Career Management Associates, customizing your HR solutions » Blog

Beyond Harassment Prohibitions

admin — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 17:44:57 +0000

Don’t just ‘set and forget’ anti-harassment policies.

11/1/2012

By Andrew Slobodien and Elizabeth Peters

Since the landmark 1998 U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Faragher v. City of Boca Raton and Burlington Industries v. Ellerth, most companies have recognized the importance of adopting equal employment opportunity and anti-harassment policies.

A new line of cases, however, suggests that this may not be enough.

Sexual Harassment Law

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it illegal for an employer to fail or refuse to hire or to terminate any individual, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to terms or conditions of employment, because of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. While the statute mentions specific employment decisions with immediate consequences, the Supreme Court has made clear that coverage under the law is not limited to economic or tangible discrimination.

In Meritor Savings Bank, FSB v. Vinson (1986), the Supreme Court first held that Title VII protects against sexual harassment where the conduct is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of the victim’s employment.

To be actionable, a sexually objectionable environment must be both objectively and subjectively offensive. In other words, the environment must be one that a reasonable person would find hostile or abusive.

Surrounding Circumstances

To determine whether an environment is sufficiently hostile or abusive, courts consider all surrounding circumstances, including the frequency of the discriminatory conduct, its severity, whether it is physically threatening or humiliating versus a mere offensive utterance, and whether it unreasonably interferes with an employee’s performance.

Even in Meritor, however, the court suggested that employers could take steps to prevent or remediate their liability. For example, the court noted that a company grievance procedure might suggest that an employer should not be held liable. The court also suggested that employers could avoid liability based on the degree of corporate knowledge or culpability.

Type of Harassment

Accordingly, after Meritor, courts often determined employer liability according to the type of harassment alleged.

In cases of quid pro quo sexual harassment—where a supervisor threatened an employee with tangible adverse action if the employee refused to submit to sexual demands, and the supervisor subsequently carried out the threat—federal courts held employers vicariously liable, regardless of whether they were aware of the conduct at issue or took measures to prevent such conduct.

In cases involving hostile work environment sexual harassment—where a supervisor’s unwanted sexual attention or unwelcome sexual overtures created an environment that was severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of the victim’s employment and created an abusive working environment—many federal courts held employers vicariously liable only if they were negligent in discovering or remedying the harassment.

Employer’s Defense

Along came the groundbreaking cases of Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 524 U.S. 775, and Burlington Industries v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742, both in 1998.

In this pair of cases, the Supreme Court established a new standard for imposing vicarious liability on employers. When there is tangible adverse employment action by a supervisor—such as termination, demotion or undesirable reassignment—the employer is liable for the supervisor’s discrimination, regardless of whether the employer approved, knew or should have known of the supervisor’s actions.

When no tangible employment action is taken or when the harassment is not perpetrated by a supervisor, however, an employer may raise an “affirmative defense” to liability or damages. An affirmative defense is an argument or new information put forward by a defendant that wins a case even if what the plaintiff alleges is true.

Faragher and Ellerth established an affirmative defense if an employer can prove that it exercised reasonable care to prevent and correct harassment, and that the employee unreasonably failed to take advantage of the corrective or preventive opportunities provided, or to avoid harm otherwise.

Lower Courts

As is often the case with Supreme Court decisions, it has fallen on lower federal courts to flesh out the meaning of the Faragher/Ellerth standards, including what the court meant by the obligation of employers to prevent harassment.

The court in Faragher and Ellerth noted that proof that an employer has promulgated an anti-harassment policy with a complaint procedure might be relevant to the analysis of the first element of the affirmative defense. However, the court declined to hold that such proof was necessary in every instance.

An employer can meet its burden to show that it took reasonable steps to prevent harassment only if it also conducts training.

Since then, what is necessary to establish that an employer took appropriate steps to prevent harassment has been addressed on a case-by-case basis by lower courts. This has left employers with uncertainties. For example, is it enough to adopt equal employment opportunity and anti-harassment policies, place them in a handbook, and require employees to acknowledge receipt?

Initially, lower courts interpreting the Faragher/Ellerth affirmative defense found that employers could satisfy the obligation to prevent harassment by establishing written sexual harassment policies and notifying employees of the policies.

Courts did not require employers to post the policies in the workplace or provide anti-harassment training.

Impetus for Training

Although the issue is far from settled, recent lower court cases suggest that it is not enough for an employer to simply establish written anti-harassment policies. Rather, an employer can meet its burden to show that it took reasonable steps to prevent harassment only if it also conducts training and otherwise acts to actively engage employees with the policies.

In Winchester v. National Mutual Life Insurance Co., No. 3-09-CV-1225-M-BD (N.D. Tex. 2011), a federal district court denied summary judgment on a Title VII sexual harassment claim because the company’s only evidence that it took steps to prevent the harassment was that it issued harassment prohibition policies and made them available on the company’s intranet.

The court found that this was insufficient and strongly suggested that additional steps would be needed to avoid liability. The court stated that the employer “presented no evidence that it took specific actions to make its employees aware of its sexual harassment policy, reviewed the policies with its employees and supervisors, or trained its employees on the policies.”

Policy Not Enough

Similarly, in Bishop v. Woodbury Clinical Laboratory Inc., No. 3:08-1032 (M.D. Tenn. 2010), a federal court denied summary judgment, finding that “in order for a defendant employer to satisfy the first prong of the Faragher/Ellerth affirmative defense, proof of the mere existence of an anti-harassment policy is not enough.

The court must look behind the face of the policy to determine whether the policy was effective in practice in reasonably preventing and correcting any harassing behavior.”

The court determined that the employer had not satisfied its “prevent and correct” obligation, because there was no evidence that the plaintiff, or any other employee, received training regarding the company’s anti-harassment policy.

In reaching its decision, the Bishop court cited the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion in Clark v. United Parcel Serv. Inc., 400 F.3d 341 (2005).

In Clark, the court explained that “While there is no exact formula for what constitutes a ‘reasonable’ sexual harassment policy, an effective policy should at least: require supervisors to report incidents of sexual harassment; permit both informal and formal complaints of harassment to be made; provide a mechanism for bypassing a harassing supervisor when making a complaint; and provide for training regarding the policy.”

Unnecessary Risk

While the legal requirements regarding the obligations of an employer to “prevent and correct” harassment are still evolving, it is likely that companies are taking unnecessary risk if their only action in this regard is adopting equal employment opportunity and anti-harassment policies.

Employers should train employees about the policies and take other proactive measures to educate them about permissible and prohibited conduct. Doing so can decrease the risk of potentially lengthy and expensive litigation.

Doing more than issuing a policy makes sense as a practical matter. “The workplace is no different than the most important things in life,” says David L. Kaput, senior vice president and chief HR officer at ACCO Brands in Lincolnshire, Ill.

“It requires attention and proactive preventative and wellness care with open communication and engagement for excellent health,” Kaput added.

Employers should engage in proactive efforts to create a workplace free from harassment. These efforts should include establishing written anti-harassment policies that:

Make clear that harassment is strictly prohibited.
Define harassment broadly, including harassment based on sex, race, religion, national origin, age, disability and sexual orientation.
Provide a detailed description of the type of conduct prohibited.
Inform employees of the procedures for reporting harassment.
Identify whom employees should contact if they are subjected to harassment.
Permit reporting through a range of channels, including any manager, HR representative or anonymous phone service.
Permit both informal and formal complaints of harassment to be made.
Require employees to report any incident of harassment, even if it is not directed at them, and regardless of whether they think the employer is aware of it or another employee has reported it.
Provide that the employer will investigate and take appropriate preventive and corrective action.
Describe the disciplinary measures that the company may use in a harassment case.
Make clear that employees will not be subjected to retaliation for complaining about harassment.

Take proactive steps to ensure that employees are adequately informed of policies beyond simply requiring them to sign an acknowledgment.

Proactive Steps

In keeping with the increasing momentum of the law, employers need to do more than establish written anti-harassment policies. They need to take proactive steps to ensure that employees are adequately informed of policies beyond simply requiring them to sign an acknowledgment that they have read and understood them.

As indicated in Winchester and Bishop, employers should conduct periodic anti-harassment training of employees, supervisors and managers.

Employers should make sure employees know the HR representative to whom complaints should be directed. Those individuals designated to receive reports of harassment should be trained to respond in an appropriate manner and investigate complaints.

Finally, all reports should be investigated, even if the alleged acts do not seem like harassment.

By following these best practices, employers can establish a workplace where all employees feel safe and comfortable, while simultaneously shielding the company from potentially costly sexual harassment claims.

Andrew Slobodien is the founding member of Labor Lawyers Group PC in Chicago. Elizabeth Peters is an attorney with Edwards Wildman in Chicago.

Flexible workplaces help employees find balance between family, job

admin — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 18:20:57 +0000

By Matt Wickenheiser, BDN Staff

Posted July 06, 2012, at 1:12 p.m.
Last modified July 06, 2012, at 1:47 p.m.

A short day at Jasleen Leach’s old job was from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., followed by a few hours in Washington, D.C.-area traffic to travel less than 50 miles, a quick dinner and short time with her two young children, then more work at home on her laptop.

A long day could have the IT proposal manager at work from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m.

Three months ago, she took a job at Tilson Technology in Portland, coming to Maine to seek a better balance between her professional life and her family life. Today, if a child is sick at home, she may stay there and be a mom, working remotely from home. Her commute is negligible. As the manager for federal proposals for Tilson, she’s well compensated and is moving ahead in her career. At the same time, she has the flexibility to be available for her family.

“I do have it all,” said Leach. “You put in the hours, you do your work well, and then you have a great family life. Overall, you can’t ask for anything more.”

Leach has what many seek but never find, the El Dorado of the career professional — a balance between work and life.

It turns out an increasing number of companies are offering flexible work environments as a way to attract and keep top employees, according to David Ciullo, president of Career Management Associates, a career coaching, job search and human resources firm with offices in Maine and New Hampshire.

“This is a critical part of what has to be arranged for in the workplace. Most employers we deal with in Maine and throughout the Northeast are looking at things like flex time, telecommuting, working away,” said Ciullo. “This is a real change from where we were five, 10 years ago. There’s a lot of companies that talked about it; now there’s a lot of companies doing it.”

That trend is driven in part by demographic changes, said Ciullo, with Gen X and Gen Y having different work expectations. It’s also driven by available technology; being able to work remotely is far easier today with the advent of cloud computing than it might have been a decade ago.

“Computers — technology today — allow you to do almost anything, [and] from not necessarily in your own office,” said Ciullo.

Another effect from technology — social media in particular — is that more people have more information about what common practices are at other workplaces. So expectations of flexibility have risen, said Ciullo.

Traditionally, that balance was particularly important for career women who were regarded as primary caregivers and who often had to choose between work and family. But, noted Ciullo and the professionals interviewed for this article, that balance is increasingly important to men, too. And more professionals need flexibility to deal not only with children, but also with elderly parents, a significant factor in an aging state such as Maine, he added.

In some cases, a workplace’s flexible policies aren’t explicitly written out.

Karen Simonds came to Tilson four years ago, after working as an office manager at a plant where her presence was required, without exception. Today, she’s the manager of accounting and human resources at Tilson.

She knows if there’s a snow day, she may stay at home with her two teenage sons. She may come in at 6 a.m. so she may leave early to watch one of their sports events.

When Elissa Burke began her federal government job, she was a single woman without children. But after Burke gave birth to her daughter and had two stepsons to accommodate, her managers’ attitude toward her changed, she said, and it became clear that it was not OK to give her family life priority over work time — ever.

“It was quite rigid. There wasn’t any flexibility at all,” said Burke, who has been a senior consultant at Tilson for a year.

The opposite is true at Tilson she said. While there’s no written policy, the expectation is that people will work hard when needed, get their jobs done, but will have the flexibility they need for family.

In the IT world, Maine companies are competing for professionals who typically can work anywhere else. Flexibility is a key factor in attracting professionals, said Emma Lishness, manager of marketing and communications at Tilson.

“We need to have the best people working here,” she said. “In addition to flexible work, we have to pay people what they’re worth.”

Joan Fortin at Bernstein Shur agreed.

“We want to have a strong, vibrant firm so we can do great work. The way we do that is to hire top-notch talent,” said Fortin, who is director of attorney recruitment at the law firm. “Hiring them is step one. Retaining them is the critical piece.”

Acknowledging the importance of life outside work is a big factor in that, said Fortin. She said the firm does so formally and informally. For example, the company’s parental leave policy is extremely progressive, she said, allowing for both maternity and paternity leave. Parents with new children may take up to six months off, with 12 weeks of it paid. Parents may use such leave for adoptions, too. And it’s written into the policy that time off for parental leave doesn’t affect an attorney’s time frame for making it to partner status.

In fact, when Fortin made partner (called a shareholder at Bernstein Shur), she was on maternity leave, came in for the vote, and went back on maternity leave.

Katherine Joyce, an attorney in the energy and environmental practice group, was hired from other firms as a part-time attorney on a path to shareholder. At the time a single mom of two, she remembers just after she was hired getting a call that one of her children was sick.

“Being a single mom, I did not have a ‘Plan B,’” she recalled.

She walked into her boss’s office, explaining she was almost done a memo she needed to write, but had to go pick up her child, when he stopped her.

Her boss told her to email him the memo; he’d finish it. Her child, he told her, is the most important thing.

“He meant it,” Joyce said.

In other firms, she said, that would be a career-limiting move.

Fortin said when she was a younger attorney she had landed and was handling a massive, multinational client. Juggling that work and her private life was getting more and more challenging, until the firm’s managing partner sat down and talked with her, asked her what she needed to handle it all. They brought on a paralegal and a full-time attorney to support her work with the client.

“For me, the support I’ve received from the top has definitely kept me here,” Fortin said.

She said the demands from different spheres in her life aren’t constant; sometimes family needs will spike, or work demands will. But it can all balance out, she said. And having an employer that’s flexible and understands the importance of family is critical for handling all of that, she said.

“It’s not like being a mother has to be hidden,” she said. “Being a mother is very important to me; being a lawyer is very important to me.”

From the employer standpoint, said Fortin, it’s important employer decision-makers really pay attention to what their work force needs.

“If employers want to support families, they can do it,” she said. “You’ll ensure loyalty forever.”

Joyce said it’s vital to make choices about what’s important, and to value that.

“You can’t have it all, but you can have what’s important to you, if you’re willing to make choices,” she said. “In a practical sense, I’m someone who has it all, and that’s pretty cool. That doesn’t mean life’s not hard.”

Courtesy photo

David Ciullo, president of Career Management Associates

Courtesy photo

Karen Simonds, accounting and human resources manager at Tilson Technology Management

Courtesy photo

Elissa Burke, senior consultant at Tilson Technology Management

Courtesy photo

Joan Fortin, shareholder, director of attorney recruiting, chair of municipal and regulatory practice group at Bernstein Shur

Courtesy photo

Katherine Joyce, shareholder and member of Bernstein Shur’s energy and environmental practice group

WLOB The Importance of Support Roles

admin — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 16:06:56 +0000

On this weeks show we covered the importance of the support roles in business. These support roles are not always the most glamorous or the most desired but they are some of the most important jobs in business. These jobs are currently open allover the state of Maine. The willingness to be flexible when unemployed and the ability to step back and regroup towards one of these open positions will help you in your job search.

12 Low-Cost Employee Perks for Fun & High Performance

admin — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 17:36:34 +0000

By: Mary Alice LaPoint

Blog copied from A Step up Book Keeping

It’s always a good idea to help employees stay motivated, and there are many things you can do besides the traditional cash bonus. Here are twelve ideas that cost little yet go a long way with employees, contractors, and other business associates.

1. Compressed workweek.

Employees love getting Friday afternoon off, or even a full day a week. Providing weekday time off cuts absenteeism since the employee has a window to run errands that need to be done during business hours.

2. Social activities.

Create social events that become a tradition in your company. The employees will look forward to them. If you’re not sure what to do, consider the hobbies of your employees, plan an event based on a holiday or anniversary, or simply have a meal out.

A business owner who offers training classes can have movie showings in their training rooms complete with popcorn on Wednesday evenings. The cost of the movie and popcorn is minimal compared to the fun everyone will have.

3. Telecommute part-time.

If possible, consider allowing employees to work from home one day a week. They love the flexibility, often get more done without constant interruptions, and save road time.

4. Customized recognition.

Every employee likes to be recognized for a job well done, but each may differ in exactly how the recognition is expressed. Instead of guessing, ask at the time the employee is onboarded whether they prefer gift certificates, time off, sports event tickets, cash, or public recognition.

5. Bring a child to work.

Last-minute emergencies can come up regarding child care, and the question is whether the employer can help out. Create a policy around when employees can bring little ones to work. You might also want to have a list of childcare and/or eldercare referral services handy.

6. Education.

Education is always a great perk. Here are some ideas along those lines:

Cross-train employees on job duties other employees do so you have a deeper bench of knowledge to pull from.
Consider reimbursing for professional memberships or allowing employees to attend professional association events.
Bring in an instructor who can teach self-defense.
Have on-site fitness yoga classes.
Encourage employees whose first language is not English to take English as a second language or accent reduction classes.
Send employees to learn a foreign language.
Bring in a teacher for CPR and first aid training.

7. Stress reduction.

Who isn’t stressed out? Treat employees to a massage, or bring in an instructor who can teach stress-reduction techniques like meditation.

8. Casual dress.

On days with no client appointments or perhaps every Friday, offer a casual dress day. It cuts down on dry cleaning, and employees are more relaxed.

9. Errand concierge services.

Cut down on absenteeism and long lunch hours by bringing the errands to the employees. I suspect local businesses would love the business. Find a nearby dry cleaner that can pick up onsite and maybe even throw in a discount. Do the same for car wash services, take-home meals from a caterer or local restaurant, prescription refills, postal services, banking, and more.

10. Transportation.

Offer a subsidy for carpooling, public transit subsidy, or purchasing a hybrid car.

11. Discounts on products and services.

Provide discounts on your services or merchandise for employees.

12. Time off.

Offer a creative twist to holiday pay. Instead of the standard holidays, allow employees to have their birthday or job anniversary as paid time off. Consider also providing pay while philanthropic employees volunteer their time and talents to nonprofits.

Try one or more of these twelve employee perks to rev up the motivation on your team.

WLOB

admin — Thu, 31 May 2012 18:58:07 +0000

David on WLOB This week we covered CMA’s new updated job page http://www.cmacareer.com/job-seekers-2/ and AAP’s Click the link to listen.

HOW TO READ AN AD TO CUSTOMIZE YOUR COVER LETTER

admin — Wed, 23 May 2012 19:51:12 +0000

HOW TO READ AN AD TO CUSTOMIZE YOUR COVER LETTER

By THOMAS W. MORRIS III
MORRIS • ASSOCIATES INC.
http://morrisdc.com/

Much like writing a resume, the key to writing a good cover letter is to understand how people read them, and by and large, they don’t.

People glance at cover letters quickly, first for format and general appearance; this takes from less than a second to a very few seconds. Then they “quick scan” for keywords and qualifications emphasized in the position description and advertisement. Actually a computer may perform the quick scan for keywords before any human even looks at your resume; this is especially true if you are applying online. Because most position advertisements get dozens if not hundreds – and sometimes thousands – of responses, computer scans have become an essential and sometimes preferred way to pre-scan applicants’ resumes.

Therefore, crafting a superior cover letter begins by carefully reading and analyzing keywords and phrases used in the advertisement that describe what the employer wants.

COMMON MISTAKES:

1. Most people don’t carefully read and analyze the whole ad; they glance through the ad and highlight a few phrases and qualifications that catch their eye – perhaps because those are key skills or attributes that they want to be using in the new position.

2. Many read the ad from their point of view and not from the point of view of either the person who will read their application or the point of view of what the organization has spent the time and money to define, in writing: the person they want to hire.

WHAT TO DO:

1. Go old-school! Print out the position description.

2. Read everything in the ad: the description of the firm or organization, the general description of the position they’re seeking to fill, the requirements, the qualifications needed and preferred, and how and where they want you to respond to the ad.

3. Grab a highlighter and highlight everything in all those sections listed above that describes the corporate culture and what they’re looking for in the position. Watch especially for words and phrases that are repeated (e.g. they might describe their organization as one that emphasizes “teamwork” and “collaboration,” and “building and working in teams” might be listed as requirements or qualifications). The real tone of what they’re looking for is usually in the company description of itself (“dynamic,” “cutting edge”); if that’s how the company sees itself, you need to infuse that same tone and those values in your cover letter. Think: what is the essence of what they want? And what are the keywords or qualifications that they’ve used to describe the essence?

4. Sit back and analyze what you’ve highlighted. In addition to identifying the essence of what they’re looking for, based on your knowledge of this kind of position, what are the key skills, qualities and personal attributes desired that are also unique to this particular organization? Remember: ads for the same position title are not the same – the emphasis will be different and unique for each company.

5. Craft the opening sentence of your cover letter around the essence of what they want. Incorporate the top skills and qualifications listed in the position advertisement that you have highlighted. Use the same words they used in the ad; those are the exact keywords the reader or computer scanner will be likely looking for. Are there themes restated and reinforced? Use these themes as major headings for copy, then group the bullet points in your letter under them. Match your background and experience to the qualifications and specific requirements of the ideal candidate described. The goal is to have the reader almost instantly get the essence of what you are communicating without having to read the letter carefully.

This is what often makes the difference in those that go in the “yes” pile from those that wind up elsewhere.

Career Management Associates

CMA

Portland, ME

Part 2 – Succession and Career Planning – the why and how!

admin — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:57:40 +0000

Part 2 – Succession and Career Planning – the why and how!

By Valerie Mercer SPHR, Director of HR/Career Services
Click here to listen…
The purpose of a succession and career planning system is to match future needs of the organization (anticipated and unanticipated openings) with the aspirations and competencies of top performing and high potential employees.

Challenges:

A succession and career planning system requires investment. The economic downturn has resulted in limited funds available to staff “bench” positions, which are often developmental positions for the “up and comers”.

A working system results in having (ideally) more than one suitable person “ready” for a key job opening. In order to have choices, an organization needs to identify who is ready now and who may be ready in the future (and what the development path should be).

Benefits:

Key roles filled internally have a higher success rate, culturally, than those filled externally. A favored method is to recruit into the organization at a lower level and groom from there.

A well-developed career planning process increases the retention of superior employees since they recognize that time, attention and skill development are being focused on them for the purpose of their career development. When companies continue to challenge and reward talented employees, they reduce their drive to seek opportunities elsewhere.

Process:

Establish a system for your organization.

Keep the process simple, otherwise managers will not use it, and establish organizational metrics. Some key steps include:

Identify Current Top Performers and High Potential Leaders
Identify Future Leadership Gaps
Develop Individual Career Goals
Develop a Leadership Skills Roadmap – Competencies That Must be Achieved
Develop Succession Plans – Lateral Moves & Developmental Opportunities
Develop Leader/Top Performer Retention Programs With Metrics

Career advancement should be a substantive and meaningful part of performance reviews. Managers and employees should discuss and document the desired career path, ultimate career goal and “stepping stone” jobs within the organization. With the generational move to shorter term tenures with organizations, employees have to feel that there is something in it for them, in order to stay with the same organization.

The metrics that a company establishes for Succession and Career Planning might include goals such as the percent of executive level vacancies that are actually filled with an internal promotion vs. an external hire, or the percent of promotions that actually come from the high-potential pool. These are lagging indicators, which need to be accompanied by leading indicators such as the percent of divisions/managers that have completed succession plans in place.

CMA can assist organizations in developing or refining their succession and career planning systems.

Valerie Mercer is the Director of HR/Career Services at Career Management Associates , an HR consulting firm that specializes in Professional and Executive Search, HR Consulting and Services, Outplacement and Career Transition, Executive Coaching, and Contract Employment. Please contact her

at vmercer@cmacareer.com or 207.780.1125.

Succession and Career Planning Part 1

admin — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:44:57 +0000

Part 1 – Succession and Career Planning…..Important Even in a Double-Dip Recession!

By Valerie Mercer SPHR, Director of HR/Career Services
Click here to listen…
Has your organization ever promoted an employee to fill an unplanned opening, only to have them fail?

Does your organization have a plan in place for developing and retaining your key people?

During this economic downturn, when organizations have been focused on keeping their businesses afloat, development plans for individuals have taken a back seat. However, many employers today realize that, even with the poor economy, the top-performing and/or high-potential employees can be flight risks – some want to leave and some are being targeted by competitors! And companies recognize that these top performers often determine the long term success or failure of a business – certainly a catch 22.

While these top performers and high potentials may have been content to hunker down during the start of this downturn, many are becoming restless, and even disgruntled, and will jump when the time is right. Lack of opportunity for advancement is often one of the top 4 areas of discontentment in employee engagement surveys! And, statistically, while voluntary separations have trended downward, voluntary separations for top performers have trended up!

Only 20% of organizations have formal, transparent, succession planning systems in place! A talent management system that identifies, develops and (hopefully) retains top talent is key to managing top performers and high potentials. In the absence of a system, organizations fall prey to the cycle of “threaten to quit = offer of more $$ to stay” (a short term fix, if it works at all!). A succession/career planning system is much more effective and actually creates a proactive management system, as opposed to a reaction mechanism! This approach can be complex and expensive or as simple as having regular, structured (more than 1X per year) performance/developmental discussions with key employees, and tracking the results. But this may be a challenge since many companies do not even have a successful performance review system in place!!

Next time: Part 2 – Succession and Career Planning – the why and how?

CMA can assist organizations in developing or refining their succession and career planning systems.

Valerie Mercer is Director of HR/Career Services at Career Management Associates an HR consulting firm that specializes in Professional and Executive Search, HR Consulting and Services, Outplacement
and Career Transition, Executive Coaching, and Contract Employment. Please contact her
at vmercer@cmacareer.com or 207.780.112.

What are Affirmative Action Plans, and Who Needs to File One?

admin — Thu, 03 May 2012 00:07:07 +0000

What are Affirmative Action Plans, and Who Needs to File One?

Click here to listen…
An Affirmative Action Program plan is a formal way of documenting your organization’s management policies and procedures, in place to eliminate barriers to employment opportunities for minorities, women, Veterans and qualified disabled people. AAP Plans examine an organization’s population and its employment practices, to identify any deficiencies. The AAP Plan includes goals designed to improve areas with any noted deficiencies, striving to provide the best probability of equal employment for all.

In general, organizations that do business with the federal government or receive federal government funds are required to implement formal affirmative action plans. Some employers assume that they have to have an AAP in place in order to comply with federal equal opportunity employment (EEO) laws. However, EEO laws typically prohibit unlawful discrimination against “protected classes” of applicants and employees. Affirmative action laws require covered employers to implement plans to identify and hire certain protected class members. Even though a plan must be written each year, it does not have to be filed with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. The OFCCP is the regulatory body tasked with ensuring compliance with affirmative action and equal employment initiatives for all federal contractors.

Employers generally implement formal affirmative action plans in the following circumstances:

as a condition of doing business with the federal government;
as a response to an allegation of discrimination, ordered by a court; and
as a voluntary resolution for past patterns of discrimination.

AAP requirements can be complex, as a result, most employers prefer not to implement them unless they meet the requirements and must do so to meet legal mandates.

Career Management Associates has dedicated and experienced staff, tasked with being informed and up to date on all Affirmative Action Plan regulations and OFCCP initiatives, ensuring our clients have the most complete and fully compliant Plans. Contact us to discuss how we can help you develop and implement a customized AAP for your organization.

April is National Stress Awareness Month

admin — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:20:41 +0000

April is National Stress Awareness Month

By: Kim Lefebvre
Click here to listen…

For the twentieth year in a row April has been named National Stress Awareness Month. This collaborative initiative is a cooperative effort to raise awareness about the dangers of stress and prevalent misconceptions. During the month of April, health professionals are called upon to help focus attention on identifying the signs and symptoms of harmful stress and provide information and education about successful coping strategies. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), stress and anxiety is estimated to affect over 19 million Americans. Healthcare professionals continue to warn that stress is becoming an epidemic.

Stress is a part of our everyday lives. How one copes with stress becomes the deciding factor in whether or not it directly affects health. Today, three out of five visits to the doctor are stress related. In the US alone, $2.8 billion is spent on anxiety-related healthcare annually. One in four Americans admits to having taken a “mental health day” off from work. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention notes that one in three Americans today has issues with hypertension and high blood pressure.

Stress related illnesses and anxiety are becoming more prevalent among the younger populations. Statistics show that one third of kids aged 8 – 17 years old report that they are worried about their family’s finances. Relentless commercial and peer pressure, to have more material possessions, such as the best technology, gadgets and the right clothing, are taking a direct toll on their mental and physical health. Homework and teasing are also major sources of stress for today’s younger generation. When asked how they cope, the top answer was listening to music, followed by eating, and then talking to their parents. Studies show that anxiety is five times more prevalent in young people today than during The Depression.

10 Tips For Relieving Stress and Getting Your Mojo Back*

Engage in relaxing activities. Take a walk in nature. Get a massage. Take a scented hot bath. Curl up with a great book.
Listen to guided imagery.
Meditate even if only for five minutes. If you can’t make time for this, break up the day by taking three deep belly breaths several times/day.
Try to change the stressors in your life that you have the power to change.
Quit trying to control the uncontrollable. For those stressors you can’t change, learn to let it go.
Be brutal with your to-do list, and be compassionate with yourself for what doesn’t get done.
Avoid watching and reading the news when you’re stressed. Chances are it will only stress you more.
Express your feelings. Talk to a trusted friend or write in your journal. Bottling up your feelings will only add to your stress
Keep a running list of things you are grateful for. It will help keep you focused on what’s great in your life.
Laugh. Watch a funny movie. Tell jokes with friends.

Remember the old saying, “Find a job you love and you’ll never work another day in your life.” Most people spend about 25 percent of their adult lives working. Job stress hurts productivity and takes a serious toll on the mind and body.

Sometimes bringing in someone from outside your organization, to conduct a stress management workshop with team building activities can be just what the doctor ordered. A professional facilitator can take a stressed out group of co-workers and have them laughing together and working cooperatively to perform a team oriented task in a matter of hours. Career Management Associates has multiple customizable workshops designed to help staff recognize stress and to teach workplace coping mechanisms. For more information about stress management and team building workshops, contact our offices.

*Published on April 14, 2010 by Lissa Rankin, M.D. in Owning Pink