The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team believes that collaboration is the key to success. In order for successful collaboration to occur all team members must have a complete understanding of both the goals of their organization and the role that each individual must play in order for the organization to be able to reach that goal.

While it is true that familiarity with a certain leader may act as a positive influence on employees, leaving them feeling secure or confident in their boss’ leadership style, it can also lead to decreased efficiency. A recent study found that familiarity could have major disadvantages.  Employees tended to feel betrayed or personally offended when leaders were given more responsibility and thus delegated more work to employees. In response, many employees exhibited decreased effort and productivity as their way of showing their feelings toward their leader.

Leaders must be highly aware that employees react differently to direction. If a leader disregards individual reaction, the team may have not only decreased productivity individually but a decreased sense of collaboration as well. If a leader is conscious of these differences when giving direction, they will be able to avoid a diminished sense of teamwork and be able to carry out projects at an increased rate of speed and effectiveness.

In order to keep efficiency at peak levels, leaders must gain trust in employees and remain objective when providing feedback on employees work. The same applies when new members of the team are brought in. Efficiency levels will remain consistent when leaders exhibit unchanging behavior, regardless of responsibility levels, in order to maintain trust with all employees.

When a team has trust in its leader it can work at an efficient level. This efficiency allows the team to collaborate at the highest possible level and therefore accomplish the goals of the organization.

Do you have a social media policy for your workplace?  Or, if you do, is it properly enforced?

If not, the Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team thinks that you need to understand how preventing workers from accessing social media on the job is only getting harder.

Three-out-of-every-four employees are accessing social media on their personal devices once a day, with 60 percent saying they check multiple times per day.

But only 43 percent of those same staff members work for companies that allow social media access.

That’s according to the new Social Media and Workplace 2012 Report, courtesy of SilkRoad.

“Social Media & Workplace Collaboration — 2012 Latest Practices, Key Findings, Hottest Topics” confirms what many HR pros already know: Employees are going to use social media at work, whether you approve of it or not.

That doesn’t mean you should ditch your social media policy, though. What it means is that firms might be better off crafting a forward-thinking social media policy than one that completely forbids social media use.

And, if you can figure out a way to get those workers involved in your own in-house social media efforts, all the better.

Here are a few more of the key findings from the research:

• Companies’ efforts to guide employee use of social technology are mixed: Only 23 percent of workers received a specific social media policy from their employer, and the same percentage reported having no policy at all. Just 17 percent were issued informal guidelines, and less than 10 percent received social media training.
• Twitter is the most popular social media site accessed at work: 70 percent use Twitter and 65 percent use Facebook, while only 19 percent use corporate intranets.
• Virtually no employers are asking for social media passwords: Despite the media and political buzz around the topic, 97 percent of respondents said that their employer or potential employer had not yet asked employees for social media passwords.
• Employees use personal mobile devices frequently during work hours to access social media: 60 percent check social media multiple times throughout the day on their mobile devices, and 75 percent say they check it at least once a day or more.
• Interacting with co-workers was the primary motivator for social media engagement at work: 49 percent of respondents said that connecting with co-workers was the top reason to use social media while at work. The second and third most popular reasons were connecting with others on a fun social platform (47 percent) followed by connecting with customers (44 percent).

“Companies can no longer ignore social tools, nor the ways that their employees use them to share and access information,” said W. Edward Vesely, chief marketing officer of SilkRoad, in comments from the executive summary.

He added: “These new technologies can be used to create business value, share information, engage employees — and even create dialogue with customers and prospects.”

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 13 – What the Future Holds

During my thirty-year career in human resources, I have watched the evolution of the workplace in awe and amazement.  In 1980, the two-cocktail lunch was still common and technology was limited to the telephone and the copy machine.

In the area of technology alone, if you had told me then that I could work on a thing called a computer with 24/7 access to the world on a thing called the Internet anywhere in the world, I would have thought you had one too many of the cocktails I mentioned.

I thought it would be fund to predict what will happen over the next 30 years based on what I have seen to date and the trends I have seen going forward.  If I am still around then, I will be eighty-four and hopefully working on another book with similar predictions.  For those of you who are still around, give me a call and let’s see how I did.

Specifically, I will discuss these predictions:

• No one needs to work anymore.
• Everybody and everything is protected.
• Unions are back in style.
• Lawsuits continue…with the government’s help.
• No one is in the office – where are they?
• The younger generations have take over, and are they different!
• Work life and the family are keys to talent acquisition.
• Regulation is the lifeblood of the profession.
• Technology will be more interesting.
• What is an employee, anyway?

You will have to read the book to get my take on the first nine items on the above list.  But I will say this about the last point.  The contingency workforce will expand dramatically, and more and more people see themselves as free agents moving from one employer to another on a contractual basis.  The days of working for a company for 40 years and getting a gold watch are gone.  For the new generation of HR leaders, the emphasis will be on attracting the right talent rather than on keeping them forever.

Next: Chapter 14 – So You Thought It Was Ok to What?

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 12 – How to Manage Them Internationally

While I realize that many of you will not have international employees and this chapter may not apply to you, there may come a time when you decide to expand your operation.

Whether this expansion comes in nearby Mexico or Canada or you move to Europe or Asia, managing international employees is somewhat different, and you need to be aware of the potential issues.

In this chapter, I will discuss two types of employees:

• Locals you are relocating overseas
• Locals who are actually natives of the country you are operating in

Relocating Expatriates

Locals who are relocated overseas are known as expatriates or “expats”  The selection of the expat is critically important, given that their annual costs can easily be two to three times their salary.  While the proper selection criteria are beyond the scope of this book, here are a few things to consider:

Career Blockage

The assignment has to make sense form a career perspective.  Often, expats are sent overseas for two to three years and return to find a job that is not as “big” as they were used to. Repatriation is a key to success.  Upon their return, be sure their assignment allows them to take advantage of their new skills.

Other key points discussed in this chapter include:

• Culture Shock
• Lack of Pre-Departure Cross-Cultural Training
• Overemphasis on Technical Qualifications
• Family Problems
• Compensation

Working with the Local Nationals

Over time, most organizations replace all or most of their expats with local nationals.  There are some general rules in dealing with your overseas employees.

Rule #1: Think Globally, Manage Locally

Rule #2: Don’t Believe Everything You Hear

Rule #3: Don’t Fall into the Religion Trap

Rule #4: The Paradigm May be Different There

Rule #5: You Really Can Hold Them Accountable

Rule #6: People Are People

Dealing with employees’ issues can be a bit easier in most of the world, but only because there are a series of very strict rules employers need to abide by.  Again, this will vary by region and country.

Read the chapter for details.

Next: Chapter 13 – What the Future Holds

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 11 – How to Deal with the Unions

Unions today make up a very small part of the workforce.  In the 1950s, union membership stood at around 35 percent of the working population.  Today, the number is less than 12 percent, with most of these in the public sector.  Why the fall?

I would like to say it is because you have all ready my book and are using excellent HR practices that keep people from wanting to join unions.  Wishful thinking.  In fact, there are a number of reasons, including these:

• Many of the issues that originally brought unions to the workplace, such as minimum wages, child labor and workplace safety, have all been legislated both federally and located.
• A number of industries where unions once dominated, such as textiles and steel, have moved offshore.
• The old concept of “personnel” evolved into the practice of human resources (HR), and companies made a much greater effort to meet the needs of their employees, thus giving them much less reason to organize.

Given the above, I would suggest that in the 21^st century, if you wake up one morning to find a union at your door, it will constitute a failure of management…not of the employees.

Unfortunately, if you do wake up that morning with this new problem, your work is really cut out for you.

Labor Relations Management

Like most things in HR, labor-relations management is a process consisting of three steps:

1. Union organizing
2. Collective bargaining
3. Contract administration

Union Organizing

The union organizing process is the attempt by the union to convince a sufficient number (30 percent) of employees to sign authorization cards allowing for an election.  The election campaign will be a lively one, and there are a number of things you should remember regarding your conduct – the dos and don’ts.  These include:

• You can give your opinion, telling them why you think the union is NOT good for them, and why.
• You can tell them if they strike, they may be replaced.
• You can tell employees that they don’t have to talk to union representatives if they don’t want to.

There are also a number of things you cannot do, including:

• You cannot question employees about the union.
• You cannot spy on their meetings.
• You cannot visit them at their homes to discuss union issues.

Collective Bargaining

This is the phase where you must negotiate in good faith toward the goal of reaching a collective-bargaining agreement or union contract.  Generally, you must negotiate things like rates of pay, overtime, grievance procedures, etc.

I would suggest that you always hire a professional to assist you in this process.  The union will certainly be using one, and you should as well.

Contract Administration

Administering the contract once it has been negotiated is by far the most time-consuming element of the union relationship.  Most of this effort will involve interpretation of the contract.  There will likely be issues that come up that were not anticipated at the time of the negotiation.  When this occurs, there is typically a grievance and arbitration procedure, which I discuss in detail in the book.

At the end of the day, the best policy is to pay attention to your employees’ needs, provide a safe workplace for them, and pay them competitively.

Next: Chapter 12 – How to Manage Them Internationally.

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 10 – How to Discipline and Fire Them

In many ways, this was the most challenging chapter to write for this book (and most interesting, which is why we decided to skip ahead one chapter and get to this topic right away, saving Chapter 9 – “How to Train Them” – for next week).

After thirty years in human resources, I have more stories to tell than I can possibly cram into this little volume.

For example, I mentioned in the opening about my customer whose employee staged a hunger strike.  Ultimately, he had to be fired for reasons that had nothing to do with his hunger strike.  Guess what?  He claimed retaliation.  Four years later, we settled this gentleman’s case for very little money and all kinds of aggravation.

Then there was the employee running a business out of her office.  Unfortunately, it wasn’t our business.  She was indignant when she was fired.  She didn’t understand the concept of “stealing time.”

Then, of course, there are the employees who threaten their supervisors and co-workers.  Or the ones who refuse to follow simple policies and procedures.  And let’s not forget the ones who are intoxicated or on drugs at work.

All in all, though, these are the easy ones.

This is a most difficult chapter to write because of the angst that goes into every disciplinary situation.  It is not easy, not pleasing and often doesn’t end well for you and certainly not for the employee.

So, for the purposes of this chapter, let’s look at two different activities that require discipline: performance-related issues vs. dysfunctional behavior.

I separate these two because your approach to them will be very different.

Some employer-employee relationships call for you to perform guidance activities like:

• Coaching: you point out the things the employee is doing well and the things that he or she is not doing so well.
• Counseling: used when coaching fails–it’s a form of communication that gives the employee the information needed to change unproductive behavior.

Then there’s progressive discipline, an escalating process of dealing with failure to perform to expectations or to change behavior.  The sequence:

1.     Coaching Conversation

2.     Counseling Session

3.     Written Warning

4.     Day of Reflection

5.     Termination (the end of the road)

Finally, there are simply layoffs and reductions in work force.  There are a number of ways to determine whom to reduce.  Get the details when you read the chapter.

Next: Chapter 9 – How to Train Them

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 8 – How to Stay Out of Court

There was a time we could resolve employment problems internally, and utilizing the court system was rarely an option.  This began to change 20 or so years ago, and today just about any employee issue should be viewed as a potential lawsuit.

What would you do if one of your employees lied on his application for promotion and told you he had a degree when he didn’t?  Some of you might fire him, some might not.  What if he did it again and again, and finally a fourth time?  No kidding, this really happened.  At some point he lost his job and sued.  Did my customer “win” the case?  Of course he did – at the cost of $100,000.

It is not always unavoidable and sometimes even preferable to allow a case to go to court.  There have been times when a certain plaintiff’s attorney had decided to send his kids to college by representing my client’s ex-employees.  The case I shared earlier was the first of three this attorney would file.  The first case needed to go to court to show them that my customer would not roll over and settle.

An employee’s perception of a claim is his or her reality, and there is no shortage of plaintiff attorneys to take these cases.  If there was a legal area in this country that I would consider legalized extortion, this would be it.  Many of these cases are filed hoping and knowing that a company will quickly settle to avoid the cost.

I am not an attorney and would never offer legal advice.  What I do know, though, is that life at work is complicated and if you don’t believe me, consider the many federal laws with which employers must comply.

I believe the key to all of these laws is understanding the basic concept that you cannot treat one group of people differently from others for reasons like:

• Age
• Physical or mental disability
• Medical condition
• Height/weight
• Marital status
• Sex
• Sexual orientation
• Pregnancy
• Religion
• Race/color
• National origin
• Veteran status
• Language

Please remember that this list is constantly evolving, and your state may have additional protected groups.

Unfortunately, you may be discriminating without even knowing you are doing it.  There are two concepts in this area with which you should be familiar.

Disparate Impact

Disparate impact is the result of policies that appear neutral on their face but have an adverse impact on a protected group.

Disparate Treatment

Disparate Treatment involves treating similarly situated employees differently because of some prohibited factor.  Ever seen Tootsie?

Another thought is to not rely on the concept of “at-will” employment.  Under this theory, employees can be terminated at will.  There are so many exceptions to this concept that it will rarely keep you out of court.

And then there’s arbitration, the advantages of which are many.  This chapter has a detailed section on this topic.

Next: Chapter 9 – How to Train Them 

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 7 – How to Deal with Their Issues

Let’s face it — everyone has issues.  Rarely a day goes by that I don’t spend some time on a problem between an employee and his or her boss, subordinate or peer.  The real trick is understanding which of these is just normal griping and complaining and which is real and requires action.  Unfortunately, there is no real way to know until you investigate further.  As a result, treat every complaint seriously.  While John may be one of those “complainers,” at some point he may actually have a real issue, and if you didn’t take it seriously… well, see Chapter 8 (How to Stay Out of Court).

I would also set up a procedure that allows employees to keep their grievances internal rather than take them to an outside source, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or equivalent state agency.  I would suggest a dispute-resolution process similar to the one included in this chapter of the book.

“Dispute Resolution and Arbitration Policy” includes sections on Application, Purpose, Policy, Definitions, Procedure, Forms and Counsel.

Other Things to Consider

Promote diversity in the workplace and treat everyone equally and with respect.  Will this resolve all of your employee issues?  Of course not, but it will go a long way toward making your employees believe you are fair and that you encourage them to share their issues with you.

So what are the latest and greatest things you should watch out for?

Retaliation

Have you ever played the game of Whack-a-Mole?  Plaintiff attorneys are a bit like this in that as soon as you “whack” them with a defense to one issue, they find another one and up they pop.  Today, that issue is retaliation.  Fighting accusations of retaliation against an employee for sanctions of certain behaviors is difficult because it will often survive a summary judgment motion, which means you will have a jury trial unless you implement an arbitration policy (see Chapter 8).

Sexual Harassment

Today, with proper training and policies, you see much less of this type of case.  Take complaints seriously, as they can proceed to court very quickly and be very expensive.

Wage and Hour

This (along with retaliation) is the latest Whack-a-Mole issue.  While wage and hour laws have been with us since the 1930s, it is only recently that plaintiff attorneys have figured out that these can be great class-action cases.  For example, ever see hourly employees eating lunch at their desks?  If so, you may have a problem.  In some states, they can go back as far as three years for willful violations.

Facebook

Can you decide against hiring someone because of what you see written by or about them on Facebook?  Can you fire someone for what you see?  What if they call you a jerk on Twitter?  Here is the answer: I don’t know…yet.  Here comes another round of Whack-a-Mole.

Religion

This is one of the protected areas of law that require you to accommodate the employee’s needs.  What is a religion?  What about a Wiccan?  Stay tuned.

Disabilities

The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires accommodations for disabilities as long as they don’t cause undue hardship for the organization.

The list of potential issues is endless and will continue to develop over time.  My advice is that, if you are unsure, call your HR consultant or an employment attorney.

Next: Chapter 8 – How to Stay Out of Court 

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 6 — How to Keep Them Safe

Employee safety is one of the most important items that you will have to deal with on a day-to-day basis.  Not only can this be a huge cost item in the form of workers’ compensation, but the morale and health of the workforce is key as well.  In this chapter, we will examine the following items:

Commitment from the top – No safety program will be effective without a commitment from the top of the organization.  Safety is an integral core value, requiring leadership’s full participation, cooperation, and support in making a company safe and secure place to work, visit and live.

What a safety manual should look like – A safety manual is intended to provide everyone in the organization with the information and procedures needed to drive an accident-prevention program.

How to administer the plan with both management and employee responsibilities – Everyone in the company has a role to play in successfully implementing an accident-prevention plan.  If you have any cleaning supplies, chemicals, spray cans or other materials that qualify as hazardous, you must maintain a copy of the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) on file for reference in an emergency and for safety training.

Motivation and counseling – A successful safety program needs two elements with respect to employees.  I refer to these as the carrot and stick.  In reality, safety can be fun.  But the stick has to go along with the carrot because, unfortunately, employees can do very stupid, unsafe acts, and there needs to be consequences for this behavior.

Communication – One of the keys to implementing a safety program is communication.  A method should be in place to communicate both up and down the organization structure. The communication system needs to be readily understandable by all employees.

Hazard identification – Naturally, in order to prevent injuries, you need to identify hazards in the workplace.  This generally involves inspections, which should be done on a regular basis.  Read the Self-Inspection Checklist in this chapter.

Hazard correction and follow up – Identifying hazards is one thing, fixing the problems that exist is another.  Normally, hazards are prioritized by the severity of the issue.  And there should always be a procedure in place to ensure that hazards are eliminated.

Accident investigation – The purpose of accident investigations is to identify the root cause of the accident to prevent recurrence.  Read the recommended Accident Investigation Report in this chapter.

Training – Training is perhaps the most important element of a safety program.  Each employee must receive training relevant to his or her particular job, and records of this training should be kept and distributed for employees to read and sign off on.  Read the recommended Employee Safety Training Record in this chapter.

Employee Safe-Work Practices – Regardless of your industry, there are basic safe work practices that need to be shared with your employees.  Read the recommended General Safety Guidelines in this chapter.

Return-to-Work Programs – Research has shown that employees who are able to return to work even with modified duty are quicker to heal than those who sit at home watching attorney ads on the TV.  Implement the early return-to-work program consistently.  Procedures and time limits should be followed in every lost-time case.

Alcohol and drug policies – Drug testing has proven to be effective in reducing injuries and lowering workers’ compensation claims.  This is particularly true of post-accident drug testing in which you test employees after an accident or incident.  Read an example of a recommended Alcohol and Drug Policy in this chapter.

Keeping your employees safe is not only the right thing to do for the business, it is simply the right thing to do, period.  The area of safety can be very technical and I would always advise getting further advice from your HR or safety professionals.

Next: Chapter 7 – How to Deal with Their Issues

The Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO) team is sharing some hard-won business insights directly from the source.

 ”A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management” is a 266-page guidebook to the intricacies of the world of employment from Jeff Stinson, founder and president of Global Human Resources Outsourcing (GHRO).

Chapter 5: How to Select the Proper Benefits Program

When I sat down to write this chapter, I felt a cold wave of nausea rush over me.  I have been designing benefit plans for companies since 1994, and never have I felt so utterly helpless.  As I started to tear up, I realized that Obamacare is and will continue to be a game-changer.

Regardless of your political point of view, there is no denying that the next five to ten years will be a pivotal time in the design and administration of employee benefit programs, particularly health insurance.

So, rather than assigning blame and living in denial, I decided to approach this subject as objectively as I could.  I hope I have succeeded.

How did we get to this point?

A look at medical inflation over the last ten years says a lot about the current health care crisis.

I am not an accountant nor am I an economist, but common sense tells me that clearly the inflation in this area is unsustainable.  Let’s take a look at the reasons why:

• High consumer utilization – 50 percent of healthcare costs are behavior based.
• Aging population – As we age, we require more and costlier health care.
• High-cost technology – New and better diagnostic, treatment, pharmaceutical, therapeutic, etc. products.
• Unnecessary care – Some authorities contend that insurance fraud alone constitutes a $100 billion-a-year- problem.

So what to do?

At the end of the day, there are still a number of areas you can address to contain costs:

• Employee contribution to the premium cost.
• Raising deductibles.
• Changing the percentage that the company covers.
• Changing co-pays.
• Considering tiering drug plans.
• Moving to a consumerism model.

Decisions about which benefits to include should take into account:

• Your organization’s goals.
• Your organization’s budget.
• The expectations of your organization’s current employees and those it wishes to recruit in the future.

A logical place to begin selecting employee benefits is to establish objectives for the benefits package.

Whatever package you eventually choose needs to include a well thought out communication plan.  Communication is essential so that the benefits can achieve their objective of attracting, motivating and retaining employees.

Next: Chapter 6 – How to Keep Them Safe