accidents, safety training, etc.
• Documentation and tickler of any expirations of required licenses, certifications, skills, etc.

Required Postings – Do you have all the required postings in all of your locations? Are they current and do they reflect accurate, California-based information.

Supporting Your Company’s Mission and Goals HR policies and practices play a critical role in supporting the goals of your organization.  When is the last time you evaluated if what you are doing (or not doing) relative to HR conflicts with how you want your employees to treat your customers, your critical suppliers and each other?  Here are a couple of areas that often cause conflicts between HR policies and company goals:

Leave Policy – If you just copied your leave policy from a handbook template that you got off of the internet, your leave policy may be more generous than it needs to be and may put you in a position of critical staff shortage when you least expect it.

Compensation – There are so many ways that compensation can create work habits that are right in line with your goals. And, unfortunately, compensation practices can also create a conflict between how your company should operate for optimum success and what your employees are doing based on compensation incentives (or disincentives).  Don’t forget that compensation is not just salary, it is the full compliment of employee benefits, time off, retirement, and salary.

Employee Benefits – It is getting more and more difficult to keep pace with the need to offer competitive benefits for employees and their families and the ever increasing cost of benefits.  And, there are many changes coming in this area.  While most brokers are experts at helping you control costs, managing your benefits also needs to take into account your ability to recruit and retain critical staff to help your company meet its goals.

So, as you can see, there is a lot of work to do and just a few short months to do it if you want to implement any changes for the New Year.  In attacking this project, it’s important to ask yourself:

Do You Have The Time Or Expertise? It’s not as simple as doing Google searches and seeing what other companies are doing or joining an HR association. Be honest with yourself and if you don’t have the time or knowledge to get these important things done, ask for help…before another January passes by!  Help can take many forms:

Hire an HR Consultant – Bring in a local HR professional to help you tackle a specific project.  Be sure to get references for the type of work you need done, a Scope of Work and estimate of hours prior to engaging them. And, be sure you feel comfortable that you can work with the consultant’s “style”

Outsource – Outsourcing day-to-day HR Administration (payroll, HR, workers’ comp and benefits administration) is one way to ensure not only ongoing compliance but also best practices and periodic reviews of your policies and practices.  And, in many cases, this may be the least costly option in the long run.

Don’t let your HR review get put off another year, exposing you to increased risk as the government gets more aggressive in enforcement efforts and employee claims become more frequent.

If you find you need help or are considering outsourcing, now is the time to start.  In the HR world, January is right around the corner.

We believe the basic principles below can become the foundation for that HR GPS system. By applying these simple principles you can transition HR from transactional nuisance to transformational strategic partner within your organization. Why bother? Because people are the foundation of every successful business and HR is about people. That means you need to leverage your people talent the same way you seek to leverage your other business assets.

If you need an HR manager or department that “gets it” then how do you help them get there?

1. Business acumen

HR often begins as an “other duties as assigned” function when organizations begin to grow, tacked onto accounting or some other administrative function within the organization. Frequently HR managers, even those with lots of experience, do not come from the trenches of production, sales or general business management. Before HR can understand and manage your human capital needs there must be a comprehensive understanding of the company, its business, products, customers and the competitive environment in which it operates.

As the team leader you must develop a plan to bring HR fully up to speed on what you do, how you do it and why. Drag them out of the rarified world of handbooks and insurance forms into the trenches where your products or services are conceived and delivered. The nuts and bolts of how to achieve this will be vary depending on your organization but if your want your HR to function as a strategic partner then you need to find or develop HR managers who understand the big picture.

2. Analytical mindset

Everyone knows people are complex and cannot be reduced to charts and numbers. However, HR needs to bring their analytical tools of the trade to the table just as accounting, production and sales must. HR should be expected to understand what the big picture numbers mean and where their information fits within the overall organization to maximize your human capital resources.

Be sure HR metrics are understood and applied. If you want HR to be a credible contributor the management team then HR needs the tools and training to give you more than best guesses about your human capital investment. HR metrics properly analyzed and effectively communicated to key decision makers can improve every critical aspect of your organizational management process.

3. Accountability

If you want HR leadership capable of making hard, critical decisions independently, the kind of leadership willing to put their proverbial “ass on the line” then you need to give them a seat at the table and the opportunity to be heard. It also means that as a manager to take a leadership role in changing the perception of HR from the “no sayers” everyone avoids to the “people specialists” within your organization. While it is ultimately up to HR to achieve a favorable reputation within the organization the leadership can set a new tone of respect that creates a more collaborative environment within the management team.

4. It is ok for HR to know what they don’t know

There is no question HR should already “know their stuff” when it comes to the nuts and bolts of technical HR. If HR in your organization has never really had a seat at the table then the transition will mean lots of questions, a shift in organizational dynamics and a learning curve. Create a climate that encourages questions and exploration as HR assumes a new position in your organizational structure and develops confidence and their own voice.

5. See HR as a fully vested member of the management team

Before HR can see themselves in their new role as strategic management partner the entire management team must be on board. That means leadership must clearly establish a climate that says HR is as integral to the organization and its success as production, sales, or any other key management area. Give HR the opportunity to make some substantive contributions to help create a new tone within the organization, HR as fully vested member of the management team.

Our current economic situation with all its complexities and frustrations may offer HR the opportunity to gain the position at the management table we have long claimed we should have. No matter how high tech our HR GPS is we will still face challenges as we create new HR models and opportunities as strategic management partners.

]]> http://www.ypp.com/blog/2009/07/17/the-new-face-in-your-mangement-team/feed/ 0 http://www.ypp.com/blog/2009/07/17/will-creativity-be-a-recession-casualty/ http://www.ypp.com/blog/2009/07/17/will-creativity-be-a-recession-casualty/#comments Fri, 17 Jul 2009 17:49:00 +0000 Sandra Dickerson http://ypp.cleverconcepts.net/blog/2009/07/17/will-creativity-be-a-recession-casualty/ Could this seemingly endless recession claim yet another victim, our creative spirit?

As I see my friends, family and coworkers struggling to keep heads above water in an economy stuck in the muck I’m developing a new concern, that our creative spark may get lost. Fear and frustration seem to be driving personal and business decisions and caution is the new black.

Understandably our energy is flagging and the urge to retreat and withdraw is natural given the daily bombardment of poor economic news, but our creativity is the key that can transform our personal and professional lives. For a single individual to lose their creative energy is concerning but for business the loss of the collective creative spark would be devastating. Creativity drives new ideas, technologies and opportunities in every industry throughout the world, always has and always will.

Could the erosion of creative energy slow our economic recovery even further? If so, how can business turn the tide and reignite this vital spark that truly drives our economic engine? There is no single answer because every business culture is unique but the first step is to put it on the agenda.

Putting creativity on the agenda can begin with a simple commitment followed by simple actions. Build creative space into the workday. You delude yourself if you think employees must be relentlessly task driven or they are unproductive. If you fail to build in some breathing room you are depriving your business of perhaps your most valuable asset even if it isn’t reflected with a line on your balance sheet.

Some readily available and inspirational resources are as close as your local library or go to Amazon and type in “creativity”. You will soon find yourself inspired by the titles alone. Jump in and rediscover your own creative inspiration and assume a unique leadership role as the CCO, Chief Creativity Officer.

]]> http://www.ypp.com/blog/2009/07/17/will-creativity-be-a-recession-casualty/feed/ 0 http://www.ypp.com/blog/2008/10/20/caution-do-not-let-economic-stress-lead-to-careless-hr-practices/ http://www.ypp.com/blog/2008/10/20/caution-do-not-let-economic-stress-lead-to-careless-hr-practices/#comments Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:27:00 +0000 Lynn Fernbaugh http://ypp.cleverconcepts.net/blog/2008/10/20/caution-do-not-let-economic-stress-lead-to-careless-hr-practices/ Several months ago I wrote about the stresses employees may face during an economic downturn. Little did we know then just how much more dire the economic news would become. During these bumpy economic times employees and managers may be faced with complex HR challenges that require careful management to ensure best HR practices are maintained.

Layoffs
An economic downturn may mean layoffs but employers can minimize their risk of wrongful termination claims with good HR practices. The first line of defense occurs when the employment relationship is established. Ideally all new business should have employees sign an agreement that protects the at-will employment status. If layoffs are on the horizon it is time to standardize termination procedures and train supervisors on protecting the at-will relationship. Supervisors must also be clear on the importance of consistency when layoffs occur. Companies should have objective, nondiscriminatory criteria when selecting employees for layoffs. If the layoff involves a worker with an actual or perceived disability employers should seek the advice of an experienced HR professional or legal counsel. The same advice applies if an employee has recently returned from a legally protected leave or if the employee has made harassment claims or reported safety violations.

Proper handling of the layoff process is the best possible way to avoid messy and costly discrimination and wrongful termination suits. It is very important to give an employee accurate information about why you are terminating their employment. Do not tell an employee you are laying them off for economic reasons if the termination is due to performance issues.

Wage & Hour Compliance
A Stanford Law Review article by John Donohue and Peter Siegelman (The Changing Nature of Employment Discrimination Litigation, 43 Stan. Law. Rev. 983 (1991)) has interesting information with regard to the relationship between the economy and employment litigation. Recessionary economies mean increased employment suits and damage awards also increase.
To avoid wage and hour compliance complaints you must carefully track hourly employee’s time and accurately track and pay overtime wages. It is also important to enforce meal and rest break requirements. Be certain exempt employees are properly classified as misclassification is one of the most significant areas of employment litigation.

Workplace Violence
Times of economic stress may lead to an increased incidence of workplace violence. Employees may be coping with financial stresses at home and more demands at work as businesses seek to maintain productivity with a reduced workforce. A proactive approach can reduce your risk of workplace violence which can take both a financial and human toll.

Employers need a zero-tolerance policy that addresses violent acts and intimidation in the workplace. The policy should be communicated to all employees and must include reporting procedures as well as disciplinary action up to an including termination as a remedy.

Risk Management
Be particularly aware of risk management practices during an economic downturn. Stressed and overworked employees are less likely to carefully follow safety protocols which can lead to an increase in workplace injuries. Another serious concern is the potential increase in workers compensation claims as employees facing potential layoffs seek to replace their income. An economic downturn is also not the time to reduce safety training and equipment as a cost cutting measure because the long term consequences can be even more expensive.

Serious economic times call for sound HR polices and practices. A commitment to maintaining good HR fundamentals even when the economy is unsteady can help protect your assets and the human capital you rely on to keep your business on track.