January 2016 final issue

TM

wwwHRProfessionalsMagazinecom

Volume 6 Issue 1

Fiduciary Errors and Ways to Avoid Them

ACA Reporting SoftwareComplying with the Employer Mandate

The GIGEconomy

Top Employee

Benefits Companies

Susan R Meisinger SHRM-SCP

SPHR JDFormer

President and CEO of SHRM

2016 New Yearrsquos

Resolutions for HR

The things employees say when yoursquore not around can cause legal troubles for you Fisher amp Phillips provides practical solutions to workplace legal problems This includes helping you find and fix these kinds of employee issues before they make their way from the water cooler to the courthouse

1715 Aaron Brenner Drive bull Suite 312 bull Memphis TN 38120 bull 9015260431 wwwlaborlawyerscom

What you donrsquot hear can still hurt you

JUST PUT IT ON THE COMPANY

CARDhellipNOBODY WILL NOTICE

YOUrsquoRE REALLY SHOWING OFF YOUR BEST ASSETS TODAY

I NEVER WEAR THE SAFETY GOGGLES THEY LEAVE A MARK

THEYrsquoRE WORRIED ABOUT OVERTIME IrsquoM JUST WORKING

OFF THE CLOCK

ATLANTA BALTIMORE BOSTON CHARLOTTE CHICAGO CLEVELAND COLUMBIA

COLUMBUS DALLAS DENVER FORT LAUDERDALE GULFPORT HOUSTON IRVINE

KANSAS CITY LAS VEGAS LOS ANGELES LOUISVILLE MEMPHIS NEW JERSEY NEW ORLEANS

ORLANDO PHILADELPHIA PHOENIX PORTLAND SAN ANTONIO SAN DIEGO SAN FRANCISCO

SEATTLE TAMPA WASHINGTON DC

Bringing Human Resources amp Management Expertise to You

EditorCynthia Y Thompson MBA SHRM-SCP SPHR

PublisherThe Thompson HR Firm LLC

HR Consulting and Employee DevelopmentArt Direction

Park Avenue DesignContributing Writers

Bruce E BuchananKelly Campbell

William CarmichaelHarvey Deutschendorf

Ed FensholtTom Hayes

Brigitte Tubbs-JonesJennifer Kiesewetter

Courtney LeyesBrad Mandacina

Susan R MeisingerJoseph A Ramsey

Clifford StephanLarry Tolbert

Board of AdvisorsAustin Baker

Jonathan C HancockRoss Harris

Diane M Heyman SPHRJohn E Megley III PhD

Terri MurphySusan NiemanRobert Pipkin

Ed RainsMichael R Ryan PhD


14of employees rate social media as

a top time waster and influence

on productivity

Contact HR Professionals Magazine

To submit a letter to the editor suggest an idea for an article notify us of a special event promotion announcement new product or service or obtain information on becoming a contributor visit our website at wwwhrprofessionalsmagazinecom We do not accept unsolicited manuscripts or articles All manuscripts and photos must be submitted by email to Cynthiahrprosmagazinecom Editorial content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher nor can the publisher be held responsible for errors

HR Professionals Magazine is published every month 12 times a year by the Thompson HR Firm LLC Reproduction of any photographs articles artwork or copy prepared by the magazine or the contributors is strictly prohibited without prior written permission of the Publisher All information is deemed to be reliable but not guaranteed to be accurate and subject to change without notice HR Professionals Magazine its contributors or advertisers within are not responsible for misinformation misprints omissions or typographical errors

copy2016 The Thompson HR Firm LLC | This publication is pledged to the spirit and letter of Equal Opportunity Law The following is general educational information only It is not legal advice You need to consult with legal counsel regarding all employment law matters This information is subject to change without notice

HTTPHRProfessionalsMagazinecom Exclusive

WEB EXCLUSIVESFeatures 4 note from the editor 5 Susan R Meisinger SHRM-SCP SPHR JD 9 SHRM Certification ndash The Future of HR is Here13 Sabatoged Success The Number One HR Problem

Yoursquore Not Thinking About18 The GIG Economy28 7 Habits of Leaders Who Inspire Powerful Loyalty37 Book Look Business Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results

Employee Benefits14 ACA Reporting SoftwareVendor Setup ndash Whatrsquos With These Questions 16 Common Fiduciary Errors and Ways to Avoid Them20 A New Year and a New Strategy22 Top Employee Benefits Companies32 Supreme Court Watch ndash Recovery of Payment

When the Funds Have Been Spent

Employment Law10 5 New Yearrsquos Resolutions to Prevent an Employerrsquos

ldquoAuld Lan-xietyrdquo in 201624 Three Strikes You are Out ndash Except When the Impact

of Selection Procedures is Disparate26 Evaluating Evaluations30 McDonaldrsquos to Pay $355K in Penalties31 Bass Berry Sims Labor Talk An Employment Law

Update on November 1734 The Impact of Social Media in the Workplace

Industry News 6 Preview of TNSHRM Strategic Leadership Conference April 8 in Nashville 7 Preview of ARSHRM State Conference amp Expo April 6-8 in Rogers 8 Preview TNSHRM State Conference September 14-16 in Memphis28 Highlights of HRO Partners Holiday Breakfast33 SHRM-Memphis Mock Trial 35 Highlights of MBA | SHRM-Memphis Seminar 38 Highlights of SHRM-Memphis Holiday Social

Next IssueTop Companies in Payroll and HRIS Technologyndash Deadline to submit articles and ads is January 10

3wwwHRProfessionalsMagazinecom

We are so excited about our

January issue featuring

Sue Meisinger on our

cover As many of you

know Sue was former

president and CEO of SHRM for 20 years and is an

author speaker and consultant on human resource

management In addition to reading her outstanding

professional profile on Page 5 you will also love her

article on 8

In our first issue of 2016 we are updating you on a few

employee benefits hot topics Larry Tolbert discusses

common fiduciary errors and ways to avoid them on

Page 16 Tom Hayes has provided an excellent article

on employee benefits advisory services on Page 20

Lockton contributed a very informative article on Page

14 and 15 about ACA reporting software and vendor

setup questions Jenny Kiesewetter has contributed

an exciting article on a recent Supreme Court ERISA

decision from the Eleventh Circuit on Page 32 We are

pleased to bring you corporate profiles of some of our

sponsors who help us keep you updated on these cutting edge employee

benefits topics throughout the year Be sure to read this special section on

Pages 22 and 23

Some of the exciting employment law topics discussed in this issue

include Courtney Leyesrsquo new yearrsquos resolutions for HR professionals on

Page 10 Kelly Campbell discusses the impact of selection procedures

in her excellent article on page 24 Joe Ramsey sheds some light on the

topic of misuse of performance appraisals which you will find helpful as

you are reviewing your organizationrsquos 2015 employee evaluations I know

you will find Brigette Tubbs-Jonesrsquo article on the impact of social media

in the workplace helpful as you deal with this issue daily There is also a

very interesting article discussing recent penalties McDonaldrsquos paid for

immigration-related unfair labor practices you wonrsquot want to miss

The spring SHRM Conferences are just around the corner Donrsquot miss the

early bird registration for the ARSHRM State Conference amp Expo in Rogers

on April 6-8 Early bird registration for the TNSHRM Strategic Leadership

Conference in Nashville on April 8 ends on March 8 We are excited that

The TNSHRM State Conference will be in Memphis this year Please see

Page 8 for details on early bird registration We will be bringing you details

on the MSSHRM Annual Leadership Retreat in our February issue

Stay turned

Mark your calendars to join us January 28 at 2 PM CST for our next

complimentary SHRM | HRCI webinar sponsored by Data Facts We will

email you the topic soon Be watching your email for your invitation

Best wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year

a note from the Editor

Sign up for our RSS News Feed to receive up to the minute HR Alerts on changing legislation affecting our workforce wwwHRProfessionalsMagazinecom

Cynthia Y Thompson | EditorCynthiahrprosmagazinecomwwwhrprofessionalsmagazinecom

(L-R Dr John Carbonell Cynthia and Amy West President of WTSHRM in Jackson) Cynthia presented ldquoStrategic Decision Making IQ or EQrdquo at the December membership meeting at Union University on December 15

4 wwwHRProfessionalsMagazinecom

on the cover

SUSAN R MEISINGER SHRM-SCP SPHR JD

Susan R Meisinger SPHR JD is a columnist for HRExecutive Online consultant and speaker on HR leadership issues Meisinger is also the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) the worlds largest professional association where she led its efforts to serve the HR professional and advance the HR profession

Under Meisingers leadership SHRM grew from 170000 members to more than 245000 revenue grew from $66 million to more than $110 million and net assets grew from $66 million to more than $150 million SHRM was also recognized by Washingtonian magazine as one of the top 50 Great Places to Work in the Washington DC under her leadership

Acting on behalf of SHRM Meisinger took an active role to help shape public policy She was one of thirteen members appointed by the US Secretary of Labor to serve on the Secretarys Committee on the Future of the Workplace under the Presidents Council on the 21st Century Workforce She has provided testimony and commentary to public policy makers and is a respected advocate on behalf of the HR profession

Prior to joining the Society Meisinger served as Deputy Under Secretary for the Employment Standards Administration (ESA) in the US Department of Labor which included the Wage and Hour Division the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and the Office of Workers Compensation Programs As head of the largest agency within the Department she was responsible for more than 4000 employees a budget of more than $3 billion and the administration of more than 90 Federal laws and regulations Meisinger also served as special legal counsel for the Associated Builders and Contractors in Washington DC

Meisinger is on the board of directors and a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources an organization that recognizes individuals and institutions in HR for outstanding professional achievement and contributions to their field She also is a Fellow of the Human Resources Policy Institute of Boston University and serves on the board of the Orleans Conservation Trust She sits on advisory boards for the University of Mary Washington College of Business and the Workforce Institute of Kronos

Meisinger frequently serves as an expert on workplace and business issues and has appeared on CNN CNNfn and NBC Nightly News as well as other well known broadcast news programs She has appeared in stories in the New York Times Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal among other leading national publications

In addition Meisinger-with former SHRM President and CEO Mike Losey and University of Michigan business school professor David Ulrich-co-authored and edited The Future of Human Resource Management which was published in 2005 by John Wiley amp Sons In the book 64 thought leaders explore the critical HR issues of today and tomorrow Meisinger received a bachelors degree from Mary Washington College and a law degree from the National Law Center of George Washington University She is a member of the District of Columbia Bar Association and has earned certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources from HRCI

Susan R MEISINGER

Meisinger is a former board

member for the World Federation of

Personnel Management Associations

where she also served as Secretary

General She served as a member

of the board of directors for

SHRM and the Human Resource

Certification Institute (HRCI) She

is a former board member of the

Ethics Resource Center a nonprofit

devoted to fostering ethical practices

in individuals and organizations

and sat on the corporate board

for BEampK a billion dollar

international design-build firm for

five years She also has served as

the public member of the board of

directors of the Certified Financial

Planner Board of Standards Inc


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吀栀攀䠀漀猀琀䠀漀琀攀氀㨀吀栀攀匀栀攀爀愀琀漀渀䴀攀洀瀀栀椀猀䐀漀眀渀琀漀眀渀䠀漀琀攀氀䜀爀漀甀瀀㨀匀漀挀椀攀琀礀昀漀爀䠀甀洀愀渀刀攀猀漀甀爀挀攀䴀愀渀愀最攀洀攀渀琀Ⰰ 䴀攀洀瀀栀椀猀匀䠀刀䴀䔀瘀攀渀琀䐀愀琀攀猀㨀匀攀瀀琀 ⴀ 㘀匀攀瀀琀刀漀漀洀䈀氀漀挀欀㨀㐀渀椀最栀琀

吀栀攀挀甀琀ⴀ漀昀昀ⴀ搀愀琀攀琀漀爀攀最椀猀琀攀爀甀渀搀攀爀琀栀攀刀伀伀䴀䈀䰀伀䌀䬀椀猀䄀甀最甀猀琀㐀Ⰰ 　㘀戀礀㔀㨀　　瀀洀吀栀攀䠀漀琀攀氀䈀漀漀欀椀渀最一甀洀戀攀爀椀猀㠀　　ⴀ㔀ⴀ㔀㔀吀栀攀䠀漀琀攀氀䈀漀漀欀椀渀最一甀洀戀攀爀椀猀㠀　　ⴀ㔀ⴀ㔀㔀

䄀氀氀椀渀琀攀爀攀猀琀攀搀攀砀栀椀戀椀琀漀爀猀猀瀀漀渀猀漀爀猀Ⰰ 倀氀攀愀猀攀挀漀渀琀愀挀琀甀猀愀琀猀栀爀洀洀攀洀瀀栀椀猀琀渀䀀最洀愀椀氀挀漀洀

䐀漀礀漀甀栀愀瘀攀攀砀琀爀愀洀漀渀攀礀氀攀昀琀椀渀礀漀甀爀戀甀搀最攀琀椀渀　㔀㼀

䤀昀猀漀Ⰰ 眀栀礀渀漀琀琀愀欀攀愀搀瘀愀渀琀愀最攀漀昀琀栀攀瀀爀攀ⴀ攀愀爀氀礀戀椀爀搀爀攀最椀猀琀爀愀琀椀漀渀昀漀爀琀栀攀

　㘀吀一匀琀愀琀攀匀䠀刀䴀䌀漀渀昀攀爀攀渀挀攀

夀漀甀挀愀渀爀攀最椀猀琀攀爀愀琀眀眀眀猀栀爀洀ⴀ洀攀洀瀀栀椀猀漀爀最

䌀氀椀䌀氀椀挀欀漀渀琀栀攀䔀瘀攀渀琀琀愀戀愀渀搀猀挀爀漀氀氀琀漀琀栀攀戀漀琀琀漀洀眀栀攀爀攀礀漀甀眀椀氀氀猀攀攀爀攀最椀猀琀爀愀琀椀漀渀

椀渀昀漀爀洀愀琀椀漀渀昀漀爀琀栀攀挀漀渀昀攀爀攀渀挀攀

䴀攀洀瀀栀椀猀 Ⰰ 吀一匀攀瀀琀攀洀戀攀爀㐀ⴀ㘀Ⰰ 　㘀

䄀昀甀渀猀漀挀椀愀氀攀瘀攀渀琀眀椀氀氀戀攀栀攀氀搀愀琀琀栀攀圀漀爀氀搀猀䰀愀爀最攀猀琀䈀愀猀猀倀爀漀匀栀漀瀀氀漀挀愀琀攀搀椀渀

栀椀猀琀漀爀椀挀䐀漀眀渀琀漀眀渀䴀攀洀瀀栀椀猀眀椀琀栀漀瀀瀀漀爀琀甀渀椀琀椀攀猀琀漀攀砀瀀氀漀爀攀洀愀渀礀漀昀琀栀攀

愀琀琀爀愀挀琀椀漀渀猀琀栀愀琀琀栀攀戀氀甀昀昀挀椀琀礀栀愀猀琀漀漀昀昀攀爀

⨀⨀䔀瘀攀渀琀吀椀挀欀攀琀 ⴀ 㤀㔀昀漀爀攀愀挀栀愀搀搀椀琀椀漀渀愀氀最甀攀猀琀䔀砀栀椀戀椀琀漀爀刀攀挀攀瀀琀椀漀渀漀爀吀栀甀爀猀搀愀礀一椀最栀琀䔀瘀攀渀琀⤀ 昀漀爀愀搀搀椀琀椀漀渀愀氀焀甀攀猀琀椀漀渀猀Ⰰ 挀愀氀氀㤀　㘀㜀㜀㔀

倀爀攀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀匀瀀攀挀椀愀氀㨀　　戀攀昀漀爀攀㐀　　㘀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀㨀㔀㔀　㘀 ⴀ 㠀　㘀䄀昀琀攀爀㠀　㘀㨀㜀㔀

倀爀攀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀匀瀀攀挀椀愀氀㨀㔀　戀礀㐀　　㘀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀匀瀀攀挀椀愀氀㨀㜀㔀㔀　㘀 ⴀ 㠀　㘀䄀昀琀攀爀㠀　㘀䄀昀琀攀爀㠀　㘀㨀㐀㔀

倀爀攀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀匀瀀攀挀椀愀氀㨀㐀㔀戀礀　㔀䔀愀爀氀礀䈀椀爀搀匀瀀攀挀椀愀氀㨀㐀㜀㔀㔀　㘀 ⴀ 㠀　㘀䄀昀琀攀爀㠀　㘀㨀㔀㜀㔀

䘀唀䰀䰀䌀伀一䘀䔀刀䔀一䌀䔀

吀䠀唀刀匀䐀䄀夀䘀刀䤀䐀䄀夀伀一䰀夀

䰀䔀䜀䄀䰀伀一䰀夀

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2016 is quickly approaching If you are like 45 percent of the

rest of Americans you will most likely be making a New Yearrsquos

resolution or two And if you are like the majority of those who

make these resolutions and start the year with nothing but good

intentions you will break your resolutions just 24 days into the

New Year However unlike the idyllic resolutions you may make

in your personal life (I know my yearly ldquoEat Healthierrdquo resolution

falls to the wayside as soon as I am confronted with a Gibsonrsquos

Red Velvet Donut I am weak) below are some good resolu-

tions for you to make and keep as an HR Professional for the

upcoming year

1 ldquoTame the Bulgerdquo If you have not already done so in 2016 you should take a look at revising and updating your Employee Handbook and losing unnecessary verbiage that will most likely offend the National Labor Relations Board (ldquoNLRBrdquo or ldquothe Boardrdquo) By way of background employee handbooks have been under fire by the NLRB the past few years Particularly the NLRB has been

attacking provisions that could be perceived as preventing an employeersquos right to engage in ldquoprotected concerted activityrdquo My colleagues Jay Kiesewetter and Jeff Weintraub addressed this subject in their article ldquoHandbook Apocalypserdquo in a prior issue of HR Professionals magazine For example provisions subjecting employees to progressive discipline for insubordinate behavior have been stricken by the Board under the idea that employees have the Section 7 right to join together to protect workplace conditions Just because their supervisors are in the line of fire andor if these protests get rowdy and disrespectful does not mean that the employees have lost their Section 7 protections Other policies that you might consider updating are your leave policies to include the definition of spouse as a same-sex spouse any policies pertaining to pregnant employees to be consistent with the Young v UPS decision harassment policies to cover any ldquotextualrdquo harassment or harassment that occurs via social media such as Facebook or Snapchat and Bring Your Own Device policies Also as discussed more in detail below consider revising your EEO policies to include gender preference and identity as protected classifications in light of the recent Supreme Court decision

2 ldquoLearn Something Newrdquo Employers have been reacting to the Obergefell Supreme Court decision by adding sexual preferenceorientation and gender identity to the list of protected classifications in their respective EEO policies Nonetheless despite having these revised policies a re-occurring issue that is increasingly on the minds of most HR Professionals is how to treat employees who may be transi-tioning to another gender The infamous bathroom question is almost always asked in all of my seminars during which I discuss LGBT employeesrsquo rights in the workplace The re-occurrence of these issues raises the question ndash it is one thing to have a policy in place and it is a whole other issue when an employer has implemented that policy Certainly employers should learn best practices when handling these newer issues associated with a diverse workforce For example having a game plan in place when faced with a transitioning employee ndash from both a benefits standpoint (employee leave for surgeries changing personnel file documents to reflect new legal names etc) and a practical standpoint would be beneficial Make sure your workforce is trained on any of these newer policies so that supervisors will be sensitive to any transitioning employees and will be vigilant in spotting any insensitive behavior from your workforce

3 ldquoFit in Fitnessrdquo Once you have revised your handbook it would be a good idea to present your revisions and conduct training on any updated policies As mentioned above an employee handbook is only as good as your implementation of the policies and training your employees on those same policies In fact your training (and any investigation) is your best defense when confronted with harassment claims As a refresher when faced with a hostile work environment harassment claim an employer can rely on what is called the Faragher-Ellerth affir-mative defense (named after two companion Supreme Court cases) if 1) no tangible employment action was taken against the complaining employee (eg discharge or a demotion) 2) the employer exercised reasonable care to prevent and promptly

New Yearrsquos Resolutions to Prevent an Employerrsquos ldquoAuld Lan-xietyrdquo in 2016

By COURTNEY LEYES


correct the harassing behavior such as having harassment policies and training on such policies and 3) the complaining employee unrea-sonably failed to take advantage of any preventive or corrective opportu-nities provided by the employer such as utilizing a complaint mechanism contained in an anti-harassment policy Training your employees on your policies and procedures will ensure that your employees understand these policies and how they are implemented and interpreted

4 ldquoGet Organizedrdquo Big changes are on the horizon in wage and hour law next year The US Department of Laborrsquos Wage and Hour Division (ldquoWHDrdquo) intends to roll out its new regulations pertaining to the white collar exemptions sometime in the summer Particularly the WHD has proposed to raise the salary basis threshold to meet the white collar exemptions from $23660 annually to $50440 The WHDrsquos proposed rules also contain changes to the duties required to meet the various exemptions

Additionally the WHD has made clear that its investigators will be targeting industries who are staffed with independent contractors In this 15-page ldquoAdministratorrsquos Interpretationrdquo guidance issued this summer clearly aimed at curbing the misclassification of employees as independent contractors WHD head David Weil stated that most workers are employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act Based on the Agencyrsquos interpretation employers should rely upon six ldquoeconomic realities factorsrdquo to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor Essen-tially these factors bear on the nature and degree of the employerrsquos control and whether the work performed by the worker is integral to the business

Based on these changes employers should examine how their employees are compensated You should consider how you want to handle those employees who may be affected by the salary basis changes In doing so you can look at how many hours they are working on average per week and determining an hourly rate that works for you You can also consult with your employment attorney to explore any other potential exemptions that could apply to these employees Additionally you should examine any independent contractor relationships you may have Do you have agreements in place with these individuals While having an agreement is not a slam-dunk determinative factor as to whether a worker is an independent contractor having an agreement in place certainly helps Additionally how much control do you have over these workers Essentially are they free to perform the same work for other businesses If the answer is yes and the less control you have over them then the more likely this individual is an independent contractor If you determine that an individual has perhaps been misclassified then you may want to discuss this revelation with your employment attorney to decide how to covert this individualrsquos employment status

5 ldquoBe Less Stressedrdquo I promise this is not a joke as I know you are laughing at me when I list this as a resolution However if you try your best to both implement and stick to the above resolu-tions (and contact your employment attorney when necessary) then you should be less stressed in your job And we all could use a little less stress

Courtney Leyes AttorneyFisher amp Phillips LLP

cleyeslaborlawyerscomwwwlaborlawyerscom


helloworkOvernight successrarely happens overnightrarely happens overnightPatience persistence and a side of drive just might be the best way to achieve success At ADP we understand that things like compliance hiring and payroll require a human touch And with the right people and software working together you have a trusted partner with you every step of the way

Visit adpcomhellowork and see how we can provide a more human resource for your businessresource for your business

ADP and the ADP logo are registered trademarks of ADP LLC ADP ndash A more human resource is a service mark of ADP LLC Copyright copy 2015 ADP LLC HR Solutions | Payroll | Good Job


From the outside it can look like a lot is going right for a company they have growth great brand recognition and profits Everything seems to indicate that all the right moves are happening at the right time But no matter whatrsquos going right a lot of companies are getting a critical component wrong job levels and titles

While auditing job levels may not seem important when there are exciting things happening not having a good handle on job levels and pay can sabotage a companyrsquos success Incorrect job levels undermine a companyrsquos ability to keep talent manage their budget and maintain competitive edge

While itrsquos an un-sexy topic the consequences are too big to ignore In my experience as a principal consultant with OneCompensation helping companies to figure out job levels is what I do every day and so I want to share how skewed job levels can hurt a company why it happens and why companies put off such a critical component of success

Brace for Impact How Skewed Jobs Levels Hurt Companies From the Inside OutSince itrsquos not usually on the checklist of things to do job leveling only comes into play when a company is forced to do something about it either because there is a lawsuit difficulty getting the right talent or low employee engagement

Having the wrong job levels can mean big risks to a companyrsquos legal liability I saw this happen with a high-flying tech company Everything looked great but they had no global leveling system in place When an employee was laid off and didnrsquot find work for a year he contacted an employment attorney who determined that he had probably been misclassified in his previous role When the attorney contacted the company for his clientrsquos job description the company had to go through a painful global leveling process while in panic mode

More commonly Irsquove seen that companies struggle to get the right talent When job titles and levels are incorrect that means that salary structures arenrsquot calibrated to the market Wondering why premium positions are hard to fill Usually itrsquos because a company is out of step with the competition

More importantly incorrect job levels can do serious damage to a companyrsquos work force Trans-parency is really important to employees today When a company doesnrsquot have their story straight on job levels employees know it Ultimately this can mean higher turnover which can cost a company big time on hiring and onboarding However the damage it can do to employee morale is even more serious Low engagement and motivation is often a sign that job levels are off because misalignment makes it difficult to target the key behaviors that make a company successful

So What Causes Job Levels to MisalignIncorrect job levels usually happen in one of three ways

1 Reorganization When a company changes in a big way job levels usually do too Employees who take on new roles while keeping their old titles can degrade a companyrsquos job leveling system Itrsquos important to make these new job leveling determinations part of the change Otherwise these level changes erode data integrity salary structures and position to market assumptions

2 Inconsistent recruiting strategies This is a common problem for many companies looking to attract hot talent An aggressive manager may want to bring on a lsquosuperstar employeersquo and pay top dollar to secure the talent Another manager in the same department may take a more conservative approach to setting pay levels for this same employee Without a global leveling system in place HRrsquos ability to lead and guide management on these critical decisions can become ineffective choppy and subjective Hiring decisions that are made without reference to market data puts a major strain on companyrsquos job levels and can also be a major source of inequity issues between employees

3 Employee data is a moving target The labor market can change fast so regularly checking the competition is critical to having a leveling system with integrity Knowing what the competition pays for equiv-alent positions can help a company prevent turnover keep the right talent and stay competitive

Why Job Leveling Gets Put OffWithout a clear understanding of job levels and position to market a company may be operating in the dark Usually job leveling gets put off for a few key reasons

For one itrsquos a chore I like to compare an audit of job levels to eating your vegetablesmdashitrsquos good for you but not the most thrilling thing in the world Itrsquos more fun to focus on those programs that get everyone motivated Job leveling audits are not exciting But while no one wants to do this sooner or later theyrsquore sorry when they donrsquot

Second companies usually donrsquot have those processes and systems in place that are set to identify triggering events Companies are busy places with a lot of stuff happening at once Job level erosion usually happens over time Without something to regularly indicate that an audit needs to happen most companies just ignore it until they are forced to pay attention to it

Finally doing a job level audit can come down to a matter of bandwidth Especially for larger companies HR is busy with special projects and programs along with the usual business of managing the day-to-day of keeping a business moving When HR departments just donrsquot have the time or expertise to do a job level audit justice thatrsquos usually when I get a call to help out

When something is as critical to long-term success as a sound job leveling system it just doesnrsquot pay to put it off If yoursquore not sure how your job titles match up are wondering why you canrsquot shore up problems with employee engagement or donrsquot know how you stack up to your competition it may be time to get some help After all knowing yoursquove got a problem is the first step but making it right is what counts

Sabotaged Success The Number One HR Problem Yoursquore Not Thinking About

Clifford Stephan | PrincipalCliffordonecompensationcom

OneCompensationcom

By CLIFFORD STEPHAN


By ED FENSHOLT JDand BRAD MANDACINA CEBS

ACA Reporting SoftwareVendor SetupWhatrsquos With These Questions About Qualifying Offers the 98 Offer Method and Other Stuff

Many employers working with vendors to accom-plish Affordable Care Act (ACA) reporting have received questionnaires from their vendors making inquiries related to how the employer is complying with the employer mandate Some of these questions include who the employer treats as eligible how the employer determines full-time employees what periods of time the employer is using for measurement administrative and stability periods (where the employer is using the look-back measurement method) and more

Some of these questions are bewildering to the employer and often are not well explained in the vendorrsquos questionnaire The ambiguous questions we see most often are those for which the vendor needs answers to complete Line 22 on the employerrsquos Form 1094-C (although the questionnaire typically doesnrsquot refer to Line 22) These questions ask the employer about the following

Qualifying Offers

Qualifying Offer Transition Relief

Section 4980H Transition Relief

The 98 Offer Method

Other ambiguous questions we see on implementation questionnaires pertain to

Non-Calendar-Year Transition Relief

Non-Calendar-Year Start Date

First-Year Relief

No Dependent Coverage Transition Relief

HERErsquoS WHAT THESE REFERENCES MEANQualifying OffersTypically there is at least one question on setup questionnaires concerning whether the employer is ldquousing the qualifying offer methodrdquo or has made a ldquoqualifying offerrdquo to one or more full-time employees as reflected on the Forms 1095-C prepared for the employees Most employers are not using the qualifying offer method

A ldquoqualifying offerrdquo is an offer by the employer that meets specific criteria The quali-fying offer concept was invented by the IRS as a sort of reward to the employer for offering decent coverage to one or more full-time employees at a generously subsidized rate but the reward is complicated and sometimes not particularly meaningful

For an offer of coverage to a full-time employee to be a qualifying offermdashthat is for the employer to answer ldquoyesrdquo to the vendorrsquos question about whether the employer made a qualifying offermdashemployee-only coverage must provide minimum value (at least 60 percent actuarial value) and must be offered to the employee at no more than 95 percent of the federal mainland poverty level (roughly $93 per month for 2015) The offer must include the opportunity to enroll the spouse and children through the month the child attains age 26 in at least minimum essential coverage or MEC (ie employer- based coverage more robust than ldquoexcepted benefitsrdquo such as typical dental or vision coverage)

The reward comes in two parts only one of which might be availableIf the employer made a qualifying offer to a full-time employee for some or all months in 2015 for which the employer had an employer mandate obligation regarding the employee the employer may choose to report that fact (it is not required to report it) by using Code 1A on line 14 of the employeersquos Form 1095-C If the employer chooses to use Code 1A for one or more months it is allowed to skip line 15 (employee premium cost for the least expensive minimum value option offered to him or her) for those months in fact the employer must skip line 15 for those months

The second part of the reward is more contingent If (i) the employer made a quali-fying offer for all months in 2015 for which the employer had an employer mandate obligation regarding the employee and (ii) the employee was not enrolled in self-insured coverage of the employer for even a single day the employer is permitted to supply the employee in lieu of the Form 1095-C an abbreviated statement regarding the employerrsquos coverage offer But the employer must still send the actual 1095-C to the IRS and so cannot entirely dodge completing a Form 1095-C even though it made a qualifying offer

Lockton comment Importantly an employer can satisfy the employer mandate without making a qualifying offer And as noted above if the employer makes a qualifying offer it is not required to report that fact The employer might choose instead to use Code 1E (minimum value offer to the employee and at least minimum essential coverage to spouse and children) While using Code 1E requires the employer to complete line 15 on the employeersquos Form 1095-C line 15 is an easy line to complete

Lockton comment The four bullets mentioned above offer merely optional safe harbor shortcuts to ACA reporting There are no negative implications for failing to use or satisfy any of these safe harbors and the shortcuts are sometimes not worth the effort


Qualifying Offer Transition ReliefThis is similar in several respects to the qualifying offer method The employer isnrsquot required to use or report this method itrsquos complicated and it doesnrsquot offer much in the way of a reward Most employers are not using the qualifying offer method transition relief

The employer might answer ldquoyesrdquo to the vendorrsquos question about qualifying offer transition relief if with respect to one or more full-time employees the employer did not make a qualifying offer for all 12 months of the calendar year but for the months with respect to which the employee did not receive a qualifying offer the employer in fact made a qualifying offer to at least 95 percent of its full-time employees with respect to whom the employer had an employer mandate obligation

Where this is the case the employer may choose (itrsquos not required to do so) to insert Code 1I on line 14 of the employeersquos Form 1095-C for the months for which the employee did not receive a qualifying offer but for which the employer made a qualifying offer to at least the 95 percent

Again the reward for this complexity comes in two parts If the employer chooses to use Code 1I for one or more months it is allowed to skip line 15 for those months in fact it must skip line 15 for those months

Second if the employee was not enrolled in self-insured coverage of the employer for even a single day the employer is permitted to supply the employee in lieu of the Form 1095-C an abbreviated statement regarding the employerrsquos coverage offer But the employer must still send the 1095-C to the IRS

4980H Transition Relief (andor ldquo4980H Transition Relief Controlled Group Sizerdquo)There are two situations where the employer would say ldquoyesrdquo to the vendorrsquos question about tax code section 4980H transition relief Most Lockton clients do not qualify for 4980H transition relief The two situations are

1 The employerrsquos controlled or affiliated service group (what we refer to as the ldquocorporate family treerdquo) had between 50-99 full-time employeesfull-time equiv-alent employees on the average business days in 2014 The relief the employer claims is relief from the employer mandatersquos obligation to offer coverage to its full-time employees or risk penalties The employer is not relieved of its ACA reporting obligation Some vendors refer to this as ldquo50-99 Transition Reliefrdquo

2 The employerrsquos corporate family tree had at least 100 full-time employeesfull-time equivalent employees on the average business days in 2014 and the employer is ldquopayingrdquo rather than ldquoplayingrdquo under the employer mandate In this latter case the relief the employer receives is avoiding the $2080 per year ldquonuclearrdquo penalty with respect to its first 80 full-time employees Some vendors refer to this as ldquo100 or More Transition Reliefrdquo

Some Lockton clients are in corporate family trees small enough to qualify for the relief in (1) above but most Lockton clients are too large to qualify With regard to the relief in (2) above very few employers are ldquopayingrdquo rather than ldquoplayingrdquo under the employer mandate and thus wonrsquot qualify for or need the relief

If the employer qualifies for one of the relief options described above the ACA reporting vendor will want to know the size of the employerrsquos corporate family tree That information will of course tell the vendor whether the employer is claiming the relief in (1) above or (2) above

98 Offer MethodAn employer may say ldquoyesrdquo to the vendorrsquos question about meeting the 98 offer method if for all months it offered minimum value coverage to at least 98 percent of its full-time employees with respect to whom it had an obligation

to supply a Form 1095-C and it offered at least minimum essential coverage to the employeesrsquo children through the month they attain age 26 The employer may disregard employees in a ldquolimited non-assessment periodrdquo such as an initial measurement or administrative period or the first three full calendar months of a new full-time employeersquos employment as long as the new full-time employee receives a coverage offer by the first day of the fourth full calendar month

Some Lockton clients qualify for the 98 offer method However it buys relief from only one requirement the obligation to report the number of full-time employees by month in column (b) of Form 1094-C

Other questions often posed by vendors refer to the following

Non-Calendar-Year Transition ReliefThis relief allows some employers with non-calendar-year healthcare plans to avoid the employer mandatersquos coverage offer obligation prior to the beginning of the plan year that commences in 2015 provided the employer satisfies the mandate on the first day of that plan year See discussion on page 13 Compliance News Spring 2014 The employees must still meet the ACArsquos employer mandate reporting obligation for all of 2015 however Many Lockton clients qualify for this relief

Non-Calendar-Year Start DateThis question simply asks for the start date of the employerrsquos non-calendar-year plan(s) This information is optional for 2015 on the employerrsquos Form 1094-C It may serve more than one purpose but we presume the IRS is primarily interested in this information to help it make sense of the way an employer claiming non-calendar-year transition relief reports coverage offers for 2015

For example if an employer indicates its plan runs on a July 1ndashJune 30 plan year basis that information helps explain why the employer might have used Code 1H (no coverage offer) for some full-time employees from January through June 2015 and then indicated a coverage offer for the months of July through December

First-Year ReliefA reference to ldquofirst-year relief rdquo refers to a free pass under the employer mandate for the months of January through March for the first year an employer is big enough to be considered subject to that mandate based on the number of its full-time and full-time equiv-alent employees in the prior year Most Lockton clients donrsquot qualify for this relief

No Dependent Coverage Transition ReliefRecall that the first obligation under the employer mandate is to offer at least minimum essential coverage to full- time employees and their children through the month the child attains age 26 This ldquono dependent offer relief rdquo refers to relief (for 2015) for employers that donrsquot offer coverage to full-time employeesrsquo children in 2015 or offer them something short of MEC but are working to install compliant coverage for 2016

Most Lockton clients have long offered coverage to employeesrsquo children Often however that coverage (particularly self-insured coverage) terminates on the childrenrsquos 26th birthday rather than at the end of the month Itrsquos not clear whether employers who offer at least MEC to children but terminate it on the 26th birthday rather than at monthrsquos end can qualify for this relief In any event employers whose plans terminate child coverage on the 26th birthday will likely want to modify those plans to provide for coverage through the end of that month and do so as quickly as possible in order to satisfy that first obligation under the employer mandate

Brad OwensLocktonrsquos

Memphis Office901 757 6901

bowenslocktoncom


ldquoTo err is human to forgive divinerdquo

English poet Alexander Popersquos observation about human frailty and heavenly grace is often quoted because it is so on-target

For a retirement or benefit plan fiduciary however mistakes can be costly for both the organization and the individual fiduciary

Earlier this year Marlene Y Satter at benefitsprocom offered a take on a list of common fiduciary errors and shared ideas about the best ways to avoid them

Herersquos a look at some of the issues the piece raised

Failure to identify all fiduciariesAs stunning as it sounds some plan fiduciaries in an organization can be overlooked The oversight can be costly if they are not aware of their responsibilities had not considered their actions in light of their responsibilities and are hauled into court to testify about their fiduciary conduct

It is wise to remember all these individuals are fiduciaries

bull Retirement plan trustees

bull Investment advisors

bull All individuals who exercise discretion in plan administration

bull All administrative committee members

bull Anyone such as board members who selects committee officials

Failure to provide all fiduciaries with proper liability insuranceFiduciaries are personally liable for any mistakes they might make as fiduciaries

In my October 2015 column for HR Profes-sionals I discussed those fiduciary responsi-bilities These include the duties of loyalty and of care They also include compliance with diversification and consistency rules in plans operating under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)

Directorsrsquo and officersrsquo coverage or employment practice liability policies might be in effect yet they do not generally cover liability in the case of an ERISA retirement plan

An ERISA fidelity bond which provides a safeguard in cases of employee fraud or dishonesty does not provide liability protection for fiduciaries

Failure to understand the differing roles of third-party fiduciariesERISA recognizes three types of fiduciary

bull A 3(21) fiduciary who provides advice but has no discretion over plan assets

bull A 3(38) investment manager who decides what to do with plan assets and who is overseen by the plan sponsor

bull A 3(16) administrator who has responsi-bility for all plan administrative functions including choosing service providers and managing investments

The devil is in the details and understanding the nuances is important since otherwise you might be held liable for aspects of the plan you thought were the responsibilities of others

Failure to train fiduciaries appropriatelyUS Department of Labor auditors have identified inadequate fiduciary training as an issue

New fiduciaries should be trained and all fiduciaries should have refresher courses It is important that the training be documented in meeting minutes and that materials are accessible

Failure to take and document appropriate actionsFiduciary committees may from time to time procrastinate in making decisions or in taking actions In other cases committees may take action but drop the ball and not make a record of the decision or action Either can cause problems

Fiduciaries should take action when necessary and keep records of what they did and when and most importantly why they did it

Failure to communicate and coordinate Fiduciary committees may also get distracted from time to time and members may take their eyes off their responsibilities to follow plan documents consistently to make sure plan contributions are made in a timely manner and to monitor plan expenses to make sure they are appropriate and in line with comparable plans

Investment and administrative committees need to communicate and coordinate to ensure all their responsibilities to the participants and beneficiaries are met

Failure to follow the planrsquos investment policy statementThe planrsquos investment policy statement guides the planrsquos investments It should be referenced in the discussion of every meeting and should be followed as a matter of due diligence

If your planrsquos investment policy statement is too complicated or too rigid perhaps it is time to reevaluate it

Failure to properly benchmark plan expensesFiduciaries should know how much everything within a plan costs They should know what the expenses are and whether those expenses to service providers are consistent with expenses of comparable plans

US Labor Department auditors are paying attention to plan expenses Fiduciaries need to ensure that they have transparent data on monies paid to service providers

Failure to spend enough time on participant outcomesFiduciaries may focus more on the mechanics of caring for retirement plans than on how well they are working Fiduciaries need to keep a close watch on how well plans are providing employees with the means for a successful retirement

Participants make their own errors in investing saving and even withdrawing funds Yet if fiduciaries pay attention to how well partici-pants are doing within the plan they can see how well the plan is doing at providing employees with the retirement and other benefits they are looking for

Section 404(c) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 is designed to provide a safe harbor as plan sponsors transfer the legal responsibility to the participant for losses resulting from the participantrsquos exercise of control over his or her account

There are limits on those protections however Collaborating with a knowledgeable and experienced retirement plan advisor or consultant someone who can help protect the best interests of plan participants and fiduciaries is an effective first step

Larry J Tolbert MBA CEPFounder Radian Partners LLC

LarryTolbertradianpartnersnetwwwradianpartnersnet

Common Fiduciary Errors and Ways to Avoid ThemBy LARRY J TOLBERT

Securities insurance and advisory services offered through FSC Securities Corporation member FINRASIPC Radian Partners is not affiliated with FSC or registered as a broker-dealer or investment advisor The offices of Radian Partners are located in Suite 150 6060 Poplar Ave Memphis TN 38119 and may be reached by phone at (901) 202-3909


I was at a meeting recently where everyone was asked to introduce themselves and explain what they did for a living It was a mix of HR executives consultants vendors and associ-ation executives and when it was my turn to explain what I did I responded the way I always do since retiring as President and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) ldquoI do whatever I damned well pleaserdquo

You see Irsquom a participant in the ldquoGig Economyrdquo I do some consulting some writing some board work and some speaking I move from gig to gig to gig Irsquom part of the workforce but not attached to any employer I determine when and if Irsquoll take on a new project and determine who I will or wonrsquot work for

Admittedly moving into the gig economy wasnrsquot like moving to a foreign land I knew lots of people who had been consultants working for multiple companies or partnering with other consultants when the work volume required an assist And honestly Irsquod been hearing about the pros and cons and use of independent contractors and contingent workers for decades Lots of companies have temp agencies on speed dial to help with seasonal or unanticipated vacancies or workloads

How big is the gig economy And is there anything new Government statistics on the prevalence of non-traditional work arrangements arenrsquot very helpful The Bureau of Labor Statistics last try to measure the use of freelance workers was in 2005 when it reported that roughly 31 percent of the US population worked as freelancers [httpwwwblsgovnewsreleaseconempnr0htm]

More recent research done in 2015 for the Freelancers Union by Edelman Berman found that thirty four percent of the US workforce were freelancers and that 60 started freelancing by choice rather than necessity an increase of 7 from 2014 Sixty percent of freelancers who left traditional employment said they made more money as freelancers and 50 said they wouldnrsquot quit freelancing to take a traditional job [httpwwwslidesharenetupwork2015-us-freelancer-survey-53166722]

Looking around I donrsquot think you can ignore the fact that just as organizational structures technol-ogies and businesses are changing how work gets done is changing too There is indeed a growing trend for companies to place even greater reliance on the use of freelancers independent contractors free agents and adopt new models for how to get work done including crowd sourcing While some have already done it I predict that in the future most employers and companies will describe their workforce strategies only using the term ldquoworkerrdquo ldquoemployeerdquo wonrsquot be inclusive enough to describe how things will get done

Consider a recently issued report from the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) In Beyond Uber Driving the Evolution of Work i4cp reported that 95 of the executives interviewed were using or anticipated using more non-traditional (non-employee) skilled workers than ever before Further executives reported that their organizations were in various stages of planning or already moving toward a model in which 30 to 50 of their workforces will be non-traditional (ie not employees)

A Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) research report issued about the same time came to a similar conclusion Surveys of HR and non-HR C-suite executives found that both groups believed that many organizations will attempt to shift to the use of different less traditional

employment models in the coming decade While 86 of the HR professionals surveyed said that their organization used a traditional employment model fewer (60) anticipated that this would be the model they would use in the next 10 years Although 19 of survey respondents said their companies currently used a non-traditional employment model (or project-based employment) 40 anticipated that this would be the employment model used in the next decade [httpwwwshrmorgpublicationshrmagazineeditorial-content20151015pages1015-hr-challengesaspx]

And recently John Boudreau Ravin Jesuthasan and David Creelman published a book entitled Lead the Work which explores some of the implications of a world where ldquonon-employment work arrangementsrdquo are the norm and companies leverage partner-ships to complete projects crowd source to solve difficult business challenges or depend primarily on independent contract workers to get work done

Therersquos another change Where the use of contingent contract or other nontraditional workers was largely reserved for tactical purposes to reduce costs new business models are emerging and the use of non-tradi-tional workers is increasingly a strategic decision rather than tactical The focus isnrsquot just on cost reduction itrsquos also on increasing organizational capability capacity and agility

But this trend toward a gig economy is not without problems While many freelancers embrace and relish their ability to control their work destiny many are freelancers or contingent workers out of necessity or desperation Some workers take on jobs and projects in addition to their full-time position because they are unable to earn enough from their full-time job Some workers take on projects and assignments while job hunting because they need to generate some income They may be able to string together enough assignments to earn a living but would prefer regular employment so they have access to benefits If the Edelman Berman research I mentioned earlier found that 60 of freelancers started freelancing by choice rather than necessity that means 40 had no choice

Recently the Pew Research Center issued a report that will heighten the focus on this issue According to Pew the American middle class is shrinking for the first time the middle class is not the largest segment of the population According to this research in 2014 the median income of middle class households was 4 less than in 2000 and because of the housing market crisis and recession of 2007-09 their median wealth (assets minus debts) fell significantly as well More people are at the lowest and highest ends of the income distribution which means that the distance between the ldquohavesrdquo and ldquohave notsrdquo is growing [httpwwwpewsocialtrendsorg20151209the-american-middle-class-is-losing-ground] Real wage growth has been anemic for years

And all of these issues will continue to be front and center in the political arena leading up to the Presi-dential elections

What does this mean for HR executives Well as you explore and expand on creative ways to get work done in a cost effective manner that meets the strategic needs

By SUSAN R MEISINGER

The EconomyGIG


of your organizations yoursquod be wise to keep an eye on the public policy devel-opments around the broader issue of how workers are treated in general and how contingent labor is treated in particular In a future where businesses place greater reliance on non-traditional workers HR executives will have to be mindful of how public policy makers and the courts are reacting to the new models

The recent challenge to Uber and how it classifies its drivers is a good example The Uber business model allows drivers to control when theyrsquoll work and provide their own equipment Uber treats its drivers as independent contractors This year the drivers sued Uber in California claiming that they are really employees of Uber and that they have been misclassified as independent contractors The drivers are seeking reimbursement for expenses such as gas and vehicle maintenance and payment of tips that they claim were not passed on to them

The California court has ruled that the lawsuit could be brought as a class action significantly raising the stakes for Uber If the courtrsquos final decision holds that Uber drivers are employees not independent contractors Uber will be liable for the costs of Social Security workers compensation and unemployment insurance The Uber business model and Uber may not survive Lyft a competitor to Uber has also been sued and may also not survive

And Uber and Lyft will soon be battling on another front The Seattle City Council recently voted to allow drivers for both companies to unionize Companies such as Uber and Lyft would be required to bargain with drivers if the majority of the drivers voted for representation and bargaining would be handled by a nonprofit organizations certified by the city

Litigation has been brought in other jurisdictions against other businesses with a similar business model Handy a company that allows customers to book a maid or handyman services through its website or a smartphone app has been sued in both California and Massachusetts by workers who

claim they were employees that they were paid less than minimum wage and illegally forced to cover basic costs of the job

CrowdFlower a crowdsourcing business settled a class action lawsuit brought by crowdsource workers who claimed they were not independent contractors but employees and were paid less than the legal minimum wage And last fall class-action lawsuits were filed against on-demand food delivery companies DoorDash and GrubHub in California alleging that the drivers should not be considered independent contractors as their companies have classified them but employees

While litigation is making news the US Department of Labor is increasing its enforcement efforts to stop employers from misclassifying people as independent contractors if the Department believe that the individuals are really employees In recently published guidance on determining who is an employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) the Department also noted that ldquomany states have acknowledged this problematic trend and have responded with legislation and misclassification task forcesrdquo [httpwwwdolgovwhdworkersmisclassificationAI-2015_1htm]

An on-demand or ldquogig economyrdquo is certainly creating exciting new work opportunities for some But itrsquos also raising hard questions about what new worker protections might ndash or might not-- be necessary in the future and the courts and public policy makers are trying to provide answers HR executives would be wise to not only pay attention to this trend but participate to ensure reasonable approaches are adopted

Susan R Meisinger EsqSHRM-SCP SPHR

SueSueMeisingercomTwittersuemeisinger


Historically the act of turning the calendar to a new year symbolizes change and a fresh look toward the future The fact is its a bit more complex than that As an HR professional reeling from the health

reform complexities of counting employees in 2015 ndash and its potential impact on your program in the year ahead ndash this may be the right time to step back and reevaluate your entire employee benefits strategy

As we enter a new year of challenges and opportunities ndash specifically as it relates to the world of employee benefits consulting ndash Irsquom reminded how much our business model has changed over the past five years And by change I donrsquot mean a slight remodel Wersquore talking complete overhaul

In case you didnrsquot get the memo the traditional insurance brokerage model is dead Time of death March 23 2010

Complexities have always existed for employers looking to purchase health insurance but it was certainly manageable prior to the Affordable Care Act Does the carrier have the network physicians and hospitals our employees want to use Is the network pricing competitive to help manage costs compared to our utilization How can we better communicate our benefits program to our employees Whatrsquos the best method of enrollment What if we offered a wellness program

These were common questions circling the executive conference table prior to 2010 ndash and they were easily answered by your trusty insurance broker Ask a CFO or HR manager today to list the top 10 issues around their corporate benefits program and its a pretty safe bet procuring insurance and negotiating renewals wouldnrsquot be near the top

The transformation in employee benefits advisory services has been swift and decisive Mergers and acquisitions are the norm in our world as firms consolidate and position themselves to compete in a resource-driven industry Itrsquos essentially an arms race In addition to advisors account managers and enrollment specialists we now have senior HR advisors law-trained profes-sionals financial analysts population health management experts and actuarial resources to support our clientsrsquo daily needs

Employers today demand more than just insurance placement and service ndash and rightfully so Navigating healthcare reform continues to be extremely complicated and costly Additionally employers have

a greater sense of urgency in controlling healthcare costs that are exacerbated by benefit mandates a changing provider landscape

specialty pharmaceuticals and increased enrollment in group health plans

So as an employer evaluating your benefits strategy and potentially your strategic partners these are some things you should take into careful consideration

It takes a VillageA good employee benefits consultant knows a lot He or she is also the quarterback of an outstanding

team Itrsquos no longer enough to be a generalist in employee benefits You need a team of experts in every

facet of your program that understands your overall management strategy A true benefits advisory firm will

support you with HR advisory regulatory compliance and support (ACA ERISA FMLA etc) health management and

claims informatics and actuarial and financial analytics If you feel your benefits advisory team is a business ldquopartnerrdquo in these areas then yoursquove made the right hire

Compliance is KingSimply put the Affordable Care Act is complicated Itrsquos complicated for professionals trained to understand it and provide advice on it Itrsquos absolutely critical that yoursquore receiving competent advice regarding the law and how it could affect your organization Missteps here can be very costly in 2016 and beyond

Think Outside the BoxI firmly believe within every challenge lies an opportunity Health reform certainly offers many challenges but is your organization willing to put all options on the table and consider alternatives Carefully review benchmark data as it relates to your industry and peers Are there opportunities for benefit changes Do your employee demographics support looking at alternative funding options Have you considered best-in-class disease management or specialty pharmacy programs How about narrow or tiered networks Does your company culture support a successful wellness strategy Most importantly are you being asked these questions

Know Your NumbersData analytics is critical when identifying the factors that affect your employee benefits plan From determining the impact of plan design changes to defining performance metrics actionable data is the key to making informed decisions You canrsquot change what you canrsquot measure

As we head into 2016 carve out the time to step back and review your employee benefits strategy Therersquos never been a better time than now to make sure yoursquore aligned with the right business partners to navigate your organization through a post ACA world

Tom Hayes is the Employee Benefits National Practice Leader for Regions Insurance a Top 30 insurance firm nationally and the 3rd largest bank-owned agency in the country Regions Insurance has 28 offices in 13 states across the Southeast and Indiana

A New Year and a

New Strategy

By TOM HAYES


wwwregionsinsurancecom

Have questions Letrsquos talkWhen it comes to securing the right answers to comply with the Affordable Care Act who you ask can be every bit as important as what you ask Let the ACA-trained professionals of the Regions Insurance Client Resource Team provide the guidance you need to steer your organization in the right direction

Find Regions Insurance offices in these states Alabama Arkansas Florida Georgia Indiana Louisiana Mississippi South Carolina Tennessee and Texas

copy2015 Regions Regions Insurance is an affiliate of Regions Bank Products and services are offered by Regions Insurance Inc and underwritten by unaffiliated insurance companies

The Coverage You Need The Guidance You Trust

SM

Tom HayesEmployee Benefits Practice Leader tomhayesregionscom 479-684-5259

Katrina McKinneySales amp Marketing Coordinator katrinamckinneyregionscom 205-264-7177

Employee Benefits CompaniesTOP

Regions Insurance is national leader in employee benefits and property amp casualty consulting with a focus on client-centric delivery of solutions expertise and resources designed to positively impact all areas of risk management compen-sation and human capital We view ourselves as a strategic partner to our clients and continuously measure our effectiveness in delivering outstanding results

Positioned to win in a rapidly changing industry Regions Insurance supports its customers with more than 700 professionals in 28 offices in 12 states Regions Insurance Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Regions Financial Corp (NYSE RF) and is a Top 30 brokerage nationally and 3rd largest bank-affiliated agency by Business Insurance

Regions Insurance

Tom Hayes RHU REBCNational Practice Leader

Employee Benefits

Julie GeorgeNational Performance Leader

Employee Benefits

Lockton Memphis marries global benefits and risk management expertise with the personal touch of local service from the 19 associates in our Memphis office While Lockton is the worlds largest privately owned insurance brokerage firm clients most frequently describe us as team members who partner with them to make their business better We achieve this by improving your bottom line managing your capital attracting and retaining talent as well as by protecting your people your property and your reputation We are passionate about serving our clients developing our associates and contributing to our communities

Lockton Companies

Brad OwensProducer

Colonial Life amp Accident Insurance Company is a market leader in providing financial protection benefits through the workplace including disability life accident dental cancer critical illness and hospital confinement indemnity insurance Headquar-tered in Columbia SC and founded in 1939 Colonial Lifersquos benefit services and education innovative enrollment technology and personal service support more than 80000 businesses and organizations representing more than 3 million of Americarsquos workers and their families

Colonial Life Insurance

Blake RogersTennessee Territory

Sales Manager

Chris MenardKentucky Territory

Sales Manager


The Sims Financial Group Inc founded in 1988 is an independent wealth management firm comprised of experienced Financial Services Professionals dedicated to helping clients achieve their financial goals We have a proud history of serving our communities by assisting professionals and businesses in all areas of financial management With offices in Memphis and Nashville (Atlanta in 2016)The Sims Financial Group Inc offers a full range of group health life and disability plans We also offer retirement products and services and work with companies of all sizes We custom-designed programs that help our clients recruit retain and reward key employees

The Sims Financial Group Inc

Radian Partners founder Larry J Tolbert MBA CEP and his team of finance insurance investment and tax specialists work collaboratively with C-suite execu-tives as fiduciary to deliver compliant transparent and seamless benefit plans for firms of any size or complexity Radian Partners is independent and operates from offices in Memphis and Franklin in Tennessee Securities insurance and advisory services offered through FSC Securities Corporation member FINRASIPC Radian Partners is not affiliated with FSC or registered as a broker-dealer or investment advisor

Radian Partners

Larry J Tolbert MBA CEPFounder Managing Partner

Radian Partners

Charles Sims JrPresident CEO

CK Harp amp Associates is an inter-disciplinary business consulting services firm doing business since 1996 The firm specializes in employee benefits assistance with human resources issues and leadership training and development They are a dedicated business partner committed to the success of your business by strate-gically designing programs to facilitate growth and achieve success

CK Harp amp Associates is owned by Cammie Scott SHRM-SCP SPHR and the 2013 NOARK Human Resources Professional of the Year They are committed to providing quality training and consulting services For more information email infockharpcom or call 479-750-4411

CK Harp amp Associates

Cammie ScottPresident

MSIE ChHC CLTC LUTCF REBC RHU SHRM-SCP SPHR


The use of tests can be very effective tools for selecting which applicants or employees are most qualified for a particular job However employers may find their selection procedures under attack when legal challenges demonstrate those procedures dispa-

rately impact employees in protected classes in violation of federal and state employment laws Therefore employers should ensure that selection procedures are utilized in a non-discriminatory manner to avoid having those procedures from being struck down by courts

One federal law of particular concern is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) which prohibits employment discrimination based on race color religion sex or national origin With respect to pre- and post-employment selection procedures and tests Title VII permits such tests as long as they are not ldquodesigned intended or used to discriminate because of race color religion sex or national originrdquo 42 USC sect 2000E-2(h) Title VII also imposes restrictions on the scoring of tests in that employers are not permitted to (1) adjust the scores of (2) use different cutoff scores for or (3) otherwise alter the results of employment-related tests on the basis of race color religion sex or national origin

Title VII prohibits both ldquodisparate treatmentrdquo and ldquodisparate impactrdquo discrimination Under the prohibition of disparate treatment employers are required to administer all tests and selection procedures in the same manner regardless of race color religion sex or national origin

With respect to ldquodisparate impactrdquo under Title VII employers are prohibited from using tests or selection procedures which appear to be neutral but in fact have the effect of dispropor-

tionately excluding persons based on protected class status where the test procedures are not ldquojob related and consistent with business necessityrdquo An employer may be able to meet the ldquojob related and consistent with business necessityrdquo standard by showing that the selection procedure is necessary to the safe and efficient performance of the job However even if an employer meets that standard the applicant may challenge the procedure by demonstrating that there is a less discriminatory alternative available Griggs v Duke Power Company 401 US 424 (1971)

A recent decision from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reminds employers of the perils of applying promotional selection procedures in a disparate manner Howe v City of Akron No 14-3352 (6th Cir Sept 17 2015) In 2004 the Akron Fire Department adopted a selection procedure to assist in making promotion decisions for the positions of Lieutenant and Captain The selection procedure included a 100-question multiple-choice exam regarding technical job requirements a written work sample exercise and two oral assessments The written and oral test scores were standardized by converting them to a 90-point scale and additional points (up to 10) were added based on seniority Based on the overall score a list was developed of candidates eligible for promotion (final test score of 70 or better) Candidates were ranked according to score When a vacant Lieutenant or Captain position became available the Personnel Director would interview the three highest scoring candidates and make a recommendation to the Mayor However if a candidate was interviewed and passed over three times then his or her name would be removed from the list making it possible that a candidate with the top score might never receive a promotion hence ldquothree strikes and you are outrdquo

During the following two year period 28 candidates were promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and 12 to the rank of Captain Despite the seeming objective nature of the selection process of the 28 candidates promoted to Lieutenant only 3 were African American and only 7 were over 40 Of the 12 who became Captain only 7 were Caucasian

The Plaintiffs members of the Akron Fire Department who took the 2004 promotion exam filed suit challenging the promotion selection processes and alleging age and race discrimination under federal and state law The Plaintiffs alleged that the promotional process adversely impacted 12 Caucasian Captain candidates on the basis of race 8 Lieutenant candidates on the basis of age and 3 African-American Lieutenant candi-dates on the basis of both age and race

At trial the Plaintiffs and Akron presented evidence about the statistical significance of the disparities between the promotion of each protected group and argued about whether the statistical tests were appropriate tools to evaluate the disparate-impact claims The Plaintiffs also offered expert testimony that the examinations and the promotion processes were not job related After trial in 2008 the jury found that business necessity did not justify the promotion process The jury awarded each candidate for the Lieutenant position $9000 in compensatory damages and $72000 in front pay The jury awarded each candidate for the Captain position $10000 of compensatory damages and $80000 in front pay

Multiple post-trial motions and appeals ensued between the parties in the intervening 9 years which included among other things injunctive relief ordering promotions of the Plaintiffs The first appeal to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals involved the District Courtrsquos injunctive decision ordering the promotions Howe v City of Akron 723 F3d 651 (2013) In the first Howe decision the Sixth Circuit held that the Plaintiffs had estab-lished a prima facie case of disparate impact in that they had established ldquoa particular employment practicerdquo that ldquocaused a significant adverse effect on a protected grouprdquo Once that prima facie case was established the burden shifted to the defendant-employer to show that the practice in question is a ldquobusiness necessityrdquo which the City of Akron failed to do If a defendant-employer demonstrates business necessity the burden returns to a plaintiff to show that there are alternative practices without a similarly undesirable discriminatory effect which would also serve the employerrsquos legitimate interest

In Howe I the Court of Appeals held that the challenged promotional process was a specific employment practice The Court held that the Plaintiffs had demonstrated adverse effect by applying the ldquofour-fifths rulerdquo to the promotion rates instead of exam pass rates as the outcomes of that employment practice-promotion rates-was the proper metric for determining ldquoadverse effectrdquo or lack thereof While not dispositive the ldquofour-fifths rulerdquo

By KELLIY CAMPBELL

Three Strikes and You Are Out

Except When the Impact of Selection Procedures is Disparate


may be used to demonstrate the adverse effect element of a disparate impact claim in showing that a ldquoselection rate for any [protected class] is less than four-fifthshellipof the rate for the group with the highest raterdquo

Ultimately the latest decision (Howe II) from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in September of 2015 affirmed the liability judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs with respect to their disparate-impact age- and race-discrim-ination claims but reversed the back-pay award and remanded the case (with assignment of a new judge) for a new trial on the issue of back pay

In affirming the liability judgment in favor of the Plaintiffs the Sixth Circuit acknowledged that it had already decided the issues pertaining to liability in Howe I However the Court of Appeals determined that the District Court had erred in its calculation of back pay holding that back pay should commence on a start date of when the employer used the discriminatory practice for the first time ie when the Akron Fire Department first promoted firefighters using the discriminatory promo-tional process However back pay is limited to no ldquomore than two years prior to the filing of a charge with the EEOCrdquo which had to be determined individually for each separate Plaintiff The ending date was correctly determined as the date that the Plaintiffs were ordered to be promoted by the District Court However the back pay award should also include any anticipated raises and fringe benefits or increases which would have been implemented during the back pay period

As demonstrated in this case standardized testing may be helpful in determining a candidatersquos eligibility for a position as such tests provide objective assessment of the candidatersquos skills and knowledge However to avoid having selection procedures struck down by a court caution should be exercised to ensure that such tests do not have a disparate impact against protected classes

To ensure compliance with Title VII and avoid disparate impact claims in testing and selection procedures employers should consider the following recommendations

bull Ensure that testsselection procedures are being administered without regard to protected classification

bull Ensure that testsselection procedures are job-related and that the results are appropriate for the purposes for which they are intended

bull Review the impact of selection procedures to ensure that the procedures being used will not screen out a protected group and if so adopt an alternative procedure

bull Ensure that selection procedures are updated to reflect current job requirements which will assist the employer in establishing a ldquojob related and consistent with business necessityrdquo standard if challenged and

bull Before adopting a test or selection procedure the employer should verify that the test is appropriate for the job at issue as well as the organization and that it is being and will continue to be appropriately administered and interpreted

Kelly A CampbellRegional Managing Member (Morristown TN office)

Wimberly Lawson Wright Daves amp Jones PLLC

r a i n e y k i z e r c o m

Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414

As the issues fac ing HR execut i ves become more f requent cha l leng ing and complex each year you need a law f irm that provides advice individual ized for your specif ic needs This is why you should know the employment-law attorneys at Rainey Kizer Reviere amp Bell PLC F o r o v e r 3 0 y e a r s o u r A V - r a t e d f i r m h a s a d v i s e d b u s i n e s s e s n o n -pro f i t o rgan i za t i ons and government agenc ies on a l l aspects o f emp loyment l aw To l earn more p l ease ca l l

Legal Challenges are Coming at HR Professionals

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Thatrsquos Why Rainey Kizer Makes

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Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414

Nashville615-651-7420


The aim of employee evaluations is to provide constructive feedback record performance and perhaps incentivize or increase compensation or promote Oftentimes these evaluations are slated for year-end coinciding with the holiday season Here it is December time to rehash your entire yearrsquos performance Measuring performance in such a cyclical way may seem natural given how the business may operate or how we begin anew our calendars and planners But is the ldquoYear in Reviewrdquo approach effective For some assessing an employeersquos performance once a year is like one day of practice or one day of clean living it doesnrsquot do any good

Potentially Detrimental Effects of EvaluationsWorse than ldquono goodrdquo is the annual evaluation actually detrimental It is not a bold prediction to say that for many reasons no one really likes to conduct annual employee evaluations be it the manager or the person who is evaluated It is the end of the year and managers are trying to meet certain goals and deadlines ensure projects are completed or plan for the next year or next project The task of evaluating employees seems like arbitrary box checking driven not by utility or opportunity but by the fact that it has to be done How unfortunate would it be to have the dreaded annual employee evaluation process also turn out to be detrimental to the employer and even the manager But without question if not done properly employee evaluations can be ineffective and detrimental

The ineffectiveness relates to the likelihood of meager returns in exchange for substantial efforts and they can be potentially detrimental because of the risk associated with deficient evaluations There is a reason the personnel file is often the first item requested in employment litigation Opposing counsel is on a quest for documents pertaining to employee discipline and employee evaluations More frequently although not at the preferred rate of one-hundred percent matters of discipline are documented

Discipline vs Evaluation Documenting disciplinary issues is simpler than measuring perfor-mance There is often an obvious infraction the infraction should not be committed again and the discipline is presented The employee likely understands the misstep although they are often not likely to admit it

But the contours of performance issues are more subtle

Conveying the fact that a performance lag even exists may require thoughtful explanation Pushback regarding the reason for substandard performance may be staunch and complex Evaluating the employeersquos reasoning might also require the manager to involve other employees Issuing constructive insight and formulating a plan to improve perfor-mance requires more mental energy than simply instructing an employee not to do something Another prevalent thought albeit misplaced is that the next time this happens is when it will be addressed Where most perfor-mance evaluations fall short is the unwillingness to provide unfavorable feedback directly to an employee

It may be because of the relationship between the two parties It may be because the manager truly thinks that a negative evaluation will not work It may be because by the time the evaluation rolls around the perfor-mance issues that plagued February no longer seem as troubling It may be because the manager has forgotten about the problems in February Or it may be that itrsquos far easier for the manager to serve up a palatable evaluation than weather the employeersquos indignation that could potentially follow a sub-par evaluation Still if the evaluation does not reflect the actual situation a degree of doubt is introduced That doubt may later cloud an assessment of the employerrsquos purported motivation for implementing discipline on account of poor performance

Litigation and Employee Evaluations By way of example an employee is continually having performance-related issues Towards the end of the year in November there is a marked improvement regarding the employeersquos performance and demeanor Year-end evaluations have occurred in December for the past ten years and the employee appreciates what month follows November He shapes up his act and when the time comes for evaluations the manager is either too blinded by the employeersquos recent improvements to make a compre-hensive assessment or the manager is reluctant to risk losing these recent gains on account of the employeersquos reaction to an honest evaluation So a favorable evaluation is issued the employee meets or exceeds expectations A perception that does not reflect reality is created

Then several months later the employee reverts back to his old ways He receives a verbal counseling or two and possibly even a written counseling that improvement is needed Improvement still does not follow and employment is terminated The reason given is a ldquocontinued failure to meet expectationsrdquo The former employee files a lawsuit claiming he was termi-nated for unlawful reasons and that the reason given for his termination is merely pretext for the unlawful reason

As evidence that his performance issues were not the real reason for his termination the former employee points to ten or so annual evaluations wherein he was evaluated as meeting or exceeding expectations Of all the places where someone would expect to find out how an employee is doing it is in an employee evaluation If the employeersquos evaluations said he was meeting or exceeding expectations how could he be terminated for contin-uously failing to meet expectations

Building an Effective SystemAll of this is not to say employees should be immune from evaluation And all of this is not to say there is an easy solution But first and foremost employers must appreciate the issues associated with employee evaluations Knowing the pitfalls will help build a solution that fits your organization and will enable management to evaluate the proficiency of that system

It is best to keep the system simple it depends on the manager to manage it although HR should have a role in evaluating employee reviews and not just permit all reviews to be rubber stamped The standards utilized in the review system should be clear and related to the job duties at issue

By JOSEPH A RAMSEY

Evaluating Evaluations


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Effective evaluations also encourage employee input and offer constructive and specific actions for improvement

A common understanding as to the evaluation and feedback system is also imperative Problems occur for example when some managers regard a ldquo6 out of 10rdquo as ldquoabove averagerdquo when other managers regard 6 out 10 as a ldquoDrdquo grade This is another reason why companies should seriously consider foregoing appraisals dependent on a complex series of grades numbers or formulas This is not to say that certain metrics could not be used but such a system is dependent on common application of an objective standard For instance are some managers grading employees against each other or grading an employee based on the level of performance required to carry out the requisite duties successfully

Evaluation and appraisal is always important and not just at the end of the year Still if year-end evaluations are a must the opportunity for success would be increased if the final evaluation was supported by documented evaluations and feedback throughout the year This signals to the employee that the final appraisal at least in part is based on information that had previously been shared with the employee reducing the chance of an unpleasant surprise The hope is also that with more regular feedback performance will improve throughout the year This may actually make the year-end evaluation more efficient and productive

Manage Your ManagersBut just implementing a more frequent efficient system will not be a cure-all Regardless of the system utilized it is crucial that managers under-stand not only the importance of proper evaluations and proper feedback but also how to conduct proper evaluations and how to give proper feedback With annual evaluations managers are conducting evaluations once a year That type of frequency does not afford much of an opportunity for managers to build and polish these skills

It may be that the manager does not quite understand what a proper evaluation looks like Examples or samples of proper evaluations should be furnished If a manager believes an encouraging message will be more beneficial for a certain employee the manager should keep a dated record of the fact that this approach was utilized Managers should also understand that disciplinary actions related to poor performance must be supported with documentation In addition to more regular evalu-ation and feedback this evaluation and feedback should be part of the managerrsquos job duties and reviewed to assess the managerrsquos performance in this area HR can help equip managers with the tools and skills necessary for an effective appraisal system

If it is determined that the current method of evaluations is inefficient and potentially detrimental it is time to consider a new system It may even be a welcome change especially in December More frequent meetings even if brief between managers and employees to share information that is geared towards overall improvement not a grade should be a focus Still form should not trump substance regardless of the evaluation system utilized or the frequency of evaluations if the evaluation and feedback is not done properly the inefficiencies and potential for bad litigation facts will still remain In the end managers must understand how to conduct proper evaluations and give proper feedback and appreciate their collective role in this critical employment process

Joe Ramsey AssociateCross Gunter Witherspoon Galchus

jramseycgwgcomwwwcgwgcom

ONE AREA OF PRACTICEONE FOCUS

The Kullman Firm has engaged in thepractice of labor and employment lawon behalf of management since 1946

Employment Discrimination Litigation OSHA Wrongful Discharge Litigation Wage and Hour Law Collective Bargaining Negotiations OFCCPAffirmative Action Labor and ADR Arbitrations ERISAEmployee Benefits Union Representation Cases FMLA Compliance

Offices in Louisiana Mississippi Florida and Alabama

wwwkullmanlawcomAttorney responsible for content of this ad Martin J Regimbal


2015 HOLIDAY BREAKFAST


Reasons why employers choose Colonial Life6

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money-saving strategies Wersquore constantly thinking about ways to save you money Sound familiar

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education and communication We help make sure everybody knows how to make the most of their benefits Which is a benefit in itself

fast and easy claims process When people need us most wersquore at our best Isnrsquot that what benefits are really all about

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To learn more contact

Blake Rogers TN Territory Sales Manager615-696-6672

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ColonialLifecomDISABILITY ACCIDENT LIFE CRITICAL ILLNESS CANCER

The Justice Departmentrsquos Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) has recently reached settlements with McDonaldrsquos USA LLC and its corporate affiliates and subsidiaries (McDonaldrsquos) Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) and Yellow Checker Star Transportation Company (YCS) resolving allegations of discrimination against employees because of their citizenship status in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)

In the McDonaldrsquos case the OSC opened its investigation based on information received on its worker hotline The investigation found that McDonaldrsquos had a longstanding practice of requiring lawful permanent residents (LPRs) to show a new permanent resident card when their original document expired Those LPRs who were asked and could not provide a new permanent resident card were not allowed to work which resulted in some employees losing their jobs The law clearly prohibits this practice because an individual does not lose their permanent resident status when their card expires (On the other hand when a work authorization card expires it must be re-verified or the company will be employing an undocumented worker) The investigation further found that the company did not make the equivalent request to its US citizen employees who showed documents that later expired such as a US passport The anti-discrimination provision of the INA prohibits employers from placing additional documentary burdens on work-authorized employees during the employment eligibility verification process because of their citizenship or immigration status

Under the settlement agreement McDonaldrsquos will pay $355000 in civil penalties to the United States and pay back pay to all eligible employees or former employees who were employed between September 23 2012 and March 1 2015 lost work or their jobs due to these unlawful documentary practices

The settlement agreement also requires McDonaldrsquos to undergo compliance monitoring for 20 months for all HR consultants and similarly-situated employees to review numerous government publications on immigration compliance revise its immigration compliance practices in regards to non-discrimination submit any proposed changes to the OSC for their OSC for approval and have hundreds of HR consultants and General Managers attend multiple training sessions conducted by OSC through webinars on the INArsquos anti-discrimi-nation provision and the appropriate use of E-Verify

MDCPS Settlement In the MDCPS case the investigation found that MDCPS required non-US citizens but not similarly-situated US citizens to present specific documents to prove their employment eligibility The INArsquos anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from making specific documentary demands based on citizenship or national origin when verifying an employeersquos authorization to work

LPRs have authorization to live and work in the United States on a permanent basis As proof of that status a LPR receives a permanent resident card commonly called a ldquoGreen Cardrdquo but LPRs are eligible to use various documents that show their eligibility to work LPRs do not have to show their permanent resident cards to show their eligibility to work Like all workers they can choose whatever valid documentation they want to establish their employment authorization Furthermore LPRs who decide to show an unexpired permanent resident card are not required to present any additional documentation when their card expires and employers cannot request additional documents from them

Under the settlement agreement MDCPS will pay a $90000 civil penalty to the United States and will establish a $125000 back pay fund to compensate individuals who lost wages because of the MDCPSrsquos practices The settlement also requires MDCPS to revise its employment practices in regards to non-discrimination within 90 days and submit them to OSC for approval undergo compliance monitoring for three years and have OSC train its human resources employees on the anti-discrimination provision of the INA

In a very unique remedy OSC will provide one-hour training sessions regarding workersrsquo rights to students at up to 10 high schools in MDCPS as well as five adult English for Speakers of Other Languages

YCS SettlementIn the YCS (the umbrella corporation for Nevada Yellow Cab Corporation Nevada Checker Cab Corporation and Nevada Star Cab Corporation all Las Vegas taxicab companies) case the OSCrsquos investigation found that YCS violated the INArsquos anti-discrimination provision by requiring non-US citizens but not similarly-situated US citizens to present additional and unnecessary documentation to prove their employment eligibility The INArsquos anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from placing additional burdens on work-authorized employees during the hiring and employment eligibility verification process because of their citizenship status or national origin

Take AwaysIn YCS agreeing to pay $445000 in civil penalties it agreed to one of the largest amounts of civil penalties levied by OSC for citizenship status discrimination Other terms of the settlement agreement include YCS placing six print advertisements in the monthly trade publication Trip Sheet over a one-year period advising individuals of the anti-discrimination provision of the INA undergo monitoring for 18 months during which time YCS will provide OSC every four months a list of newly hired employees from which OSC can choose to review the I-9 forms of 150 individuals revise its nondiscrimination policies within 30 days and train its employees on the INArsquos anti-discrimination provision

These settlement agreements show the growing size of civil penalties and back pay for citizenship status discrimination and the creativity that OSC is using in crafting settlements I strongly advise employers to get proper training from an immigration compliance attorney as too many employers are demanding specific documents from non-citizens but not from US citizens more documents than necessary from non-US citizens and reverification of green cards Without this training employers may be facing lots of liability in the same manner as these employers

Bruce E Buchanan AttorneySiskind Susser PC

bbuchananvisalawcomwwwvisalawcom

By BRUCE E BUCHANAN

McDonaldrsquos to Pay

$355K in Penalties


THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT Ben Adams is Chairman and CEO of Baker Donelson and is located in our Memphis office 165 Madison Avenue Suite 2000 Memphis TN 38103 Phone 9015262000 copy2016 Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell amp Berkowitz PC

wwwbakerdonelsoncom

Your Resource for Legal Innovation and Inspiration

Customized Management TrainingCompliance Audits

Policy and Strategy AnalysisLitigation DefenseGlobal Mobility

Labor Negotiation

Attendees at the Bass Berry Sims Seminar

Labor Talk An Employment Law Update ndash November 17

Bass Berry Sims attorneys (L-R) Stephanie Roth Tim Garrett Angelica Fortney Bob Horton and Dustin Carlton

Bob Horton Chair of the Labor and Employment Law Section at Bass Berry Sims spoke on the new proposed FLSA regulations and other new and proposed legislation

Stephanie Roth presented an update on the FMLA and ADA

Angelica Fortney provided an update on ACA Reporting for 2015

Tim Garrett past Chair of the Labor and Employment Law Section at Bass Berry Sims also spoke on the FMLA and ADA

Dustin Carlton and Stephanie Roth discussed employee leaves of absence


On November 9 2015 the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Montanile v Board of Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan an Eleventh Circuit case where an ERISA health plan sought to recover medical benefits paid to an injured partic-ipant after that participantrsquos personal injury settlement funds had already been spent The Supreme Court will determine whether it is ldquoappropriate equitable relief rdquo under ERISA to require a participant to reimburse his health plan for such medical expenses when the money is dissipated

BackgroundIn 2008 Robert Montanile was in an automobile accident with a drunk driver Mr Montanile underwent surgical procedures as a result of the accident and obtained follow up medical care all of which was covered under the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan in which he was an employee-participant Mr Montanile subsequently sued the driver and obtained a $500000 settlement However Mr Montanile spent most of his settlement money on legal fees of $26378848 and on everyday living expenses for himself and his daughter He did not reimburse his employerrsquos health plan for any of the medical expenses forwarded on his behalf for his medical care After resolution negotia-tions between the health plan and Mr Montanile reached an impasse an ERISA lawsuit was filed to enforce the health planrsquos reimbursement provisions which were found in the planrsquos summary plan description

The Eleventh Circuit Holding A Departure from SereboffThe Eleventh Circuit upheld the lower courtrsquos opinion that Mr Montanile must reimburse $12204402 to the Board of Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan despite the dissi-pation of settlement funds In so ruling the Eleventh Circuit held that the equitable lien rights found in the health planrsquos summary plan description were enforceable under ERISA and the plan could enforce its lien against the settlement proceeds even though Mr Montanile had already spent the proceeds on other expenses

The Eleventh Circuitrsquos holding is a departure from a previous Supreme Court case on reimbursement claims (also referred to as subrogation claims) In 2006 the Supreme Court previously addressed the subro-gation issue in an unanimous decision in Sereboff v Mid Atlantic Services Inc where the Court held a plan must comply with strict tracing rules that require that such settlement funds be within the possession and control of the participant at the time that the plan imposes an equitable lien on such funds Sereboff did not address what would happen to the planrsquos equitable lien claim if the partic-ipant spent or otherwise dissipated those settlement funds

Since Sereboff lower courts have issued conflicting rulings as to whether actual or constructive possession and control of such

settlement funds is required for such an equitable lien to attach To date the First Second Third Sixth Seventh and Eleventh Circuits have issued opinions allowing ERISA plans to enforce equitable liens against settlement proceeds that have been dissipated by the participant The Eighth and Ninth Circuits

have issued opinions holding that ERISA plans are not entitled to such equitable lien remedies when dissipation has occurred The Fifth Circuit standing alone specifically looks to plan language The Supreme Court will use Montanile to resolve this split among the lower courts

The Summary Plan Description A Governing Plan Document in Light of AmaraAs stated above the Eleventh Circuit held that the health planrsquos summary plan description was a governing plan document and its equitable lien rights were enforceable under ERISA Such a holding is contrary to the Supreme Courtrsquos 2011 case Cigna v Amara where the Court held that a summary plan description was not a plan document and its terms were not enforceable under law The Eleventh Circuit distinguished Amara in its holding by stating that in Montanile the summary plan description was the only written document which laid out the terms of the plan and thus it should be treated as the plan

It is not known if the Supreme Court will resolve this issue in its holding However even in light of Amara issues revolving around summary plan descriptions are still convoluted especially in the health plan world Since one of the basic tenets of ERISA is that the plan document governs a further clarification from the Court of which documents constitute the ldquoplan documentrdquo would be helpful

Impact of the Supreme Courtrsquos DecisionAlthough not indicative of a final decision during oral arguments the Justices debated the practical impacts of possible rulings Who should bear the risk Should it be the participants Or the plans

Some additional implications that could arise are as follows

bull Is it unfair for participants to reimburse the health plan when they may need to money for much-needed living expenses

bull By requiring such reimbursement is this putting participants in a tough financial position

bull Or is this what participants signed up for when they signed up for health coverage

bull Is this a bargained-for benefit

bull By not reimbursing this expense who bears the cost

bull Does the cost get extended to other participants and beneficiaries in the health plan thus increasing the cost of coverage

Attorneys for both parties indicated that a ruling in this case could extend beyond health plan benefits to overpayments in pension plans and disability plans What kind of hardship would be created if the overpayment was caused by an error on behalf of the plan sponsor Would the participant know if he or she was overpaid in a defined benefit plan for example What would happen if such error was not discovered until years later What if the error was discovered after the participant had already retired

The oral arguments addressed the need for a narrow ruling in that such ruling in Montanile should apply to health plans involving a ldquoknowing dissipationrdquo of a personal injury settlement to avoid some of the ripple effects described above However such ruling is now in the hands of the Justices

SUPREME COURT WATCHRecovery of an Overpayment

When the Funds Have Been Spent Whatrsquos a Plan Sponsor to DoBy JENNIFER S KIESEWETTER

Jennifer S Kiesewetter Esq Kiesewetter Law Firm Pllc

jkiesewetterkiesewetterfirmcom wwwkiesewetterfirmcom


Mock Trial

Itrsquos a Labor of Love Littler Lawyers Answer Your Most Burning Employment amp Labor Questions Just in Time for Valentinersquos Day

Presented by Lisa Lichterman Paul Prather and Tanja Thompson

Registration 330 pm ndash 400 pm | Program 400 pm ndash 500 pm | Social 500 pm ndash 600 pmLocation Littler Memphis | 3725 Champion Hills Drive Suite 3000 | Memphis TN 38125

A LITTLER EVENT Thursday February 11 2016

For registration please contact Claire Krummenacher at ckrummenacherlittlercom

littlercom3725 Champion Hills Drive Suite 3000 | Memphis TN 38125 | 9017956695

SHRM-Memphis held a mock trial which simulated a real federal jury trial at the

Holiday Inn-University of Memphis on November 17 2015 before 68 SHRM

members This mock trial was based on claims of the Plaintiff Daisy May who

worked as a payroll clerk for the fictional company Cashmaker Manufacturing

Company In this lawsuit Ms May alleged that the CFO of Cashmaker Dan

Bedfellow sexually harassed her after concluding a three year affair and that once

Ms May told the HR Director Holly Martinette about the sexual harassment the

company fired her in retaliation for making the claims In addition Ms May also

brought a claim for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) alleging

that Cashmaker failed to pay her overtime for time she worked at lunch off the

clock There was an opening statement direct and cross examinations of the

witnesses objections to testimony and a federal district judge who was firmly

in control of the proceedings The audience acted as the jury in this squirm-

inducing set of circumstances

Representing the Company was Bob Williams and representing the Plaintiff

was Emma Redden both attorneys at Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell

amp Berkowitz PC Other participants in the mock trial were Charlene Mitchell

the Human Resources Manager for Hueys Restaurants Mary Kay Allen Vice

President of Human Resources at Orgill Inc Kelli Kelly Director of Human

Resources at Orgill Inc Kevin McDougall Training and Development Super-

visor Lucite International and John Wallace President JMW Associates LLC

At the conclusion of the trial Bob Williams provided an overview of the legal issues in the lawsuit and the circum-stances that often give rise to those issues He identified some of the many areas where the Company could have prevented such claims such as having a fraternization policy having a written anti-harassment policy that is enforced providing training on sexual harassment in the workplace and evaluating employees status under the FLSA as exempt or non-exempt to ensure that overtime violations do not occur This interactive mock trial put everything in perspective as to why it is so important for a company to have good policies and procedures in place and to actually follow them and proper training of managers so that it can defend employment claims in court

Pictured (L-R) Mary Kay Allen (ldquoHolly Martinetterdquo) Charlene Mitchell (ldquoDaisy Mayrdquo) Kelli Kelly (ldquoClerkBailiffrdquo) ldquoFederal District Judgerdquo John Wallace Emma Redden (Daisy Mayrsquos counsel) Bob Williams (ldquocounsel for Cashmaker Mfg Cordquo) and Kevin McDougall (ldquoDan Bedfellowrdquo)


In recent years the use of social media has affected nearly every aspect of our culture and the workplace is no different As more forms of social media are introduced their impact on the workplace is heightened While we are still waiting for federal legislation and a significant amount of case law in this area many states have made great strides by enacting laws regarding social media

In the world of Human Resources social media can be used for many important purposes including recruiting talent showcasing your organization recognizing stellar employees as well as keeping your clients and customers informed Challenges arise when trying to balance the free speech rights of employees with concerns of employers in their efforts to foster a bully-free productive work environment Human Resource professionals play a monumental role in advising both employees and employers of the risks that may result when social media is used in an inappropriate manner

Letrsquos take a look at social media from an employeersquos perspective Increasingly we see employees posting on social media about their dislike (or less common love) of their job negative comments about their supervisor or coworkers or issues with the condition of their physical building or office Many employees feel like they are entitled to make whatever statements they like about their supervisor coworkers or work environment because of their First Amendment rights and that there is nothing the employer can do about it Well thatrsquos not completely true Many employers have issued disciplinary actions including termina-tions as a result of social media posts by employees The basis for these disciplinary actions usually arises from violation of the organizationrsquos social media policy or anti-discrimination and harassment policy On the other hand the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has deemed some social media posts by employees to be protected if they have met the threshold of being concerted and protected communication The NLRB began receiving charges related to discipline to social media posts and employer social media policies nearly five years ago Three memos designed to provide guidance on this issue were issued by the NLRB Office of General Counsel in 2011 and 2012 which included investigation results from numerous social media cases In late 2012 the NLRB began to issue decisions in cases where employees were disciplined for social media posts

So what about the employerrsquos perspective of social media use by employees Employers recognize the employeersquos First Amendment rights but weigh that against their desire for

a cooperative workplace free from the bullying and harassment that may result from one or more employeersquos social media posts Employers are also cognizant of the organizationrsquos social media image or reputation which could be tarnished with merely a single negative post Another concern of employers as it relates to social media is the time spent by employees during working hours either posting or reviewing social media sites A 2014 survey conducted by Salarycom revealed that 14 of employees surveyed rated social media as a top time waster and influence on productivity

Human Resource professionals need to stand ready to meet the challenges posed by both the employee and employer My first recommen-dation would be to create a social media policy- if you have not already done so- for your organi-zation There are lots of examples out there ranging from a one page policy to a policy that spans more than ten pages There is no ldquoone size fits allrdquo approach when it comes to creating a social media policy Keep in mind that the policy should reflect the organizationrsquos culture A good policy will set expectations for employees outline the potential for disciplinary action that may result from violation of the policy and protect the organization The NLRB has recommended that employers not create overly broad policies whereby activities protected by federal labor law such as the discussion of wages or working conditions among employees are prohibited Once you have a good social media policy in place employees need to be trained about the policy Thoroughly training employees about the policy will ensure that employees are informed and may result in fewer violations as opposed to simply implementing the policy and providing no training to employees The policy should be a breathing document subject to review and revision by your organizationrsquos legal team and HR professionals as advancements are made in the law or as changes are made within the organization

So whatrsquos next for social media and the law On the state level eighteen states have passed legis-lation that bans employers from requesting access to personal social media accounts of employees Similar legislation has either been introduced or is pending in nearly all of the remaining states On the federal level there have been two attempts to pass a federal social media workplace privacy law but so far both have stalled out Stay tuned to see whatrsquos next

By BRIGITTE TUBBS-JONES

Brigitte Tubbs-Jones Esq PHR SHRM-CP

BrigitteTubbs-JonestngovDirector of Legal Services for

the Tennessee Department of Human Resources

Impact of Social Media in the Workplace

The Role of Human Resource Professionals


1 Mary Hamm with Burch Porter amp Johnson was vice-chair of the MBA Labor and Employment Law Section of the Memphis Bar Association in 2015 2 Imad Abdullah Assistant General Counsel at Regional One welcomed over 125 attorneys and HR professionals to the annual event at the University of Memphis Holiday Inn 3 David Lopez General Counsel of the EEOC spoke on the Top 10 Litigation Developments at the EEOC 4 Katharine Kores Director Memphis District of the EEOC

5 amp 6 Jennifer Hagerman with Burch Porter amp Johnson presented a review of significant labor and employment law decisions in the Western District in 2015 along with David Rudolph with Bourland Heflin Alvarez Minor amp Matthews 7 Brian Faughnan with Lewis Thomason highlighted developments with Tennesseersquos ethics rules

8 (L-R) Alan Crone Crone amp McEvoy Angie Davis Baker Donelson and Judge Sheryl H Lipman discussed Supreme Court amp Sixth Circuit updates 9 Judge Diane Vescovo USDC for the Western District of Tennessee Allen Blair Blair Mediation and Billy Ryan with Donati Law Firm presented a panel discussion of the Western Districtrsquos Mediation Plan

10 Tanja Thompson Office Managing Partner at Littler in Memphis led a discussion about the NLRB with Barry Kearney NLRB Associate General Counsel Division of Advice 11 Eileen Kuo with Jackson Lewis and Darryl ONeal with The Law Offices of Darryl ONeal presented a Tennessee State Law Update 12 Hon Kevin Sharp USDC for the Middle District of Tennessee David Sanford Sanford Heisler Kimpel provided tips on FLSA claims

Labor amp Employment Law Section

1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110


In July of 2011 an article appeared in Psychology Today asking the questionldquoIs loyalty deadrdquo

It wasnrsquot the only article that was wrestling with the same concerns that were running through business circles The notion of decreasing loyalty in the workplace has been steadily spiralling downward for decades Today people in their 20rsquos change jobs an average of every two years The old contract of loyalty whereby the employee stayed with the organization in exchange for lifetime security has been gone for some time now Despite the general level of loyalty to an employee is decreasing there are still organizations which inspire high levels of loyalty While a number of factors come into play in the loyalty equation leadership is still a major one Here are 7 attributes and how leaders inspire loyalty in those under them

Are AuthenticNobody likes to work for a phoney While they may have been tolerated in the past out of a need for security at work younger generations are increasingly unwilling to accept direction from people they have little respect for Authentic leaders can be counted on to say what they mean and do what they say They are the same person to their staff to those above them their customers and partners

Genuinely See Their Purpose as Serving Those Under ThemLoyalty inspiring leaders sincerely see their part as role modelling motivating and improving those that they lead They see their staff as more than a stepping stone towards or a means to their own promotion up the ladder They find meaning and purpose in advancing and bringing out the best in those that they lead Success to them is counted in the number of people that they have helped advance in the organization In private conversations regarding their work they love to include stories about those employees and their accomplishments

Encourage and Support Those Under Them in Their DevelopmentThe best leaders are continuously looking for ways to support their staff to develop themselves not only in the workplace but also in areas of their personal lives They look for opportunities to challenge those under them and use their resources to provide training and oppor-tunities to advance in the organization If the type of opportunities are not available within the organization inspiring managers will do all they can to try to set them up even looking for help outside the organization to do so Inspiring leaders are more afraid of their staff stagnating than they are of losing them to other organizations after they have spent time and resources developing them

Support and Trust Their StaffInspiring leaders push staff to go beyond their comfort zones and are there to support them Having the confidence of their leader staff are more apt to take on challenges and risk failure Staff who know that their leaders have their backs are more apt to take risks than those who fear the consequences of making mistakes

Share Their Values and IdeasLeaders who inspire those under them are open and transparent with their values and ideas sharing them enthusiastically and openly at every opportunity Their followers never have to guess where they are coming from They make it very clear to their staff what it takes to be successful in the organization and share where they see the organization is going Their positive energy and belief in those they are working with is conta-gious and boosts the energy of those around them

Jump In and Help Out Whenever They CanRegardless of what position they hold inspiring leaders take the oppor-tunity to work alongside those that they lead every chance they get Regardless of their rank they never see any work that their staff do as being too far beneath them to participate in If emergencies strike leaders who inspire are the first ones on the scene and offering to do whatever is necessary to get the job done Heshe demonstrates they donrsquot expect anyone to do a task that they themselves are unwilling to do

Take a Genuine Interest in the Lives of Their StaffTalk to any inspiring leader and they will be able to share an amazing wealth of information about their staff not only their work history but their families hobbies and interests outside of work They are well aware that staff have lives outside of their work and there are a lot of outside factors that impact their work performance Managers who are there to support their staff in all areas of their lives which in turn inspires much greater loyalty than those who show no interest or concern in their personal lives The sign of an inspiring manager is one who gets invited to major events that their employees are celebrating and is commonly included in group events that staff organize

Harvey Deutschendorf is an emotional intelligence expert author and speaker To take the EI Quiz go to theotherkindofsmartcom His book THE OTHER KIND OF SMART Simple Ways to Boost Your Emotional Intelligence for Greater Personal Effectiveness and Success has been translated into 4 languages including Chinese You can follow him on Twitter theeiguy

7 Habits of Leaders Who Inspire Powerful LoyaltyBy HARVEY DEUTSCHENDORF


Though written for mid-level to advanced HR practitioners Business-Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results by Scott Mondore Shane Douthitt and Marisa Carson is a must-read that even less seasoned HR professionals will find resourceful The bookrsquos fundamental purpose is to provide a practical roadmap to show leaders how to build execute and demonstrate the impact that HR processes have on business outcomes Equally impressive is that the authors were specifically asked to write this book by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) a request which clearly indicates the need for timely and practical applications of HR processes and their resulting return on investment (ROI) within organizations There is consensus throughout the field that HR processes and the strategies that drive them are often too subjective to quantify After all even the most critical HR processes if overly subjective may not always have tangible results for leaders to demonstrate But as the authors aptly state HR strategies that are data-driven and evidence-based do have a calculated ROI Business-Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results is therefore relevant timely and needed

Regardless of the industry or size of the organization HR professionals face a formidable task building and managing productive HR processes and functions The authors begin by estab-lishing the cause-and-effect relationship between any HR initiative and intended business outcomes Take for example employee selection As one of the most researched HR processes it can become a valid reliable tool when interviewers are using critical competencies (ie knowledge skills abilities and needed behaviors) each time as opposed to the unstructured process wherein guessing becomes the norm But these authors have taken it a necessary step further by carefully combining the structured interview requirements with business analytics needed by both HR and organizational leaders The authors refer to this as The Business Partner Roadmap six steps that assist organizations in linking employee data to business outcomes 1) Discover Critical Outcomes 2) Creating a Cross-Functional Data Team 3) Assess Measures of Critical Outcomes 4) Objectively Analyze Key Data 5) Build the Program and Execute and 6) Measure and Adjust or Reprioritize It is this linking of employee data at each step that makes Business-Focused HR so effective

Moreover HR veterans will find the bookrsquos layout and functionality useful for its relevance and immediacy of application Each of the thirteen chapters ldquofocuses on a key HR process describing (1) where it has been and where it is today (2) how it is best executed to lead people based on applied research and practical experience and (3) how to make the HR process more business-focusedrdquo As with my previous example of employee selection (the basis for Chapter 1) a very linear decision process is not just a necessity but becomes easily achievable with the practical steps and reasons listed Thus the Who What When Where How and Why of the process are all aimed at supporting the partnership between HR and senior business leaders Perhaps most significantly as the authors attest this provides a means for HR to ldquohave a seat at the tablerdquo

As a former HR professional myself I found the bookrsquos organization particularly helpful Here the authors structured the chapter topics in a logical manner ie employee selection to perfor-mance management then employee training to career development followed by a discussions of worklife balance and so on Although the chapters can be read individually I strongly

suggest readers take a linear approach Rarely among industry books have I encountered a Forward and Preface so relevant to the chapter content In other words begin at the front and continue onward You will not be disappointed

Less seasoned HR professionals will find a friendly consistency with each chapter indicating current research findings on a specific HR process including a practical synopsis There are also useful execution tips from beginning to end as well as strategies for presenting HR initiatives to senior leaders and sugges-tions for overcoming potential obstacles Additionally the authors provide a means for linking the HR processes to relatable business outcomes with the steps needed to determine and present its ROI to their leadership which has often been troublesome for both HR and many other organizational depart-ments The organizational mastery of analytics as well as the validity and reliability of its data have also been complicated endeavors Thus Business-Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results makes a huge leap forward by taking the mystery and complexity out of these important topics

Reader emphasis must also be given to the importance of the bookrsquos two Appendices A) Data Analytics and B) Reliability and Validity First regarding Appendix A For readers who are less familiar with this concept data analytics is the science of examining raw data with the purpose of drawing conclusions about that information Here the authors make known the importance of making ldquominor investments in statis-tical softwarerdquo (ie SPSSAMOS as well as encour-aging organizations to carefully align themselves with individuals knowledgeable in data analytics) As mentioned earlier it is this analysis of HR data that allows clarity of cause-and-effect relationships between any HR initiative and intended business outcomes Appendix B on the other hand deals specifically with the reliability and validity of data Validity of an assessment is the degree to which it measures what it is intended to quantify This is not the same as reliability which is the extent to which a measurement gives results that are consistent For this section the authors provide simple explanations of key statistical concepts

Thus while Business-Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results is primarily written for mid-level to advanced HR practitioners its utility and readability are further-reaching The book is extremely well written and serves well as an academic reference guide for anyone in HR and other departments of business leadership

William Carmichael EdDStrayer University

williamcarmichaelstrayeredu

wwwstrayeredu

By WILLIAM CARMICHAEL

Business-Focused HR 11 Processes to Drive Results


SHRM-Memphis Board of Directors


`

Financial Planning has never been more important than it is today Changes in the economy taxes and interest rates have made every financial picture more complex than ever before

We focus on

Financial Needs Analysis Retirement Income Planning Disability Income Protection Life amp Health Insurance Long Term Care Insurance Guaranteed College Scholarships College Funding Solutions Executive amp Employee Group Benefits Charitable Contribution Strategies


Need To Simplify Your Hiring Process

HR-Secure Screen

HRP_Jan2016_Pgs01-20_Rd7pdf

HRP_Jan2016_Pgs21-40_Rd8

The things employees say when yoursquore not around can cause legal troubles for you Fisher amp Phillips provides practical solutions to workplace legal problems This includes helping you find and fix these kinds of employee issues before they make their way from the water cooler to the courthouse

1715 Aaron Brenner Drive bull Suite 312 bull Memphis TN 38120 bull 9015260431 wwwlaborlawyerscom

What you donrsquot hear can still hurt you

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HR-Secure Screen




































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Radian Partners


Radian Partners




















By KELLIY CAMPBELL

















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen








SM






Regions Insurance


Employee Benefits


Employee Benefits


Lockton Companies

Brad OwensProducer




Sales Manager


Sales Manager





Radian Partners


Radian Partners




















By KELLIY CAMPBELL

















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen






Regions Insurance


Employee Benefits


Employee Benefits


Lockton Companies

Brad OwensProducer




Sales Manager


Sales Manager





Radian Partners


Radian Partners




















By KELLIY CAMPBELL

















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen






Radian Partners


Radian Partners




















By KELLIY CAMPBELL

















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen















By KELLIY CAMPBELL

















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen
















Memphis Jackson 901-333-8101 731-423-2414







Memphis901-333-8101

Jackson731-423-2414















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen















By JOSEPH A RAMSEY









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen









IMMIGRATION LAWYERS

SISKIND SUSSER PC













































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen
































By BRUCE E BUCHANAN


$355K in Penalties



wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen




wwwbakerdonelsoncom




Labor Negotiation


































Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen



























Mock Trial


















































1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen






















1 2 3 4

765

8 9

121110
























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen

























wwwstrayeredu






`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen





`


We focus on




HR-Secure Screen




HR-Secure Screen



January 2016 final issue

Documents

Transcript of January 2016 final issue