FreshView
a publication of Cascade Employers Association
OCTOBER 2011
Dollars & Sense Poll |
In This Issue:
- Survey Spotlight
- OFCCP Proposes Changes to Contractor Requirements
- NLRB Delays Posting Requirement
- FreshView on Compliance
- Did You Know?
Survey Spotlight
By Tina Hamel, Survey Manager
thamel@cascadeemployers.com
SalaryTrends surveys from Cascade Employers Association cover the pay practices of diverse organizations from various markets (Oregon, SW Washington, Northwest Regional, and National), and include multiple relevant data summaries. These valuable tools enable users to evaluate their competitiveness within specific talent markets.
Now Open for participation:
Soon Open for participation:
- 2012 Economic Trends (will open for participation 10/18/11)
Contact us with questions at surveys@salarytrends.com.
OFCCP Proposes Changes to Contractor Requirements
By Lynn Morris, PHR, HR and Compensation Consultant
lmorris@cascadeemployers.com
In May the OFCCP proposed a new Scheduling Letter and Itemized Listing – the notice contractors receive to inform them that they have been selected for an initial desk audit. The public was invited to comment on this revised notice. On September 28th, the OFCCP published a new Scheduling Letter and Itemized Listing, which contains slight changes based on the public comment.
Cascade’s Summer 2011 AAP/EEO Bulletin included an article on the proposed changes. Although the OFCCP believes that the new requirements will not increase the time burden for contractors, the new regulations in the latest version of the letter do require more data to be submitted in the following areas:
Data on each race/ethnic group instead of minorities as a whole, by both job group and job title;
Data on the employees actually considered for promotions and terminations, which will require more detailed tracking;
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policies and other similar policies covering leaves or accommodations;
Detailed pay information for every employee (previously this request was only issued to contractors the OFCCP found to have indicators of potential discrimination);
- Contractors will be required to submit their entire workforce compensation (in digital form) to OFCCP for analysis and review
- Contractors should expect many follow-up inquiries about compensation differences following the $2,000 or 2% guideline that Cascade also wrote about in our Summer 2011 AAP/EEO Bulletin.
The public again has a period of time to comment on the new Scheduling Letter and Itemized Listing (until October 28th), but significant changes are not likely. Cascade recommends preparing now for the changes that will be required for future audits.
Maintain documentation on internal job postings and the employees who apply for the open positions
Maintain clear documentation on voluntary and involuntary terminations
Ensure handbooks are updated and receive a full legal review by an attorney who specializes in employment law
Develop and/or update structured compensation systems based on market data and internal equity
- Assess individual pay within the company’s pay structure versus other employees in similar positions or pay groups
- Identify any employees whose pay rate is out of line with other staff and document the objective reasons for the differences – time in service, previous experience, job scope, documented performance, documented discipline, etc.
Once finally passed, the expectation is that the OFCCP will begin to use the new Scheduling Letter as of January 1, 2012. Until that time, federal contractors selected for audit will continue to receive the current letter. If you have any questions or need any assistance with AAP compliance, please contact Cascade.
NLRB Delays Posting Requirement
By Patrice Altenhofen, President
paltenhofen@cascadeemployers.com
Recently, during a status conference in the U.S. District Court for D.C., the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) announced it will voluntarily delay implementation of its new posting requirement rule until January 31, 2012. The rule was slated to go into effect on November 14, 2011. The decision to delay was made in response to the suit filed by the National Association of Manufacturers against the NLRB.
If required, the new posting would inform employees of their right to organize and seek union representation. While these rights are not new for employees, the posting would be the most direct communication of these rights ever required by employers to employees.
Though the posting requirement has been delayed and possibly rescinded, the coast is not so clear. A pending NLRB ruling could speed up the timing of elections, giving employers less time to respond to an election petition. The most recent NLRB decision (Specialty Healthcare) makes it easier for unions to organize smaller portions of your workforce, targeting the most susceptible employees first. Many employers have expressed great concern over these developments and possible repercussions.
If you’re interested in protecting your workplace against an organizing campaign, here are some actions you can take now:
Be Professional: Make sure your supervisors and managers have the skills they need to lead employees with credibility and proficiency. Do employees trust your managers? Are supervisors considered a reliable resource for employees? Do your supervisors understand that they represent management interests? Is your management team trained on how to respond to questions from employees regarding their rights?
Be Predictable: Employees are particularly interested in predictability when it comes to pay, recognition, and discipline. Employees become unhappy at work when they are surprised or disappointed in any of these areas. Most often this is because something happens that they were not expecting to happen, or when something doesn’t happen that they were expecting to happen. Arbitrary decision-making and poor communication negatively impact trust and may cause employees to look to a union contract to ensure workplace predictability.
Be Competitive: You strive to be competitive in every aspect of your business, from your raw materials pricing to your sales price. Remember to use survey data for comparable industry jobs in your area to confirm that you are compensating your employees competitively – not too much not too little. Take away any question that your employees could secure better pay and benefits through the help of a union.
Be Open: Use an objective third party to conduct an employee survey to assess and address your areas of vulnerability. Be honest with yourself about how you can improve. Make yourself an unattractive target for unionization by becoming the employer your employees will support and defend.
FreshView on Compliance
By Cascade Staff
info@cascadeemployers.com
Question: Can I require my employees to work overtime?
Answer: Employers can require employees to work overtime when necessary.
As with any practice, it is useful to have a policy in place that communicates this expectation to employees, ideally before the practice is implemented. If your organization is likely to mandate overtime, consider asking for volunteers first, check the provisions of all relevant collective bargaining agreements, and include a statement in your overtime policy indicating that employees are expected to work overtime when requested.
Cascade Members: we have sample overtime policies available. Just log in to the Member Toolbox on the Cascade website to download the comprehensive policy available for your use.
Did You Know?
Everyone loves Paid Time Off (PTO), but in most companies there is a limit to how much you can accrue, no matter how long you have been with the company. For non-union companies with less than 100 employees, the average maximum number of days of PTO that an employee can accrue is 22.9. For non-union companies with more than 100 employees, the average maximum goes up to 26.4 days.
How do the union companies compare? For less than 100 employees, the maximum accrual in a union company is 36.1, and with more than 100 employees it is an average of 23.5.
How does your company compare?
Look here each month for a specific policy or benefit practice and see how your practices compare to other employers just like you.
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