The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) postponed the implementation of rules on disabled access to commercial swimming pools under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The DOJ announced that existing facilities do not have to be equipped with handicapped-accessible entry until Jan. 31, 2013. This is the third extension of the compliance deadline.
The DOJ took hotels, community pools, water parks, and health clubs by surprise early this year when it issued a technical guidance that required fixed, built-in pool lifts for the disabled at existing pools.
Previously, the understanding was that fixed pool lifts would only be required at newly constructed pools. The fixed pool lift requirement raised concerns over safety (children diving off the lifts), costs and ability to comply within the timeframe provided.
Fixed lifts often require extensive construction and electrical work. Concern was also expressed over whether an adequate supply of pool lifts was available. A groundswell of complaints flooded in from hoteliers and others who operate commercial swimming pools.
The extension applies only to existing swimming pools, wading pools and spas. It does not apply to pools and spas that are being newly constructed or altered. Newly constructed pools or altered facilities are subject to a March 15, 2012, compliance deadline.
The DOJ also issued a new guidance document related to its interpretation of the requirements for pool and spa accessibility.
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Tags: HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, department of justice, disabled access to swimming pools, DOJ, guidance document
The California Assembly passed a bill that would create a mandated leave benefit different from federal law. AB 2039 (Swanson; D-Alameda) significantly expands the type of individuals or circumstances under which employees can take a 12-week, protected leave of absence under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA).
Current Law
Currently, CFRA requires an employer with 50 or more employees to allow an employee who worked at least 1,250 hours to take up to 12 weeks of leave in a 12-month period for his/her own serious medical condition, for the birth or placement of a child, or to care for the serious medical condition of a child, (under 18 years of age or adult dependent), spouse, or parent.
The current definition of “parent” includes step-parents as well as individuals who stand in place of a parent, “in loco parentis,” to the child.
Expansion of CFRA
AB 2039 seeks to expand CFRA by allowing an employee a protected leave to care for adult children, parents-in-law, grandparents and siblings.
Given that the individuals proposed by AB 2039 are not covered by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), an employee could use his/her 12 weeks of CFRA to care for the serious medical condition of a parent-in-law, then take another 12-week leave under FMLA to care for the medical condition for his/her spouse, child or parent.
Leave Already Protected
The new burden that AB 2039 creates is unnecessary. The proposed category of individuals that AB 2039 seeks to include under the protections of CFRA is generally already protected. A grandparent or step-parent who stands in loco parentis to a child, can already take a protected leave of absence under CFRA to care for that child, and vice versa. There is no need to create another exception for the parent-in-law, daughter in-law, or son-in law to also be able to take leave.
Tags: employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, Employers, HR Informant, FMLA, CFRA, AB 2039, California Family Rights Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, California Assembly, new leave mandate, new leave mandate bill
The Acting General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued athird report on employee use of social media.
Tags: employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, NLRB, social media, National Labor Relations Board, employer social media policies, social media report
California’s presidential primary election will happen on June 5, 2012. Your employees may be entitled to time off for voting.
If an employee does not have sufficient time outside of working hours to vote in a statewide election, the employee may, without loss of pay, take off up to two hours of working time to vote.
The time off must be taken at the beginning or end of the regular working shift, whichever allows the most free time for voting and the least time off from working, unless otherwise mutually agreed. The employee must notify you at least two working days in advance to arrange a voting time.
In addition, employees may serve as election officials on election day without being disciplined, but you are not required to pay them for these absences.
Tags: time off to vote, ime Off, Workplace Policies Technorati Tags: California, voting, voting leave requirements, employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, Employers, HR Informant
A San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) company employee filed a lawsuit against SDG&E after she was fired because of her Facebook post about a customer. Did SDG&E do anything wrong?
The issue of whether an employer can discipline an employee for his/her Facebook posts has received plenty of attention in the national press. HR Informant previously reported on the National Labor Relations Board’s activity in this area.
If an employee discusses working conditions on his/her Facebook page, that activity may be protected under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Under Section 7, employees in both union and nonunion workplaces have the right to engage in concerted activities, including discussing working conditions, pay or other work-related issues.
In 2011, the NLRB acted against several employers when those employers disciplined employees for work-related comments on Facebook.
In San Diego, the SDG&E employee said she was fired after allegedly posting a comment on a co-worker’s Facebook page about a customer and using the customer’s first and last name. According to the employee, SDG&E told her she was fired because her Facebook post violated the company’s customer privacy policy.
The SDG&E employee filed a lawsuit claiming that the alleged violation of the company’s customer privacy policy is not the real reason for the termination. The lawsuit alleges that the firing has a discriminatory motive.
Though employees may not be fired for an unlawful reason, such as engaging in protected activities, employers still have the right to set and enforce policies protecting the privacy rights of their employees and their customers. It is a balancing act with competing interests: the company’s right to protect proprietary information and obligation to protect customer privacy, and employees’ rights to discuss working conditions.
With the ever-changing landscape, employers should carefully craft their social media policies. Employers may also want to consult with counsel before terminating an employee for conduct involving social media.
Tags: employee fired for facebook post, social media in the workplace, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, employee, social media, facebook
It’s 5:18 a.m. and the phone rings. Your morning chef is on the line with awful news: She won’t be coming in to work today. Sick. Hungover. Won the lottery. Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter. You have 350 guests arriving at 10 a.m. for a high-profile wedding brunch — a make-or-break moment for your restaurant, perhaps your biggest engagement of the year — and you need a chef.
Don’t know what to do? You should. Situations like this happen all the time. The employee you’re counting on to open up shop, to fix the ice machine, to watch a classroom full of toddlers, etc., isn’t going to show up today, on very short notice.
You could call a temporary employment agency, of course, but for many small businesses that’s not an option. Temp agencies tend to be pricey, and some prefer to do only volume business or to work only for large companies with massive credit reserves. What’s more, temps may be unfamiliar with your industry, your business, and even the job at hand. You risk getting a short-timer whose under-performance could harm your reputation — something that you simply cannot afford.
So, what do you do? Here are three tips for hiring temporary employees to avoid permanent problems:
- Plan. You knew this day would come, so don’t let it surprise you. A temporary workforce should be part of your business plan. You never have one position to fill; you have three. Every time you hire an employee, recruit two temporary workers for the same job.
- Process. Don’t manage your temporary payroll with cash under the table. We all know where that can lead. Hiring temporary employees requires special paperwork and agreements. The basic forms to have ready include the I-9, the W-4, state withholding forms and agreements, a temporary employment agreement letter, training agreements (we’ll get to that in a moment), and a valid temporary employee contract. The latter will bring clarity should issues of unemployment compensation arise. Temporary employment contract templates abound on the internet, but always check with your business attorney to be sure the agreement you use is legal and binding in the state(s) where you employ people.
- Prepare. Trial-by-fire is not the way for temporary employees to learn the job. Begin training them the minute you hire them, right alongside the regular employee. Call them in for any new training, and schedule regular refresher training. If you don’t hold regular refresher training sessions for all employees, schedule it now. And when you get that big job, notify your temporary employees that they must be prepared — and standing by — should something happen to your regular staffer(s).
Of course, these tips are not a comprehensive guide to using temporary employees, but they will certainly start you down the path to managing employee absences smoothly with minimal disruption to your business.
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Tags: Temp employees, employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Hiring
Considering the importance of sales to any small business, you don’t want to improvise when it comes to hiring salespeople, says Jim Dunn, a sales training expert for Whetstone Group, and co-author of the e-bookCommon Sense Selling: A New Look at How Successful Salespeople Sell. “If you don’t have guidelines in place, you’ll be winging it, with predictably poor results.”
Tags: salespeople, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Hiring
“Small-business owner” and “weeklong vacation” may sound like phrases that don’t belong in the same sentence. After all, running asmall business is a full-time (plus overtime) commitment. Taking a break, however, may be just what you need to stay energized and healthy and to keep your business on the right track.
Tags: small business owner, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, vacation
The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released an online chart that allows you to view the number and types of workplace discrimination charges by state.
The EEOC’s previous database allowed viewing only of the nationwide totals. The new chart contains statewide figures for fiscal years 2009-2011.
California had 7,166 total charges in fiscal year 2011 which represents 7.2 percent of the nationwide total. Only Texas (10 percent) and Florida (8.1 percent) ranked higher in terms of percentage of nationwide claims. These figures are not surprising given the large populations of these states.
By an overwhelming majority, retaliation is the number one EEOC charge filed in California, constituting 44.6 percent of all EEOC charges filed in the state. Retaliation charges were followed by race (33.1 percent), disability (29.4 percent) and age (25 percent).
The state statistics mimic a nationwide trend. For two years in a row, retaliation has been the number one type of EEOC charge filed throughout the United States.
These types of claims should be of real concern for employers. Employees have the right to complain of unlawful discriminatory or harassing treatment in the workplace. Retaliation takes many forms and includes adverse employment actions, such as demotions or terminations, following complaints of unlawful conduct. Subtle forms of retaliation, such as ostracism, may not be unlawful but can create morale problems and decreased productivity.
Tags: Retaliation, Disability, age, race, workplace discrimination, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, termination
A federal district court ruled that the Department of Labor (DOL) may not implement a final rule relating to H-2B visas. The H-2B non-agricultural temporary worker program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals into the U.S. to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs.
HR Informant previously reported on the DOL’s controversial final rule that revised the processes that employers must follow when obtaining a temporary labor certification from the DOL and when petitioning the Department of Homeland Security to employ a non-immigrant worker in H-2B status.
Tags: DOL final rule, H-2B final rule, H-2B visa, labor certifications, HR Allen Consulting Services, Employers, HR Informant