Filed under: Human Resources, Notes from Holly | Tags: Dave Ramsey, Financial Peace
The Financial Burdens Your Employees Face Do Affect Your Business
By Holly McLeod, PHR
“Sixty percent of employees lack adequate cash reserves to live longer than two months if they were to lose their job.”
(Overextended. A Special Report on the Business Cost of Financial Stress, Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace Workplace Edition)
“Almost three out of five new middle-class retirees will outlive their financial assets if they keep up their pre-retirement ways of living.”
(Ernst & Young, LLP study on behalf of Americans for Secure Retirement)
“Thirty million workers in America – one in four – are seriously financially distressed and dissatisfied with their personal financial situations.”
(Financial Distress Among American Workers, by E. Thomas Garman)
The statics are overwhelming: The majority of the American workforce is in serious financial trouble. To make these statistics scarier, they were compiled prior to the financial crisis that started in late 2008. Imagine how many more of us are deeply concerned with our personal financial duress than we were prior to this time!
Even the Federal Reserve Bank spoke up. In a publication developed jointly by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, the Banks state that “Employers benefit from a financially educated workforce in several ways.” That same publication suggests that a well-executed workplace financial education program is likely to:
• Reduce absenteeism
• Moderate turnover rates
• Decrease direct employer costs related to wage garnishments, bankruptcies, payroll deductions for child support and alimony, and administrative costs for borrowing against retirement plans
• Increase employee productivity
• Increase contributions to the company 401(k) program
• Increase employees’ allegiance to their company
• Reduce the incidence of employee theft
As part of Landrum’s STEP education program employees are surveyed on which topics of education would they most like to see offered. In 2008, an overwhelming majority of responses were geared toward personal financial management. The employees’ interest, combined with troubling statistics and the company’s desire to help its employees, drove Landrum’s STEP Committee to seek the financial education program that would be most fulfilling and beneficial. And find it, they did.
Financial Peace University, Workplace Edition, is a 13-week program on personal finances developed and trained by radio and television personality Dave Ramsey, via DVD. After reviewing several options, Financial Peace University (FPU) was determined to be the most comprehensive program we could offer.
Through FPU education, employees learn many invaluable lessons on:
• The 7 Baby Steps to Financial Freedom
• The importance of saving
• How we relate with money
• Cash flow planning (including valuable budget worksheets)
• Breaking the chains of debt
• Understanding credit bureaus and collection practices
• The power of marketing on buying decisions
• The role of insurance
• How to make smart purchases
• Understanding investments
• Planning for retirement and college
• Working in your strengths
• Real estate and mortgages
• The power of giving
Landrum’s Senior Leadership Team generously agreed not only to offer this valuable program, but decided that the company would help out as much as possible for each employee, since there is a cost associated with purchasing the package of materials that accompanies the classes. Landrum agreed to pay half of the cost for each participating employee, and also to reimburse the other half to each employee who met an attendance requirement of 11 out of 13 classes. In other words, the class would be free for anyone who made the commitment to attend most of the classes. In addition, the company allowed the program to be held during work time, with the employees using one hour of their own each week and the company paying for the other hour of each two-hour class.
Amazingly, 70% of our employees signed up for the classes. There has been tremendous positive feedback from the employees, and each week during class employees happily shared personal victories and successes. This class is not about debt management, but about debt elimination. The facilitator of this program, an employee who had previously completed FPU, stated that she saw employees amazed at having money left at the end of the month for the first time in their working life. Other employees have expressed seeing a “light at the end of the tunnel” that wasn’t there before this class was offered. Still others have expressed having control over their finances and communicating with their spouses in a positive manner about finances. And now, two years later, we’re still getting proud comments from employees who have made their last car payment, or paid off the last credit card they will ever have.
This has truly been a rewarding experience for all participating employees, and we believe this program has allowed employees to have a much-needed sense of control over their finances. As statistics show, this not only benefits our employees, but our company as well.
Holly McLeod is a Human Resources Manager for Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 15 years of human resources consulting in the corporate world, healthcare and manufacturing environments
November 22, 2010
Mayberry Monday – “The Bed Jacket”
By Holly McLeod, PHR
There are many facets to Andy Griffith. He is a great friend, an understanding and patient boss, a talented musician, a loving father, a practical joker at times, and a trusted leader in Mayberry. He is also fiercely devoted to his family.
Andy and his son Opie were fishing one morning, and Andy was catching fish after fish after fish. Opie commented on how many fish they were catching, and Andy replied that Eagle Eye Annie was doing herself proud that day. Eagle Eye Annie was the name of Andy’s fishing pole, and Andy and Opie spoke of “her” as if she was a dear and precious to friend.
Mayor Stoner walked up to their fishing spot on his way home, tired and frustrated because he had not been able to catch any fish. If you’ve read other Mayberry Mondays, you may recall that Stoner is the mayor I don’t like because of his obvious disdain for Andy and all things fun.
Stoner commented that it was a waste of time because the fish weren’t biting. As he was saying this, Andy cast his line into the water and almost immediately gets a bite. Opie said, “Ol’ Eagle Eye Annie did it again.” Stoner looked in Andy’s basket and saw all the fish. “You got all those today?” he asked. Opie told the mayor that they could catch even more with Eagle Eye Annie. After the mayor asked who he was talking about, Andy explained that Eagle Eye Annie was his fishing rod.
Being duly impressed with Andy’s results with Eagle Eye Annie, Stoner promptly tried to buy the rod for $20.00. Andy declined the offer. Stoner then offered $25.00, to which Andy also politely declined. Stoner walked off, only to return a few moments later with a final offer of $27.50. Naturally, Andy turned it down.
As Andy and Opie left the fishing spot they began talking about plans for Aunt Bee’s birthday, which was coming up the very next day. When they got home they carefully hung their fishing rods on their proper places of honor on the wall, and Aunt Bee came in and asked to ride to town with Andy and Opie. Knowing that Andy would be shopping for her birthday gift, Aunt Bee told Andy she would be upset if he did anything foolish about her birthday. She wanted him to be sensible.
When they got to town, Andy and Opie went off to do their shopping and Aunt Bee started window shopping. For those of you who may not be familiar with the term, window shopping is when you “shop” by looking in the storefront windows instead of actually entering the stores. I have pleasant memories of window shopping with my mother when I was a little girl, going from storefront to storefront looking inside the shops as we used to walk along the sidewalks of my hometown.
When Aunt Bee was window shopping, she had only gotten to the second store before she saw something that caught her eye; a beautiful, white bed jacket hanging in the window. Modern-day bed jackets look like simple short jackets worn over pajamas; or, as a colleague pointed out, “kind of the female version of a smoking jacket for guys.” In the 1960’s, however, bed jackets were apparently very fancy.
Aunt Bee looked at the bed jacket longingly, and headed off down the sidewalk. She didn’t get far, though, before she turned around to look at it again. She decided to enter the shop – Lucken’s Style Shop – and Mrs. Luckens took the bed jacket down and held it up to Aunt Bee. Aunt Bee gave a look that indicated she knew the jacket was much too extravagant, then returned the jacket back to Mrs. Luckens and left the shop.
While this was going on, Andy and Opie were at another store – a practical store. Opie picked out salt and paper shakers for Aunt Bee’s present, and Andy decided on two dozen preserving jars. What woman wouldn’t want two dozen preserving jars, right? Oh well, at least Andy’s heart was in the right place.
When Andy met back up with Aunt Bee, it was right in front of Mrs. Luckens’ store. Aunt Bee did her very best to hint to Andy about the bed jacket, but Andy didn’t catch the hints. Instead, he left to go finish some paperwork he was preparing for Mayor Stoner. As the mayor was leaving the office after looking over and complaining about Andy’s paperwork, he asked Andy to do him a favor and return the guest towels he had bought his wife, in exchange for the bed jacket hanging in the window. Andy went to do this favor and as you might guess, Aunt Bee was across the street and saw the exchange. Naturally, she thought he was buying the jacket for her birthday since she had practically drooled over it in front of him that very morning.
The next day was the big day. Aunt Bee opened Opie’s salt and pepper shakers, then with very shaky hands tried to unwrap Andy’s gift. When she opened the box and saw the preserving jars, the disappointment in her face was obvious. She was so disappointed that she fled the room to avoid crying in front of Andy and Opie.
Andy was perplexed at Aunt Bee’s behavior until Aunt Bee’s friend Clara rang the doorbell. Clara had been with Bee when they watched Andy purchase the bed jacket, so she stopped by to see it on her friend. Knowing now how much the bed jacket meant to Aunt Bee, Andy knew what he had to do. He raced to the store to purchase the jacket, only to find out the one the mayor bought had been the only one in stock. Andy then went to the mayor’s house to try to purchase the jacket from him.
Mayor Stoner knew he had something that Andy wanted, and he also knew that Andy had something he wanted; Eagle Eye Annie. Stoner told Andy that they might be able to make a mutual deal – “I’ll sell something to you, and you sell something to me.”
Back at the house, Andy came in with a brand new wrapped box that he gave to Aunt Bee. She opened the gift and found the bed jacket she had so badly wanted. As she was gushing about the jacket and calling Clara to share the news, Opie came in the room and went to get the fishing rods off of the wall. After he hopped up in a chair to reach them, he realized that Eagle Eye Annie was missing.
Andy went over to Opie and whispered that he had sold the rod to the mayor. Opie couldn’t believe it. “You sold it? But you said you’d never sell it.” he said. Andy quietly explained to Opie, “I said I kept 
it ‘cause it gave me so much enjoyment, and that I wouldn’t sell it for money. And I didn’t sell it for money. I just kinda swapped it for a different kind of enjoyment. So, Eagle Eye Annie’s doing just what she did before. Even right now she’s giving me pleasure… real heart-warming pleasure.”
As we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, I hope you’ll take time to give thanks for all of the people who make life worth living. Be thankful for your family, your friends, your colleagues, your employees, and your neighbors. Give special thanks for those whom you would gladly give up your own Eagle Eye Annie in order to make happy. Those are the ones we should cherish.
Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope to see all of you in Mayberry again next week. Stay tuned…
Holly McLeod is a Human Resources Manager for Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 15 years of human resources consulting in the corporate world, healthcare and manufacturing environments
Filed under: Human Resources, Mayberry, Notes from Holly | Tags: "human resources consulting", conflict resolution, employees, Human Resources, Mayberry
November 15, 2010
Mayberry Monday – “Andy the Marriage Counselor”
By Holly McLeod, PHR
Last week I wrote about a bitter feud between two Mayberry families that had been going on for 87 years. Sheriff Andy Taylor, as always, found a way to get through to the two stubborn patriarchs so that they would allow their respective young’uns to get married and live happily ever after. Andy always had a knack for getting others to do what they should, even if it’s not what they originally wanted. This week in Mayberry is no different.
Relatively new to Mayberry, Fred and Jennie Boone had made friends with many of the townspeople. The problem was that they couldn’t stand each other. Andy and Deputy Barney Fife had been forced to visit the Boones’ a few times for disturbing the peace, and this time the yelling and screaming could be heard long before they approached the home. They entered the house and had to duck low to avoid the plates and saucers being thrown across the room by Mrs. Boone.
As soon as the Boones realized they had company, both Fred and Jennie immediately changed their disposition with a friendly “Hello, Andy!” Andy told them he wanted them to quit arguing, but after a biting comment from each of them toward the other one, they were at it again – with Andy in between. Andy had had enough. He told them that the next time this happened he was going to arrest them.
The next day Barney brought the Boones to the jail while both were still loudly arguing with each other. He had heard them while on patrol first thing that morning and asked them, “Don’t you even stop for breakfast?” He told Andy to “throw the book at ‘em.” “It wouldn’t do any good,” Andy replied, “Jennie would just pick it up and throw it at Fred.”
Andy told the Boones that ever since they moved to town that they got along with everybody else just fine, they just couldn’t get along with one another. He asked them what started their fight that morning. Fred said it was at breakfast – if you could call it that. Jennie said that Fred had thrown his plate of food on the floor. Fred replied, “Food? That slop wasn’t fit for the hogs.” Jennie said, “Oh, it was fit for the hogs. That’s why I give it to you!” They both start yelling all over again.
Andy realized the problem; the Boones were in the habit of arguing with each other. It came naturally to them because that’s how they had learned to communicate with each other. He decided to try an experiment, and he had the Boones sit across from each other and practice talking civilly. They weren’t very successful in thinking up something nice to say, so Andy coached them. He told Fred to say to Jennie, “Mornin’, Honey.” He then told Jennie to say to Fred, “Mornin’, Dear.” They uncomfortably practiced this a few times until Barney said, “I’d rather be called Skunk Face than Honey like that.” Andy told the Boones that is wasn’t bad for starters, but that he wanted them back in the court house to practice every morning for 15 minutes. They protested, but he said it was either that or jail. As the Boones were leaving, Andy still had them practicing… “Mornin’, Dear.” “Mornin’, Honey.”
The Boones were faithful to their early morning lessons, and eventually got to the point where it wasn’t so painful to be nice to each other. Their whole demeanor had changed. No longer did they yell, scream, nag, holler and throw things; now they were actually polite to each other. Unfortunately, their previous friendliness toward the townspeople began to sour.
They snapped at Barney as they left the court house; Fred snapped at his friends at a card game; Jennie snapped at Aunt Bee. Andy realized that the Boones were fine around each other, but thought that maybe they could only be happy when they’re picking at each other, and that perhaps that’s the way they showed their love for one another. Weird, I know, but it was in the script.
A gentleman showed up at Andy’s house with a bloody nose and said that Fred had punched him while they were playing cards. He told Andy he had gotten out just in time to dodge a pitcher of water. Just then another gentleman came in holding his head, saying, “I got the pitcher of water.” That’s all Andy needed to hear. He made a decision then headed to the Boones’.
When he got to their house, it was very peaceful from the outside. Both Fred and Jennie were unfriendly to Andy (while being syrupy sweet to each other). Andy told the Boones they had done so well in their lessons that he wanted to have a graduation ceremony. He poured cider and then made a toast; “We’re gathered here this evening to mark the beginnings of a new life. A life of peace and quiet and getting along, the beauty and joy of which you now know and I’m sure ain’t ever gonna forget. To you, Jennie, who made all this possible when you stopped needling and riding and railing and harassing and nagging poor Fred. And to you, Fred, who made all this happy life possible when you stopped coming home all mean and nasty and ornery. To whoever was the worst.”
You can imagine that this set off all sorts of accusations between Fred and Jennie, and within minutes they were back to the yelling, screaming and name-calling. But this is what Andy had wanted. I guess he thought that the two of them fighting each other was better than both of them fighting the rest of the town. Too bad, though, because his plan would have worked if the Boones hadn’t displaced their angry habits toward other targets.
As stated last week, helping others resolve a conflict is seldom easy; however, it can be successfully achieved. The key is to keep pointing the parties toward the desired goal. Andy did this to begin with, but instead of then helping the Boones stop displaying anger altogether, he gave up and led them back toward their old ways of arguing with each other. In effect, he chose the lesser of two evils.
It doesn’t have to be that way. It is possible to resolve conflict in a very short period of time. In some situations, however, it requires a lot of dedication, effort and time. I don’t think Andy should have given up so easily on the Boones. But then again, he did all he could do within a 30-minute episode. I choose to believe that Andy would have persevered and eventually gotten the Boones to be nice to their fellow Mayberrians as well as to each other, had he been given an extended 1-hour episode to do it in.
See you next week. Stay tuned…
Holly McLeod is a Human Resources Manager for Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 15 years of human resources consulting in the corporate world, healthcare and manufacturing environments
Filed under: Human Resources, Notes from Jim | Tags: "Business Etiquette", "workplace etiquette", Communication, employees, Human Resources, PEO, Trust
Cursing in the Workplace – Is it Legal?
By Jim Guttmann, SPHR
Although many people may be thoroughly upset with the use of profanity and rude behavior in the workplace, there are no employment laws that require people to be respectful and polite to each other. Contrary to popular belief, anti-discrimination statutes governing hostile work environment are not general civility codes. The law governs what constitutes illegal activity or behavior; it does not dictate what is appropriate or professional in the workplace.
Believe it or not, in certain situations and industries some view cursing as a positive thing. These individuals believe that cursing by supervisors or employees shows that they are passionate about their work or that the use of foul language adds needed emphasis and motivation to others. When this occurs, these individuals may be viewed as “equal opportunity harassers”. In other words, others may be told to learn to deal with a person as having a “potty mouth” around everyone.
So, should we conclude that there is nothing wrong with cursing? Not so fast! If it is viewed that the cursing is specifically directed toward an individual or group of individuals by virtue of their gender, age, race, national origin, religion, disability status or veteran status, it could be perceived as discrimination or harassment and represent the start of an illegal hostile work environment. Therefore, it’s a definite problem if a clear connection can be made between hostile language and the perceived motives of a harasser against a category of person(s) that are protected by law.
As an employer, would you want to take the chance of prevailing in court based on an “equal opportunity harasser” defense? This argument takes the position that since everyone is treated in an equally reprehensible manner without regard to any protected characteristics, no discrimination is occurring. There is no litmus test to go by, so a company culture in which inappropriate language such as unwanted, deliberate, repeated, unsolicited profanity, cussing, swearing, vulgar, insulting, abusive or crude language is the norm may place the employer at considerable risk.
Beyond the potential legal risks, I believe it is unwise for a business to disregard the impact that cursing may have on lost work time, decreased work effort, employee turnover and potential violence. Very often, a verbal attack sparks a physical response when the insults involve profanity. According to James V. O’Connor, President of the Cuss Control Academy in Northbrook, Illinois (yes, it really does exist), “Chronic cursers tend to be complainers, and their bad attitude can be infectious. It damages morale, teamwork and productivity.” Mr. Connor adds that “A manager with a foul mouth intimidates employees rather than inspires them. He or she also sets a bad example and jeopardizes the respect and admiration he needs for a loyal work force. His behavior shows a lack of character and emotional control, qualities employees expect from an employer”.
To borrow and shamelessly embellish upon a line from Shakespeare: To curse or not to curse; that is the question. What is your answer?
Jim Guttmann, SPHR
Filed under: Human Resources, Mayberry | Tags: "human resources consulting", Communication, conflict resolution, employees, Human Resources, Mayberry, PEO
November 8, 2010
Mayberry Monday – “A Feud Is A Feud”
By Holly McLeod, PHR
A young couple rang the doorbell in the wee hours of the morning. Inside the house, Aunt Bee is busy putting a striped nightshirt and cap over the pajamas of her nephew, Sheriff and Justice of the Peace, Andy Taylor. Andy’s young son Opie asked why Andy had to wear the gown and cap and Aunt Bee explained, “When people come to the Justice of the Peace in the middle of the night to get married, they expect him to look like this. It makes for good talking afterwards.”
The young couple was Josh and Hannah. As soon as Andy started the ceremony, a man came running in the house wielding a shotgun. Just as Andy was stating he somehow got the impression that the man didn’t want the two young people getting married, another gun-toting man came running in as well. Andy had only glanced at the marriage license, but quickly realized these two men were Mr. Wakefield and Mr. Carter, whose families had been carrying on a feud for four generations. 87 years, to be exact.
Andy said he didn’t want any feuding going on, and the two uninvited guests grabbed their respective offspring and left the house. The next morning Andy was met with a cool reception by Aunt Bee and Opie, who thought he should have married Josh and Hannah. Opie said, “You let them scare you, Paw. If they wanted hitching, it was up to you to hitch ‘em. Why didn’t you hitch ‘em, Paw?”
Andy told Opie he had wondered what would happen after the hitching, and explained that this wasn’t the first time “despising families had their young’uns take to one another.” He then told Opie the story of Romeo and Juliet. Now I must say if you haven’t heard Andy Griffith recite the story of Romeo and Juliet, you’ve missed a treat. In the story Andy explains a soliloquy as “when you kinda look way off and talk to yourself,” saying, “They did that a whole lot back then. You do it today, and somebody’ll take you away.” Andy explained to Opie that before he married Josh and Hannah, he wanted to make sure everything was OK between the two families. He then set out to try to end the feud.
Andy first went to see Mr. Wakefield. As he drove up to the house he heard gunshots. He went to the front porch of the house and saw Mr. Wakefield sitting in a rocking chair, periodically raising his gun and shooting off into the distance. “Are you doing feudin’ shootin’ or huntin’ shootin’,” Andy asked. “Feudin’ shootin’,” Mr. Wakefield replied. Andy told Mr. Wakefield that he must have a pair of mighty sharp eyes, because he didn’t see any Carters. “You don’t?” Mr. Wakefield replied, “I was afraid of that.”
Andy tried to discover the reason for the 87-year-old feud, but realized he wasn’t going to get the answer from Mr. Wakefield. The reason for this is because Mr. Wakefield didn’t know the reason for the feud. Nor had his Daddy, nor had his Daddy’s Daddy. Andy told Mr. Wakefield that if he was going to take a shot at a fellow, it would pass his mind to ask what for! Mr. Wakefield said, “I’ll be danged if I know where you young folks get all them new-fangled ideas.”
Andy next went to see Mr. Carter, hoping Mr. Carter could shed some light on the initial reason for their long-standing feud. Here’s their conversation:
Mr. Carter: “Reason? Of course I know the reason I’m shooting at him – ‘cause he’s a
Wakefield.”
Andy: “What does that mean to you?”
Mr. Carter: “It means I gotta shoot at him.”
Andy: “Why do you have to shoot at him?”
Mr. Carter: “’Cause he’s a Wakefield.”
Andy: “Why do you have to shoot at the Wakefields?”
Mr. Carter: “’Cause we’re feuding.”
Andy: “Why are you feuding?”
Mr. Carter: “’Cause he’s a Wakefield.”
Andy: “I don’t believe you’re understanding me. Let’s start all over again… I
wanna know why you’re feuding with the Wakefields.”
Mr. Carter: “Oooohhhh! “Cause we’re shooting at each other.”
Andy: “Why are you shooting at each other?”
Mr. Carter: “’Cause he’s a Wakefield.”
Have you ever been in a situation where you’re trying to get to the bottom of a workplace conflict, and you felt just as confused and frustrated as Andy must have felt? Trying to resolve employee conflict is seldom easy, but sometimes can be downright difficult. Andy was showing great patience in speaking with Mr. Carter, but still didn’t get his questions answered. Sometimes employees will provide meaningful and useful explanations, and sometimes they may provide answers that make sense only to them.
It’s important to keep your patience in tact when you find yourself in a potentially frustrating situation like Andy did. Keep in mind that the end goal is to get the two “feuding” parties to a place where they can cohesively work together. Try to get each of them to collaborate with the other party and come to an agreement on moving forward. Employees don’t have to like each other, but they must be able to work together in a mature, professional and respectful manner.
The Wakefields and Carters didn’t work with each other, but they certainly had a common interest; their children. In the end, Andy was able to find a way to end the feud and bring the two families together so that Josh and Hannah could get married and raise the next generation of Wakefields and Carters. Wouldn’t it be nice if your feuding employees would put aside their differences and work toward your common goal? They can with your guidance, patience and help. The Wakefields and Carters of the world need you. And as much as you might like to think otherwise, you probably need them.
See you next week. Stay tuned…
Holly McLeod is a Human Resources Manager for Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 15 years of human resources consulting in the corporate world, healthcare and manufacturing environments
Filed under: Human Resources | Tags: "human resources consulting", Department of Labor, employees, Human Resources, PEO
Department of Labor’s New Strategy
By: Yvonne Nellums, PHR
By the numbers….
This year the Department of Labor (DOL) hired 200 new enforcement officers to investigate employers for DOL violations. Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, has made clear that her agency is an enforcement agency and that “there is a new sheriff in town.” Already, 1000 audit letters have been sent to employers to be investigated by the agency. The Department’s budget was increased by $25 million just for enforcement efforts. In addition, 100 new agents were assigned to review misclassification of independent contractors and employee exemption classifications under the Fair Labor Standards Act. To assist with these investigations, 50 new attorneys have been hired by the agency.
Plan/Prevent/Protect
In April 2010, Secretary Solis introduced the Department of Labor’s new regulatory agenda entitled, “Plan/Prevent/Protect”: The Beginning of a Broader Regulatory and Enforcement Strategy. Below is the information regarding this initiative as it appears on the Department of Labor’s website:
Leveraging Limited Resources to Increase Compliance: “Plan/Prevent/Protect”
Employers and others must “find and fix” violations — that is, assure compliance — before a Labor Department investigator arrives at the workplace. Employers and others in the Department’s regulated communities must understand that the burden is on them to obey the law, not on the Labor Department to catch them violating the law. This is the heart of the Labor Department’s new strategy.
We are going to replace “catch me if you can” with “Plan/Prevent/Protect.”
In various ways, employers and other regulated entities will be asked to assemble plans, create processes, and designate people charged with achieving compliance. They will be required to implement these plans and evaluate their effectiveness in achieving compliance. While the Labor Department can be flexible about which path is chosen to achieve compliance, compliance will be non-negotiable under the “Plan/Prevent/Protect” system.
“Plan/Prevent/Protect” marks an expansion of these kinds of requirements to more worker protection efforts in the Labor Department. In this Regulatory Agenda, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), MSHA, OFCCP, and the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) will propose regulatory actions that require employers and others to develop programs to address certain employment law compliance issues within each agency’s portfolio. Although the specifics will vary by law, industry and regulated enterprise, this “Plan/Prevent/Protect” strategy will require all regulated entities to take three steps to ensure safe and secure workplaces and compliance with the law:
• “Plan”: The Department will propose a requirement that employers and other regulated entities create a plan for identifying and remediating risks of legal violations and other risks to workers — for example, a plan to search their workplaces for safety hazards that might injure or kill workers. The employer or other regulated entity would provide their employees with opportunities to participate in the creation of the plans. In addition, the plans would be made available to workers so they can fully understand them and help to monitor their implementation.
• “Prevent”: The Department will propose a requirement that employers and other regulated entities thoroughly and completely implement the plan in a manner that prevents legal violations. The plan cannot be a mere paper process. The employer or other regulated entity cannot draft a plan and then put it on a shelf. The plan must be fully implemented for the employer to comply with the “Plan/Prevent/Protect” compliance strategy.
• “Protect”: The Department will propose a requirement that the employer or other regulated entity ensures that the plan’s objectives are met on a regular basis. Just any plan will not do. The plan must actually protect workers from violations of their workplace rights.
Employers and other regulated entities who fail to take these steps to address comprehensively the risks, hazards, and inequities in their workplaces will be considered out of compliance with the law and, depending upon the agency and the substantive law it is enforcing, subject to remedial action. But employers, unions, and others who follow the Department’s “Plan/Prevent/Protect” strategy will assure compliance with employment laws before Labor Department enforcement personnel arrive at their doorsteps. Most important, they will assure that workers get the safe, healthy, diverse, family-friendly, and fair workplaces they deserve.
Please do not hesitate to call your Landrum HR manager to discuss any concerns you may have regarding compliance issues.
Yvonne Nellums, PHR
Yvonne C. Nellums is Director of Human Resources for Landrum Professional Employer Services. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 30 years of human resources experience in the corporate world, manufacturing environments, and the offshore industry.
Filed under: Human Resources, Outsourcing | Tags: "human resources consulting", employees, Human Resources, outsourcing, PEO
November 2, 2010
Outsourcing: It’s Not Just for Breakfast Anymore
By Jerold Hall, Director of Business Development
Landrum Professional Employer Services
When you hear the term “outsourcing,” one or two ideas are likely to come to mind. The most common and often negative image conjured up is of a very large firm cutting out entire department(s) and sending their jobs elsewhere. And to a small business owner it usually means engaging a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) or co-employment solution to outsource HR, Risk Management, Benefits and Payroll—administrative functions that allow the owner to focus on their core business.
Nearly three-million employees comprising over $68B in payroll are co-employed nationwide, and not just from small businesses anymore. A growing trend is that county administrators, school districts and other local government agencies are finding that “leased” or co-employed arrangements allow them to keep their current workforce in tact, offer them extremely competitive benefits and most importantly, cut or meet their budget requirements without sacrificing services to their customers.
Recently the Mackinac Center for Public Policy published a study on Michigan public school’s outsourcing of non-instructional services and the savings that were realized from these decisions. Rather than simply privatize these functions, which often concedes control of quality and employee selection, many schools chose to keep their staff in tact and realize cost savings by utilizing a PEO. By outsourcing and replacing the pension requirements with competitive 401k contributions, the district realized a savings of nearly 10%.
Outsourcing may not be the right answer for every company, district or department, but it is certainly worth a review to see if it is a good fit for your organization.
As Director of Business Development for Landrum Professional Employer Services, Jerold manages a staff of six business development managers. Jerold has 18 years of experience in business development, sales training and sales management, with such firms as Southern Company and IBM. Jerold majored in marketing at the University of West Florida and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.
Jerold is actively involved in the Suburban West Rotary Club, serving as President in 2007-08. He is a former Rotarian of the Year and has received two Paul Harris Fellows. Jerold is an accomplished author, with more than 70 articles and two books, Selling in the New World of Business and Sportsman’s Best: Offshore Fishing to his credit. He is an avid offshore tournament fisherman and serves as a field editor for Florida Sportsman magazine. Jerold, his wife Becky and their children Abby and Zach reside in Pensacola.
Filed under: Mayberry | Tags: Communication, employees, Human Resources, Mayberry
November 1, 2010
Mayberry Monday – “Call the Man!”
By Holly McLeod, PHR
It doesn’t happen often, but I must admit there are times when Aunt Bee truly grates on my nerves. One of the most exasperating experiences I’ve had watching The Andy Griffith Show is in the episode “Bargain Day.” In this episode, Aunt Bee won’t listen to Andy and do as she is told. Rather, she insists on doing things her own way, which ends up being a big waste of time and effort. If she would simply listen to Andy, life would be much less stressful; but alas, it was not to be.
It was a hot, sticky summer morning and Andy came into the kitchen saying it was going to be another hot day. Andy’s son Opie walked in wearing some very squeaky shoes that were a half-inch too long. Aunt Bee explained she had gotten them for $4.89 (instead of the usual $6.50) from an outlet store in Mt. Pilot that sold discontinued models. Aunt Bee wasn’t worried about the shoes being too big for Opie; she had saved $1.61.
When Opie asked his Paw to pass the sugar, Andy saw that the sugar bowl was empty. Aunt Bee got up to refill the bowl and came back to the table with a huge sack. The sack was so large, in fact, that she had trouble controlling the sugar pouring out of it and sugar poured over the edges of the bowl and onto the table. Aunt Bee explained that buying such a large sack was “more economical.”
Andy told Aunt Bee that “a bargain’s not always a bargain,” and the discussion led to the old freezer on the back porch. Aunt Bee was adamant that in purchasing that freezer she got the biggest bargain in the whole auction. But Andy said the only thing that’s been kept in the freezer was a dead mouse – and he climbed in there to get warm.
Aunt Bee was in town shopping later that day and ran in to her well-meaning friend, Clara Edwards. Clara told her about a new butcher in town who was selling beef for ten cents cheaper per pound than Foley’s Market. The only catch was that you had to buy a whole side of beef. Knowing she had the freezer just waiting to be used, Aunt Bee couldn’t resist such a bargain and she loaded up the old freezer with 150 pounds of beef.
Normally, one would think a person would confirm their freezer was actually working prior to purchasing and loading 150 pounds of meat inside. But Aunt Bee wasn’t normal… No, she stocked the freezer full before plugging it in. Fortunately it did come to life, but was violently shaking and rattling. She withheld a pot roast for supper, hoping to surprise Andy with her purchase.
When Andy got home that evening, Aunt Bee proudly served her roast and eagerly watched as Andy took his first bite. He put the bite in his mouth, frowned a little, then started talking to Opie about having seen one of his friends that day. Aunt Bee told him he hadn’t said anything about the roast, and Andy said, “I wasn’t going to, but it is a little tough, isn’t it? Foley really let you down this time. You should speak to him.”
Aunt Bee was crushed. She quickly rose from the table and went into the kitchen. Andy followed her to see what was wrong, and the lights started going on and off. Opie then ran into the kitchen saying the television was going crazy and the picture was crooked. The lights flickered once more, and Andy heard squeaking coming from the back porch. He went out to the porch and was surprised to see the freezer plugged in and running. He tried to open the freezer to look inside, but Aunt Bee quickly shut the lid and wouldn’t let him look. Andy asked what was in the freezer and Aunt Bee had no choice but to admit to her purchase – “150 pounds of beef. 150 pounds of tough beef!”
When Aunt Bee was explaining that she had bought the beef from the new butcher, the freezer suddenly stopped. Then it started. Then it stopped again. Andy told Aunt Bee she needed to call the man from Mt. Pilot to come fix the freezer. Aunt Bee said that man charged a fortune to look at the refrigerator — $7.00 just to replace a fuse. Andy was tired of Aunt Bee’s “bargains.”
Andy: “Call the man.”
Aunt Bee: “Can’t we call somebody around here?”
Andy: “No, there’s nobody around here.”
Aunt Bee: “Somebody who wouldn’t rob us like that man from Mt. Pilot?”
Andy: “There are no freezer mechanics around here. Now, call the man.”
Aunt Bee: “How about Fred, who works for Louise Palmer? He’s very
accommodating.”
Andy: “Aunt Bee, he don’t know anything about freezers. Now call the man!”
Aunt Bee: “Well, he helped me fix a clothes line once…”
Andy: “Aunt Bee, just call the man. Call the man!”
If I was told five times during one conversation to do something, I think I would get the hint — but not Aunt Bee. After Andy left, she called Gomer Pyle to come look at the freezer. Gomer is the local mechanic, but hasn’t been known to dwell too far outside the realm of automobiles. The only thing Gomer succeed in doing was to make the freezer leak out all of its antifreeze onto the porch.
Aunt Bee went to Foley’s Market to speak to Mr. Foley. She asked, on behalf of a “friend,” if her friend could store some meat in his freezer. Mr. Foley knew Aunt Bee had bought the meat from his competitor, but he graciously told Aunt Bee he would be happy to store her meat. She went home and, with Opie’s help, loaded all of the beef in to Opie’s wagon and started rolling it to Foley’s. Little did she know she would be confronted by every dog in town along the way!
When Andy heard the yapping dogs from his office, he went outside and asked her what she was doing. She explained that Mr. Foley had agreed to store the meat. Andy said he wouldn’t allow Mr. Foley to pay for their mistake, and that she was going to have to call the man from Mt. Pilot like she should’ve done from the beginning. In exasperation, Andy repeated, “Call the man!” Aunt Bee started walking away and looked back toward Andy as if she was about to come up with another solution. Andy didn’t give her the opportunity. “CALL THE MAN!” he yelled one final time.
With every argument from Aunt Bee, I can physically feel my frustration building with Andy’s:
Why won’t she just do what she is told?
Why won’t my children clean their rooms?
Why won’t my husband do that thing on the Honey-Do list he promised to do?
Why won’t other people do things like I would do them?
Do you ever feel that way about your employees? Perhaps you have someone on your team that’s a free-thinker and marches to the beat of their own drum instead of the beat you’ve already established; Perhaps you have someone who insists on doing things a particular way, and who sincerely believes they are acting in your best interest; Perhaps you have someone who seemingly argues at every turn, never satisfied with status quo, but who wants to “shake things up” and do things differently…
While you might feel your temper rising, your pulse beating harder and your breaths coming quicker in these situations, it is good to remember that not all behavior you may consider defiant is necessarily bad. Aunt Bee’s only “crime” was trying to save Andy’s money. Yes, she was very frustrating in her quest, but her intentions were good. It might be that the employee who tries your patience the most is one of your company’s biggest assets.
The next time you find yourself getting frustrated and angry when your challenging employee again argues another point with you, it may be time to step back and consider his viewpoint. Ask yourself: What is he trying to accomplish? What are his motives? What would be the harm in trying things his way? What might we gain from it? In doing so, you may determine that the other person’s argument is not only valid, but valuable.
By the way, this episode (like many) is the origin for some common-speak terminology in our house. If ever it is decided that a professional needs to be consulted for anything we can’t fix ourselves – a broken washing machine, A/C unit or, like now, a broken car – all we have to say is “Call the man!”
Hope to see you in Mayberry again next week. Stay tuned…
Holly McLeod is a Human Resources Manager for Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting. She is a certified professional in human resources (PHR) and has more than 15 years of human resources consulting in the corporate world, healthcare and manufacturing environments
