Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (H.R. 2831/ S. 1843) is on the fast track with full support of the Obama Administration. LFPA overturns the Supreme Court’s decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. effectively eliminating the 180 or 300-day statute of limitations for filing a wage-related discrimination claim. The Bill allows family members
Human Resources Legal Compliance Checklist for 2009
Human Resource Professionals face a demanding legal compliance year in 2009. The following five items should be added to your “To Do” list for the first quarter of ’09:
ADA Amendments Act Compliance (effective 1/1/2009): The amendments greatly expand the definition of disability refocusing compliance on determining whether the employee is “qualified” and evaluating reasonable
Why not Educate Employees on the Significance of Union Authorization Cards?
There is an elephant in the room. Should we talk about it or ignore it and hope it goes away?
Many employers utilize this approach when the rumblings of a union organizing campaign are heard. When EFCA becomes law, by the time the rumblings are heard, it may be too late to educate your workforce on the
Department of Labor Issues FMLA posters and Forms
The DOL issued a revised Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) poster, reflecting the recently published final rule which is now available for viewing and downloading. Every employer covered by the FMLA is required to post and keep posted on its premises, in conspicuous places where employees are employed, a notice explaining the Act’s
Employee Engagement Surveys may be Critical to Combating Union Organizing Efforts
The Employee Free Choice Act stands to shortcut the process for certifying a union depriving an employer of its chance to conduct a campaign to educate its workforce on the downside of unionization, squelch union promises, and redress employee perceptions. The employer’s campaign occurs between the filing of a union petition and the schedule NLRB-supervised secret ballot election – a period of 30 to 45 days.
Elimination of the secret ballot and allowing union certification upon a card showing of greater that 50% will force employers to conduct employee education and assess vulnerabilities in advance of union organizing actions. Some businesses mistakenly believe that employee interest in unions revolves around promises of higher pay and better benefits. Quite to the contrary, most studies on employee motivation for union membership conclude that non-economic concerns are the chief motivators for union membership. Most workers think that unions can get them "a greater say in the workplace." The attitude translates to issues like job security, effectiveness of supervisors, and involvement in workplace decisions. Unionization is not all about the money; it is about workers being "engaged." Disengagement can mean unionization.
Employee Surveys are one of the better ways to conduct systematic and regular assessment of employee attitudes about a whole host of important workplace matters. Business may be skeptical about the benefits of Employee Surveys and what they can find out about a workplace. Today’s Employee Survey are customized to the employer. They can assess an employee’s attitudes on various subjects and correlate data by department. business location, etc. Often the survey can identify an issue or supervisory relationship that needs management attention. Survey results can also be benchmarked with comparable businesses.
Designing an effective survey requires collaboration with an expert to tailor the survey to the business and assistance in interpreting the survey data. Success Performance Solutions designs, conducts and evaluates employee surveys for companies in a wide variety of industries. I asked Dr. Ira S. Wolfe, for his thoughts on the EFCA and employee surveys. His comments are as follows:
At this point it is important to differentiate between employee satisfaction surveys and engagement surveys. The terms “employee engagement” and “employee satisfaction” means different things to different people. In its simplest form, satisfaction means employers are not doing anything to anger employees. That’s good information to know but not nearly enough to retain employees, no less head off any attempt to unionize employees.
Employee engagement, on the other hand, is a complex equation that reflects each individual’s unique, personal relationship with work. BlessingWhite, in its 2008 State of Employee Engagement study, describes the engaged employee as not just committed, not just passionate or proud, but having a line-of-sight on their own future AND on the organization’s mission and goals. “They are ‘enthused’ and ‘in gear’ using their talents and discretionary effort to make a difference in their employer’s quest for sustainable business success (The State of Employee Engagement 2008, p.1).
Unfortunately for North American employees, fewer than 1 in 3 employees (29%) are fully engaged. Nineteen percent are actually disengaged. Many managers think “yea, yea, yea. What’s the big deal?”Continue Reading Employee Engagement Surveys may be Critical to Combating Union Organizing Efforts
Separation Agreements: Benchmarking Severance Pay Amounts
Reductions in Force, Layoffs, Downsizing, Rightsizing or whatever you may call it is occurring with greater frequency as the economic conditions continue to deteriorate. The business objects are reducing costs, preserving talent, treating separated employee with compassion and avoiding litigation. The compassion and litigation avoidance may go hand in glove.
The most prevalent litigation avoidance strategy
ADA Amendments Act Webinar: December 4, 2008
Congress recently passed legislation amending the Americans with Disabilities Act, which will greatly expand the coverage of the Act. On Thursday December 4, 2008, McNees Wallace & Nurick will host a 45 minute webinar to discuss these new changes to the ADA and what employers should know before the amendments take effect on January
Another Headache for HR in 2009: Twenty-Seven Bi-Weekly Paydays
As if HR didn’t have enough on its plate with E-Verify compliance, new FMLA regs, and EFCA planning, next year is one of those strange years with 27 bi-weekly paydays instead of 26. Bi-weekly pay programs pay employees in 14-day increments resulting in a 364 day annual pay cycle. Since there are either
Avoid Wage & Hour Problems from Year End Bonus Payments to Hourly Employees
Many employers traditionally provide year end bonuses and holiday gifts for their employees. Bonuses may be included in a nonexempt employee’s regular rate depending upon the manner in which the bonus is calculated and the company’s prior communication. Inclusion in the regular rate impacts overtime calculations and payments.
Bonuses paid to nonexempt employees are included in the
Nuts and Bolts of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) and RESPECT
Basic Provisions: EFCA amends the NLRA to change the procedures for union certification and first contract negotiation. The primary components of the act are as follows:
- Allows NLRB certification of a relevant bargaining unit upon authorization card showing from 50% plus one of employees bypassing the NLRB-supervised secret ballot election.
- Mandates initial collective bargaining contract be