Let’s say that, for your next date-night, you choose the new fancy steakhouse in town. Their chef is world-famous, and you’ve never seen such stellar reviews for a pricey steak dinner. They promise to cater to your every need for the evening, and the meal does not...
The biggest part of a candidates experience takes place before even making contact with them. Oftentimes, this process begins the moment they find a job post from your company. Ensuring that this process is smooth for job seekers sets the tone for how they approach...
The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the employment marketplace, and one area which it has definitely impacted is that of the interviewing of candidates. When states across the country first started implementing lockdowns in 2020, in-person interviewing was hard to...
As a recruiter, it’s easy to get so buried in the weeds at times that we forget there are thousands of other people out there having the same challenges and asking the same questions. Indecisive hiring managers, frustrating candidates, too many requisitions to fill, and not enough hours in the day. The good news is that in those moments when you come up for air, or at least another cup of coffee, there are resources available to not only support you, but to remind you that you are never in this recruiting gig all alone.
There are some fantastic sites and blogs out there that if you’re not already familiar with, are worth your time to check out. The following list is made up of resources that provide a world of information on recruiting and Human Resources, but not in the most traditional way, which is just one of the many things that make them so enjoyable. read more…
For over fifty years there have been laws in place requiring equal pay for men and women doing the same job. Even so, discrepancies in pay still persist. In California, where the new equal pay law, the Fair Pay Act, went into effect the first of the year, data introduced into legislation shows women being paid 84 cents for every dollar made by their male counterparts.
The Fair Pay Act, voted in with virtually no opposition, aims to make it harder for employers to require employees to do the same work, but pay some workers less because of job titles. Now, companies will be required to really take a look at each position, and the work required, and assess pay based upon the work actually being done. Rather than justifying pay with job titles, employers will need to thoroughly assess job responsibilities and requirements.
This new law may be most beneficial to those in positions typically classified as laborers such as housekeepers. In this example, a housekeeper commonly does the same work as a custodian, but because of their job title, is paid a lower rate.
Pay inequality may exist due in large part to the fact that people don’t know they’re being under paid. Within most companies, the culture is such that discussing pay is strictly prohibited. The Fair Pay Act prevents employers from terminating or punishing workers who discuss their pay with coworkers.
There are plenty of reasons that some people choose to go out on their own and work as independent contractors: flexible hours, unlimited income potential, control over income taxes, and control over the trajectory of their careers. There are also many reasons companies like to hire independent contractors, two of the most common being scalability and cost.
Some companies question when they should begin to transition from hiring independent contractors to full-time employees, but a more serious question should be, are your independent contractors already employees who have been misclassified? According to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), most workers are employees. The DOL issued a guidance in July of 2015 stating that the “misclassification of employees as independent contractors is found in an increasing number of workplaces in the United States…”. The guidance goes on to state that when employees are improperly classified, those workers may not receive protections common in the workplace, such as minimum wage pay, overtime compensation, unemployment insurance, and workers’ compensation. The reality is that this is another one of the situations where “it’s good until it’s not.” Thus, the problem is that employees classified as independent contractors will request to be classified as such until they realize that they are in dispute with their employer, e.g., they are terminated and request benefits normally provided to employees.
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Most everyone is familiar with the fun, “crazy” culture at famous tech companies like Google and Facebook. Napping pods, comfy lounge spaces, game rooms, free food, and putting greens are certainly a diversion from most corporate environments. It’s common for startups to take a new approach, after all, there are certain risks associated with being different that commonly pay off. There are times, however, when this is not the case.
Bad Crazy
In early February, CEO and founder of Zenefits, Parker Conrad, resigned from his position at the Human Resources software startup. The underlying cause? According to newly appointed CEO, well-known Silicon Valley entrepreneur, David Sacks, “Our culture and tone have been inappropriate for a highly regulated company.”
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We don’t usually blog about HR news, but this was news that we had to share.
Less than two weeks after reporting that Yahoo! Chief Executive Officer, Marissa Mayer, had announced she would not be firing anyone “this week”, The New York Post reports that the head of the tech pioneer has proceeded to not only fire someone, but accidentally so, to the tune of approximately 30 employees.
While a Yahoo! Spokesperson claims this to be a rumor, and completely false, inside sources told the New York Post that Yahoo! had begun to compile lists of lower performing employees whom were never intended to be terminated.
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How will the recently proposed Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulations affect your organization? On June 30, 2015 the Wage & Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) released their proposal to change the FLSA standards for exempt employees. The new regulations will raise the minimum salary requirements for exempt employees, extending protection to millions of Americans that aren’t covered by overtime pay.
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The subject of independent contractors is a hot political topic right now, drawing attention from President Obama and Hillary Clinton. Both political figures have made it a priority to crack down on employers who are misclassifying employees as independent contractors to dodge compliance regulations and cut costs. Earlier this month the Department of Labor (DOL) came out with detailed guidelines to address misclassification, making it very clear when a company is in violation. For employers, the best practice is to classify everyone as an employee unless they can clearly be defined as an independent contractor.
Employers may be classifying individuals as independent contractors, rather than employees, to avoid providing them with a range of benefits. The recent DOL release states that “when employers improperly classify employees as independent contractors, the employees may not receive important workplace protections such as the minimum wage, overtime compensation, unemployment insurance, and workers’ compensation.” This has led to lawsuits and litigation against numerous companies around the treatment of independent contractors. Let’s take a closer look to understand why this issue is receiving so much scrutiny lately.
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