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Navigating your work and life during this pandemic is no small feat. We’re constantly amazed, energized, and inspired by our small to large business clients. Leading a business has never been easy. It’s especially challenging right now.

That’s why we’re encouraging our clients and colleagues to redefine what balance looks like in their lives:

– How much are you taking on?
– How much can you delegate?
– How much can you defer?

Finding balance isn’t static. It’s a day-to-day negotiation and a series of constant adjustments.

That daily negotiation and series of constant adjustments can be frustrating—if not overwhelming.

As many of us at INFINITI HR and Inspiring HR are small business owners ourselves, we’ve often hit our personal ceilings any number of times during this pandemic. Too much to do, too little time to do it. And while we wish things were easier, we know that wishes don’t make things easier. Thinking better and taking better actions is the best way forward.

A key ingredient in thinking better and taking better action is redefining the balance in your life:

– What’s most essential for you to focus on each day?
– What can you delegate or defer doing?

You might be thinking, “But, it’s my employees that are my source of stress! I can’t seem to get the productivity I need out of them!”

As the saying goes, we have to put our own oxygen masks on first before assisting other people with their oxygen masks. So, before we address how to help your employees to redefine balance in their lives so they can be more productive, check in with yourself first. Do you need to redefine your own balance?

As you get clearer about what is working for you and what isn’t working, you’ll be in a better position to help others.

After all, you model the behavior and set the tone for your employees.

Your employees are struggling with their own balancing acts, too.

This pandemic has been rough on everyone.

How can you engage and coach your employees through their challenging days so they show up more present and productive in their work?

As companies are experiencing “The Great Resignation” of the workforce changing jobs, careers, and even exiting the workforce, it’s an all-hands mission to retain great talent. Don’t lose a great employee because she thinks another leader at another company will tend to her professional and personal growth.

While we’re on the topic of redefining balance, let’s look at ways to leverage this approach to be more creative in your hiring and retention strategies.

– Is it time to reimagine your hiring practices? For example, can you train lower-skilled candidates for the roles you need to fill in your company?
– Do you have current employees who you can train for new skills?
– Have you taken a recent look at the language in your job postings and descriptions? Studies show that gender-neutral job postings decrease time to hire and improve diversity at the same time.

ARE YOU EXPERIENCING COMPASSION FATIGUE?

So many of our clients are experiencing “compassion fatigue,” after having spent 16+ months caring for employees who have suffered losses of all kinds during the pandemic. You care so deeply about your employees, yet all of us reach a point of burnout.

You may be experiencing compassion fatigue, too.

That may drive you to be less compassionate to the needs of your team and show less flexibility now. We would caution you not to overcorrect: for example, issue edicts about “everyone getting back in the office.” That may be the right strategy for your company, but there are other ways to increase productivity without inviting the risk of losing great employees who thrive in a remote work setting.

There are no easy answers on our journey of redefining balance and reimagining our work. At INFINITI HR and Inspiring HR, we work with small and large business leaders in multiple industries. We see similar challenges every day, but the solutions are most often tailored to our clients. There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for attracting and retaining top talent and creating a thriving, highly productive, and inclusive culture.

But a key habit for all our clients is routinely checking in with themselves: redefining balance, gaining a broader perspective on how to lead and serve, and thinking more creatively about solving problems.

So, ask yourself: what does redefining balance in your life mean to you right now? What do you need more of? Less of? Is it time to learn new skills, tools and cultivate new ideas to solve your business challenges?

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: Remote Work Wins, Learns, and Planning Ahead or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

Making offboarding seamless and painless when an employee leaves isn’t as hard as you’d think.

Whether the news comes as a surprise or you saw it coming, transitioning an employee out of your organization can go smoothly by following an established communication plan and a checklist of to-dos, helping you to mitigate the pain of turnover via clear expectations.

Do’s:

1. Put it in writing – a written acknowledgement of the date of termination (last day of work) is important for any type of employment separation to ensure record-keeping is accurate for all parties. Regardless of how the resignation was initially communicated to you, a quick “This is to confirm your last day of work will be X” email is an effective way to ensure there are no misunderstandings, accompanied with a reminder of general exit procedures.
   • Note – if, due to industry considerations or other concerns, you’d prefer to let the individual go immediately instead of allowing them to work through their notice period, while legal, this action essentially turns a resignation into an involuntary termination for the period of time that you expedited their exit. This could render the employee eligible for unemployment benefits in some states and may change final check payment deadlines. Be sure to coordinate with payroll and HR when you alter exit dates (more on this below).
2. Check State Laws – Each state has laws around terminations that may cover final paychecks (when, where, how much, and via what method), unemployment rights notices, and other final paperwork or actions that employers must complete. In many states, deviating from final pay regulations for any reason can immediately trigger fines and backpay, becoming costly to the organization should the employee file a wage claim.
3. Talk Transition – As soon as possible – and if it makes sense given the circumstances – set up a time with the exiting employee and others to organize transition of work.  Giving the employee the opportunity to help work through handoff issues with colleagues is an opportunity to depart on good terms for all parties involved. Complementing established procedures on migrating work emails, voicemails, and company directories with gaining agreement from the employee on how their departure will be communicated to others helps to eliminate negativity and maintain morale. Also, ensure your transition plans include identifying and updating SOPs, websites, and other processes that reference specific employees.
4. Address Company Equipment – Does the employee have a company-issued mobile device or laptop? Keys to the office or file cabinets? Employee Handbooks or files? Name badges? Arrangements should be made for drop-off and turn-in. If the employee is remote, ensure there are clear instructions on how to send any company property and equipment back to the home office or to expect a courier.
   • Tip – Ensure your company electronic equipment records are complete. Onboarding should include an agreement listing, date of issue, type of equipment, serial number (if applicable), and a signature by the employee agreeing to care for their equipment and turn it in at the end of employment are key. Many states do not allow you to hold or garnish final paychecks until equipment is returned, so if you need to go outside of the employment relationship to retrieve equipment or seek compensation (small claims court, etc.), accurate and detailed records may help.
5. Turn off Access – Whether using company equipment or their own, shutting off access to company data as soon as the employee leaves the worksite or signs off on the last day is essential. Also, ensure the employee knows when the shut-off will occur so there will be no surprises when they go to file some last-minute items and suddenly find out their access been removed.
6. Exit Interview – While stay interviews are more effective forms of feedback to reduce turnover, companies who still elect to do exit interviews need to commit to investigating issues that weren’t addressed – that should have been – which compelled an employee to leave. If an employer extends an exit interview, and the employee is willing to share their experience, employer follow through is the only action that will make the process worth the time.

Some of the major do’s have been covered, so what about the don’ts? What should we be aware of?

 Potential Pitfalls:

1. References – An employee may ask for a reference, or as an employer you may get called by another company for a reference as the employee looks for another position. Despite common belief, providing references are not forbidden, however, if bad references lack facts or are peppered with opinions and impede your former employee from finding work, feelings of defamation, illegal bias, or non-compete agendas could lead a former employee to trigger legal action. It is always advisable to obtain legal guidance as to whether the company will provide references or if you will stick to basic data points such as dates of employment and title. Ensuring your employees and leaders know who can, and can’t, respond to employer reference requests is key.
2. Oversharing – Even if an employee sends out a “goodbye” message to the entire office, or announces their resignation to the team, their actual reasons for leaving should be kept private. As implied earlier, if possible, agreeing what will and won’t be said and when with the exiting employee helps to remove guesswork and assumptions among other employees.
3. Blame games – Should it be discovered after the fact that mistakes – even major ones – were made by your former employee, discourage disparaging language among the staff and leadership. Maintaining professionalism is key to avoiding an atmosphere of finger-pointing. Talking negatively about former employees may lead current employees to wonder what their colleagues and supervisors say about them and their own work missteps and inherently breaks trust.
4. Visiting Hours – Often employees leave with no hard feelings toward a company and leave a lot of work friends behind. Some may start to “stop by” a worksite to say hello, wander the halls and end up spending a lot of time right back in their old office reminiscing. Now a visitor, this former employee may be inadvertently privy to a lot of confidential company information as they make the rounds, as well as a distraction to current employees. Visitors should always be approved and accompanied, and if the “stopping by” starts to become a habit, gently remind your former colleague that while you are glad to see they are doing well, perhaps a meetup after hours is the best way to gather the “old gang” for socializing.

While everything involved with losing a staff member can seem like a hurdle, it doesn’t have to be. At the end of the day, being prepared and setting clear expectations will send a professional and positive message to employees who want to stay. Keeping a checklist of action items at hand can help ensure that steps aren’t missed, can save time, and helps to avoid scrambling.

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: Is Your Stated Culture Your ACTUAL Culture? or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

3/7/22: UPDATING BASED ON RECENT CHANGES. SEE BELOW.

INFINITI HR is happy to provide Monthly State Labor Law Updates as a service to our subscribers. These briefs provide a general description and are not meant to be all inclusive of compliance requirements. This list is not inclusive of all legislative changes for employers across the U.S. Changes may have been addressed in previous updates, which can be accessed from our blog.

This list is not inclusive of all legislative changes for employers across the U.S. Other changes may have been addressed in previous updates, which can be accessed online at: https://inspiringhr.com/blog.

tEmployers are encouraged to work with their Inspiring HR Consultant before making policy changes to capture the full requirements of these laws.

Some of the notable upcoming State Changes in this issue are as follows:

FLORIDA

FL – Reporting Independent Contractors – October 2021

Florida businesses are now required to submit new hire information for their independent contractors to the Florida Department of Revenue.

Florida businesses that have paid an independent contractor $600 or more in a calendar year must submit new hire information within 20 days after their first payment to the independent contractor or the date on which the business and independent contractor entered into the contract, whichever is earlier.

For example, if a business (the “service recipient”) contracts with a painter on October 10 to paint its offices and makes the first payment to the painter on October 24, the business must submit information within 20 days of October 10.

If businesses (service recipients) report individuals electronically, the reports may be made in two monthly transmissions, but the transmissions may not be less than 12 days or more than 16 days apart.

The report must include the (i) name, (ii) address, (iii) social security number or other identifying number assigned to the individual under section 6109 of the Internal Revenue Code, (iv) the date services for payment were first rendered by the individual, and (v) the name, address, and employer identification number of the service recipient. Questions on reporting can be submitted to Florida New Hire Reporting Center at (850) 656-3343 or Toll-Free 1 (888) 854-4791 or email newhiresupport@floridarevenue.com.

Business should:

• Evaluate their existing independent contractor relationships and determine their reporting requirements under the new law; and
• Update their internal onboarding and reporting policies.

Given the mandatory reporting obligations to the state, it is also recommended that businesses consider performing an audit of their worker classifications to ensure that their independent contractors are properly classified.

ILLINOIS

IL – Work Authorization Status – Effective Immediately – All Employers

The Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) was amended, making it a civil rights violation for employers to discriminate against an employee or job applicant based on their federally authorized work status. This means that any person legally authorized to work in the United States, regardless of the length of their work authorization, is protected by the Illinois Human Rights Act.

This change in law aligns protections in the Illinois Human Rights Act with those already in federal law. The House Bill’s Declaration of Policy states that the purpose of this regulation is “to prevent discrimination based on the specific status or term of status that accompanies a legal work authorization.”

Because this amendment to the IHRA took effect immediately, Illinois employers should review their current policies and practices in order to comply with this recent amendment.

IL – “Association” Disability Discrimination – Effective Immediately – All Employers

The Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) was amended to include in the definition of disability discrimination the “unlawful discrimination against an individual because of the individual’s association with a person with a disability.” This definition brings Illinois’ law in line with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The difference, however, is that the ADA applies to employers with 15 or more employees and the IHRA defines employers as having one or more employees.

Because this amendment to the IHRA took effect immediately, Illinois employers should review their current policies and practices in order to comply with this recent amendment.

NORTH CAROLINA

NC – Payroll Practice Changes – Effective Immediately

The newly enacted revision to the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act (NCWHA) affects how employers address certain payroll practices. Employers must provide written notification of promised wages, payday, and place of payment to newly hired employees. Thus, an employer no longer has the option of orally notifying employees of promised wages. Employers must provide a written notice at least an entire pay period before making any changes in promised wages. Separated employees must submit a request in writing if they want their final paycheck mailed to them, and the paycheck must be sent using trackable mail.

Recommendation:

Employers should follow up all verbal offers of employment with an employment offer letter confirming the verbal offer with the new hire. When notifying employees of any adjustment to their wages employers need to create a written notice and ensure the employee initials or signs acknowledging the wage adjustment and the effective date. Employers may want to consider adding to their exit interview process with a terminating employee when and how their final payroll check will be distributed.

NC – City of Charlotte Non-Discrimination Ordinance – Effective January 2022

The City of Charlotte passed an ordinance extending nondiscrimination protections to employees working for employers with 15 or less employees located within the city limits of Charlotte. The ordinance prohibits discrimination in all employment practices based on race (including natural hairstyle), sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression), gender, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, familial status, veteran status, and disability. While employees will not have the right to bring a private civil lawsuit for violation of the ordinance, the ordinance subjects small businesses to new legal processes, ultimately increasing their risk of liability for alleged discrimination.

OREGON

OR – Oregon Family Leave Updates – Effective January 1, 2022

The state of Oregon is updating its Family Leave Act regulations to allow for: 1) a shorter eligibility period during specifically defined “public health emergencies”, 2) child home care to be listed as a qualifying reason to use leave for defined school and childcare closures and 3) explanation of eligibility requirements for those employees who leave a company and return within a defined period of time.

https://www.oregon.gov/boli/workers/pages/oregon-family-leave.aspx

PENNSYLVANIA

PA – Allegheny County Paid Sick Leave – December 15, 2021

Employers who have employees working in Allegheny County will be required to provide Paid Sick Leave under the following guidelines:

Employers with 26 or more employees: 

Employers must provide a minimum of one hour of PSL sick time for every 35 hours worked, up to 40 hours (5 days) per year. Employers must allow employees to rollover up to 40 hours of accrued but unused sick time into the next year or provide a lump sum of 40 hours at the beginning of calendar year.

Employees may use sick time for the following:

• for the diagnosis, care or treatment (including preventative care) of the employee’s own mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; or
• to care for a family with a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition or who needs medical diagnosis, care, or treatment (including preventive care) of same; or
• if the employee’s place of business is closed by order of a public official due to a public health emergency or an employee’s need to care for a child whose school or place of care is closed for that reason; or
• to care for a family member when it has been determined by the health authorities or a health care provider that the family member’s presence in the community would jeopardize the health of others because of the family member’s exposure to a communicable disease, whether or not the family member has actually contracted the communicable disease.

WASHINGTON

WA – Long Term Care WA Cares Fund – This was just pushed back – it will go into effect in 2023.

The state of Washington will be requiring employers to collect premiums for the new WA Cares Fund, which will provide Long Term Care benefits for qualifying employees starting in 2025. Employees who have private Long Term Care insurance may file individually for a permanent exemption from payroll deductions, making them also unable to apply for benefits. The program will allow for up to $36,500 in benefits (adjusted annually) for support and services such as in-home or facility care, transit coordination, environmental modifications and family caregiver assistance.

https://wacaresfund.wa.gov/employers/

 This article does not constitute legal advice and there are subtle variations in employment law as it pertains to this topic, depending on where your business operates. It is strongly suggested that you seek consultation or legal counsel before making decisions about policies.

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: Your Checklist for Creating Highly Engaged Team Meetings or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

In this current economy, it’s an all-hands mission to recruit great talent. One of the most compelling—but often overlooked—strategies for recruiting great talent is eliminating gender-specific language in job postings.

WHAT IS GENDER-SPECIFIC LANGUAGE?

There are words commonly associated with both male and female-orientations. For example, popular job posting language includes “rockstar,” “superhero,” and “guru,” which tend to be associated with male orientation. On the flip side, words like “compassionate,” “concerned” and “nurture” skew to female orientation.

Other examples of male/masculine-driven language include: Strong, Lead, Individual, Competitive, and Expert.

Other examples of female/feminine-driven language include: Support, Share, Committed, Feel, and Collaborate.

(For more gender-coded words found in many job descriptions, read this article from Ongig.)

These words may not seem to be problematic for you, but research shows that gender-specific language can discourage top talent from applying to your job postings if the gender language does not resonate with the individual.

WHY GENDER NEUTRAL POSTINGS CAN IMPROVE YOUR COMPANY’S PERFORMANCE

According to a McKinsey & Company report, gender-diverse companies are 15 percent more likely to outperform those that are not. The key to increasing your company’s gender diversity is in how and who you recruit. And when you take time to refine your job postings to be more gender neutral, you should expect a more robust and diverse pool of job seekers.

FLOOD YOUR TALENT PIPELINE THROUGH GENDER NEUTRAL JOB POSTINGS

According to a recent CIO article, it stands to reason that if you reach a wider pool of applicants, you’re more likely to have more applicants, which improves diversity and speeds up the recruiting and hiring process.

According to a study from ZipRecruiter, “Neutral wording in job listings resulted in 42 percent more applications than listings that contained gendered words.”

DOES YOUR INDUSTRY USE GENDERED WORDING? ALSO ACCORDING TO THE ZIPRECRUITER STUDY, MULTIPLE INDUSTRIES ARE THE “HIGHEST OFFENDERS” OF GENDERED LANGUAGE.

For example:
– 94% of the Business industry uses gendered wording
– 92% of the Technology industry uses gendered wording
– 91% of the Finance & Insurance industry uses gendered wording
– 88% of the Law industry uses gendered wording

HOW TO GET STARTED WRITING BETTER NEUTRAL WORDING

Instead of writing a job posting that begins, “We’re looking for a strong…”, which is male-gendered language, write instead: “We’re looking for an exceptional…”

Instead of writing a job posting that begins, “We are a community of concerned…, which is female-gendered language, write instead: “We are a team focused on…”

BETTER DIVERSITY, MORE INCLUSION, AND MORE CANDIDATES

Taking time to review your job postings and reframing the language to be more gender neutral can help you attract a more diverse workforce, encourage  inclusion, and can open the doors wider open for the best candidate for your job.

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: How to Create a More Diverse and Unified Small Business Culture or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

INFINITI HR is happy to provide Monthly State Labor Law Updates as a service to our subscribers. These briefs provide a general description and are not meant to be all inclusive of compliance requirements. This list is not inclusive of all legislative changes for employers across the U.S. Changes may have been addressed in previous updates, which can be accessed from our blog.

This list is not inclusive of all legislative changes for employers across the U.S. Other changes may have been addressed in previous updates, which can be accessed online on our partner website inspiringhr.com.

Employers are encouraged to work with their Inspiring HR Consultant before making policy changes to capture the full requirements of these labor laws.

Some of the notable upcoming State Changes in this issue are as follows:

CALIFORNIA

CA – Electronic posters permitted – January 2022

Effective in January 2022, the state of CA will permit digital/electronic versions of labor code-related posters to be sent to employees in addition to posting physical posters in the workplace.  This new law  does not include posters required by the DFEH or Federal posters, which still must be physically posted.

COLORADO

CO – Healthcare Vaccine Mandates – September 2021

Employers with Colorado employees in any of the following healthcare categories are now subject to a state mandate to put in place a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy.

Covered licensed agencies include: general hospitals, hospital units as defined in CO section 25-3-101 (2), psychiatric hospitals, community clinics, rehabilitation hospitals, convalescent centers, community mental health centers, acute treatment units, facilities for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities, nursing care facilities, hospice care, assisted living residences, dialysis treatment clinics, ambulatory surgical centers, birthing centers, home care agencies, and other facilities of a like nature, except those wholly owned and operated by any governmental unit or agency.

Under this mandate, the following rules will apply:

• All employees, direct contractors, and support staff must have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination no later than September 30, 2021.
• All employees, direct contractors, and support staff must have received their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccination (if applicable) no later than October 31, 2021.

CONNECTICUT

CT Pay Range Disclosure and Comparable Pay – October 1, 2021

Effective October 1, 2021, all Connecticut employers are required to disclose the pay range for a position to applicants and employees.

As a result, employers are prohibited from:

• Failing or refusing to provide an applicant for employment the pay range for a position for which the applicant is applying, upon the earliest of (a) the applicant’s request, or (b) prior to or at the time the applicant is made an offer of compensation.
• Failing or refusing to provide an employee the wage range for the employee’s position upon (a) the hiring of the employee, (b) a change in the employee’s position with the employer, or (c) the employee’s first request for a wage range.

The bill also expands Connecticut’s prohibition of gender-based pay discrimination to require equal pay for comparable work.  A result, employers cannot pay an employee less than what the employer is paying an employee of the opposite sex for comparable work.  Comparable work will be viewed as a composite of skill, effort and responsibility and performed under similar work conditions.  Pay should be determined based on the employee’s credentials, skills and/or geographic location, education, training and experience.

NEW YORK

New York Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act – September 2021

On May 5, 2021, the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (NY HERO Act) became effective, which mandates that all New York employers establish new workplace health and safety protections in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the NY HERO Act is to protect employees against exposure and disease during a future airborne infectious disease outbreak.

Employers are required to either adopt an Exposure Prevention Plan (EPP) provided by the NY DOL, or establish an alternative plan that meets and/or exceeds the minimum requirements under the law by September 3, 2021.

In addition to establishing an EPP, employers are required to allow employees to establish and administer a workplace safety committee.  The workplace safety committee must be compromised of two-thirds non-supervisory employees, which will be authorized to perform tasks, including but not limited to, raising health and safety concerns, reviewing exposure prevention plan policies, and participating in site visits by any governmental entity responsible for enforcing safety and health standards.

The HERO Act law prohibits discrimination or retaliation against any employee who exercises their rights under the law.

NY Paid Sick Leave Law Update – September 30, 2020

The New York Department of Labor (NYDOL) announced on May 27, 2021, that employees in New York must be permitted to use sick leave under the New York Paid Sick Leave Law to recover from any side effects stemming from COVID-19 vaccinations. This includes using leave for the recovery of any side effects of the COVID-19 vaccination.

The NY Paid Sick Leave Law (NYPSL) accrual became effective September 30, 2020, requiring NY employers to allow eligible employees to use PSL for the following reasons:

• For mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition, regardless of whether it has been diagnosed or requires medical care at the time of the request for leave*; or
• For the diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; or need for medical diagnosis or preventive care.
• For an absence from work when the employee or employee’s family member has been the victim of domestic violence as defined by the State Human Rights Law, a family offense, sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking due to any of the following as it relates to the domestic violence, family offense, sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking:
• to obtain services from a domestic violence shelter, rape crisis center, or other services program;
• to participate in safety planning, temporarily or permanently relocate, or take other actions to increase the safety of the employee or employee’s family members;
• to meet with an attorney or other social services provider to obtain information and advice on, and prepare for or participate in any criminal or civil proceeding;
• to file a complaint or domestic incident report with law enforcement;
• to meet with a district attorney’s office;
• to enroll children in a new school; or
• to take any other actions necessary to ensure the health or safety of the employee or the employee’s family member or to protect those who associate or work with the employee.

Interested in other current employment trends? Click the link to view the recent blog: Dear Small Business: Is Your Hiring Strategy Out of Date? or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance, and benefits.

 This article does not constitute legal advice and there are subtle variations in employment labor law as it pertains to this topic, depending on where your business operates. It is strongly suggested that you seek consultation or legal counsel before making decisions about policies.