Coach, Correct, and Communicate: The Three Cs of Employee Discipline

Employee discipline can be hard. It’s time-consuming. It’s often speculative, turning into a he said/she said game. It’s easy to feel like, as a supervisor, you’re responsible for the poor employee behavior. However, if you follow the three Cs of employee discipline, you may be able to create more engaged, committed employees who want to better serve your business.

1.       Coach: As a supervisor, you are a leader and therefore the coach. You’re there to make sure the whole team does well, and if one or two individuals are jeopardizing the team’s success, you must address that immediately. To act as a coach of your organization, try the following:

• Encourage. Employees are more likely to repeat positive behaviors when a supervisor recognizes their efforts. Even if it is a small task or duty, consider praising your employee for a job well done.
• Redirect. Rather than disciplining for the sake of punishment, try to redirect employee behavior. For redirection, stop and address the situation with the employee. Find a way to adjust or correct the behavior that encourages the individual to learn from their actions. Finally, follow through with the individual by ensuring that they have changed their behaviors or have another discussion if change still needs to take place.
• Provide feedback. Coaches rarely leave the locker room without discussing the game with their teams, so why would you neglect to discuss workplace performance with employees? One of the top reasons employees leave a company is because they feel they’ve received a lack of coaching or feedback. Remember, feedback is more than just a written annual employee review, so talk with (not at) your employees.

2.       Correct: Disciplining employees should not be about control, but rather about correction to redirect behaviors. Your policies should be firm, fair, and consistent to avoid any accusations of favoritism and create a more equal working environment. When deciding on how to correct behaviors, remember that you should have an open conversation with the employee. Never mandate a behavior change without explaining yourself to the employee.

3.       Communicate. Without communication, discipline will likely be seen as a negative punishment, rather than an opportunity to grow and develop. To encourage positive employer-employee communication:

• Set clear expectations. If your expectations are clear and enforced firmly and consistently, you can successfully avoid many issues brought on by a lack of communication.
• Keep up a constant conversation. As a coach and a behavior corrector (not controller), you should continually speak to your employees. Open dialogue is a proactive way to recognize and deal with any problems before they get out of control.
• Answer the 5 Ws: When you need to address specific employee behavior, answer the questions who, what, where, when, and why to better understand the situation and determine appropriate action. Be exact about what did or did not happen.
• Be clear about future actions. Leave any employee discipline discussions with an exact plan of action. Be sure that both the supervisor and the employee understand and agree upon what behaviors need to change and when.
• Never make it personal. When communicating with employees maintain a sense of professionalism and never bring personal comments into a discussion about employee behavior.
• Always be honest and open. Remember, feedback goes two ways. Help employees feel comfortable enough to address any potential issues with you as a supervisor, and don’t be closed to employee feedback. Their perceptions of you may help shape you into a better coach and leader.

Contact us for an appointment by April 6, 2012, and you will be entered to win a FREE workplace seminar, “Zap, Don’t Sap, Your Employees,” where you and your staff leadership will learn how to maintain and enhance self-esteem, listen and respond with empathy, and ask for help and encourage involvement from staff.

Trouble keeping up with changing CDL regulations?

Keeping the required information and documentation for commercial drivers is an important but tedious task. Mistakes in documentation can cost your company thousands in fines, not to mention a paperwork nightmare and hours of time wasted. It is made even more challenging with changing CDL laws and requirements. Does your company have the proper documentation to reflect recent changes in federal law? Read on to find out.

Gov. Tom Corbett signed House Bill 1458 on Jan. 27. Effective Jan. 30, the bill brings Pennsylvania into compliance with new federal rules for driver’s licenses and permits issued to commercial drivers.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently amended federal regulations to require holders of interstate CDLs to provide a copy of their Medical Examiner’s Certificate to their state driver licensing agency, if their type of commercial driving requires a physical exam. CDL drivers will also be required to self-certify to the type of commercial driving performed (even if none). This is normally a one-time process unless the CDL holder changes the type of driving.

Pennsylvania would have risked losing more than $32 million a year in federal highway funding if it did not update its law to comply with the changes.

PennDOT will begin notifying existing CDL holders of the new requirements by mail in March. Current CDL permit holders, out-of-state CDL transferees, and people seeking a CDL on or after Jan. 30 will be required to meet the provisions of the new law when testing, applying for a permit or transferring a CDL from another state.

Do your drivers meet the new state regulations? Do you need assistance gathering the necessary documentation to avoid unnecessary fines? Contact us by March 15 to schedule a consultation and you will receive a FREE report: Personnel Files – The Basics: Simple Steps to Personnel File Compliance and Good Recordkeeping Practices.

Sexual Harassment: Impact > Intent

“I didn’t mean it that way.” – We hear that phrase many times, especially in the digital age when tone and inflection are rarely well-translated over email, text message, or Facebook. But, when dealing with workplace harassment, supervisors must regard that elusive phrase as a red flag. If you don’t, you could be subject to legal repercussions. As a supervisor, here is what you need to know to deal with sexual harassment:

• Intent vs. Impact: Most importantly, whether or not the behavior is “unwelcoming” is decided by the recipient of the behavior, NOT the initiator. Supervisors must value impact over intent when deciding how to address the situation.
• Understand what constitutes sexual harassment: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines sexual harassment as any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and verbal/physical conduct of sexual nature. Remember, these laws apply to both employees and employers who have 15 or more employees.
• Monitor your workforce for signs of sexual harassment:Pay attention. Do you see any interactions where there is not equal initiation and participation? Do you hear sexual innuendos or jokes? Are there inappropriate visuals within your workplace? If you witness any suspect behavior…
  • Intervene appropriately and promptly. Gather both parties and discuss the following, emphasizing again that impact weighs more heavily than intent.

• Describe specific behavior observed
• Focus on behavior observed vs. reason for behavior
• Explain why behavior is inappropriate and/or unwelcome
• Emphasize that behavior must stop
• Address side issues raised by employee, but focus on purpose of meeting
• Explain what is appropriate behavior — coach employee on how to monitor his/her future behavior
• Document the meeting
• Investigate allegations. Even if the alleged recipient asks that no action be taken, you must go through compliant procedure. Explain to the alleged recipient that it’s your responsibility to all parties and to the organization as a whole to deal with any harassment issues.
• Remember, these are people. Don’t let compliance procedure get in the way of understanding and appropriately handling the issue. Be aware that there are likely to be emotions involved, so be sensitive to both parties. Remember to listen and be patient to gain a better understanding of the situation from both sides.

Although it may be a difficult conversation to have, sexual harassment is no joke, despite what the alleged harasser says. If you fail to deal with the situation, you could cost your business thousands of dollars in lawsuits and fines. Would you like us to speak to your team about sexual harassment? Contact us by 3/2/12 and you will receive a FREE report, Simple Steps to Personnel File Compliance and Good Recordkeeping Practices.

Putting the brakes on cell phones for truckers

As of Jan. 3, commercial motor vehicle drivers are banned from using hand-held mobile phones while driving by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Specifically prohibited are:

• Dialing any mobile phone by pushing more than one button.
• Holding a mobile phone while driving.
• Reaching for a mobile phone.
• Using push-to-talk functions on a mobile phone.

The ban was enacted after research demonstrated drivers distracted by hand-held phones are six times more likely to be in a crash, near-crash or unintentional lane deviation.

The ban applies when the vehicle is in operation on the highway or roadway, or when temporarily stopped for traffic, a stop light, stop sign or for any other reason. Using a hand-held device is allowed only if the vehicle is stopped in an area safe for parking a commercial vehicle, or to communicate with emergency services or law enforcement personnel.

The law applies to:

• Commercial motor vehicles operated for interstate commerce with a gross vehicle weight of 10,001 pounds or more.
• A vehicle transporting any amount of hazardous materials requiring a placard.
• Vehicles operated for intrastate commerce with a gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pound or more.
• All contracted school buses and shuttle buses.

Hands-free use is allowed, but only if the phone is within the driver’s reach while wearing a seat belt and can be dialed by pushing only one button.

Texting is already banned for drivers of commercial trucks or buses per a September 2010 ruling by the FMCSA, and for intrastate hazardous material drivers by PHMSA in February 2011.

From an employer perspective, the ruling does not require any written policies or training programs, however, employers are prohibited from allowing or requiring their drivers to use hand-held mobile phones, and if drivers are caught their carrier will be held responsible for the drivers’ conduct. Drivers who violate the ban will face civil penalties of up to $2,750 for each offense. Employers are liable for violations by their employees with civil penalties up to $11,000 for each violation.

We recommend companies to implement a policy prohibiting this banned conduct by drivers to avoid these penalties.

>>Is your handbook up to date to include this new law and other laws specific to the trucking industry? Contact us by February 13 for a handbook review and you’ll receive a FREE REPORT about employee handbooks, Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know Could Hurt You.

The I-9 Audit: What You Need to Know

The I-9 employee eligibility form is no joke – especially now that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Team (ICE) has increased their amount of investigations. As of September 2011, the ICE, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, has initiated over 3,000 investigations, a 154% increase from FY2008. The ICE targets all types of businesses, from the local, five-employee hardware stores to large corporate giants – which means you too may be investigated at any time.

The ICE has already levied over $9 million in fines on non-compliant businesses. To ensure you have valid I-9 forms, take the following steps:

• Be sure each employee has completed an I-9 form. Employers who do not receive and maintain a copy of these forms can be fined $110 to $1,100 per violation. This form must be completed regardless of whether or not the employee is a U.S. citizen or not.
• Within three days of hire, verify an employee’s eligibility to work in the U.S. Employees must provide documentation to verify their identity and proof of their eligibility to work in the U.S. See a complete list of eligible documents here.
• Fill in incomplete forms. If you find an incomplete I-9 form, fill in the missing information, adding your initials, date, and time of completion.
• Maintain a record of documentation. Employers should maintain a copy of each employee’s I-9 form throughout their employment and up to one year after they leave the company. Because employees only have three days to produce documents after receiving a Notice of Inspection (NOI), organized documentation is key.

In addition to the I-9 form, employers may receive NOI for the following: hiring records, payroll, copies of immigration filings, copies of Social Security Administration “no-match letters,” information on independent contractors, and other records to determine compliance with employment eligibility verification laws.

Not sure if your I-9 paperwork is filled out properly? Questions about NOI protocol? We can help. Contact us by January 31 to setup an I-9 audit and you will receive a FREE report, Melting the ICE: How to properly fill out an I-9.

Start the New Year off right-review your employee handbook

It’s time to make your New Year resolution…but don’t groan just yet! This resolution doesn’t include a treadmill or counting calories. So, pull out your employee handbook, follow our tips below and you’ll be set for 2012.

Update your handbook policies: Oftentimes, a lot can change in a year. Go through your handbook page by page and make any corrections as needed. In addition, ask yourself if there are any issues you’ve had to deal with in the past year that would be better resolved with a set policy. If so, draft a policy, review it with your team, and insert it into next year’s employee handbook.

Develop social media policies: From Facebook to Twitter to YouTube to Google+, social media is one of the fastest growing uses of the Internet. As an employer, consider establishing a policy regarding employee social media usage. Above all, be clear and transparent with your policy so that employees know the dos and don’ts of their social networking. Here are a few points to consider when developing a policy:

• Employers reserve the right to monitor an employee’s social media usage at work and/or at home. Employees represent their company, whether at work or at home (but be careful here…) Therefore, they do not have an explicit right to privacy on their social networks.
• Employees are your brand ambassadors. Word of mouth (even if it’s via Facebook or Twitter) is still one of the most powerful marketing tools. Social networks enable brands to reach current and potential customers across the world. Allowing employees the freedom to be ambassadors for your brand can actually strengthen your company – just ask Dell.
• Social media policies should encompass all departments. One of the biggest misconceptions is that social media policies should only address the marketing, public relations, or customer service departments where corporate social media resides. Remember, anyone who works for your company represents you whether they’re in sales or IT, so have a policy that applies to everyone.
• Social media is a protected concerted activity under the NLRA. Under Section 7, employees are protected for the “mutual aid or protection” of other employees, including group discussions about job performance, staffing, workload, and negative comments about co-workers or supervisors. The fact that these group discussions take place on social media (i.e., a “like” or “comment” on one co-worker’s Facebook wall to another) is irrelevant. To ensure compliance with the NLRA’s Section 7, HR.BLR.com suggests that you should:
• Don’t be afraid of social media. Yes, it’s seemingly everywhere and can look chaotic and uncontrollable to someone not familiar with the platforms. Instead of looking only at the negative aspects of online employee communication, consider how social media could be used by employees to actually improve your business or organization. Know what works for your company and be up front about your policy.

• Beware of prohibiting discussions of wages and working conditions, even outside the workplace.
• Beware of prohibiting social media access during nonworking time.
• Consider a disclaimer regarding Section 7 rights.

Comply with new National Labor Relations Board policies: Effective January 31, 2012, all employers must post a new notice regarding employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act.

• It is no longer possible to have a combined Federal and State law poster due to the size of the poster. Therefore, you may either:
  • Download all of the required postings from each government agency OR…
  • Purchase a combined poster from a reliable source to ensure that you have all of the posters necessary to comply with the law
  • To purchase an all-in-one poster, consider utilizing one of these two sources: All in One Posters Federal with NRLA or All in One Posters, PA State. (Please note: we are not affiliated with this company but have found their materials reliable and affordable.)

We know that the beginning of the year is a busy time for everyone, and going through an entire handbook can be a bit daunting. Therefore, contact us to review your employee handbook by January 16, and you’ll receive a free report, “Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know Could Hurt You.” Ring in your New Year with a new kind of resolutions..HR Resolutions!

Five questions to ask before you discipline for blogging

Social media is everywhere. Even if your business isn’t on Facebook, your employees certainly are. So, how should you deal with employees who express frustration or anger about your business on the Internet? Do you discipline them or just let it go?

Two Jackson-Lewis attorneys offered some advice in August at the SHRM Annual Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas. Here are five questions they suggest you ask yourself when deciding whether or how to discipline an employee:

1. Was the employee engaging in protected “concerted activity” under the National Labor Relations Act?
2. Is the employee protected under a “whistleblower” statute?
3. Was the communication related to political activities or affiliations?
4. Was the employee engaging in “legal off-duty activity” protected by state law or illegal activity?
5. Does the employee have a potential discrimination claim?

The NLRA states the following regarding social media use: “Employees shall have the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities (that’s the piece that trips us up as employers) for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection…”

Remember, act cautiously AND take the emotion out of your decision – they may have hurt your feelings but… Be sure that your policies and decisions do not have a “chilling effect” on employee expression, and weigh all of your options before terminating an employee based on online postings. (And, when in doubt, be sure to make a quick consult with legal counsel if you think you MAY be crossing the line!)

Are you wasting time interviewing the WRONG people? Learn the tricks to finding QUALIFIED candidates. Get tips here.

Hiring Our Heroes

With unemployment at unprecedented rates, “Hiring Our Heroes” is a beacon of opportunity for thousands of veterans nationwide.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce launched their Hiring Our Heroes program in March 2011. The program, made possible through a partnership with the Joining Forces initiative, aims to hire over one million unemployed military veterans and their spouses. In the next year, they will be hosting 100 hiring fairs with local chambers of commerce across the nation.

Veterans commit their lives to us when they fight on our behalf, and we have a responsibility to show our thankfulness upon their return. When returning from duty, these individuals are armed with leadership and critical-thinking skills, the ability to perform under pressure, a respect for rules, and a goal- and team-oriented sensibility, which are all key qualities of an ideal job candidate. These veterans are primed and ready for the job market, and Hiring Our Heroes intends to connect them with a job that fits their unique skill set.

This initiative complements the president’s jobs proposal that offers tax credits for employers who hire veterans. According to an August press release, “the proposal would offer businesses a maximum tax credit of $2,400 for unemployed veterans hired to fill temporary jobs and $4,800 for those hired to fill full-time permanent positions.”

To date, the Hiring Our Heroes program has already worked with 20 local Chambers to host hiring fairs, bringing together more than 20,000 veterans and military spouses with 1,000 different employers in 16 states. To learn more about the initiative or to find a hiring fair near you, visit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s website here: http://www.uschamber.com/veterans

The Biggest Mistake in Hiring

No kidding, hiring is a bit like dating. Everyone is on their best behavior and it’s an exciting time to bring the “newbie” who is going to work wonders in the company. And, sometimes we get lucky and find our perfect person.

But more often than not, we find that there are warts on our Prince and somehow we missed that in the early stages.

Hiring too fast is often the biggest mistake small to mid-size companies make. Sometimes it’s lack of planning, sometimes it’s an urgent need brought on by new business; but whatever the situation hiring in desparation will always end up a disaster.

You’ll be left shaking your head in dispair and another person will have cycled through your business. Having an HR plan can alleviate your biggest hiring mistake. Using an outside firm, like ours, can give you the benefit of objective insight that will guide you through the hiring process so that you aren’t alone in assessing potential employees.

We can help you with testing, interviewing, background checks and training when the “perfect one” comes on board. Give us a call. Let’s talk before you make another hiring mistake.

Karen Young HR Resolutions® LLC

5441 Jonestown Rd. Harrisburg, PA 17112

Phone: 717-652-5187

Fax: 717-652-2187

karen@hrresolutions.com

www.hrresolutions.com

Keys to Effective Hiring

In a recent article on hiring, Matthew O’Connell of Select International, Inc. gave these tips that we thought might be helpful for you.

• Identify what really needs to be evaluated.

Assessing candidates based on 25 competencies might work for some organizations, but that approach isn’t appropriate for all, 10 good ones is enough.

• Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

Simply put, don’t just give a personality test. Or just conduct an interview. Because performance is multifaceted, a single assessment method just isn’t enough to accurately predict performance.

• Use assessment tools appropriately.

Don’t use cognitive ability tests to measure personality, and don’t use personality tests to measure how well someone can solve problems. Different tools serve different purposes, and you need to know which to use and when

• Put the least expensive tools up front.

In addition to identifying the most qualified candidates, an effective selection system also saves your organization money by reducing the time spent on applicants who are not qualified or would be a poor fit.

• Look at accuracy, time and cost.

Focus your attention first and foremost on accuracy, followed by tim involved for both your organization and the applicant, and lastly cost, the cheapest isn’t necessarily the best.

• Measure the results.

Are we doing a better job than we were a year ago?

What changes can we implement to make sure we’re doing even better a year from now?

How accurate have we been in making good hires?

How many bad hires have there been?

What do the bad hires tend to have in common with each other?

Here at HR Resolutions we work with clients to help them through the hiring process so that they are surrounded by the best people possible. Developing a good team starts with hiring right. Let us know if we can help.