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Providing People Solutions |
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Providing People Solutions |
The holidays are swiftly approaching. Employees are beginning to embrace the magic of the season and employers are preparing for the annual holiday party. While the proper do’s and don’ts surrounding holiday parties may seem obvious to some, Creative Business Solutions would like to take a moment to remind employers about the potential liability surrounding company holiday parties, and provide some appropriate suggestions to help your company avoid any problems from these special holiday celebrations.
First, attendance at holiday parties should be voluntary for both practical and legal reasons. From a practical perspective, some employees may simply not want to attend for a host of reasons. From a legal perspective, making attendance voluntary helps protect employers from potential wage claims or worker’s compensation claims.
In honor of Veteran's Day, I want to thank all who have or who are currently serving in our military. Recently, I had the opportunity for my first visit to Washington, D.C. Of course, high on my list of things to see and experience had to do with the brave men and women in the armed forces who have served our country. The four pictures below represent sites I was able to see and pay my respects: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier; Korean War Memorial ("Freedom is Not Free"); World War II Memorial (Harry Truman's quote); and the Vietnam War Memorial (over 58,000 names are listed...it is an overwhelming experience to see.)
If you are an employer, the law is very clear on protection for those who served - or serve - and work for you. For your convenience, I am including the link of the details in this article:
https://www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/USERRA_Private.pdf
Thank you again for serving. I am very grateful that the life I live is because of your service.
On March 18, 2015, the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) issued Memorandum GC 15-04, offering guidance for drafting employee handbook rules so they won’t be deemed unlawful by the NLRB.
This Memorandum is relevant to nearly all private employers – especially to unrepresented (non-union) employees who comprise a large majority of the nation’s workforce – because the NLRB is aggressively policing employee handbooks and other employer policies which it believes has a “chilling effect” on employee rights under the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). In fact, the mere maintenance of a work rule – even in the absence of enforcement – may violate the NLRA.
For whatever reason, bad behavior from our clients' employees comes in waves here at Creative Business Solutions. We receive phone calls from our clients requesting advice on how to deal with impolite behavior and other unacceptable workplace behaviors. Why does it come in waves? I have no idea. There are various theories... from the full moon, to springtime, to the holidays. Whatever the reason, it is always a good idea to remind your employees of your policy... Code of Conduct and/or Code of Ethics.
A great training program we provide at CBS is entitled "Workplace Etiquette/Workplace Boundaries." It is a one or two hour training session for management and/or staff. It is a great proactive training session that you can offer annually.
While I'm on this subject, I found the following article to be a good read. Keep us in mind for training, we are only a phone call away.
Outlawing impolite behavior at work: an ominous trend: Click Here
Facing the Giants: True Leaders Don't Quit
Take a look at this movie scene from Facing the Giants. The entitled video is "True Leaders Don't Quit". A lot of "aha" moments to assist you or your team with leadership. What did I capture from this movie scene?
Bottom line, everyone is a leader. Lead by example, show the characteristics of a winner, and you will succeed.
As part of our ongoing support of the Topeka Community, we would like to take this opportunity to shine a spotlight on Channel 27 News and their weekly Veteran Salute segment.
This week, Channel 27 highlighted John Dietrick's service in Vietnam. To read the full article or watch the full interview, click on the image below or click here.
We are thankful to John, and all our Veterans, for their service!
Bruce Graham
Chief Executive Officer
Kansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc.
"HR Partners has helped us with those 'I’ll get around to it' things such as an employee handbook and updating employee files. The most important benefit is they are a phone call away from peace of mind on all things HR.
It is a challenge for any employer to keep up on changes to personnel practices and requirements. The suite of services HR Partners can provide is comprehensive and affordable. The question should be, can you afford not to engage them as part of your employee relations program?"
