Employee Engagement, Job Satisfaction, Commitment and Legal Issues Facing HR

Transcription

1 Employee Engagement, Job Satisfaction, Commitment and Legal Issues Facing HR A guide to understanding, measuring and increasing engagement in your organization while reviewing statistics and discussing top legal issues facing HR. Discussion of prohibited interview questions to avoid. Presenter: Dr. Andrea Anthony, Esq. Esq Rutherford County Schools, TN Secondary Coordinator anthonya@rcschools.net Phone: (615) Ext 22097

2 Top Engagement Opinions (Statistics from the American Community Survey for 2015: 600 Employees Randomly Selected) I am confident I can meet my work goals 92% I am determined to accomplish my work goals 88% I have a clear understanding of my organization s vision/mission 76% I am highly motivated by my work goals 74% I frequently feel I m putting all my effort into my work 69%

3 Top Engagement Conditions (Statistics from the American Community Survey for 2015: 600 Employees Randomly Selected) Relationship with co-workers 79% Contribution of work to organization s business goals 76% Meaningfulness of the job 75% Opportunities to use skills/abilities 74% Relationship with immediate supervisor 73%

4 Employees Level of Satisfaction with Aspects They Find Important to Job Satisfaction: Top 10 #1 Respectful treatment of all employees at all levels (Very Imp 72%) (Very Satisfied 33%) (Gap in % Points 39%) #2 Trust between employees and senior management (Very Imp 64%) (Very Satisfied 28%) (Gap in % Points 36%) #3 Benefits (Very Imp 63%) (Very Satisfied 27%) (Gap in % Points 36%) #4 Compensation/Pay (Very Imp 61%) (Very Satisfied 24%) (Gap in % Points 24%) #5 Job Security (Very Imp 59%) (Very Satisfied 32%) (Gap in % Points 27%) #6 Opportunities to use skills/abilities (Very Imp 58%) (Very Satisfied 34%) (Gap in % Points 24%) #7 Relationship with immediate supervisor (Very Imp 58%) (Very Satisfied 40%) (Gap in % Points 18%) #8 Immediate supervisor s respect for employee s ideas (Very Imp 56%) (Very Satisfied 37%) (Gap in % Points 19%) #9 Communication between employees & senior management (Very Imp 55%) (Very Satisfied 23%) (Gap in % Points 32%) #10Management s recognition of employee job performance (Very Imp 55%) (Very Satisfied 24%) (Gap in % Points 31%)

5 Key Findings from the Top Engagement Survey: Job Satisfaction for Retention Employees are satisfied with their jobs 86% (Employees are engaged at work 92%). There are several conditions under which engagement at work is more likely to occur: satisfaction with co-workers 79% and contribution satisfaction 76% and meaningfulness of job 75%. Respectful treatment of all employees at all levels demonstrated the largest gap between importance and satisfaction among employees. 72% reported respectful treatment as very important to satisfaction BUT only 33% were very satisfied with it. Compensation/Pay had the second largest gap at 37% points.

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7 Key Ingredients in Employee ENGAGEMENT Employees who are engaged in their work and committed to their school system give schools higher productivity and lower turnover rates. You have heard this before the greater the engagement the more likely he/she will go the extra mile. Intuit Software, Inc. found that employees are 5 times less likely to voluntarily leave the company if they are highly engaged. Engagement is how an employee thinks and feels about, and acts toward his/her job, the work experience, and the company. My former school system, Williamson County Schools in TN, used The Gallup Organization as a screener for applicants. All applicants had to take a Gallup Survey based upon a 5-point Likert Scale (agree/disagree). This company has researched the statistics (meta-analysis analysis study) to determine the likelihood of success and retention of the employee. The Gallup Organization defines employee engagement as the involvement with and enthusiasm for work. In my current school system, Rutherford County Schools in TN, we have found that engaged employees do 3 things: *They STAY because they have the desire to be part of the Rutherford Co. School System and want to stay with our system. *They SAY positive things and advocate by referring potential employees, are positive and share constructive criticism. *They STRIVE by exerting extra effort and engage in contributing behaviors that adds to the success of the school system.

8 10 Common Themes on Measuring Engagement #1 Pride in employer #2 Satisfaction with employer #3 Job Satisfaction #4 Opportunity to perform well at challenging work #5 Recognition and positive feedback for one s contributions #6 Personal support from one s supervisor #7 Effort above and beyond the minimum #8 Understanding the link between one s job and the organization s mission #9 Prospects for future growth with one s employer #10 Intention to stay with one s employer

9 Link Between Employer Practices and Employee Engagement: What does this means for you? Employee Commitment How do you and other managers in your organization define commitment? Are some employees in your system engaged in their work but not committed to the organization? Committed to staying with your system but not exactly engaged in their work? Both engaged and committed? To whom are your organization s employees committed? The system? Their supervisor? Co-workers? Team members? Students? What results has commitment from employees created for your system? Has commitment reduced turnover and decreased recruitment, hiring and training costs? What does your system do to reciprocate employees commitment? Is the system living up to its side of the bargain? Employee Engagement How do you and other managers in your system define employee engagement? How do you know that certain employees in your system are engaged? Do they relish their jobs? Enjoy specific responsibilities or tasks? Willingly go the extra mile? In team units in your system that have a large number of engaged employees, what results are you seeing? Higher productivity? Lower costs? Greater results? More efficiency? Lower turnover? Higher service quality? Conversely, how do disengaged employees behave, and what are the consequent cost for their schools and your system?

10 Power of Job Enrichment/Design To Increase Engagement Saturate jobs with: *Meaningfulness *Variety *Autonomy *Co-worker support With job enrichment, employee performance on prescribed tasks improves. Workers define their role more broadly and willingly take on tasks outside their formal job description. To Enhance Commitment Demonstrate reciprocity by providing employees with opportunities for personal development. Increasing the four areas of knowledge, skills, experience, and expertise BUILDS Increasing gains in three areas of self-efficacy, self-esteem, and employer commitment

11 Recruiting and Selecting for Engagement and Commitment To Increase Engagement Target qualified applicants likely to find the work interesting and challenging. Send recruitment messages that: *Acclaim attractive job features to enhance person-job fit. *Encourage those who are not suited to self-select out. To Increase Commitment For internal candidates.send recruiting messages that: *Emphasize possibilities of movement/promotion to more desirable jobs, to signal commitment reciprocity. For external candidates.send recruiting messages that: *Highlight the employer side of the exchange relationshippay and benefits, advancement opportunities, flexible work hours. *Recognize and address commitment congruence (i.e. parttime work for work-family balance).

12 Strategic Compensation To Increase Engagement Equitable exchange: Motivates willingness to contribute prescribed and voluntary performance, and to avoid proscribed behaviors. Pay-for-performance: Focuses employees attention on incentivized behaviors carefully define performance. Competency-based pay: Fosters acquisition of knowledge and skill and enhance employees performance, satisfaction and self-efficacy. To Enhance Commitment Competitive pay: Attracts qualified job candidates. Equitable exchange: Signals commitment reciprocity. Flexible benefits and perks: Facilitates commitment congruence (i.e. work-family balance matched to stage of life). Retirement and seniority-graded pay plans: Fosters long-term commitment and identification with your system.

13 Designing Engagement and Commitment Strategies to Certain Conditions: If you are facing this condition. Restructuring to flatter organization with broader job responsibilities Then change your HR practices in these ways. *Align job/work design to new roles/responsibilities. *Recruit, select, train, compensate and manage accordingly. *Outsource or automate simple or routine work. (i.e. electronic leave and substitute finder system) To enhance. *Engagement *Short and Long term commitments Increasing customer focus (the students), emphasis on quality (instruction) Then change your HR practices in these ways. *Recognize and reward voluntary contributions and proactive work behaviors. *Redefine performance expectations. *Provide supervisor/performance management support. To enhance. *Engagement *Short and Long term commitments

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15 Federal Employment Laws: 10 Staffing Questions to Avoid Appropriate Race: No questions may be asked! Age: Are you age 18 or older? National Origin/Citizenship: Are you authorized to work in the U.S.? What languages do you read/speak/write? Disabilities: Are you able to perform the essential functions of the job? How do you handle stress? How were you rated on dependability on your last job? Are you currently using or addicted to any illegal drug? Marital/Family Status: Would you relocate? Be willing to travel as needed? Be willing to work overtime if needed? Inappropriate Race: What is your race? (Do not note the race nor skin color nor affix a photo to the application) Age: How old are you? What year did you graduate H.S.? National Origin/Citizenship: Are you a U.S. citizen? Where were your parents born? What is your native language? What is the derivation of your last name? Disabilities: Do you have disabilities? Have you had any recent history of illness or operations? Have you sought or receiving psychological treatment? Have you every been addicted to drugs? What medications do you take? How many days sick leave did you take last year? Have you ever received workers comp or disability? Marital/Family Status: What s your marital status? Do you plan to have a family? How many children do you have and what are your child-care arrangements? What does your spouse do? Do you have health coverage through your spouse? With whom do you live?

16 Federal Employment Laws: continued 10 Staffing Questions to Avoid Appropriate Affiliation: Do you belong to any professional or trade organizations that are relevant to this job? Criminal Record: Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Military: What type of training or education did you receive in the military? Religion: We are open 7 days a week, 24 hours a day Can you work within this schedule? Transportation: Do you have reliable transportation to travel for this job? Inappropriate Affiliation: What clubs or social organization do you belong to? Criminal Record: Have you ever been arrested? Military: If you served, were you honorably discharged? Religion: What is your religion? What holidays do you observe? Transportation: Do you own a car? Have you ever filed for bankruptcy? Have you ever had your wages garnished for child support or bad debts?

17 (ADA) Americans with Disabilities Act Title I of the ADA prohibits private employers and state and local governments from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of their disabilities. The ADA makes it unlawful to: 1)use employment tests that screen out an individual with a disability or a class of individuals with disabilities unless the test, as used by the employer, is shown to be job-related and consistent with business necessity; 2) fail to select and administer employment tests in the most effective manner to ensure that test results accurately reflect the skills, aptitude or what ever other factors that such test purports to measure, rather than reflecting an applicant s or employee s impairment; and 3) fail to make reasonable accommodations, including in the administration of tests, to the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified individual with a disability who is an applicant or employee, unless such accommodation would impose an undue hardship.

18 (ADEA) Age Discrimination in Employment Act The ADEA prohibits discrimination based on age (40 and over) with respect to any term, condition, or privilege of employment. Covered employers may not select individuals for hiring, promotion, or reduction in force in a way that unlawfully discriminates on the basis of age. (40 protected class) It prohibits disparate treatment discrimination, i.e., intentional discrimination based on age. The ADEA forbids an employer from giving a physical agility test only to applicants over age 50, based on a belief they are less physically able to perform a particular job, but not test younger applicants. It prohibits employers from using neutral tests or selection procedures that have a discriminatory impact on persons based on age (40 or older), unless the challenged employment action is based on a reasonable factor other than age. If a test or other selection procedure has a disparate impact based on age, the employer must show that the test or device chosen was a reasonable one.

19 (EEOC) Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Under EEOC, it is illegal to discriminate against someone because of that person s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age (40 or older), disability, or genetic information. It is illegal to retaliate against a person because he/she complained about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit. Below is the language that we use in my school district to designate us as an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of Rutherford County Schools not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability in its educational programs or employment policies as required by Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Pay Act of 1973, Title IX (1972 Educational Amendments), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Inquiries regarding compliance with Title IX should be directed to Dr. Andrea Anthony. Inquiries regarding Section 504 or the Americans with Disabilities Act and Title VI should be directed to Paula Barnes of the Rutherford County School System. Complaints may also be filed with the TN Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights at (615) and/or the U.S. Department of Education by contacting (404) The complaint managers for complaints involving harassment or discrimination are Paula Barnes and Chip Fair, Rutherford County School System.

20 (FCRA) Fair Credit Reporting Act (Reference Checking) Employers may obtain an applicant s consumer report for employment purposes if the employer provides and clear and conspicuous written disclosure and obtains written authorization from the applicant/employee. If the employer takes adverse action including the denial of employment or any other decision for employment purposes that adversely affect any current or prospective employee then the employer must first provide them with a copy of the report and a written description of his/her rights under the statute. Many states view this unfair and consider it blacklisting.

21 (FLSA) Fair Labor Standards Act (Wages) The Dept. of Labor enforces FLSA which sets basic minimum wage and overtime pay standards. Workers who are covered by the FLSA are entitled to a minimum wage of not less that $7.25/hour effective July 24, Overtime pay at a rate of not less than one and one-half times their regular rate of pay is required after 40 hours of work in a workweek. Certain exemptions apply to specific types of businesses or specific types of work. Think of volunteer coaches hourly employees may volunteer or donate their services to schools (non-profit organizations) without contemplation of pay and not be considered employees of such organizations.

22 (EPA) Equal Pay Act The EPA requires that men and women be given equal pay for equal work in the same establishment. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal. It is job content, not job titles, that determines whether jobs are substantially equal. Employers may not pay unequal wages to men and women who perform jobs that required substantially equal skill, effort and responsibility, and that are performed under similar working conditions within the same establishment. Pay differentials are permitted when they are based on seniority, merit, quantity or quality of production, or a factor other than sex. These are known as affirmative defenses and it is the employer s burden to prove that they apply.

23 (PPACA) Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Health Care Reform) Federal health care reform is the result of the March 2010 enactment of the PPACA as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act (HCERA). These two laws are commonly referred to as PPACA or health care reform. What actions should employers take? Stay abreast of new PPACA developments. For coverage provisions, review and evaluate grandfathered protections; measure the financial impact of plan design changes; evaluate changes to offset cost increases; update systems, plan documents, HIPPA certificates; provide required notices. For health-related account changes, communicate new rules before and during annual enrollment; update plan documents and materials. For new W-2 reporting requirements, calculate value of health benefits; establish procedures for payroll; communicate so employees understand the W-2 reporting does not add to their taxable income. For effective appeals process, review current appeals process with legal counsel and update then communicate with employees.

24 (FMLA) Family Medical Leave Act FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, jobprotected leave for specified family and medical reasons, with continuation of group health insurance under the same terms and conditions as if the employee had not taken leave. Eligible employees are entitled to take up to 12 workweeks of FMLA leave in a 12-month period for these reasons: the birth of a child and to bond with the newborn child within one year of birth; the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to bond with the newly placed child within one year of placement; to care for the employee s spouse, son, daughter, or parent who has a serious health condition; a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of his or her job; and any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee s spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty.

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