Every business has at least one HPE: a habitually problematic employee.  As an owner or HR manager, your lucky day comes when that employee parts ways with the business—lucky, until another employer calls for your opinion of HPE.  Awkward.

So what now?  Do you tell the employer what you really think about HPE?  Do you gloss over HPE’s 2-hour lunches?  Do you fake static and hang up?  Not only is this situation uncomfortable, but it presents potential legal troubles if improperly handled.

Some businesses solve this problem by routing all reference checks through the HR Department.  There, only basic information is verified, such as dates of employment and job title.  This option will definitely keep your business out of legal hot water, but it may displease managers who want to shout HPE’s negative qualities from the rooftops.  In these cases, advise miffed managers how important it is that the business distributes consistent, carefully worded statements.  Even the most truthful statements, if poorly worded, can be twisted into legal ammunition.

Another way to shield personnel from these uncomfortable inquiries is to deal with HPE proactively.  There are two ways to do this.  First, ask HPE for a signed release allowing the business to give out reference information.  If HPE refuses to sign, explain to reference-seekers that HPE did not consent to release information.  Second, tell HPE at the exit interview that the business won’t be able to provide a positive reference.  That should be enough for HPE to look for support elsewhere.

Who doesn’t want more time off around the holidays?  When the vacation time runs dry, employees may resort to unusual reasons to miss work. One employee said a chicken attacked his mother. Another got a finger stuck in a bowling ball.  Another employee said she couldn’t come in the day after Thanksgiving because she burned her mouth on a pumpkin pie.

The excuses may be strange, but the phenomenon of playing hooky from work is very real.  CareerBuilder’s annual survey on absenteeism revealed that 29 percent of employees skipped work at least once this year by lying about an illness. Even though that’s nearly one in every three employees surveyed, the overall number is down 3 percent from last year.

Aside from extending the holiday cheer, the most popular reasons employees erroneously call out sick are because they just don’t feel like going to work, they need to relax, and they need to catch up on sleep.  Stress may be the real force behind these increased sick days; of employers, 27 percent believe stress and burnout are causing more fake sick days.  If that’s the case, it might be worthwhile to teach employees that their honesty will be appreciated, because stress can adversely impact their health if left unchecked. That can be a legitimate reason to miss work!

Although most employers say they believe an employee who calls out sick, 29 percent admit to checking up on an employee’s story, usually by requiring a doctor’s note.  Other employers called the employee at home or went as far as to drive by the employee’s residence.  At the end of the day, 16 percent of employers admit to firing an employee over unverified sick time.

While that may not be the best way to spread holiday cheer, it may be something to remember when an employee claims Grandma got run over by a reindeer.

Severance pay: an employer’s monetary gesture of goodwill to an employee separating from employment.

In times of layoffs and position elimination, this term has become more relevant to the modern workplace.  It’s a nice gesture to be able to provide severance pay to good employees leaving the business, even if it’s not a legal requirement.  (Be mindful, though, that severance policies might be written into certain employees’ contracts or in the employee handbook, which would create an obligation to pay severance.)

What does a typical severance package look like?  Usually, the higher the climb up the corporate ladder, the higher the severance package.  A severance package for a typical worker would be 1–2 weeks of pay per year of service.  At the executive level, severance may mean up to a month’s pay for each year of service.  An employment contract often imposes severance packages for the most senior positions.  In these cases, severance packages could go beyond additional pay to include extended benefits and outplacement services.

In some cases, a laid-off employee may try to negotiate a more favorable severance package.  If no precedent or written policies exist for severance packages, negotiations may be feasible.  Legally, however, an employee’s attempt to negotiate constitutes rejection of the severance package and entitles the employer to withdraw the offer altogether.  While that seems tempting, it may be best to tell the employee up front that the offer is nonnegotiable, especially if you are laying off other employees and want them to sign release of claims forms.

A release of claim form prevents the laid-off employee from bringing suit against the business in the future, and a severance package is the incentive to sign that form.  Obtaining this form is important; last thing any business needs after downsizing is a torrent of lawsuits!  Also be sure to get a separate release from workers over age 40 to prevent age discrimination suits.  Pay careful attention to any legal deadlines regarding extending and accepting these offers.

In this tumultuous economy, offering severance packages to laid-off employees is a goodwill gesture that acknowledges their dedicated service.  A severance package can also help calm angry, departing employees and can help save the business from legal troubles.  At the end of the day, the decision to offer a severance package is at the employer’s discretion, but a short-term payout may be well worth the long-term benefits of an act of kindness.

Brandon Carl, our Business Development Manager, chatting about Human Resources outsourcing and GHRO with Ciaran Foley on LookSee.TV!

2010-08-10 Brandon Carl and GHRO Discuss Outsourced HR from Ciaran Foley on Vimeo.

GHRO recently posted a blog about age discrimination and younger workers, and how Generation Y’s stereotypes unfairly prevent them from getting hired.  While no law protects young workers from ageism, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967 protects employees over age 40 from traditional age discrimination.  Based on this law, the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission received 22,778 charges of age discrimination in 2009 alone, of which the commission resolved 20,529 and recovered over $72 million in monetary benefits for charging parties and other aggrieved individuals (not including monetary benefits obtained through litigation).  Age-related charges make up roughly one quarter of all discrimination charges filed with the commission.  Despite the number of age-related claims falling since 2008, ageism remains a potential problem for employers, particularly in this volatile economic climate.  So what is age discrimination and how can it be prevented?

Under the ADEA, older workers may not be discriminated against in any aspect of employment, including hiring, termination, wages, job duties, promotions, layoffs, training, and fringe benefits.  Even companywide policies that adversely affect applicants and employees over age 40 may be illegal if they are not based on a reasonable factor beyond age.  While those factors are controlled at the management level, the ADEA also protects older workers against harassment, which can be perpetuated by all levels of the business: supervisors, coworkers, even clients and customers.  Age-related harassment includes making age-related remarks.  Even if such remarks don’t seem to be serious, they can have a severe impact on older workers and can create a hostile work environment.

Training can help raise employee awareness of discrimination and can curtail such remarks.  It may surprise many employees to learn that extensive researched has shown no correlation between age and job performance.  In fact, a seasoned veteran can bring hard-earned experience and positive mentoring opportunities to the business.  Older workers typically show better judgment and care when performing their duties.  They are also less likely to arrive late to work, to be absent, or to quit.  To prevent age-related harassment, educate employees that all employment-related comments and actions should focus on job performance, not employee age.  Also post an anti-discrimination policy that includes harassment definitions, solutions, consequences, reporting processes, grievance procedures, and anti-retaliation language.

Such simple, proactive measures can go a long way toward eliminating ageism in the workplace.  The goal is to create an environment where employees of all ages feel welcomed, included, and valued.

The state of California requires all businesses with one or more employees to carry workers’ compensation insurance.  Workers’ compensation insurance is meant to protect you, the employer, in case your employees are injured on the job.  Not carrying workers’ compensation insurance can have serious consequences for your business.

Workers’ compensation benefits can only help you and your employees with work-related injuries if you are properly insured.  If you’re uninsured and an employee suffers an on-the-job injury, you are responsible for paying any damages relating to that employee’s claim.  Also bear in mind, in addition to filing a workers’ compensation claim, that employee can file a civil suit against you because you’re illegally uninsured.

Most important, it’s a criminal offense not to have workers’ compensation coverage!  Under the California Labor Code, failure to provide workers’ compensation coverage is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $10,000 fine or up to one year in county jail, or both.  The state’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement may also issue penalties of $1,000 per employee, to a maximum of $100,000. In addition, if an injured worker’s claim successfully goes before the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board and the judge finds the employer was uninsured, the employer may be fined up to $10,000 per employee, to a maximum of $100,000.

Don’t get caught in a workers’ compensation bind!  Global Human Resources Outsourcing is here to help.  As one of Southern California’s leading HR professional employer organizations, GHRO can assist your company with its workers’ compensation needs.  GHRO offers workers’ compensation support with all three of its HR PEO packages, from the basic HR Essentials package to the comprehensive HR Total Solutions package to care for all of your company’s human resources needs.  For more information and to receive a free quote, visit our website or call 888-308-0338.

In this tumultuous economic climate, where many companies are resorting to layoffs and many other jobs lie teetering on the brink, employment-related lawsuits are on the rise. Hundreds of employment lawsuits are filed each week—the vast majority against small businesses. Approximately two-thirds of those lawsuits are decided in favor of the employee. Recent data shows the average compensatory award in federal court employment cases is nearly $500,000, not including punitive damages or attorney fees. Even settling a lawsuit can cost over $300,000. Can your company afford such a pricey payout?

If the answer is “no,” consider a Human Resources audit: an objective, comprehensive review of your company’s HR compliance and practices, which could prevent costly employment lawsuits. The two-part audit will bring out the best in your company by streamlining and modernizing its HR services. The compliance portion of the audit examines legal facets, including outdated or conflicting policies and inconsistencies between policy and practice. The practices portion of the audit focuses on HR fundamentals, including performance evaluations, employee handbooks, recruitment, discipline and termination, absence requests, and record keeping. Your company will become aware of any deficiencies in its HR network and will receive direction on a level tailored to your company’s needs.

At the end of the audit, recommendations will help your company to develop consistent policies and to become compliant with current laws and regulations, including ADA and FMLA. These recommendations may lead to a number of additional improvements, such as fewer employment lawsuits, better handling of employee grievances, and fewer errors and complaints. Fair and equal treatment of employees encourages enhanced recruiting, increased employee morale, and improved retention.

The benefits of an HR audit are not all legal; the audit can promote many other positive changes within the company. The comprehensive nature of an audit can help uncover the HR programs most important to the company’s objectives, so those programs can be better utilized. The close examination of practices may also encourage fresh ideas and approaches to HR. An audit will also provide a benchmark of HR services to ensure consistency and to set future goals.

Global Human Resources Outsourcing offers full-service HR audits to help keep your company at its best. For more information, contact GHRO at 888-308-0338.

When someone mentions human resources, often times an image of someone in a dull cubicle such as Toby from the office.. What many don’t know is human resources exist everywhere, even in the extreme conditions of a war-zone such as Iraq.

On October 16th, soldiers from the aptly titled 387th Human Resources Co. (HR Co.) returned home. The 30 soldiers, which were deployed August 31st have been to Iraq a total of four times. The unit, which was first deployed in 2003 as part of Operation Iraqi freedom, helped manage Human Resources and postal services for Camp Liberty, just outside of Baghdad.

Human Resources play a valuable role in maintaining a structure of employees whether it’s a small business, corporate office or even the military. While you might be shocked that a Human Resources department would be deployed in Iraq, it’s no different from a large company and can help maintain a strong “chain of command” in the operation of a military deployment.

Military outfits need to work methodically and a Human Resources department can help accomplish this goal by interacting with troops and solving issues within a division. Human Resource departments help create structure and in a war zone or in a country with little stability in addition to their role of understanding people and helping them solve personal issues or acting as a mediator to solve conflicts.

Via: http://www.heartlandconnection.com/news/story.aspx?list=194787&id=527856

Treating your employees well, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation, is something every company must do in order to attract the best employees in their field.

The Human Rights Campaign recently gave Cox Enterprises and Delta Airlines top honors for its treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees and consumers.

The award was given to the two Atlanta-based companies, both of which received a perfect 100 percent score on HRC’s 2011 “Best Places To Work.” This is the third year in a row Cox has received a perfect score, which is based on employee benefits, diversity, training programs and community outreach. Cox Enterprises also reiterated its expenditures of over 320 million in 2009 to minority and women-owned suppliers.

The Human Rights Campaign rated 618 businesses for their 2011 report. It evaluated each company’s polices and practices related to LGBT related topics, non-discrimination policies, domestic partner benefits and overall support of the LGBT community.

Via: Atlanta Business Chronicle