Temp- tation                                                                 February 2016 
In this issue
EEOC to Require Pay Data
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced a new proposal to fight wage discrimination by requiring businesses to provide summary data about how much they pay their workers.
 
On January 29th the EEOC rolled out a proposed rule that would obligate businesses with 100 or more employees to annually turn over pay data by gender, race and ethnicity. The proposal wouldn't force employers to divulge specific pay rate information for individual employees, but instead report pay bands across 10 different job categories.
 
EEOC Chair Jenny Yang told reporters January 28th that the commission will work in partnership with the Labor Department to collect and analyze the data. She said the information will be used to focus wage discrimination investigations, identify existing pay disparities, and help employers evaluate their own practices.

Chris Opfer - bna.com
Temptation Trivia  
When first described by John Colter, a former member of the Lewis and Clark expedition, this area was thought to be imaginary and was nicknamed "Colter's Hell."  It would later become America's first national park. 
 
Name this national park, and the president that signed the law that created the park.     
  
If you know the answer, call or e-mail your local branch office by noon this Friday.  One winner in each branch will be chosen at random from those that answered correctly, and that person will get treats delivered!  
 
Last issue answer: The advertising catchphrase often spoken by athletes that have just won a major competition is "I'm going to Disney World" (or Disney Land).  

The first sports hero to say it in a TV commercial was New York Giants Quarterback Phil Simms after winning Super Bowl XXI.      
Anniversaries
 
   
Mike Hackbarth
President - 22 years
    
Steve Kamrowski
CEO - 20 years
 
Beth Pieper
Acting Area Manager
Manitowoc/Sheboygan 17 years

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Flex-Staff
Fun Facts  
In April of 1961, Mr. Paul Simonton reported that a disc-shaped craft landed on his farm in Eagle River, WI. He stated that a hatch opened, and when he approached he saw three human-looking men inside that appeared to be cooking pancakes on a griddle.  They asked him for some water, and in exchange for the water they gave him four of the pancakes.  

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      Celebrating Over 40 Years of Staffing Excellence!   

Flex-Staff opens 8th Office!

Flex-Staff is excited to announce the opening of our  8th office located at 1486 W. South Park Ave. in Oshkosh.  

Flex-Staff's new Oshkosh branch office provides employees for temporary, temp to hire, and direct placement positions in all 
clerical and industrial skill categories.   

Managing Flex-Staff's Oshkosh office is Lorena Banegas-Aznar, who was previously a project manager for a telecommunications company.  

In addition to servicing the staffing needs of clients in Oshkosh and the surrounding areas, the Oshkosh branch is conveniently located to enable it to assist in providing employees for clients of both our Fond du Lac and Appleton offices.    

To learn more about Flex-Staff in Oshkosh, or to place an order, call 920-385-1003.  
Two Dems Join GOP Opposing OT Rule

More than 100 members of the House, including two Democrats, asked Labor Secretary Thomas Perez to reconsider a controversial proposed regulation to expand workers' access to 
overtime wages. 
 
The final rule, which the Labor Department has estimated will be out in July, has been heavily criticized by Republican lawmakers from both chambers, but with two Democrats, Reps. Brad  Ashford (Neb.) and Collin Peterson (Minn.), signing on to the congressional letter, opposition to the rule may be slightly expanding.
 
The Obama administration, worker advocates, and a host of congressional Democrats have hailed the rule as providing a necessary boost to the middle class by modernizing an outdated statute.  In its July proposed rule, the DOL called for updating the Fair Labor Standards Act by more than doubling the minimum salary for overtime exemption to $50,440 per year from $23,660. 
 
Lawmakers said in the letter to Perez that the regulation would "adversely impact all affected employers, especially small businesses," and wind up having negative consequences for workers. "We urgently ask you to reconsider moving forward with this rule as drafted," the letter concluded.
 
Any move to delay or block the regulation likely faces headwinds from President Barack Obama, who initiated the overtime changes by directing the DOL in 2014 to write the rule.

bna.com
One Minute Ideas
Six Quick Tips to Business Success
  
Ready, Fire, Aim - Today speed is as important as anything.  Striving for a perfect service, product, or introduction may have worked thirty years ago, but you will be lost in the dust today.  That doesn't mean that one should be careless, but it is more about adapting and recovering, and realizing that the business landscape is constantly and quickly changing, and the best laid plans can be obsolete by the time they are perfected. 
 
Forget the time clock - Successful entrepreneurs value time all the time.  That doesn't mean that you should be a workaholic and not take escapes from your work.  Rather focus is an important aspect of any activity and the enthusiasm and energy that you bring to doing "the right things right all the time" will affect your success.
 
Steal ideas from everyone - Observe and copy what works.  Get outside your industry and observe in your readings, travels, and conversations what works for other industries and consider what might work for yours.  You may even hire an "outsider" to import successes from other lines of work.
 
Respect what your competition does well - Successful operators like athletes are always aware of their competitors and observing what they do well so that can also incorporate that into their game or business and thus improve.
 
Make your employees or associates the keystones - Your work associates are your delivery system at every turn.  If they are well-trained, motivated, and provided the appropriate resources, they will in turn make your customers happy, which will make your shareholders pleased. 

Under-promise and over-deliver - Delighting the customer and keeping your word with integrity is nothing new, and it will continue to be even more important as communications travel instantly now among your customers via the Internet.  
 
  
Robert Fagan - theaposition.com    
Recipe
Easy Artisan Bread
3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 T granulated yeast 
6 1/2 cups unbleached flour 
1 1/2 T course salt
  
Stir yeast and salt into water until dissolved.  Add all of the flour at once. Stir with a wooden spoon until well mixed. Mixture will be sticky.  Cover with a warm, damp towel and let rise at room temperature for 4 hours or until dough falls back onto itself. Dough can be used at this point, or you can use part and put some back into the refrigerator.  

When you are ready for bread, lightly flour your hands, take about 1/4 to 1/3 of the dough and place it into a greased pan with a lid. (Grease the lid also!)  Cover and let rise in a warm place until at least doubled - about 1-2 hours.  Bake covered at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, then remove the cover and bake at 350 for another 15-20 minutes, or until nicely golden.  remove from oven and enjoy!  

Garlic butter
Drizzle 4 cloves of garlic (with the skin left on) with olive oil and wrap lightly in aluminum foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour (Or simply place in oven while bread is baking.)  Squeeze the roasted garlic out into a bowl and mix with one stick of softened butter.  (Add a pinch of dried parsley for color.)  
  
 
  

 

Inspirational Quote
 Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races, one after the other.   - Walter Elliot