HR Pieces: Human Resource February News

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February 2020

Greetings from the HRA Team! We would like to personally thank you for subscribing to our monthly newsletter and hope that it brings value to your business.

We are truly grateful to have you as a client, candidate, or colleague and want you to know we appreciate working with you. If you find yourself wanting more content on HR topics and trends, please follow our HR Tips on social media!

Sincerely,

The HRA Team

Lynette Weatherford MA,SPHR,SHRM-SCP | President | Email | 877.894.0202 ext. 4

Candida Arvizu SPHR, SHRM-CP | HR Advisor | Email | 877.894.0202 ext. 1

Karla Callaway BS | HR Recruiter | Email | 877.894.0202 ext. 2

Camille Knowles PHR, SHRM-CP | HR Advisor | Email | 877.894.0202 ext. 3

Elizabeth Hurst MBA | Business Development | Email | 877.894.0202 ext. 5

Grace Childs Business Intern | Email

February Contents

Workplace Romance: What's in your policy?
Download the New 2020 I-9 Form
DOL Final Rule Clarifying Joint Employer
Leap Year Causes Extra Pay Period Challenge
OSHA 300A Summary Worksheet Due by February 1st (Posting)
Safety Tip Video: Slips, Trips & Falls and the Fatal Half Inch
Career Opportunities: Accounting, Finance, Project Management

Workplace Romance:

What's your Policy?

Does your company have a policy on workplace romance? Romantic relationships, particularly those between leadership/managers and their subordinates raise concerns about potential power imbalances and conflicts of interest in the workplace. An anti-fraternization policy sends a message against sexual harassment, mitigates legal risk, avoids subsequent toxic work environments, and provides a notice of consequences for employees' actions. However, it may not be in your best interest to forbid any and all types of workplace romance, as research shows romantic relationships are quite common in the workplace and employees may resort to hiding their relationships. A workable approach to a policy might be:

1. Outline the company's concerns with respect to workplace relationships

2. Require employees to report close personal relationships through designated channels.

3. Prohibit romantic relationships between supervisors and their direct (or proximate) subordinates, as well as between sensitive business functions dealing with quality controls.

Access additional resources to assist in developing a workplace relationship policy for your organization.

Source: Cleary Gottlieb

New Form I-9 Available

The USCIS has released a new I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form to be used by employers effective January 31, 2020 and valid through October 31, 2022. Download the form here .

All U.S. employers must properly complete Form I-9 for each new hire. This includes citizens and non-citizens. Both employees and employers (or authorized representatives of the employer) have responsibilities in the completion of the form.

DOL Releases Final Rule to Define

'Joint Employer'

On January 12, 2020, the Department of Labor announced the release of a final rule clarifying issues surrounding joint employment, which is of particular interest to employers that use staffing agencies, have franchise relationships, and use subcontractors. The effective date of the new rule is March 16, 2020.

The final rule does the following:

Specifies that when an employee performs work for the employer that simultaneously benefits another person, that person will be considered a joint employer when that person is acting directly or indirectly in the interest of the employer in relation to the employee;
Provides a four-factor balancing test to determine when a person is acting directly or indirectly in the interest of an employer in relation to the employee;
Clarifies that an employee's "economic dependence" on a potential joint employer does not determine whether it is a joint employer under the FLSA;
Specifies that an employer's franchisor, brand and supply, or similar business model and certain contractual agreements or business practices do not make joint employer status under the FLSA more or less likely; and
Provides several examples applying the Department's guidance for determining FLSA joint employer status in a variety of different factual situations.

Read more about the ruling for the US Department of Labor

Source: HR Daily Advisor

Leap Year Causes Extra Payroll Challenge

In a leap year, with 366 days, there will be five days of the week that occur 52 times, and two days of the week that occur 53 times, meaning employers who process payroll on those two days - Wednesday and Thursday-will be shelling out an extra payday.

For those years when an employer finds itself with 53 or 27 paydays, there are two general options:

Do nothing and pay the same amount for each payday, recognizing one extra paycheck in the year. This typically results in a higher payroll cost.

Divide annual salaries by 53 or 27 paydays. This will result in smaller employee checks each payday, countered by an extra paycheck at year's end. For instance, if a salaried employee is paid $52,000 a year, an employer can recalculate the per-paycheck amount so it ends up working out to be $52,000 over 27 paychecks every other week instead of 26 paychecks. Employers electing this option should ensure compliance with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and any relevant state wage laws.

Source: HR Daily Advisor

OSHA Injury, Illness Summary must be posted by Feb. 1

Employers who keep Part 1904 OSHA workplace injury and illness records need to review the 2019 OSHA 300 Log to ensure accuracy, correct any deficiencies and then create their 300-A Annual Summary and submit by February 1, 2020. The 300-A summary must be posted in an area where you normally place notices to employees by Feb. 1, 2020. It must remain visible in that location until at least April 30, 2020.

Employers with ten or fewer employees or those whose NAICS code is for low-hazard industries exempted from OSHA injury and illness record keeping are exceptions to the posting requirement.

For more information on OSHA record-keeping requirements, visit www.osha.gov/recordkeeping.

Source: SHRM

Safety Tip:

Small Changes in Elevation can lead to serious injuries. Check out this helpful Safety Training Video:

Slips, Trips & Falls - The Fatal Half Inch

Get Your 2020 Employment Posters here!

To pre-order employment posters for 2020 through HRA ($55 each).

To order, click here and enter payment at the bottom of the main page with description "2020 Posters"

Career Opportunities

HR Advantage offers executive recruitment of candidates in C-Suite, Sales, and Administrative positions for our clients. Our firm offers concierge services to both the employer and candidates, helping to assure the perfect match. Additionally, we have a database of thoroughly vetted, qualified candidates.

Click on the open positions below to learn more.

Financial Consultant

$40,000-$55,000 DOQ

Springfield, MO

Contact: karla@hradvantageweb.net

Controller/Accountant

$40,000

Contact: candida@hradvantageweb.net

Construction Project Manager

$45k-65k per year

Springfield, MO

Contact: candida@hradvantageweb.net

All placement fees are paid by the employers. No fee is ever charged to an applicant.