Archive for HR News for Small Businesses

New Back-to-the-Office Guidelines in Light of Delta Variant

In my last article I discussed the importance of being flexible in your planning as you begin to bring employees back into the office. Consider each individual’s situation and co-create a solution that works for you both. This will help with employee relations and may help retain talent that you can’t afford to lose – especially in the current labor-shortage environment.

It’s also important to ensure that you are following the latest public health guidelines so that employees will feel safe when they come into the office.  Due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations resulting from the Delta variant, health officials are revising their guidelines again.

Additionally, many employers, including Google, Facebook and Twitter, are delaying their return-to-work plans and requiring vaccinations. Amazon, Wells Fargo and ride service companies Uber and Lyft are among many other companies delaying bring employees back into the office. Tyson Foods will require all U.S. employees to be vaccinated. Delta and United Airlines will also require employees to show proof of vaccination before returning to work.

Across the Bay Area, health officials are reinstating a mask mandate. For example, the Santa Clara County Department of Public Health is now requiring face coverings for all persons, regardless of vaccination status, when indoors except when:

  1. They are in their own residence, working in an office alone, or with members of their household.
  2. They are actively performing an activity that cannot be done wearing a face covering.
  3. They are specifically exempted from use of face coverings by the California Department of Public Health.

The Santa Clara County Health Officer also urges all businesses and governmental entities to:

  1. Implement mandatory vaccination requirements for all personnel.
  2. Move operations and activities outdoors where possible, and/or maximize ventilation.
  3. Prohibit personnel who are not fully vaccinated from engaging in travel to places with elevated rates of COVID-19.
  4. Require all personnel not fully vaccinated to obtain frequent testing.
  5. Require that any person, vaccinated or unvaccinated, who has COVID symptoms be tested immediately.

We are currently experiencing in this country what’s being called the Great Resignation. People are leaving their jobs in droves and one of many the reasons is fear of going back to an unsafe workplace. Be sure you are following the current protocols and communicating that to employees to eliminate “safety” as a reason for them move on.

Next month I’ll discuss best practices around retention and what you can do to proactively retain your talent.  

New Health Guidelines for Post-COVID Return to Work

If you are a business leader starting to bring employees back into the office, there are some specific Public Health Department guidelines you need to follow. These may vary according to your business location and where your employees actually perform their work. Also, the state, county, city and CalOSHA all have guidelines. If these guidelines differ, the more restrictive ones prevail.

Santa Clara County issued a new health order effective May 19, 2021. If your business is in Santa Clara County or you have employees or volunteers who regularly work at worksites in the County, be sure that you comply with these guidelines. We’ve listed a few of them below. For more information, read the full health order.

  • Employers must require that employees immediately notify them if they test positive for COVID-19 and were present in the workplace within 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms (or the date when they were tested) or within 10 days after the onset of symptoms (or the date when they were tested if they were asymptomatic).
  • Employers must ascertain the vaccination status of all personnel who perform any work at a facility or worksite in the county within 14 days of this order (by June 1, 2021).  Personnel includes employees, contractors, volunteers, and anyone who regularly works at worksites in the County.
  • Personnel who decline to provide vaccination status are to be treated as unvaccinated. After the initial request, businesses must follow up every 14 days with all personnel who were not fully vaccinated to determine their status.
  • Employers must require unvaccinated personnel to wear masks, maintain the appropriate physical distance, and comply with all other County health guidelines for unvaccinated individuals.
  • Employers are also required to provide unvaccinated personnel with information on how to get vaccinated.
  • All employers must maintain appropriate records to demonstrate compliance. Non-compliance may result in fines of up to $5,000 per violation per day.

Per the County FAQs, compliance with the vaccination/recordkeeping requirement takes just a few steps:

  1. Provide staff members a copy of the one-page Self-Certification form the County has provided to assist businesses in meeting this requirement.  It should take employees no more than a minute or two to fill out the form.
  2. Collect the forms and store them in the same way you store confidential employee information like documents requesting medical leave, reasonable accommodations, etc.
  3. Provide employees who are not vaccinated or declined to state whether they are vaccinated an information sheet on vaccination, which is available here.

Click here for the Santa Clara County Public Health Order FAQs.

If you are based in San Francisco or have employees working in San Francisco, check out these guidelines from the San Francisco Department of Health.

Learn about the State of California guidelines for fully vaccinated individuals here.

CalOSHA is in the process of revising their COVID-19 prevention guidelines (ETS), which may be stricter than those issued by California and the CDC. These will not be finalized until later this month. The revisions include updates to face coverings, physical distancing and other prevention measures for vaccinated and unvaccinated workers. The ETS applies to most workers in California.  We suggest you visit their FAQ which will have more details on the proposed changes once they are approved and adopted later in June.

Disclaimer: Because information and guidelines continue to evolve, it’s essential for leaders to keep an eye out for the latest guidelines from the state, CalOSHA, and the city and county where you have personnel performing work, as defined above. 

Also, if you have questions about your particular situation, it’s always a good idea to seek advice from your legal counsel.

Please reach out to me at michelle@connecttohr.com if you need help creating a return-to-work plan.

HR Best Practices for the Post-COVID Return to Work

Now that companies have been given the green light to bring employees back into the office, many business owners and leaders are wondering how to do this safely and effectively.

I had the privilege last week to present at a webinar on this topic with the McManis Faulkner employment law team. Here are some tips I shared at that event.

Create a plan. Assemble a cross-functional team who will provide input on business needs to determine when to bring employees back and what that will look like. Survey employees to understand their concerns. Review individual jobs and decide which need to return to the office and which can stay remote. Take into account any out-of-state situations where guidelines may be different.

Be flexible – consider a “soft” re-opening. Some employees are anxious to return to the office. Others are not. Consider opening in phases to allow those with “wait and see” concerns to return at the later date. Also, based on your review of jobs, can you offer a hybrid work situation to those employees whose jobs aren’t required in the office five days a week?

Be compassionate.  Over the past year there has been an increase in substance abuse, depression and anxiety. Some employees may still be struggling with fears and the effects of isolation even as they are able to return to work. Offer mental health services and brown bag lunches on mental health topics to help those with concerns.  

Create an environment that attracts and retains women. Women were disproportionately impacted by the effects of the COVID pandemic. In fact, nearly 2.2 million women left the workforce entirely due to school closures, caring for a loved one, or the lack of affordable childcare. Consider implementing flexible schedules and parent-friendly policies. Review compensation annually and make adjustments to achieve pay equity. Promote more women to leadership positions at all levels of the company. And when hiring, give credit for activities and leadership roles taken during work gaps (for example, PTA president).

If you have questions or need help putting together your return-to-work plan, please consider Connect to HR’s 3-hour Just in Time Advisory Service. Many of my clients found this service helpful last year as they made the shift to a remote work model or needed to keep their essential business open safely.

With Just in Time Advisory Service, you can access up to 3 hours of “live” HR consulting support from a trusted, senior-level HR consultant by phone, email or in person. Our service is specifically designed for small to medium sized companies:

  • Owners/CEOs/Nonprofit Leaders
  • Those running the HR function
  • People new to HR operations

Whether you need a sounding board to discuss approaches to an employee relations issue, want tips on how to create a workforce plan, or have questions about implementing a social distancing protocol in the office, Connect to HR’s Just in Time Guide is here to help.

You do not have to do it alone!

Contact us today for a FREE 45-minute consultation to see how Just in Time: Your Guide to HR can benefit you. Click the link below to schedule an appointment.

https://calendly.com/michellemendoza-connecttohr/45min

You can reach me directly at michelle@connecttohr.com, and find out more about our services at www.connecttohr.com. 

Preparing to Return to the Office

A recent Gartner survey of HR leaders showed that 45% of them expect their workforce to reopen in the third quarter of 2021, while 24% plan to reopen in the fourth quarter.

But while everyone is anxious for things to get “back to normal” the survey indicated that the new normal will be more of a hybrid model, with most employees working remotely at least part of the time. Nearly 32% of respondents said they will let employees work remotely all of the time, while 49% said they would let employees work remotely on certain days.

This hybrid model presents a number of challenges for leaders as they wrestle with how to reconnect their teams, navigate various new rules and regulations, and manage the impact that the past 15 months has had on their people.

To provide some guidance around these challenges, I will be presenting at a webinar with legal experts from McManis Faulkner’s employment team on Wednesday, May 19 at 10:00 am PT.

We’ll be looking at the legal and HR side of returning to work and providing answers to questions such as:

  • Can I require employees to come back to the office?
  • What requirements can I put in place regarding vaccines?
  • How do I keep up with the ever-changing rules and regulations issued by various agencies?
  • How has the pandemic impacted men and women differently, and what effect will that have on the workplace?

Register here for the Return to Work Considerations for California Employers webinar: https://bit.ly/3t3LY1X

This virtual training is brought to you by McManis Faulkner and the Santa Clara County Bar Association. It qualifies for 1 general MCLE credit from MCLE provider, McManis Faulkner (# 3573). To receive credit, please provide your CA State Bar Number on the registration form. If you have any questions, please contact events@mcmanislaw.com.

I hope to see you there.

New COVID-19 Regulations

In addition to the new laws I described in my last blog, there are some new regulations related specifically to COVID-19.

Cal-OSHA COVID-19 Reporting Requirements

AB 685, effective January 1, 2021, requires that within one business day of being notified by an employee of potential COVID-19 exposure, an employer must provide written notice to all employees of the following:

  • Potential exposure
  • Information regarding all COVID-19 related benefits available under federal, state and local laws
  • Disinfection and safety plan the employer will implement per CDC guidelines

Employers must maintain records of notifications for at least three years.

Workers Compensation

SB 1159 creates “rebuttable presumption” that, in certain circumstances, illness or death from COVID-19 is work-related. This rebuttable presumption remains in place until January 1, 2023, and applies to all employees who:

  • Work for a company with five or more employees
  • Test positive during any COVID-19 outbreak at the place of employment

Workers Compensation now also has a new reporting requirement that employers must report to their Claims Administrator within three days that an employee has tested positive for COVID-19.

An employer may dispute the presumption by providing evidence of measures it took to reduce potential transmission of the disease or the employee’s nonoccupational risks of COVID-19 infection.

Testing and Vaccines

Employers may require, as part of their COVID-19 health and safety protocols, that employees who work onsite be periodically tested for COVID-19, as long as the employer pays for the test and adheres to HIPAA and privacy law.

Employers may not, however, require antibody testing.

As for vaccines, the rules on this are not clear yet, so the best thing to do is consult your legal counsel.

COVID-19 Prevention Plan

As of November 30, 2020 Cal-OSHA has required employers to have a written COVID-19 Prevention Plan. This can be a stand-alone document or integrated into the employer’s Injury and Illness Prevention Program.

The COVID-19 Prevention Plan applies to all employees except: 1) When there is only one employee who does not come in contact with other persons; 2) Employees working from home; 3) Employees already covered by the aerosol transmission standard.

The written COVID-19 Prevention Plan must include the following:

  1. A system for communication
  2. Identification and evaluation of COVID-19 hazards
  3. Investigating and responding to COVID-19 cases in the workplace
  4. Correction of COVID-19 hazards
  5. Training and instruction
  6. Physical distancing
  7. Face coverings
  8. Other engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment (PPE)
  9. Reporting, recordkeeping, and access
  10. Exclusion of COVID-19 cases
  11. Return to work criteria

Cal/OSHA has a model COVID-19 Prevention Plan on its website as well as FAQs and other helpful information for employers about COVID-19.

As a reminder, we have an employer resource page that has links to a variety of sites that deal specifically with COVID-19 information.  Here’s the link again for your reference Connect to HR Employer Resources.

Also, I spoke to my colleague, Mary Hiland, Ph.D earlier this year on the topic of health and safety in the workplace.  Click here for a recap of the interview.

Please reach out if you need help updating your IIPP or have questions about implementing these new regulations.

New Employment Laws for 2021

A new year is just around the corner! No doubt we will all be happy to put 2020 behind us!

As with every new year, there are a number of new employment laws and regulations. This is the first of two articles to inform you about those laws.

Expanded California Family Rights Act (CFRA)

The California Family Rights Act currently requires employers with 50 or more employees to provide eligible employees with 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period to 1) recover from a serious health condition; 2) care for a family member with a serious health condition; or 3) bond with their child.

SB 1383 expands CFRA coverage, effective January 1, 2021, as follows:

  • The law now applies to employers with 5 or more employees
  • It eliminates the employee count within a 75-mile radius requirement 
  • The definition of covered family members is expanded from child, parent, spouse or domestic partner to include grandparent, grandchild and siblings
  • “Child” is no longer limited to children under age 18
  • The leave cap of 12 weeks for new child bonding for two parents employed by the same employer has been eliminated
  • The key employee exception is now repealed
  • The law repeals the New Parent Leave Act for employers with 20 to 49 employees because the new CFRA will provide this coverage

A CFRA and Federal Family Medical Leave (FMLA) may run concurrently or separately depending on whether the CFRA leave is covered by FMLA. If it’s not, an eligible employee may take both – 12 weeks for CFRA and an additional 12 weeks for FMLA. Be sure to update your policies to reflect the changes.

Deadline for CA Sexual Harassment Prevention Training

SB 778 extends the deadline for CA anti-harassment training to January 1, 2021 for employers with fewer than 50 workers/contract employees.

All employers must provide two hours of training to supervisors and one hour of training to non-supervisors. Training must be repeated every two years and new employees/supervisors must be trained within their first six months. Other requirements include:

Supervisor training must be “live,” and interactive, e.g., via a webinar, with the opportunity for participants to ask questions, have them answered and seek guidance and assistance.  Supervisors are expected to actively participate in the training. Employers must document attendance and keep for two years a copy of the webinar, plus all written materials, responses submitted during the webinar, and all written responses or guidance the training provided during the webinar.

Increased Protections for Employees Who are Victims of Crime or Abuse

AB 2992 expands protections for employees who take time off from work as a result of crime or abuse. Existing law requires that employers with 25 or more employees allow an employee who was the victim of domestic violence, sexual assault and/or stalking to take time off to seek medical attention or related services.  The new law expands those protections to include victims of any other crime or abuse that causes physical or mental injury and a threat of physical injury, and any person whose immediate family member is deceased as the direct result of the crime.  Under this law, immediate family members are broadly defined to include child, parent, sibling, partner and any other individual whose close association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. Employers are prohibited from discharging or discriminating against employees who take time off for reasons defined in the law. Find more information here.

Unlimited Vacation

With more companies offering employees “unlimited vacation,” it’s important to note some recent case law around the payout of unused vacation upon termination. In McPherson v. EF Intercultural Foundation, multiple former employees sued for failure to pay unused vacation. They had been told by the company that they could take an unspecified amount of time off for vacation, subject to their supervisor’s approval. Because the employer did not have a written policy that clearly defined and communicated the obligations of employee and employer in requesting and approving time off, the Court required that the employer make some payment to the employees for expected vacation that they did not use.

If you offer, or are considering offering unlimited vacation, be sure you have a written policy and that you review it with your legal counsel for compliance. Also, be sure that you administer the policy consistently and you communicate it to your employees.  Note that unlimited vacation policies should not apply to non-exempt employees. 

EEOC Pay Data Reporting

Although federal EEO reporting has been paused, California passed legislation in September (SB 973) that requires employers with 100 or more employees to report certain pay and other data to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). The first report is due March 31, 2021 and annually thereafter. Find out more about reporting requirements here.

Minimum Pay Changes

Finally, please note these minimum pay rate changes for California employees, all effective January 1, 2021.

Non-exempt minimum wage:

  • $14/hour for employers with 26 or more employees
  • $13/hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees

Minimum exempt salary:

  • $58,240/year for employers with 26 or more employees
  • $54,080/year for employers with 25 or fewer employees

Computer Software Professionals: $98,907.70 per year ($47.48 per hour)

Minimum wage rates may vary according to the city/county where the employee works. Be sure you are adhering to local requirements.

As always, please reach out to me at michelle@connecttohr.com if you have questions.

In my next article we’ll cover some new laws and regulations specifically related to COVID-19.

New to HR? You Don’t Have to Do it Alone!

When a company hits the 50-employee mark in California, a lot of HR regulations kick in. I wrote about some of those regulations in a previous blog.

Understanding what those regulations are and putting processes and procedures in place to ensure compliance are essential to avoiding costly lawsuits and penalties. At this point in a company’s growth, it’s wise to have someone dedicated to the HR function.

Such was the case with a hi-tech client who reached their 50-employee milestone and needed some help creating structure around the HR function. They had assigned their Office Manager to the HR role and tasked her with implementing an official HR department.  She had been with the company for many years, but had no prior HR experience. She was very concerned about her new assignment and didn’t want to face this new challenge alone.  That’s where Connect to HR came in.

The first thing we did was perform an HR audit to see exactly where the company was in terms of compliance and best practices. As with many companies with fewer than 50 employees, there was very little structure in place. Also, the practices around hiring, promotions and increases were random and inconsistently applied.

Top on our list of priorities was to document and communicate policies and procedures that reflect both legal requirements and company guidelines. These serve as the foundational piece for hiring, firing, promoting, performance management, etc.

We also helped the Office/HR Manager implement a performance management system, hiring process, and best practices around terminations. Often one of the hardest things for new HR Managers is handling employee relations issues. So for four years now, we have provided ongoing and just-in-time HR consulting services on various employee scenarios that pop up and how to handle them.

With the HR structure in place, plus the knowledge she gained from the HR audit and our one-on-one HR guidance and support, the Office/HR Manager felt more confident in her new role.  Over the years, she has recognized that she isn’t alone when facing complicated HR issues.  She’s comfortable knowing she has a resource in Connect to HR when she has questions or needs a sounding board.

If you are new to the HR function and need some advice about HR processes or compliance, or have a particular HR issue you’d like to discuss, you may want to consider my Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service.

Contact me today to schedule a free 30-minute consultation to see how Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service can help you.

https://calendly.com/michellemendoza-connecttohr/30-minute-consultation

Reopening Your Business – It’s Important to Have a Plan

As of this month, many businesses that have been closed or operating remotely during our Shelter-in-Place order are now able to reopen. If you are able to reopen, are you ready?

Public health guidelines call for continued social distancing, facemasks, and enhanced sanitation procedures in order to open while maintaining the health of staff and customers. This requires a considerable amount of planning on the part of the business owner and new processes and procedures for employees.

The most frequent request I’m getting from leaders and business owners these days who call about my Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service is for help in creating a COVID-19 compliant reopening plan. 

A recent Forbes article included a checklist of “the 5 most important things businesses must be able to do in order to return to work.”

  1. Track and comply with evolving government and healthcare protocols.
  2. Help keep employees safe.
  3. Analyze the threat of new outbreaks.
  4. Maintain the integrity of their supply chain.
  5. Audit their processes to maintain compliance.

Each of these items requires planning as well as knowledge of where to find the most recent credible information about requirements and protocols. And that’s where advice from a Senior HR Consultant can be very helpful. 

If you will be continuing to have some or all of your employees work remotely, it’s also important to strategize how to do that on a more permanent basis. Having employees work remotely for a few months is one thing, but when it becomes your standard business model there are many other things to consider. What additional equipment will employees need? How will you maintain team cohesiveness and workflow? How do you help remote employees maintain a balance between work-at-home and home-at-home so they don’t burn out?  

It’s also important to think about how you will handle specific employee issues that may come up in light of the pandemic. Some questions clients have asked me are:

  • What if an employee is afraid of returning to work in case they’re exposed to the virus and then expose a vulnerable family member?  How do we convince them that it’s safe?
  • How do we keep employees engaged when they’re working remotely?
  • What if we have another shutdown?

If you have questions or need help putting together your business reopening plan, contact me today to schedule a free 30-minute consultation to see how Just in Time 3-Hour HR Consulting Service can help you.

https://calendly.com/michellemendoza-connecttohr/30-minute-consultation

If you know of a business owner who may need advice about reopening or any other HR issue, please share our Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service flyer with them. Thank you!

Answers to Your HR Questions – Just in Time

Managing the many aspects of the HR function can be challenging, especially if you are also trying to run the business or are new to HR operations. In small and medium sized companies, the “HR person,” whether it’s the business owner or someone dedicated to that role, is often flying solo with no one to consult about an HR issue or the details of a new compliance requirement.  Trying to find answers via an online HR database can be frustrating and time consuming.

Now, as we look at returning to work following the COVID-19 shelter-in-place mandate, business owners are faced with a new set of challenges:

  • How do we safely reopen?
  • What if someone does not want to come back to work?
  • What protective equipment do we need?
  • What are the new working guidelines?
  • How do I even get started?

Connect to HR’s Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service has the answers. With this service you can access up to 3 hours of “live” HR consulting support from a trusted, senior-level HR consultant by phone, email or in person. Our service is specifically designed for small to medium sized companies:

  • Owners/CEOs/Nonprofit Leaders
  • Those running the HR function
  • People new to HR operations

Whether you need a sounding board to discuss approaches to an employee relations issue, want tips on how to create a workforce plan, or have questions about implementing a social distancing protocol in the office, Connect to HR’s Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service is here to help.

You do not have to do it alone!

Contact us today for a FREE 30-minute consultation to see how our Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service can benefit you.

https://calendly.com/michellemendoza-connecttohr/30-minute-consultation

You can reach me directly at michelle@connecttohr.com, and find out more about our services at www.connecttohr.com.  Click here to learn more about our Just in Time 3-Hour HR Advisory Service.

New Connect to HR Resource for Employers

In any given week, business owners carry out multiple employment related activities that they must be sure are compliant with current federal and state law, and relevant local ordinances. Hiring and firing. Approving leaves of absence. Displaying the most recent employment posters.

Keeping up with evolving rules and regulations is challenging in normal times, and even more so during our current health crisis. So where can employers go to quickly find the information they need?

Connect to HR is happy to announce a new resource for employers on our website. Our Employer Resource Page provides links to credible sources for information about federal and state laws relating to employment compliance, wage and hour requirements, family medical leave, workplace safety and much more.

Feeling overwhelmed or confused trying to navigate the flood of information about benefit changes related to COVID-19?  We also have a section with links to sources for the latest information about the crisis and related requirements for employers. We’ve also included links to sources for financial relief for small businesses.

Additional resources include links to local law firms and the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) who also provide COVID-19 related information.

This page is meant to be a “living” resource so we will be updating it with additional topics and information. Please feel free to contact me at michelle@connecttohr if there’s a particular topic or resource you’d like to see included.

And check back often. We’ll soon be including a section with links to articles, podcasts and other resources related to growing as a leader.  

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” – John F Kennedy

Access our Employer Resources page at: https://connecttohr.com/employer-resources/

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