2015 Annoucements. Inside this issue: 2015 Meetings Update S E P T E M B E R N E W S L E T T E R Disciplinary - James Godwin

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1 S E P T E M B E R N E W S L E T T E R Inside this issue: Note from the President 2 September Annoucements Disciplinary - James Godwin Location: National American University 3906 E Frontage Highway 52 Rd NW Rochester, MN Time: 11:30 am 1:00 pm DOL Update 2 October MN SHRM Conference Mayo Civic Center ~ Rochester, MN Legislative Update 3 MN SHRM Conference 5 Update HR Humor 5 November 19 Southern Minnesota Disability Employment Network - Guy Finne Location: National American University 3906 E Frontage Highway 52 Rd NW Rochester, MN Time: 11:30 am 1:00 pm 2015 Board Members 6 HR Roundtable 6 December 10 Social Event Location: Cambria Showroom 400 South Broadway Rochester, MN Time: 4:00 pm 7:00 pm 2015 Board Contact Information Meetings Update HRCI credits will now be ed out to participants that attend a meeting that was approved for continuing education credits. The certificates will go out to all participants regardless if you need the credit.

2 Note from the President ~ Angela Lee Congratulations! I am pleased to announce that our RHRA chapter was a 2014 SHRM Foundation Champion. Our chapter will be named in the SHRM Foundation's annual Impact Report. We were honored with this award by making a donation to the SHRM Foundation. We have helped fund HR research, provide more than 100 scholarships to HR students and professionals, publish complimentary educational resources, and advance through leadership. With our commitment to SHRM we are helping ensure the Future of HR is strong. I also wanted to take this time to communicate to the membership of some of the changes the Board has decided on to help our membership grow and be a greater asset for our members. All current Board Members have committed to remain in their current positions for another term. We have been working on some changes and restructuring within how we want the membership to run and how we want to move forward as a membership. We feel that a significant turnover of the board positions has weakened the membership foundation and we want to have a strong base for our Board and Chapter going forward. Based on the recent survey results there was an overwhelming support from the membership to allow current Board Members to attend the monthly meetings at no cost. We appreciate your understanding of our time commitment to these volunteer positions and thank you for your support. The last change that we feel the members will benefit from is to allow a co-worker to attend a meeting if you registered for it and were no longer able to attend. By implementing this change it will eliminate the no show fee and it still allows you to receive the information from the meeting. You will no be able to receive the HRCI credit though since you were not in attendance. DOL Update - New FMLA Notices and Certification Forms The Department of Labor has issued the new Family and Medical Leave Act model notices and medical certification forms. The new forms are available on the DOL website: here. They revised forms will expire on 5/31/2018. Most of the form has been unchanged, but there has been a section added to reference the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). The added language instructs the health care provider not to provide information related to genetic testing, services or manifestation of disease or disorder in the employee or any family member, that would be banned under GINA. 2

3 Legislative Update ~ James Godwin With the state legislature and Congress focusing on summer breaks, most key legal developments have come from regulatory agencies and the courts. The Minnesota legislature s special session focused on areas other than employment law. Salary Basis Changes: Department of Labor Notice of Proposed Rulemaking After months of speculation, the Department of Labor has released its proposal for modification of the salary amount requirement for exempt employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"). The Department had previously indicated that the proposal would be issued by June 18, 2015 but did not publish the proposal until June 30, By default employees must be paid a minimum rate equal to the higher of the federal minimum wage or the applicable state minimum. In addition, employers must pay 1.5 times each employees regular rate of pay for each hour over 40 an employee works in a workweek. There are many exemptions to this general rule, most notably the white-collar exemptions, which include the well-known professional, executive, and administrative employee exemptions. To qualify for one of these exemption, an employee must meet a primary duties test and be paid on a salary basis, which limits deductions from pay. Additionally, exempt employees must be paid a minimum rate, currently set at $455 per week ($23,660 per year). The Department has proposed more than doubling that minimum to $970 per week ($50,440 per year). The proposed minimum is less than it could have been. A group of congressional Democrats had requested that the department raise the threshold to approximately $69,000. The Department also proposed increasing the threshold for the highly-compensated employee exemption. This exemption allows employers to pay anyone who makes at least $100,000 per year on a salary basis without meeting a primary duties test. This amount is proposed to rise to $122,148. The proposal would also peg these minimums to inflation using either an index of wages or to the CPU-U (consumer price index for urban consumers). It is important to note that employees that are no longer exempt will also require employers to comply with other sections of the FLSA such as tracking hours. While the proposal will not be finalized for several months, including an additional 60-day comment period, the regulations are likely to be approved in near their current form. A significant number of employers will be affected by the change, especially in small companies, where it is common for exempt employees to make significantly less than the proposed minimum. Employers are considering how to respond to the changes. The two easiest options will be to raise the salary of any affected employees or to switch certain employees to a non-exempt compensation structure. The latter option may require employers to cut hours to avoid unpredictable and a possibly unsustainable overtime expenses. Others employers may outsource tasks to independent contractors, either other companies or individuals. However, employers should not be tempted to misclassify employees as independent contractors to avoid this change, as doing so could result in significant liability and is a point of emphasis for the Department of Labor in its enforcement efforts. Religious Accommodation: EEOC v. Abercrombie and Fitch Stores, Inc. The Supreme Court in EEOC v. Abercrombie and Fitch Stores, Inc., (June 1, 2015), held that to prevail in a disparate treatment claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a plaintiff need only show that avoiding the need to provide a religious accommodation was a motivating factor in the employment decision. The plaintiff does not have to show that the employer had actual knowledge of the need for an 4

4 Legislative Update continued accommodation. The EEOC sued Abercrombie for religious discrimination when it failed to hire Samantha Elauf, a practicing Muslim who wore a headscarf called a hijab as a religious observance. Abercrombie is a national clothing chain known for hiring attractive employees in its retail stores, even referring to them as models. The company had a Look Policy requiring employees to reflect its style including prohibiting black clothing and caps, although that term was not defined in the policy. Ms. Elauf interviewed for a job at an Abercrombie retail store in She wore her hijab to the interview. Neither Ms. Elauf nor her interviewer mentioned the hijab in the interview, and Ms. Elauf did not indicate that she would need a religious accommodation from the Look Policy. The interviewer later contacted her district manager who told her to lower Ms. Elauf s rating on the appearance section to prevent her hiring. The EEOC won summary judgment at the trial court level, but the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed holding that the employer was not directly notified of a requested accommodation, precluding liability. Reversing that decision, the Supreme Court held that Title VII does not contain an actual knowledge requirement. In this instance, Abercrombie admittedly took an adverse employment action against Ms. Elauf. The Court reasoned that if an employer takes an adverse employment action against a prospective employee to avoid making an accommodation, the employer is violating the law even without direct knowledge of the need for an accommodation or a direct request from the prospective employee. This decision will likely apply to other anti-discrimination laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act. One can imagine a similar fact pattern in which an employer believes a candidate to be disabled and chooses not to hire the candidate to avoid being faced with a request for an accommodation. Affordable Care Act: King vs. Burwell On June 25, 2015, in King vs. Burwell, No (U.S. June 25, 2015), the Supreme Court held that tax credits (subsidies) are available in all 50 states under the Affordable Care Act. In a 6-3 vote, the Court held the language in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act allows the federal government to subsidize insurance purchased anywhere in the country and not just in states that have established their own insurance exchanges. Only 13 states (including Minnesota) operate their own exchanges, so most health insurance customers would have been ineligible for what amounts to billions of dollars of federal subsidies. Same Sex Marriage: Obergefell v. Hodges In one of its most politically-charged rulings in years, the Supreme Court of the United States held that states may not discriminate against same sex couples seeking to marry in Obergefell v. Hodges, No , June 26, As Minnesota already recognized same sex marriage by statute, most local employers have adjusted to the change. However, the expansion of marriage requires multi-state employees to treat married same-sex couples the same as other married employees. In addition, federal laws conflicting with Minnesota law with regard to the treatment of same-sex married couples no longer exist in a legal gray area. From an HR perspective, this ruling probably makes things simpler because all married couples can be treated the same 2

5 MN SHRM Conference update The 2015 SHRM Minnesota State Conference registration is open to register to attend - press Ctrl and click here to register. For more information and details on the conference - press Ctrl and click here. This year the MN SHRM State Conference returns to the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, MN. The event will be held Sunday, October 11th - Tuesday, October 13th. This location tends to bring one of the largest numbers of attendees and your fellow HR vendors. Volunteering is a great way to expand your HR Network. Get introduced to other professionals while learning what all happens behind the scenes of running a successful MN SHRM State Conference. This is a great opportunity for students and Professional members. If you are interested in learning more about the opportunities, please contact admin@mnshrm.com. Full Conference Registration is required for all volunteers at the applicable rate. Volunteer Opportunities: Conference Door Greeters Speaker introductions (Breakout Sessions) Conference Bag stuffers Conference App (must have Excel skills) Exhibit Hall Assistants Solicitation/Selling of Sponsorships & Vendors Ushers during meals More opportunities to be announced soon... HR Humor 4

6 Provide and promote leadership, education and ethical standards to support and enrich the roles of Human Resource Professionals in our area. Rochester Human Resource Association P.O. Box 6662 Rochester, MN Board Members Board Contact Information: President: Angela Lee, Samaritan Bethany President-Elect: Alesha Lambert Secretary: open position Treasurer: Josh Schneider, Smart HR Membership Chair: - open position President 2015 and 2016: Angela Lee alee@samaritanbethany.com President Elect 2015 and 2016: Alesha Lambert alambert@senecafoods.com Secretary: Legislative Chair: James Godwin, Godwin Law Certification Chair: Therese White, Think Bank Newsletter Chair: Jenny O Marro, Olmsted Medical Center Past President: vacant position If you are interested in becoming a board member please send an to rhraroch@gmail.com or contact any current board member. HR Roundtable The HR Roundtable discussions took a break during the summer months. These meetings will get underway again in September. HR Roundtables sessions are a great resources to discuss your HR topics and find out what other HR professionals are doing in the area. This group is a great networking opportunity to learn what others have done in the same situation you maybe facing or to get free HR advice/tips from HR professionals. The sessions have an open discussions format and can lead in any direction. HR Roundtable discussion groups are held the last Wednesday of the month, scheduled every other month. Be sure to check your inbox for the registration with the next Roundtable details. Treasurer: Josh Schneider josh.schneider@smart-hr.com Membership Chairperson: Legislative Chairperson: James Godwin james@jgodwinlaw.com Certification Chairperson: Therese White twhite@thinkbank.com Newsletter Editor: Jenny O Marro jomarro@olmmed.org Past President 2014: RHRA rhraroch@gmail.com Website: 9