RESPECT of Florida is the central non-profit agency for the State of Florida that helps employ about 1,200 Floridians with disabilities through the production of commodities and contractual services that are sold to government entities. If you would like to learn more about us or browse our catalog, visit us at:
respectofflorida.org.
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A Message from RESPECT of Florida
RESPECT of Florida is pleased to dedicate our November RESPECTFULY Yours newsletter to Shirley Balogh, who recently retired as the Chair of the RESPECT Oversight Committee after leading the Committee for more than eight years. Balogh, former President & CEO of the Alliance for Independence (AFI), provided strong leadership and ensured that RESPECT operated in accordance with legislative intent and as directed by Department of Management Services administrative rules.
Under her leadership, RESPECT developed and refined uniform Policies and Procedures that all partner ECs follow today. During her tenure, the RESPECT program created employment opportunities for about 1,200 each year while providing commodities and services to governmental agencies that were produced by about 50 partner Employment Centers.
Balogh is known for her passion for the RESPECT program and for her keen understanding of how the RESPECT program needed to be administered. She always wanted to ensure positive employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities while ensuring that governmental entities received high-quality commodities and services.
Thank you Shirley for your leadership and for showing us how to lead in an exemplary manner!
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Spotlight on Success:
Omar Orozco
Respect is happy to announce Omar Orozco as the 2017 Employee of the Year for Services! Omar has been an employee at the Palm Beach Habilitation Center for 9 years and is part of the work crew.
Why does Omar stand out? When Omar walks into the room, everyone is bound to notice. With his big smile, signature red shirt and his favorite catch phrases: "Everyone back to work" and "cash is cash, my friend", Omar is hard to miss. Omar has the uncanny ability to make those around him feel at ease with his friendly manner and his helpful spirit. Although diagnosed with an intellectual disability at a very young age, Omar refuses to allow his disability to dictate who he is or what he can accomplish. Omar lets people know that he is way more than just his diagnosis.
Nominated by staff member Winston Reid, Omar is described as a person who has separated himself from the other employees due to his dedication to his job and his incredible hard work.
We at Respect wanted to get a bit more info on this superstar so we asked Omar some fun questions about himself:
Favorite food?
Omar loves Spaghetti!
Hobbies?
Omar loves to interact with game shows, particularly Deal or No Deal. Omar loves the show so much that he often calls himself Howie (after Howie Mandel).
What do you like to do on the weekends?
Omar loves to spend his weekends relaxing after a good week of work.
What makes you happy?
Nothing makes Omar happier than eating ice cream and spending time with this family.
Congratulations to Omar Orozco. You amaze us!
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Alex Nimis Honored for Exemplary Performance
Alexander 'Alex' Nimis was among 17 community partners, employees, and people with disabilities honored this month at the 2017 ServiceSource Florida Service Excellence Awards Luncheon at the Marriott Sand Key in Clearwater Beach. ServiceSource has been a RESPECT Employment Center for many years.
In recognition of exemplary performance in the workplace, Nimis was presented with a Service Excellence Award by job-placement specialist Sarah Corden from the ServiceSource Tallahassee Office.
"Alex is an amazing person who was diagnosed with autism later in life while working on his higher education at Florida State University," said Corden (shown at right) in her presentation. "Armed with his college education, a new understanding of himself, and support from his amazing family, he was ready for his next challenge - that of finding a job.
 "What started as a part-time job to see how he would do in the working world, has turned into a full-time job at the State of Florida Division of Management Services Information Hotline - a RESPECT of Florida contract staffed and operated by ServiceSource.
"Alex has learned so much, and not just how state information works. He helps his manager with lobby duties and training. He also guest-speaks for the Tallahassee Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act youth pre-employment skills training program and volunteers his time with high-school autism youth."
Congratulations to Alex and the Nimis Family for an extraordinary achievement.
ServiceSource is a leading nonprofit disability resource organization established in 1971 that serves more than 25,000 people with disabilities in 10 states and DC with a range of innovative and valued employment, training, habilitation, housing, and other support services. ServiceSource directly employees more than 1,600 individuals with disabilities, making it one of the largest employers of people with disabilities nationwide. Visit www.servicesource.org or contact Frank De Lucia at [email protected] or 727-600-8900 for more information.
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Commodity Line of the Month
RESPECT carries a small assortment of janitorial supplies including:
- Trash can liners
- Soaps
- Hand Sanitizer
- Gloves
- Mops
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RESPECT Employees of the Year
Florida ARF/RESPECT of Florida held its 41st Annual Conference and Awards on November 1 in Tampa. Earlier in the year, RESPECT partner Employment Centers submitted nominations for Outstanding Employees in the following four categories: Rookie of the Year, Most Improved, Employee of the Year for Services, and Employee of the Year for Commodities.
All nominees were celebrated as Outstanding Employees, and four individuals were chosen as individual winners in each category.
Rookie of the Year
Winner: Susan Alford, Global Connections to Employment
Outstanding Employees:
- Vincent Clause, Gulfstream Goodwill
- Willie Blount, Louise Graham Regeneration Center
- Brenda Cohen, PARC
- Darius Shepard, Brevard Achievement Center
- Janessa Insignares, Brevard Achievement Center
Most Improved Employee of the Year
Winner: Larry Hall, Pine Castle
Outstanding Employees:
- Amiee Stokes, PARC
- Kavi Ross, Palm Beach Habilitation Center
- Amy Brisbois, Global Connections to Employment
- Joe Hodges, Lighthouse Works!
Employee of the Year for Services
Winner: Omar Orozco, Palm Beach Habilitation Center
Outstanding Employees:
- Brian Jeffers, Gulfstream Goodwill
- David Parker, Louise Graham Regeneration Center
- Shawn Pipkins, Arc of the Bay
- Floyd Brooks, Seagull Services
- Christopher Johnson, The Arc of Walton County
- Ja'Quan William, Brevard Achievement Center
- Monhula Vongsavath, SMA Behavioral Healthcare
Employee of the Year for Commodities
Winner: Shernel Roach, Lighthouse Works!
Outstanding Employees:
- Ian Swain, PARC
- Eric Brooks, Pine Castle
- Colin Leonard, Brevard Achievement Center
- Matthew Nelson, Pine Castle
- Sonya Walsh, Alliance for Independence
Each month we will feature one of our Outstanding Employees in the "Spotlight on Success" column in this newsletter. We want to highlight each worker's success because of their job on a RESPECT contract and also share a little bit more about them.
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L to R: David Lin, Omar Orozco, Palm Beach Hab Center, and Suzanne Sewell, Florida ARF
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 Willie Blount, Louise Graham Regeneration Center
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Sonya Walsh, Alliance for Independence
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L to R: Andy Vega and Christopher Lane, Brevard Achievement Center
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RESPECT Project Manager Nancy DoVale presents Floyd Brooks his award at Seagull Services.
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Outstanding Employees - Rookie of the Year
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RESPECT Employment Centers of the Year
RESPECT of Florida recognized Arc of Big Bend as the Employment Center of the Year for Services and Pine Castle as the Employment Center of the Year for Commodities.
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RESPECT Commodities Director Lindsey Boyington presents award to Arc of Big Bend.
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L to R: Suzanne Sewell with Jon May, Pine Castle
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RESPECT Customers of the Year
RESPECT of Florida honored the Florida Department of Health as the Customer of the Year for Commodities and the Department of Economic Opportunity as the Customer of the Year for Services.
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L to R: Christina Cierek, DOH, Suzanne Sewell, and Andrea Potter, DOH
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Chris Peary, DEO and Suzanne Sewell
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Jeff Industries Provides Important Mental Health Services to Community
In the mid 1970's, a young man named Jeff was about to graduate from college when he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and committed to a state institution. He spent seven years in the hospital prior to being released to his elderly parents, not because he was better, but because a lawsuit determined the hospital was not the appropriate place for Jeff. One morning, Jeff took his life. He left a note that stated, "I have no reason to wake up." At that time there were no community-based programs that assisted people with mental illnesses in getting on with their lives and integrating them into the mainstream community.
Jeff Industries was incorporated in 1983 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit agency by his parents/grass roots Board of Directors. Jeff Industries, Inc. was created to fill a need for meaningful community-based programs that assisted individuals with mental illnesses in the transition from hospital to the community. Adults with serious mental illnesses were given the opportunity to be productive and to increase self-esteem by building picnic tables and bike racks, etc.
RESPECT of Florida offers these bike racks. They are made of galvanized steel and can be one sided or double sided. The single sided racks come in lengths of 5 and 10 feet. The 5 foot racks hold 5-8 bicycles and the 10 foot racks, 9-16 bicycles.
Jeff Industries also offers embroidery services through RESPECT of Florida. They have three state-of-the-art embroidery machines and can personalize any garment. Florida State Hospital and Department of Health wear some of the garments they have made. Florida Fish and Wildlife has ordered shirts using another printing technique, which is direct to garment printing.
Jeff Industries provides life improvement services for people and their families who experience the effects of severe and persistent mental illness and those with coexisting secondary disorders as well as at-risk youth and families. Jobs and products like these give these individuals "a reason to wake up" every day.
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Human Resource Law - Myth Buster
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HR & Compliance Manager, Dayna Lenk |
Most people in the US work force have the heard the terms "exempt", "non-exempt", "salaried", and 'hourly", but what do they mean and how do you know who fits into what category? The terms salaried and hourly refer to how employees get paid. The terms exempt and non-exempt refer to how the employee is protected by
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
. Many people believe they are the same thing and use them interchangeably. They are not the same and misclassifying an employee will get employers into hot water with the Department of Labor (DOL).
Salaried employees are paid based on a set annual amount, known as a salary. This salary is divided into pay periods throughout the year, and the employer determines the frequency of the pay periods. Salaries are based on a 2,080-hour year.
Hourly Employees
The hourly employee's pay is based on an hourly rate. Hourly employees are only paid for the hours they work, and the employer determines the hours for the employee each week. Hourly employees are required to document their work each week by tracking the number of hours they worked each day that will then be verified by a supervisor. There's no legal requirement for how many hours an hourly employee must work during a full week. Employees who work under 30-40 hours per week are considered part-time and may have different pay rates, benefits, and paid time off than full-time hourly employees.
Non-Exempt Employees
The FLSA
enforces that this class of employee is entitled to overtime pay at 1.5 times their regular rate of pay when they work more than 40 hours in a week, and that they must always be paid at least the prevailing minimum wage. Additionally, all non-exempt employees are required to track their worked hours.
Exempt Employees
Employees classified as "exempt" are exempted from certain FSLA rules. Exempt employees receive a minimum weekly wage regardless of the hours they worked in a week. So, if they work one hour or 70, they will get the same salary at the end of the week. The criteria for exempt classifications vary; however, a common thread in the exempt status criteria is that employees must use independent judgment in performing most of their job duties. Exempt workers do not receive overtime pay, yet the company expects them to work as many hours as the job takes to fulfill their duties.
Not All Salaried Employees are Exempt
This part is confusing so pay close attention. All exempt employees are salaried. This is a requirement by the DOL; however, not all salaried employees are exempt.
Many employers incorrectly believe that by paying an employee a salary they automatically become exempt. This is a fallacy. An employer can pay a minimum set wage to attract a good employee, but
when that employee exceeds their fixed number of hours and works more than 40 hours in a week they must be paid overtime at 1.5 times their rate of pay for all time that exceeds 40 hours. In addition, they must track their hours worked to ensure they are paid for all earned overtime.
Guidelines for Exemption from Overtime Pay Requirements
All employees from the CEO, to the janitor, can be labeled as hourly and non-exempt. The DOL believes that this classification gives employees the most protection. The DOL has set in place strict criteria that qualify an employee as exempt to protect the US worker.
To qualify as exempt the employee must be paid a minimum salary of $455 per week.
Only certain categories of employees can be considered for exempt status: administrative, executive and professional employees, salespeople and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). These employees can be classified as exempt and, therefore, ineligible for overtime pay. These categories are purposefully broad to encompass many types of jobs. Each of these categories has its own unique duties test that qualifies the positon. So, it is important to note that just because an employee holds a title that is traditionally exempt it is not the title, but rather the individual tasks the employees perform on the job, that determines their exempt or non-exempt status.
Duties such as, decisions regarding hiring and firing, independent judgment, supervision of two or more employees are just a few of the duties listed under the various duties tests. Go to
https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/fs17a_overview.htm
for a full listing of the duties required for each exemption category.
Why did the DOL come up with the FSLA
The intent of FLSA was to protect workers. Prior to the FSLA, employers could work employees as many hours as they wanted, and pay them whatever they liked. In 1938 when DOL passed the FSLA exempt type jobs were not common, and they were limited to highly compensated positions like lawyers, doctors and senior management. The development of a worker who was "exempt" from the FSLA rules meant that
employee had less protection by Federal law against employer abuse. Therefore, the qualification check list to be an exempt worker is extensive.
Traditionally
, exempt employees earn more than non-exempt employees, although exempt employees are expected to complete tasks regardless of the number of hours required to do so. If staying late, working weekends or coming in early is needed, exempt employees are usually expected to do the work, quit or be terminated for poor performance. There is no overtime.
Do your Homework
Misclassifying employees is a costly-mistake that can happen to any company. However, by doing your homework, you can save your company a great deal of money and negative exposure in the long run. The potential adverse consequences of misclassification are significant. Employers could be held liable for back pay, liquidated damages, attorneys' fees, litigation costs and in some cases jail time. If your organization determines you have made a misclassification error, correct it immediately and promptly seek legal counsel to determine if further action is needed.
The information contained in this article is intended to provide useful information on the topic covered, but should not be construed as legal advice or a legal opinion.
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