Having an Office Party without Legal Issues at Your Credit Union

by Charisse Rockett, PHR

One thing leads to another. It's true – winter, holidays ... parties!  It's that time of year when credit union HR professionals get nervous! They realize that holiday office parties are common and that they can improve morale, employee communication, and show that an organization cares about its people. As we all know, nothing in HR is simple and without consequence.

Mark Toth, Chief Legal Officer at Manpower Group NA and author of The Employment Blawg, reported that 83 percent of employers plan holiday celebrations this year, which is higher than last year’s 68 percent, but still below 90 percent in 2007. Other statistics he shared indicate that 54 percent of employers are having employee-only parties without guests and only 48 percent plan to serve alcohol.

Here are some tips for the ever vigilant credit union HR pros:

• Be inclusive. Make sure that your office gatherings don’t intentionally (or more likely unintentionally) exclude individuals within your credit union. Your employees may differ greatly in terms of religion, age, ethnicity, marital status, background and interests, so be sensitive to those differences. Make all feel welcome, but do not make attendance mandatory or give it the appearance of being mandatory.
  
  
• Invite guests. Encourage employees to bring spouses or significant others. This may help to discourage bad behavior by employees. 

• Inform employees. Besides giving the time and place, employees should be reminded that company behavior standards are just as applicable off site as on site.  Employees should understand that corrective action will follow for those “behaving badly” and who say or do things that are inappropriate. 

• To serve or not to serve. Soft drinks and other non-alcoholic beverages should be plentiful as should food. If serving alcohol, hire a professional bartender that will help prevent underage drinking and will know when someone has had enough. Try drink tickets, limiting individuals to a certain number of alcoholic beverages.
   
• Managers are managers. While managers are employees too, and they should be able to enjoy themselves, it is important to make known the expectations for them while at the party. They should be setting a good example, they should support the bartender, and they remain responsible for their employees even though it is a party.

Mixing and interacting in a more relaxed environment with employees can go a long way in building trust and loyalty and can make a good impression on their guests. Using these reminders, you can have a great party and a fun experience, with no regrets or legal action!

Employee Pay Increase Forecast for 2014

by Charisse Rockett, PHR

The average pay increase employees may expect in 2014 is 2.9% according to an article from CNNMoney, with the findings of Mercer’s Rewards, a consulting business.   This is up slightly from an average of 2.8% in 2013.  However, this is a significant increase from early in the recession when increases in 2009 were averaging 2.1%, if increases were happening at all.  Because of the continued high rate of unemployment in June of 7.6%, employers still manage to have their pick of the talent pool without having to bust their budgets, keeping tighter reins on recruitment and retention costs.

Other factors affecting wages are the costs associated with retirement benefits and the still cloudy path of health care benefits under the Affordable Care Act.  Employers will eventually have to increase wages to remain competitive.  Jeanie Adkins, a partner of Mercer’s Rewards, stated, “Employers recognize that their greatest challenge is to retain their top performers to avoid post-recessionary flight.  This means they have to reward them.”

Possessing a good compensation philosophy is crucial to managing your salary budget, meeting key business strategies, and keeping employees contented.  It reassures employees that you are well-equipped with the current market trends, aware of current and future workforce needs, and are paying them a fair wage.  If you don’t have a compensation philosophy, you need one and we can help!

Are There Bullies at Your Credit Union?

by Paul Hendryks and Gene Mandarino

Turn on the news, read your phone, listen to the radio, watch any of the most popular sitcoms or reality shows and you will see a common thread running through all of them, or most of them: people being mean. The news is filled with horrific stories of violence and abuse. The sitcoms cannot do without pranks and practical jokes at someone’s expense and the reality shows are a continuous stream of people arguing, with more bleeped out expletives than actual dialogue. 

With this continuous stream of “mean” in the media it is no wonder workplace bullying is on the rise. And, according to the Associated Press, 10 states are now considering legislation that would allow workers to sue for on-the-job bullying that causes physical or emotional harm. They also cite that 56% of companies surveyed have some type of anti-bullying policy.

As an HR professional we would suggest that every credit union get out in front of this and look at including an anti-bullying policy in their employee handbook. As a person I would suggest that we look at ways to encourage each other to be nicer: to say thank you; to say please; to help out a coworker who is struggling with a problem at home; to buy a coworker a candy bar just because; to give someone a thank you card; to ask “How can I help?”; to recognize someone for a job well done at a staff meeting; to bring in coffee from Starbucks for the office; to help out with mundane tasks i.e., stuffing envelopes, filing, etc.; or to just ask yourself, “What can I do to be a little nicer?” 

Workplace Bullying - The Next Employment Law Nightmare? 

Maybe you thought it was just an oversight that you weren’t included in the lunch outing by others in your department. Then you later learn that one of your coworkers used the lunch outing as an opportunity to criticize you about everything – from the clothes you wear to your work habits. And later in the week, this same coworker takes credit at a staff meeting for a project you recently completed (knowing you don’t have the courage to speak up to dispute his statement).

All of this may remind you of similar antics pulled by bullies in grade school. One would think that the playground bullies would “grow out of it” and not continue this type of behavior in the workplace. Apparently not, as workplace bullying has affected about 35% of workers according to a CareerBuilder survey.

To read more about this developing topic, click here to view the most recent HRN Performance Solutions monthly HR white paper. If you would like to receive more well-researched and concisely written FREE monthly HR topical white papers, simply sign up here and we will add you to our email distribution list.

Social Media and Your Credit Union Employees

Since the advent of social media, employers have often found themselves playing catch-up in terms of their communication and technology policies. Back in the good old days, all we had to concern ourselves with was inappropriate email use and making sure the credit union had a website, no matter how content-bare it may have been. 

Fast forward to present day, and many credit unions struggle to find a balance in several concerns surrounding social media. Do we prohibit employees from participating in social media at work? Do we allow some personal use? How do we decide the extent to which our credit union will have a social media presence, and who will be responsible to maintain it?

It turns out there may be a Big Brother out there who cares as much about your social media policies as you do: the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). We’ve all heard about the “Facebook Firing” cases as of late, and at least some of those have applied to non-union workplaces. If you didn’t care about what the NLRB was doing before now, it’s a critical time to start. The NLRB has been paying a lot of attention to non-union employers and employees as of late.

On August 30, 2011 the NLRB issued a final rule that requires any private-sector employer covered under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to post a notice to its employees of their rights under the act. If there are 20% or more employees who are primarily non-English speaking, the notice must also be posted in the preferred language. If employers post other employee notices, such as those required by the Department of Labor (DOL), on the company’s intranet or other site, the NLRB notice must be posted there as well. The notice must be posted regardless of current unionization status. By April 30th, virtually every employer will be required to add this poster to their wall of notices.

Although there is not a fine for non-compliance, your credit union could become ripe for an “unfair labor practice” charge if the notice is not posted. The failure to comply could be used as evidence in the event a case is brought against your credit union.

In spite of all the news about the new poster, you may still be surprised to learn that NLRA requirements are frequently applicable in non-union workplaces. Contact your attorney for more detailed information or guidance regarding specific situations.

What Not to Include in Your Social Media Use Policy
Recently, the NLRB has ruled against companies who included certain language in their social media policies. These statements include:

• Rules that prohibit employees from “making disparaging comments about the company through any media, including online blogs, other electronic media, or through the media.”
   
• Limits on employees’ discussion of terms and conditions of employment to discussions that are to be conducted in an “appropriate” manner, implicitly prohibiting “inappropriate” discussions.
   
• A rule that prohibited “disrespectful online conduct” and “inappropriate conversations.”

Access the required NLRA poster Learn more about the Notification of Employee Rights under the NLRA