Audit Preparation

Once the inevitable comes and you are notified of an investigation, there are several things to do in preparation of the event.

• Treat all employees equitably, regardless of which may have filed the complaint.  This will go a long way toward future employee relations, despite the outcome.
• Consult with your HR attorney and construct a factual as well as legal “official statement” for the investigation officials.  You will need to provide an overview of any steps taken to meet compliance prior to their arrival.
• Name an official representative if you choose not to use an attorney and elect to maintain the communications internally with the investigators.
• Pre-interview employees in advance of the investigation to ensure they are cognizant of they types of questions they will be asked.
• Review the automated software system and files for accuracy, completeness and ease of access.  Reserve a private, comfortable working space for DOL personnel, with easy access to the automated HR information. Easy access, combined with accurate storage and complete files reflect a more capable system.
• Ensure that managers and employees are cooperative during the investigation.  DOL wage and hour staffers will have a lot of questions, so provide an overview of what they should expect.  Do not discourage them from speaking freely.  Do however, encourage employees to take any advice or corrective action investigators might recommend.

Wage and Hour audits are never fun, and not only disrupt an organization; they can be quite costly.  Lost productivity, anxiety and worry are only the superficial aspects of the impact they bring.  Typically, an audit will go back three years, and even employees that have resigned or left the organization in another fashion are included.  The interviews of exempt employees may yield some negative results, especially if you have failed to follow the guidelines for qualifying them as such.  Independent contractor files must be complete with Federal 1099 forms, W-9 and qualification sheet, along with contracts.  Any hint of working times, days or something that presents a total lack of independence will cause a negative ruling.  Try your best to avoid independent contractors, as the qualifying is difficult in most cases.

Your HR system, whether manual or automated must contain all of the pertinent information, as without it you are doomed.  The far easier method of compliance is with an affordable, automated HR software system.

You can avoid those feelings of dread and uneasiness by following some HR best practices, adhering to the State and Federal Regulations regarding the wage and hour provisions of the Department of Labor.

Avoidance Strategies

The absolute best way to pass an audit is to prevent one in the first place.  While it is within the power of any employee to file a wage & hour complaint, it is quite another action to suffer an actual audit.  To avoid, or at least minimize the chances of an audit, try instituting these best practices.  They are:

• Know and understand the regulations thoroughly.  Ensure all management and supervisory personnel have an in-depth working knowledge of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA).
• Make certain of any conflicts between State and Federal Wage and Hour Laws. If there is a conflict, err on the side of the employee, not management or company.
• Training of management and supervisors regularly to ensure compliance is always in your best interests.   Understanding their ability to cite specific aspects of the Act in everyday language will go a long way toward a worry free workplace.
• An automated system of HR documentation such as time and attendance will prevent document loss, mis-filing or incomplete files.  Thorough, complete job descriptions, task lists, payroll software and benefits information should be reviewed regularly.
• Ensure compliance with regard to compensation.  Consistency and fairness are mandatory.  Inconsistent pay practices will trigger employee complaints, which sometimes result in the filing of a formal DOL complaint.
• Perform self-audits semi-annually, or annually at a minimum.  The use of an attorney fluent in Labor Law is one way to ensure compliance.

• However, with a practical working knowledge of regulations, every manager and supervisor will have a  chance of performing it yourself, with oversight by a licensed labor attorney to review your findings.
• Review thoroughly pay practices, job descriptions, overtime policies and pay to ensure the job matches the compensation.
• Make certain that non-exempt and exempt fall within the guidelines, and ensure that exempt employees meet the required test for compliance in the overtime provisions.
• Independent contractors have a 21 point check to be considered so; avoiding their use is a wise decision.
• Make certain that the State and Federal Employee posters are in good repair, complete and in full view of the employee area.

Handle internal complaints immediately by thorough review.  If you are confident of your compliance position, handle the employee’s complaint swiftly, by either correcting any wrongdoing, or standing firm in your decision.  Inactivity or an insecure response will more than likely trigger a formal complaint.

Pay overtime without delay when a determination is made regarding an incorrect calculation of overtime pay.  Typically, the Wage and Hour Division of the DOL will audit 2 to 3 years of previous pay, so if there is a question regarding past deficiencies, make certain to pay any past overtime as soon as possible, with the full knowledge of the employees.

Net Regular Rate calculations should be taken into consideration when calculating bonus, premiums for shift differential and other special pay options.  In some states, net regular rate is also calculated on vacation time for tipped personnel. 

Enlist the support of the Department of Labor.  They offer a variety of information sources as well as tools on their web site.  http://www.dol.gov .

There is a full time effort in ensuring management and staff fully understands the intricacies of HR Rules and Regulations.  A knowledgeable, fair and equitable management team can ensure compliance.  In tough times it is easy to forget about maintaining a comprehensive internal auditing program, however forewarned is forearmed.

As a company that provides HR related information and systems, it is our belief that having as much information available at the touch of a button for employees make life easier.  HR directors and assistants will save time by not having to spend their time finding paper policies, insurance forms, training videos, and you name it when it comes to employee requests.  Document management systems minimize the amount of manual transactions they incur.  Rather than file drawers of forms and documents, everything that an employee needs can be accessed through a self-service kiosk.

What are some of the advantages of an HR Self-Service Employee Portal?

• Frees up valuable HR time and increases HR productivity
• Improves employee engagement through the ability for Self-Service
• Employees can access important vacation/sick pay statistics
• Access benefits information
• Job description review
• Streamlines the activity of providing information on an as needed basis
• Fully supports online training and in-house video and audio training modules

Companies are constantly looking for ways to not only improve employee engagement, improve productivity and performance; they are also interested in having a well-trained staff while still minimizing costs.  An HR Self-Service kiosk or portal will do all of that and more.  With cloud computing (Software-as-a-service), there are no long-term contracts, expensive and time-consuming installation, maintenance contracts and extended learning to get up to speed.

Online learning resources are as easy to download from a variety of vendors, and are all compatible with standard computers.  There is no worry that they will stand up to the task.  Imagine this: the ability to not only offer in-house documentation as well as online e-Courses to your staff.  With the ability to provide additional education options beyond standard training modules can improve employee motivation, engagement as well as loyalty.  As a progressive company with such additional and unique benefits, your employee turnover should improve dramatically within a very short time.

Our HR software solution takes all of the pain out of enhancing the HR function.  By offering a simplified, yet robust solution on a Pay-As-You-Go pricing model, along with a 30-day Free Trial, how can you go wrong?

Contact us today for additional information, and to start your Free 30-day trial today!

Everyone knows that the more human interaction with manual reporting tasks is introduced, the more opportunity for error exists.  By using an HR system thatis fully automated, the business of time management becomes a lot more accurate with much less time devoted to the tasks. 

In the good old days (you may still be on a manual system), the steps for managing personnel time sheets was cumbersome, and fraught with opportunities for error.  Human Resources business agents not only had to ensure that everyone’s name appeared on the time sheets or time cards, and once an error occurs, someone had to be searched out to approve any changes to the document.  Next, the compilation at the end of a pay cycle had to be accomplished, ensuring proper deductions, withholding parameters and time and attendance reporting was calculated with wages and benefits.  Once the HR department was satisfied in the accuracy of the documentation, it was finally forwarded to accounting, or service provider for check preparation, etc. Then another series of manual tasks were performed to input the data into the accounting system, financial reporting software and eventually a pay period would conclude, just in time for the next one to begin.

Through an efficient, fully automated personnel time sheet management software solution, those painful tasks can be a thing of the past.

Here’s 5 great reasons you should consider automation:

1. Time sheets Can be filled out Automatically or Manually.  Regardless of how you choose to utilize the human resources system software, you will be more accurate and utilize valuable time resources much more wisely.  By using the “Time Clock” method of automation, employees can log into the system, and the time is recorded immediately.  This is the recommended method; however, time sheets can be printed out and documented manually, should systems be unavailable, or for training purposes.  If you want to say goodbye to paper, the fully automated option now equates to a “greener” office for the environment.
2. Condensing Information from multiple locations/departments.  With automation, efficiencies on a grand scale occur.  Reporting from individual reporting locations can be viewed individually or grouped with ease. Either pre-set reporting or “on-the-fly” reporting queries will cut the cost of doing business.
3. Reporting is one touch based on multiple parameters. Perhaps one of the greatest benefits human resources professionals experience is the speed and accuracy of any type of employee report that executive management may desire.
4. User Access Rights can be pre-determined for security.  In the age of increased data and personal information security, establishing parameters for which individuals can access information at every level. 
5. Simplification of the administration center.  With the payroll system interfaced with the accounting system, the business automation is much more efficient and decreases human error.

Myco Portal’s employee portal solutions include many more features besides time sheet management, each of which is designed to make your business life easier, and more error free.  For a confidential, no-cost or obligation consultation, please feel free to contact us today.

A Harvard Business School study indicated that goal setting was over 70% more effective when they were written vs. floating in someone’s head. That story has been floating around for more than forty years.  Notable statement, but it doesn’t address goal setting methodology, especially for HR.  Merely writing down some odd wishes in a flash of thought is not going to mean much in the end either.  HR Goal setting requires a methodology, a way to ensure they will produce the outcomes expected. 

Try the four C’s for HR Goal Setting.

Consequential

• Effective Goals must contain meaning and consequence
• Of importance to the organization or group
• Reflects directly on the individual’s job performance, responsibilities or achievement
• Linked to departmental or section goals
• Tied directly to the organizational mission and vision
• Supportive by all involved

Calculable

• Effective goals must have the ability to be measured, calculated and be achievable
• Must contain identifiable metrics to be calculated against
• Milestone measurement must occur to ensure that all involved understand the commitment to the goals.
• Must be clearly understood and individuals held accountable for the outcomes
• Realistic goals that can be achieved with effort
• Unrealistic goals de-motivate and decrease outputs

Capable

• Goals are useless if utilized with the untrained and incapable participants
• Effective on-boarding, ongoing training, certifications are all tools to sharpen the skill set
• A digital resource center that provides ‘round the clock access to policy, procedure, training materials, regulations and other information to ensure a capable staff. Click here for more information

Communal

• Goals should be individual, team, group, department, section, etc.
• Specific and distinct, i.e. Increase department output of product X by 10 percent over same period last year
• Reduce waste of raw materials by 5 metric tons this quarter
• Improve individual productivity as measured against line output by 3 percent this month
• Agreed upon by the entire group.   
• Understood by each individual, with acknowledged understanding
• Individual input assures acknowledgement and achievement through buy-in.

HR goal setting is an art as well as science, and an effective HR department is wise to the techniques to capture enthusiasm, develop team and individual buy-in and create a resource area from which employees can acquire information at a moment’s notice.  Additionally, establishing a specific reporting area on goal attainment factors will aid in the competitive atmosphere.  A focus board highlighting group efforts indicating progress will benefit greatly.

Today’s employment situation is critical, and every effort to retain the best staff is paramount to sustainability.  A well-informed, creative and responsive HR department will not only prove to be a worthy expense department, but through innovation and creativity, become a revenue producing one.

We at Myco Portal are ready and willing to support your endeavors to create the type of environment that can thrive on easy to access digital information sources that can be available to everyone, depending on your chosen settings.  For a no obligation consultation, feel free to contact us today.

Everyone knows how easy it is to lose a document; it has happened to each of us at least once in our professional careers.  It can happen regardless of whether you use an electronic document storage system, or if you still use paper.  The fact is, it is easier to misplace a paper document than an electronic one.

Risk managers harp on security all the time, and converting to a paperless system is no different.  Password protection for files is a must, and further segmentation of documents by personnel is highly recommended.  It makes no sense for a line supervisor to be able to access the payroll system, much the same way as the office manager to have access to vendor payment records.  There are specific areas of responsibilities that require access to parts of the electronic system, but few employees need to access everything in

Depending on your specific state laws, they generally permit the storage of personnel files electronically.  It is best, however, to have your legal representative verify if there are any particulars involved in their storage, i.e. format or order. What is most important is that they be accessible and have the ability to create legible hard copies should they be needed.

Converting from Paper to Paperless

Prior to beginning the process, consider this:  There may be additional requirements for employers that choose to use purely electronic documentation.  Some companies may choose to utilize as little actual paper documents and have employees complete electronic documents at a work station rather then fill out paper documents and scan them into the system.  Federal I-9 forms, for instance, have additional requirements for paperless filing.

Follow these guidelines should you choose to go digital:

• Have your IT personnel acquire multiple backup processes and restoration systems to prevent failure or loss of data.  Off-site or cloud based is recommended in additional to any in-house systems.
• Should there be paper documents that cannot be transferred to electronic systems, make certain to have protected hard copies kept safely off-site.
• Follow all medical privacy laws (HIPAA) and separate all medical records, confidential information and protect them as you would any other paper files (see above).
• Destroy all unnecessary copies of paper files and have a written process for doing so.  A record retention policy should be part of your company’s P & P manual.
• Destroy unnecessary digital files, as they are no longer needed.  Check your legal requirements statutes.  i.e. Personnel files a minimum of seven (7) years.
• Should a lawsuit become known, cease the destruction of all files pertinent to the legal action.
• Create a protocol for authorized access to files. Security minded businesses should have a sophisticated access level policy.

There are distinct advantages to a paperless system of document storage, but thinking it through with a professional prior to enacting such a move is prudent.  Myco Portal can assist in the personnel file electronic storage; call us at (601) 825-2532 today!

Ever hear this excuse?  It’s almost as bad as “I moved over the weekend, and can’t find my way to work!”  Believe it or not, the “you didn’t tell me” defense is heard in courtrooms all across the country on a near-daily basis. It might be about work rules, procedures, time and attendance, or any number of other facets of the workplace rules.

Why? I guess it plays well to the jury, or the judge, relative to policy fairness.  It may be viewed as the typical David Vs. Goliath scenario, the big bad company against the poor little employee.  Juries are sympathetic, especially during hard economic times such as these. 

“I shouldn’t have to tell them everything”

Typical human nature is a funny thing, depending on which humans we are talking about.  Managers and front line supervisors normally believe that some things about performance should be taken for granted, and perhaps they are correct in their thinking.  They don’t want to micro-manage everybody in their unit making sure each task is performed “by the book.”  They shouldn’t have to tell them about every flaw in their performance, employees know that instinctively, or so the leaders think.

“They should have told me I was not performing well, I didn’t know”

Employees, on the other hand don’t typically see things in the same light.  Normal line employees, paid average wages for what they do, usually think that everything is “according to Hoyle” unless management tells them otherwise.  If a termination for performance occurs, they are taken aback at the outlandish surprise.  That is when litigation rears its ugly head.  Employees that feel slighted or abusively terminated seek representation at the first opportunity. 

Brace yourself for the display of “unfairness” when you find yourself in front of a courtroom.  It may appear unfair if there is little to no documentation about performance, or behavior for that matter.  Juries and judges may side with the terminated employee based on the sympathy plea and the lack of hard evidence to the contrary.

On the other hand, if you present solid progressive disciplinary reports reflecting the lack of performance, what will happen if it doesn’t improve and the acknowledgement of receipt of the document, you stand a good chance of a favorable ruling.  Remember, the employee isn’t signing agreement, only receipt.  Witness to the discussion never hurts your case either.

These are litigious times, and those best prepared to defend themselves will fare much better than ill-prepared business entities.  When it comes to performance related discipline, documentation is fundamental to sustainability.  Whether you utilize an electronic storage method or manual, time and attendance records, performance appraisals, training certifications and all other HR related documents must be secured, complete and accurate.  It is your best friend in a labor dispute.

Oh, I almost forgot.

If by some strange coincidence you DO hear the “moved over the weekend” excuse, use this reply.

“Oh, I see. Can you find your way back to your old house? Good.  Go there and then come to work.”

In a previous article we discussed the need for consistency in employee discipline, including what some feel is a serious consideration; setting precedence.  When addressing an employee for a disciplinary action, it is important to be as consistent as possible, lest you are labeled as one showing favoritism to one over another.

Progressive discipline, when used properly, should include several steps for routine infractions, say, poor attendance, minor infractions of policy and so forth.  They typically follow this path:

• Verbal Warning
• Written Warning
• Suspension
• Termination

Supervisors involved with the disciplinary process must be trained to stress improvement, whether it is for behavioral or performance related issues.  Immediate attention must be paid to improvement for the employee to remain a viable candidate of employment. Providing a timeline of improvement fails to stress the true nature of the discipline, and often provides loopholes from which employees may slip through.

Do Provide Progressive Discipline

• Do utilize the 4-step method stated above.
• Do document the verbal warning, as a matter of record.
• Do have the employee acknowledge receipt of the verbal warning.
• Do stress the immediate need for improvement.
• Do ensure that the employee improves, or move to the next step.
• Do perform written warnings, documenting the action and receipt of acknowledgement from the employee.
• Do suspend the employee if the infractions continue.
• Do document the suspension, the receipt of acknowledgement, and the course of action if the problem continues.
• Do terminate when all else fails.  Not doing so will negate all your efforts of improving your business.
  

Don’ts involved in the Progressive Discipline Process

• Don’t play favorites.  Doing so will erode your stature as a leader.  Even your best employee will need some form of discipline in their tenure.
• Don’t fail to document every occurrence of either negative performance or behavior issues of any and all employees, including supervisors.
• Don’t forget to have your process and documentation reviewed by a competent attorney that specializes in HR.
• Don’t leave disciplinary documentation around. File it immediately, either electronically or manually.
• Don’t feel you need to follow all 4 steps if the infraction calls for the strongest of discipline.  An employee should be terminated for fighting, serious misconduct like theft of property, etc.
• Don’t forget, you are the boss, and you have the ability and responsibility to manage your business, employees and their actions.

A progressive discipline process provides employees with a clear path of expectations and outcomes.  It is in everyone’s best interest to adhere to this process with consistency.

How you handle your business is entirely up to you, but bear in mind, the laws are clear when it comes to at-will status.  Just because you utilize a progressive discipline system, you still have the ability to cease utilizing employees that simply fail to follow directions, fail to adhere to policy or simply disregard the rules established.  Seek the advice of an attorney should any serious infraction occurs before acting, however.  It’s simply good business.

Have you actually thought about proceeding toward the paperless route with your personnel records? What are the advantages and disadvantages ofelectronic over paper? To ensure your compliance rating remains above reproach for your personnel records, are there any benefits to sticking converting from paper to digital?

Let’s take a look:  Legal Compliance Through Electronic Document Storage

There is a very long laundry list of what is known as ESI – Electronically stored information.  Included in this list are such things as your personnel files, but also email messages, your web site, all word processing files, any written correspondence, both internal memos and external documentation.  Additionally, all of your IT backup files, imagery documents and their scanning hardware storage devices, any hand-held communications and storage hardware, your hard drives on all of the computers your firm owns, and a whole bunch more.  Even portable storage devices such as thumb drives, CD’s and DVD’s fall under the purview of electronic storage.

Food for thought:

If your firm is sued over your electronic recordkeeping for your personnel record, you will have to produce all documentation pertinent to the suit.  Even if you file both paper or electronic, you must retain and inventory all documentation relative to personnel files to better arm yourself should you come under attack.  The natural occurrence of paper files is that sometimes things get misfiled, accidently destroyed or damaged.  Still more frequently is the fact that paper files don’t always make it into the file at all.  That is not to say that electronic filing is more accurate, it is, however, more easily maintained and accessible.  Regardless of paper or digital, the policy of storage must be well rehearsed and followed.  In this litigious society in which we live, it is a matter of survival to know exactly where your documentation is and how to retrieve it.

Consider this:

• Your office is notified that a government agency is about to investigate your firm.
• A complaint is filed that begins a lawsuit over unjust termination.
• You receive a subpoena to produce records of a long discharged vendor.
• A workplace dispute escalates into a lawyer’s request for investigative information.
• A workplace accident triggers an OSHA investigation or complaint.
• An employee files a complaint or alleges an unfair labor practice, or sexual harassment charges are levied against someone in authority.

It does not matter in the least what your intentions were, it matters how you handle things in advance of any form of litigation.  Electronic Personnel Record storage must be handled as well or better than the traditional manual paper method.

Any time a single event of litigation or investigation happens, your requirement must be to find as well as maintain papers and other information and particulars toward the event. The inability to produce the details of the alleged event or activity, along with specific actions that were documented may trigger a more significant problem to resolve.  Your current legal professional should work with you to function within a set of pre-determined parameters.  Know that you’ll want to inform every person to keep all documents linked with the action.  Train all staff members to maintain all documentation related to the action as a matter of legal requirement.

In the end, there are advantages and disadvantages to electronic personnel records, much the same way as there are in the use of a calculator and the manual addition of a large list of numbers.  Electronic methods of tasks such as documentation storage appears to be a much better actionable method, but the decision must be addressed, as technology continues to push business onward.

In today’s litigious society, it is imperative that a businessperson be consistent when it comes to employee discipline, up to and including termination.  In aperfect society, we would never have to be concerned about such things, but we are imperfect beings in an imperfect world.

When the situation arises, and yes, it will surface, one must be cognizant of the legal ramifications of your actions, or inaction’s.  What I mean is, that if you handle a situation in a particular manner, any further situations of that type must be handled consistently, or suffer the charge of favoritism, unfairness or some other detrimental labeling.  It is an onerous task to discipline, and worse yet, terminate someone, but it is a necessary skill that must be learned.  In matters of consistency, the words “setting precedence” may be brought to bear on your actions.  Your legal representative is the person from whom to seek advice, but it is safe to say that what you have done in the past may very well affect the outcome of an issue before you today.

Discipline, suspension and ultimately termination is the path of progression, and generally fall into two distinct categories; a deficiency in performance or behavior.

Performance

• Performance deficiencies typically occur when an employee fails to meet performance criteria, such as ineptly completing a task, missing a deadline or failing to do their part in production of a job requirement.  Bear in mind that there may be factors out of control of the employee, such as lack of training, knowledge or skill level.
• Supervisors must teach minimum performance standards and leadership of the business to assure that the end justifies the means.  That is, the outcome hinges upon employees having the talent, knowledge and training to perform the minimum acceptable level.
• Discipline should only come into play after supervision has assured that the employee has the skill set to perform, but for whatever reasons, fails to.

Behavior Issues typically fall into one or more of the following:

• Attendance
• Negligence
• Insubordination
• Misconduct

Behavioral concerns are almost always within the control of the employee.  Poor attendance, neglecting one’s responsibilities, deliberately being insubordinate or misconduct are all choices, and employees take an active role in how they choose to approach their jobs.  There are normally no outside forces beyond the control of the individual, even medical concerns.  We all have the same life responsibilities, (proper rest, health monitoring, transportation, attitude) and it is how we choose to approach them that make us who we are.

Most managers and supervisors shy away from discipline due to its discomfort in addressing inefficiencies, but the fact is that it is a part of running a successful business.  Armed with the proper training and pre-determined policy toward disciplinary actions is a must if a business is to be sustainable over time.  Remember also, that how you handled a problem in the past may not have been the best way, but do not let that stop you from using the best thought out solution the next time.  Precedence or not, your business may be at stake.