 |
Providing People Solutions |
|
Providing People Solutions |
Whenever CBS has the privilege of providing leadership and/or team-building training to our clients, we believe initiating the training with a game, or “ice-breaker” exercise, is a good idea because it engages the participants from the very beginning. Not a game person? Well, maybe game is not the right word for this exercise.
The Lifeboat Game – one of our “ice-breaker” exercises – Is pretty simplistic. The Lifeboat Game includes 15 participants (with specific job titles/roles), but only 9 participants can get on the Lifeboat because the larger boat is sinking. The team collectively makes the decision as to which individuals are allowed on the lifeboat and the team must be able to defend its decisions. This is not always an easy task, but isn’t that what working with a team is all about?
It is important for organizations to examine their work culture at all levels, as their particular culture may either have a positive or negative influence on employer-employee relations. Kristina Dietrick, President and Owner of Creative Business Solutions, presented five ways to “spring” into a better work culture at this week’s Chamber Power Breakfast. Below is an outline which your organization may use to establish or continue developing your employer-employee relations, which in turn, will create a positive and motivating work culture for you, your employees and your organization to succeed.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), which applies to employers with fifteen (15) or more employees, forbids discrimination based on pregnancy when it comes to any aspect of employment including, but not limited to, recruitment, compensation, promotions, training, benefits and terminations.
Under the PDA, an employee who is temporarily unable to perform her job due to pregnancy must be given the same rights as any other employee with a temporary disability. For example, if an employee who is temporarily disabled utilizes disability leave or leave without pay, an employee who is temporarily unable to perform her job due to pregnancy must be able to utilize the same benefit.
The Department of Labor (DOL) has recently proposed changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) overtime regulations. These proposed changes include increasing the salary level test for Executive, Administrative and Professional level exemptions, as well as increasing the salary level for Highly Compensated Employees. The proposed changes also include reanalyzing the definition of “primary duty” for the purposes of proper FLSA classifications.
Each January, Tim Davis, partner at the law firm of Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP, speaks to the local Topeka SHRM Chapter regarding recent and upcoming legal updates and how each affects the area of human resources. These legal updates include all aspects of the employer/employee relationship including compliance with the NLRA, FMLA, Title VII, ADA, ADEA, and FLSA, just to name a few.
Sandy Warren
VP Operations
Capper Foundation
"Consultation services provided by HR Partners proved a valuable resource for personnel matters and in updating our personnel handbook.
As we continued to grow in staff size, we found an on-going retainer with HR Partners a great fit to support management, policy and training needs. The HR Partners team is professional, knowledgable and creative in their approach and we can have confidence in managing employment matters with their involvement and understandnig of our organization."
