Blogging and Networking on Company Time

Facebook signed up its 100 millionth member in August 2008. Just 7 months later, they're about to hit the 200 million member mark.

The time Facebook members spend on the site must be staggering. And much of that time is likely spent during working hours.

Do you know what your employees are doing when they're at work? And if its not myspace or facebook or linkedin, what about their own blog?

These issues illustrate the importance of having a handbook policy regarding blogging—either as a separate policy or as part of your electronic communications policy. The policy provide the following:

• Do not blog on company time.
• Do not disclose confidential information.
• Do not include defamatory or racially or sexually offensive material.
• Do not disparage the employer or its products, or a competitor.
• Do not use the company logo.
• Be truthful and respectful.

Given the increasing use of blogs and social networking sites, its time to update your handbook now.

EFCA: What Employers Can Do

The Employee Free Choice Act has been introduced in Congress, with plenty of vocal proponents and opponents.

The bill has two main elements:

1. It would give workers the option of forming unions by getting a majority of workers to sign cards to join without having to hold a secret ballot election. (Current law leaves it up to employers to decide whether workers must hold an election or can organize via "card check.")
   
2. If employers and workers cannot reach a contract within 120 days, a government arbitrator intervenes and sets terms.

The possibility of many non-union businesses becoming unionized is real. So what can employer do? The best advice I've seen yet comes from Mark Mathison and Abigail Crouse of Gray Plant Moody in this article here. I've summarized their excellent suggestions:

1. Adopt an Internal Position Statement on Unions and Labor Relations
2. Conduct An Employee Issue and Satisfaction Audit
3. Ensure that Communication Lines are Open and that Managers are Responsive to Employee Issues
4. Review Employment Policies and Practices

Further, say Mathison & Crouse, it is important to audit for actual employment practice and policy enforcement within the organization because disparate enforcement adversely affecting unions or employees’ labor law rights can also be unfair labor practices with substantial negative impact in critical situations.

When You Lay Off The Wrong People

So your business needs to cut expenses, and downsizing your workforce is a necessary component in reduction.

But who do you lay off?

It's a complicated task, and you need both an organizational development expert and likely an experienced employment attorney to guide you, because it's not as simple as it seems.

For example, an older and more expensive employee may be your first choice for termination - but there are unforeseen problems. You can't just lay off an employee for those reasons (which is why you need that OD consultant and attorney). Or, if you do, you could spend a lot more in legal fees and lawsuits than you could possibly save with the cutback.

The EEOC reports that age discrimination filings leaped 29% in the year ending September 2008. Over 25% of all EEOC claims are now age-related.

Five Most Read Articles

The five most read articles on our blog since October 1, 2008:

1. Leading In Difficult Times
2. Violence in the Workplace
3. Nine Great Questions To Ask Your Boss
4. Stopping Gossip in the Workplace
5. Pay Raises in a Bad Economy
   

You've Laid Off Staff. Now What?

Perhaps the easiest part of reducing expenses is cutting back on staff. Because the next step - "What Do We Do Now?" is extremely difficult.

What Do We Do Now? You have fewer employees but need to have the same or better performance.

Hopefully, when reducing staff, you took the first important step which is to identify those employees who are capable of doing more and retaining them.

In identifying employees who can do more - look at attitude (desire) and aptitude (ability). Communication (as always) is key - those employees are going to be doing different things and more of them.

The employees who stay need to understand why they're there and what their role is.

Employees who stay after a layoff are even more valuable now. There is some guilt (why did I stay and my friends have to depart?), a lot of trepidation, and no small amount of concern and fear.

It's up to the employer to alleviate those concerns and allow the business to move forward.

Communicating in a Recession

The most important thing an employer can do in this economic downtown/recession/potential depression is communicate with employees. It's one of the cornerstones of my trends for business leaders in 2009.

Because your employees have a vested (albeit self) interest in your success, they deserve to know what's happening and what you're doing about it.

In fact, one of the best things you can do is survey your employees and find out what they'd do to cut costs and improve performance in the short- and long-term.

Note - I said communicate 'with' employees, and not just 'to' employees.

This article in cnnmoney.com offers more advice.

You Know You're A Bad Boss When...

Comedian Jeff Foxworthy created a cottage industry when he started saying, "You know you're a redneck when..."

This post talks about a similar awareness: "You Know You're A Bad Boss When..."

And awareness is the key component. Employees will always tell you what they think you want to hear. If you aren't completely aware of what's going on in your workplace, then you're failing as a manager.

The other key component in awareness is to be completely honest with yourself when assessing your strengths and weaknesses. It takes a courageous manager to ask employees what is good and bad about his or her management style. (A 180-degree survey is also helpful, and most managers are rightfully scared to death of them).

Steve Wyrostek, the Chicago Small Business Strategies Examiner (www.examiner.com), wrote a recent article that inspired my post. Among his excellent thoughts:

You just might be a poor boss if ….

• You claim an open door policy and wonder why no one comes through that door.
• Your employee has to ask you why her check increased instead of you telling her prior to payday that you gave her a raise.
• You feel sorry for the Dabney Coleman character in the movie “9 to 5”
• The turnover percentage in your area is the same as the winning percentage of the White Sox.
• Your leadership role models are Machiavelli, General Patton and Atilla the Hun.
• You find a copy of A Survival Guide for Working With Bad Bosses: Dealing With Bullies, Idiots, Back-stabbers, And Other Managers from Hell by Gini Graham Scotton an employee’s desk.
• You have a budget of 30k to spend on employee bonuses and never use it.
• You think it’s good management to come in under the paltry 3.5% budget available for salary increases.
• You think that losing your temper is an indication of management strength.

Remember, being honest with yourself is the first, most important step in improving both your skills and performance - and those who work for you.

The Dangers of E-mails in the Workplace

There is no such thing as an innocent e-mail in the workplace. While people believe it's electronic and potentially harmless, e-mails live in storage forever, and often are resurrected by lawyers when it comes to employee litigation.

In a recent newsletter, Fisher & Phillips attorney Tillman Coffey top lines the reasons why e-mails are so dangerous. We've also written about it here and here.

There are several reasons why both managers and employees should re-thinking sending an e-mail hitting the "Send" button:

1. E-mails about employees are discoverable. Comments on an employees performance (including comments whether they are too old, or sick, or ineffective) are actionable. Lawyers love to see these e-mails.
2. Among the most common problems in e-mail: Messages that create a sexist, racist or hostile work environment, note experts. One e-mail message that made the rounds at Chevron in 1999 was titled "25 reasons why beer is better than women," Flynn said. Four female executives used it as evidence of a hostile work environment and were awarded $2.2 million.
3. The tone of an e-mail is easily misconstrued (using all CAPS, for example).

Before sending an e-mail, take a breath. Ask yourself if you'd like to answer questions about it in front of a jury.

Make sure to get an e-mail policy included in your handbook.

And remember, hitting the send button memorializes your comments forever.

Tardiness on the Rise

So 20% of American workers are late to work at least once a week.

In an era where jobs are becoming more and more precious (and conversely, layoffs are becoming more common) - it's disturbing to think that 1 in 5 workers think so little of their jobs that they're willing to gamble on being late once a week.

The usual culprits are excuses: traffic, dealing with children or pets, etc.

I am beginning to advise employers of the benefits of a high employment rate - that is, you can get a much more qualified worker now than ever before. And if that worker has been out of a job, they will be more loyal, work harder, and improve your productivity.

Jobs are scarce. Workers had better value their job (and show up on time), because there are many people out there who would take that job more seriously.

New I-9 Form Due April 3

It's once again time for a new I-9 form to be used by all employers.

All employees hired must complete the form within 3 days of hire. The revisions are minor, but the new forms must be used as of April 3, 2009.

Employers need not have existing employees complete the new form; the old form will suffice for them.

Who or What Is Lilly Ledbetter?

Lilly Ledbetter was an employee at an Alabama plant of The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, plant from 1979 until 1998. She filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 1998, alleging her supervisors gave her poor performance evaluations because of her sex.

In 2007, by a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court found in favor of Goodyear.

President Obama recently signed a law that overturned that ruling. The new law will make it possible for employees to assert claims of discrimination in compensation virtually without any time limit. Depending on how the statute is construed, it could affect other discrimination claims as well. As a result, employers not only will face increased discrimination claims, but also difficulty defending against them. (Even more ominous is the law backdates any claims to May 2007, when the Court made its ruling).

So now what?

1. Review your pay practices. Conduct a pay/compensation audit for your entire company to ensure your procedures meet the criteria of the Ledbetter Pay Act. This includes reviewing your past pay practices as well.
   
2. Train and educate your management team. Everyone who conducts performance reviews needs to understand the ramifications of this act.
3. Review your records retention policies.
   

Management & Leadership Trends 2009

My recent article generated enough interest that I recently turned it into a presentation. Here it is in PowerPoint format.

Management & Leadership Trends 2009

View more presentations from Eric Swenson.

Facebook - Another Employer Dilemma

Some recruiters and hiring managers just can't get enough information about a job candidate. And the restrictions on what you can - and cannot - ask in the interviewing process are restrictive.

So therefore, there is no reason for any employer to search Facebook, MySpace, etc. for further information on a candidate. Sure, you might find more information - but it may or may not be true. And if you find information that you're not supposed to know, then you could be liable for a wrongful employment decision - whether you used that information or not.

Just say no to Facebook when hiring an employee.

Jackie Ford at Marketwatch has a good article which articulates specific, additional reasons why employers can be liable.

When Employment Applications Go Bad

Starbucks narrowly missed losing another employment-related lawsuit - this time, about their employment application.

A California State Court of Appeal overturned a decision that would have made Starbucks liable for $26 million because of an improper employment application.

In California, it's permissable to ask if a candidate has previous criminal convictions - except for minor offenses, such as possession of marijuana. The Starbucks application made no such provision.

An excellent summary of the case is written by Richard S. Rosenberg of Ballard, Rosenberg, Golper & Savitt here.

What is of bigger concern is what application form most businesses are using. One of the first things we review during our HR Compliance Audit is the employment application. Small businesses often use applications from their local office supply company.

Big mistake.

Each state has different criteria, and the employment application needs to be state-specific and legally reviewed.

Time to check your employment application!

Alternatives To Employee Layoffs

When consulting on potential workplace layoffs, the first thing I try to do is get an employer to quantify how valuable an employee is. For example, when the economy eventually rebounds, what will it cost that employer not to have that employee there?

It's easy to make a rash decision to eliminate jobs, but the long-term consequences can be significant to a business.

Now, the California Employment Development Department has issued a "Guide For Worksharing Employers" - an alternative to employee layoffs. It’s an Unemployment Insurance program, which allows certain employers to reduce employee hours while the employees collect partial unemployment insurance benefits.

The program may help employers with cost-cutting as well as keep key employees. and avoid the mad hiring dash later.

An employer may be able reduce the employee workweek from five days to four - which results in a 20% reduction. The employees would be eligible to receive 20 percent of their weekly unemployment insurance benefits—and are spared the hardship of full unemployment.

There are qualifiers - but this is a good example of yet another alternative that should be considered when contemplating employee layoffs.

If You Don't Act, They Will Come

There are a number of missteps an employer can make when faced with an employee accused of harassment or discrimination.

But the easiest mistake to avoid is often the first decision an employer makes - to ignore that accusation.

Employers are mandated to take "prompt corrective action". In most cases, that means conducting an independent, unbiased workplace investigation; consulting with a labor attorney; avoiding retaliation; and taking appropriate action against the accused.

These steps are appropriate and necessary for all businesses. I'm constantly amazed, however, how large corporations replete with well-staffed human resources employees get accused in this area.

Case in point: The Cheesecake Factory, which was recently sued by the EEOC for failing to respond to accusations of same-sex sexual harassment.

The case is documented by Melissa Fleischer, Esq. in the Employment Law Information Network blog.

"Linkedin.com" and the Employer's Dilemma

Most employers have a policy in their Employee Handbook (as they should), limiting the use of internet to 'business use only'). Many employers also have 'firewalls' to ensure appropriate use of the internet and to mitigate the intrusions of viruses.

Myspace and Facebook are clearly social sites and - in my opinion - should not be used during worktime.

But what about linkedin.com? This is a business networking site which toes the line between social ("look up old classmates") and networking for professional opportunities.

The answer? It's really up to the manager. While professional networking can increase visibility and potential sales, a lack of productivity may result as employees spend too much time 'networking' and not enough time producing.

My recommendation is to monitor each employee's productivity individually. If productivity is falling, then consequences should result.

And remember - a lot of linkedin users are on the site to network for another job...

An article from Eric J. Sinrod via cnet.com adds some more perspective.

Creating Value For Your Employees

In the last two employer assessment surveys we conducted for medium-sized businesses (both since the recession started) - both employers were ranked very low by their employees with the statement "I know what my benefits are". In addition, employees felt their benefits package was inferior.

One way small businesses can manage those issues (which go directly to morale and performance) is to communicate precisely what those benefits are worth to each employee. In fact, we're designing those communications for those clients right now.

The best communication tool I've seen in this area in a long time comes from Jessica Lee, an HR executive with APCO Worldwide, and blogger at Fistful of Talent and now her own blog.

Take a look how she designed the compensation summary - it's clear, concise, and communicates not only what is included in the employee's benefits package but the dollar value on what it costs the company.

Beautiful

Pitfalls of Reductions-In-Force

We're presently working with a number of clients on reducing their workforce. There are a number of organizational development issues related to a RIF (such as who stays, who goes, what does the company look like after the reduction and how will all the tasks continue to be done).

But there are a number of compliance issues as well.

Baker Donelson has a good piece on some of those pitfalls.

A reduction-in-force is not simply "let's eliminate 'x' number of positions"; it takes careful decision making; excellent organizational development consultation; and a good employment attorney.

What's The Best Way To Communicate In The Workplace?

One of the cornerstones of my management philosophy is:

Without the ability to communicate well, a manager is doomed to failure, no matter how well he or she does in every other required area.

How should you communicate?

Lindsey Pollack, writing at abcnews.com, suggests that how you communicate information is predicated on the person you're communicating to. [By the way, she's right!]

That means you must understand your boss (or your subordinate) well enough to be able to make that correct decision.