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All of us at TPO wish to extend a heart-felt thank you for
choosing TPO as your HR partners, and for the many wonderful
relationships that have evolved over the past fifteen years.
We wish you health and prosperity in 2007, and look forward
to the opportunity to support your HR goals and objectives
next year and in years to come! |
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Training Calendar |
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CA Employment Essentials (HR101)
- a training series focusing
on the regulatory
compliance and
HR best practices
- the information & skills supervisors & managers
need to
keep themselves and the organization out of hot water!
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February '07
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March - April '07 |
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Management
Excellence Series
- a training series focusing
on practical leadership and
communication skills to help
managers
develop or refine
their
effectiveness as leaders!
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March '07
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April - May '07 |
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Specialized Workshops
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Prevention of
Harassment
Jan 18
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FMLA/CFRA/PDL Compliance
March 7
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Excelling as a First Time
Manager
Apr
18
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I'd Rather Not Discuss It
June 12 |
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2007
POSTERS! |
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ORDER YOUR
2007 LABOR LAW POSTERS!
Order your laminated
labor law poster that includes ALL REQUIRED
State and Federal Labor Laws & Regulations.
Posters
are available for all states in English and Spanish.
An "all-in-one" solution at the low price of
$35.00.
Click here to order your updated posters! |
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CA
Clarifies Required Harassment Training for all Supervisors
The 2005 Regulations:
In 2005, CA employers with 50 or more employees were
required to provide 2 hours of harassment training for all
supervisors and planning for additional 2 hours of training
every two years thereafter. Additionally, newly
hired/promoted supervisors were required to be provided
training within 6 months of hire/promotion.
Clarifications to the
Regulation: On November 14, 2006, final regulations
were adopted and are expected to be chaptered into CA law in
February 2007. The final regulations (which can be viewed in
their entirety at
http://www.fehc.ca.gov/pub/harassment_training.asp)
contain significant changes and requirements for
California employers. Of particular importance are the
following clarifications:
n Frequency of
Training: An employer may choose how they track the
two-year period in one of the following, or a combination of
the two methods:
1. Training Year: For most employers, this is the
easiest method and would mean that 2005, 2007, 2009, etc.
are training years where the training must be completed
within that calendar year.
2. Individual Tracking: This method measures two years from
the date the employee was last trained.
n Other forms of
Harassment: While the regulations only reference "sexual
harassment", the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH)
encourages the training include critical information on
discrimination in general and specifically on other forms of
harassment (age, race, religion, disability, etc.). The
broader topic of harassment and discrimination can be
conducted within the two-hour requirement.
n Duplicate
Training: A supervisor who has received harassment
prevention training within the prior two years from a
previous employer is not required to attend duplicate
training within 6 months of hire., however, since the burden
of proof is on the current employer to show that the prior
training was legally compliant, the best HR Practice is for
the new employer to provide current harassment prevention
training.
n Managers
Outside of CA: Clarification via AB2095 has confirmed
that supervisors outside CA who manage employees in CA are
not legally required to be provided harassment prevention
training, however, the best HR Practice is to provide
current harassment prevention training to all supervisors
who manage employees in CA. Further, an even better HR Best
Practice is to provide harassment prevention training to all
employees and supervisors regardless of where they reside.
n Interactive
E-Learning: E-learning must be "interactive" which
provides a link or direction on how to contact directly
trainers or educators. Additionally, these trainers or
educators provide guidance and assistance on harassment
training issues within a reasonable time frame, but no more
than two business days after the question is asked.
TPO's Position:
TPO believes that the best way
to convey the seriousness of this topic is to provide
"classroom" training conducted by a qualified trainer
with substantial experience in the topics of harassment. TPO
has trained over 5,000 employees, supervisors and managers
in the past six years on "The Prevention of Harassment and
Discrimination" programs in both English and Spanish. |
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NEW TPO
Harassment Programs for 2007!
TPO has prepared an all NEW Harassment
program for 2007!
Give TPO a
call to discuss why "live" training is the most effective
way to convey the organization's policies on harassment and
discrimination in the workplace. |
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What A
GREAT RETREAT!
"It was well planned, great
participation, we had fun while we worked as a team to agree
on our critical goals, we solved "unmentionable" conflicts,
we have a plan to get it done - know our priorities, and
we're charged up and ready to go! 2007 will be a
break-through year!"
HIRE TPO TO
PLAN & FACILITATE AND THAT'S WHAT YOU'LL BE SAYING!
Are you
planning a Management, Executive, Board or Team Retreat?
½ Day, Full-Day,
Multiple Days - Our location, yours or another...we help you
plan and execute your agenda, including these topics and
more:
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Organizational
Change
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Revitalize
Culture & Commitment
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Strategic
Planning
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Vision,
Mission & Direction
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Creative
Problem Solving
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Align
the Focus on What Matters
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Executive
Development
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Leadership
Team Communication & Performance
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Management
Skill Building
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Plan
of ACTION that WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED! |
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Contact LaTonya Olivier,
SPHR, Sr. TPO Consultant at
latonyao@tpohr.com
and really get the results you want from your event! |
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 TPO
reported on the status of CA's 2005-2006 legislative session
reported in the last issue of
TPO's
eNews Upd@te.
For a full
recap of 2007 Employment Laws, don't miss the TPO/Littler
2007 Employment Law & Leadership Conference on January 30 at
Embassy Suites Monterey Bay.
Following are two Wage & Hour
developments which will affect many employers:
1. Computer
Software Professionals Must Earn More in 2007 to meet CA
Exemption Requirements. |
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Computer software
professionals can qualify for overtime exemption if they
meet certain duties requirements and are paid a specified
hourly rate, set annually based on inflation rates by the
state Department of Industrial Relations. On Jan. 1, 2007,
the minimum hourly rate for exempt computer software
professionals will be $49.77, up from $47.81 in 2006.
Annualized based on an employee who works 2080 hours per
year, the annual amount is $103,522. Make sure to audit the
pay practices related to these professionals to ensure the
exemption is maintained. |
HR Best Practice: Determining if a position is
"exempt" from overtime requirements is not a matter of
choice. Rather, federal and state requirements specifically
outline which positions qualify for the exemption. If you
have any questions about the exempt vs. non-exempt status of
positions, please contact us! |
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2.
Employees in the City of San Francisco City Are Now Required
to be Provided Paid Sick Leave.
San Francisco is the first
city in the United States to require private-sector
employers to provide paid sick leave for employees,
including part-time and temporary workers, who are employed
within the city's geographic limits. Proposition F becomes
effective February 5, 2007
Under the Ordinance, employees
earn one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
Employees begin to accrue leave after 90 days of employment.
The maximum paid leave entitlement is 72 hours for "large"
employers, defined as having ten or more employees, and 40
hours for "small" employers with fewer employees. |
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Proposition F expands sick
leave requirements under current California law. Labor Code
section 233 now requires that if employers offer sick leave
(it is not mandatory under state law), they must permit
employees to use up to half the leave they would be entitled
to accrue in a year to attend to the illness of a child,
spouse or domestic partner. By contrast, Proposition F
requires that employers allow employees to use |
An interesting note:
Proposition F requires 8.7 days of sick leave for a 40-hour
per week employee, which is more than the typical 5 days of
paid sick leave that many employers provide. |
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any or all of their
accrued paid sick leave to care for an ill child, parent,
sibling, grandchild, grandparent, spouse or any "designated
person," which need not be a spouse or domestic partner.
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 MINIMUM
WAGE INCREASE AFFECTS MORE THAN YOU MIGHT THINK!
In addition to the actual
increase in the minimum wage California employers must pay
its employees, the increase in
California's minimum wage will affect several other wage
rates and overtime-exempt classifications
including:
1. Employees subject to
"white collar" overtime exemptions (i.e., executive,
administrative, and professional) must be paid "no less than
two times the state minimum wage for full-time employment."
This means that employers must pay such employees, at a
minimum, an annual salary of $31,200 in 2007, and $33,280 in
2008, to preserve their exempt status.
2. "Learners," as
defined by the California Wage Orders Nos. 1 through 15,
must be paid "not less than 85 percent of the minimum wage
rounded to the nearest nickel for the first 160 hours."
Employers must pay such employees no less than $6.40 per
hour in 2007, and no less than $6.80 per hour in 2008.
3. Overtime-exempt employees
covered by collective bargaining agreements must be
paid "not less than 30 percent more than the state minimum
wage." This means that employers must pay these employees,
at a minimum, $9.25 per hour in 2007, and $10.40 per hour in
2008, to ensure their exempt status.
4. Commissioned employees
who are exempt from California's overtime requirement
must be paid more than one and one-half the state's minimum
wage. Employers must pay such employees more than $11.25 per
hour in 2007, and more than $12.00 per hour in 2008, to
ensure their exempt status.
5. Employees covered by Wage
Order Nos. 1 through 15, who work split shifts must
be paid one hour's pay "at the minimum wage" in addition to
the minimum wage for that work day. Employers must pay such
employees a total wage equal to at least the minimum wage
plus $7.50 in 2007, and at least the minimum wage plus $8.00
in 2008.
6. Employees may be required
to provide their own "tools or equipment," but only
if they are customarily required by the trade or craft, and
the employee is paid "at least two (2) times the minimum
wage." An employer may impose this requirement only if the
employee is paid at least $15.00 per hour in 2007, and at
least $16.00 per hour in 2008.
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Questions about wage and
hour or interested in reviewing your current compensation
structure?
Give us a call! |
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 I've
heard that most employers allow their employees to be off
the day after Thanksgiving and the week after Christmas.
Does this mean I am required to do the same for my
employees?
 According
to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), more
and more employers are offering more paid holidays in the
form of days after or days before major holidays such as
Thanksgiving and Christmas. From a survey conducted by SHRM
nearly three-fourths (72%) of employers plan to observe the
day after Thanksgiving as a holiday in 2007 and nearly half
will close their offices the day prior to Christmas (Dec.
24). The Federal Government has established public holidays
for federal employees. Private employers are not bound by
law to offer holiday time off or (paid or unpaid) but
generally do so to remain competitive in the employment
market.
Often employers see providing the day after Thanksgiving or
the day before Christmas as a way to build positive employee
morale. It also makes sense for most (non-retail/service)
operations to close since the day after Thanksgiving is
historically a very slow day for business.
What if you are an employer who provides services to the
public? Do you have to close on holidays or even the day
before or after? According to a survey done by Challenger,
Gray & Christmas, 15% of the businesses surveyed will be
open Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Employees such as bank
tellers, restaurant workers, hospital employees, retail
employees and emergency personnel will be working
Thanksgiving and/or Christmas Day to ensure continued
financial and emergency services. Retail merchants look
forward all year to the day after Thanksgiving as their
biggest shopping day of the season, which means many retail
clerks will be working the day after Thanksgiving and
Christmas (for gift returns).
Other employers may close the day after Thanksgiving and the
week after Christmas as a cost-savings measure; and require
workers to take vacation or unpaid leave during that time,
but according to a Challenger poll only 8% plan to close the
week between Christmas and New Years.
Most employers tend to follow the Federal Government's
designated holiday scheduled as a guideline - here are those
holidays for 2007: |
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Monday, January 1
Monday, January 15
Monday, February 19
Monday, May 28
Wednesday, July 4
Monday, September 3
Monday, October 8
Monday, November 12 (observed)
Thursday, November 22
Tuesday, December 25 |
New Year's Day
Birthday of Martin Luther
King, Jr.
Washington's Birthday
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Columbus Day
Veterans Day
Thanksgiving Day
Christmas Day |
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We receive a lot of
inquiries about holiday pay and policies.
If you have questions, don't hesitate to give us a call.
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Meeting your needs and exceeding your expectations!
TPO HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT provides "outsourced" support
to help employers understand and
comply with confusing employment laws,
train managers to
avoid costly mistakes and promote positive employee
relations. |
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 FEEDBACK:
We hope you enjoyed reading TPO
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT's E-Newsletter. If you have comments or
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tpo@tpohr.com.
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Employment Upd@te
is a
publication of TPO
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT. Copyright ©2004-2006.
All rights reserved.
TPO's Employment Upd@te may be reproduced or
re-transmitted without change or modification of any
kind.
The information
provided is designed to be accurate in content. TPO
provides human resource consulting and is not engaged in
rendering legal, accounting or other professional
services. Readers are advised to consult legal counsel
on matters involving employment law or important
personnel policies & practices before adoption or
implementation. |
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