Happy JULY 5TH is Coming!

Believe it or not there is a holiday that signifies Workaholics. July 5^th is National Workaholics Day!  While some employers may believe workaholics are good for the company, researchers disagree.  We all know someone who is the first IN and last one OUT.  While co-workers, families and yes bosses are unplugged and enjoying the holiday(s) or much deserved time off, there is always that one or two at the office, at home sitting at the dining room table, locked in their home office, working!

There was a time when working long hours/ more hours was encouraged well – because it emphasized bigger paychecks along with big promotions. Think about it though!  It’s Talk-About-It Thursday at All-4-HR & Business Solutions! Are Workaholics truly happier because of higher paychecks and promotions?  I’d like to hear from some workaholics “anonymously” of course!

Signs You are a Workaholic are below?

The Workaholics Anonymous website http://bit.ly/1KskG9m has a 20-question self-assessment that includes these queries:

·         Do you take work with you to bed, on weekends or on vacation?

·         Is work the activity you do best and talk about the most?

·         Do you think it’s OK to work long hours if you love what you do?

·         Do you get impatient with people who have priorities outside of work?

·         Do you do things energetically and competitively, including play?

·         Have long hours hurt your relationships?

·         Do you work or read during meals?

·         Do you think about work while driving or falling asleep or when others are talking?

It is my personal belief that longer hours and lack of down time with family, friends and alone yield less than desirous results.  Wikipedia defines Workaholic as a person who works compulsively. While the term generally implies that the person enjoys their work, it can also imply that they simply feel compelled to do it. There is no generally accepted medical definition of such a condition, although some forms of stress, impulse control disorder, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder can be work-related. 

Workaholism is often confused with working hard, but it is not the same!

Researchers found that people work hard for four reasons:

1.    Because they want the financial rewards of hard work. Douglas and Morris call these people "material goal seekers."

2.  Because they find little enjoyment from leisure activities. They can be called "low leisure" hard workers.

3.    Because they love the perks they get at work, such as friendships, an easy commute, great working conditions, a good health plan, etc. They are "perkaholics" rather than workaholics.

4. Because they want to work just for work’s sake. These people are the true workaholics. The Truth About Workaholics http://bit.ly/1FQ3meM.

Employers should not encourage workaholism! There has to be work/life balance encouraged throughout the organization at all times. Workaholism must be discouraged as it negatively impacts the workaholic, along with the morale of other employees.  Researchers further say employers send mixed messages as workaholics are rewarded with bigger paychecks and promotions.  On the other hand employers are pushing work/life balance by saying employees must take their vacation time and staying home to recuperate, by NO MEANS coming to work and getting other co-workers sick. But wait again, workaholics are rewarded with fatter paychecks and big promotions. Mixed messages indeed!

Workaholics can and will have a negative impact on co-workers making them feel guilty and compelled to work longer hours and underachieving or causing competition.  These attitudes can cause workplace fatigue and stress.

It is important that managers keep an eye for these situations as they can cause health problems for workaholics resulting in burnouts, workplace accidents and injuries.  Workaholism can also cause strife and animosity among co-workers. Managers should be aware of such situations where employees may be overworked or stressed. 

Not to make light of July 5^th, let me say workaholism is a very serious matter. Workaholisn can very easily take on a serious connotation as we have all known of and/or heard of workplace violence, which can be a result of being overworked. Workaholism not only affects the workplace, it has a lasting impact on family and home life for a lot of families.

As employers and employees, on this July 5^th, let’s remember the importance of work/life balance and the importance of happy and healthy employees! 

Until next time.

April D. Halliburton, BSBA, MBA

HR Strategist/Problemsolver/Visionary

  

April D. Halliburton Founder/CEO, All-4-HR & Business Solutions p:313-355-3061 | e:all4hrbiz@gmail.com | w:http://www.all4hr.net | a:26310 Norfolk Street, Inkster, MI 48141

DID YOU KNOW: Paid time off can be substituted for unpaid FMLA leave?

Kyle was looking forward to his summer trip to the Galapagos Islands. He had saved up three weeks' worth of paid time off for the trip. His plans were finally coming together. What he hadn't planned for was contracting pneumonia. As Murphy's Law would have it, the pneumonia sidelined his trip. Instead of the tropical beauty of an exotic island, Kyle was looking at the walls of his apartment and FMLA forms. He learned that the FMLA provided for unpaid leave, but he still had bills to pay, so he wondered how he could go about continuing his pay during the leave.

As the weather warms up, employees are undoubtedly thinking about taking some time off. If one of those employees with accrued paid time off were to need FMLA leave, he might want some income during his leave. When it comes to FMLA leave and accrued paid time off, employers have some considerations, including the "substitution" provisions.

Generally, an employee is entitled to "substitute" accrued paid time off for unpaid FMLA leave. Accrued paid time off could include vacation, sick leave, or simple paid time off (PTO). For simplification, we'll use the term PTO for all of these types of paid time off. Of course, if an employee has no accrued PTO, he would not be entitled to such a substitution.

The term "substitute" can be a bit confusing. The employee does not use PTO in lieu of FMLA leave; they actually run concurrently. While an employee is "burning" FMLA leave, he or she is also burning PTO. Often, employers will require employees to use any PTO before applying the FMLA protections. If, however, the employee is eligible and the reason for the leave qualifies, all of it would be FMLA leave, regardless of whether the PTO is being used or not. Failing to provide the FMLA's protections during a qualifying leave period could risk an interference claim.

If an employee exhausts his or her PTO during a leave, the remainder of the leave would be unpaid, but still protected by the FMLA.

If an employee does not wish to use PTO during FMLA leave, you may require him or her to do so. Such a requirement, however, should be included in a related policy to avoid inconsistent application.

Your policies regarding the use of the PTO would also apply. When an employee chooses to use PTO (or your require it), you must inform the employee that he must satisfy any procedural requirements of the paid leave policy only in connection with the receipt of such payment. If an employee fails to satisfy the requirements for paid leave, he is still entitled to unpaid FMLA leave.

If the employee does not use PTO during FMLA leave, he would have it available at the end of the FMLA leave.

Until Tomorrow! 

April D. Halliburton, BSBA, MBA

Founder, CEO, HR Strategist, Problem Solver/Visionary

April D. Halliburton Founder/CEO, All-4-HR & Business Solutions p:313-355-3061 | e:all4hrbiz@gmail.com | w:http://www.all4hr.net |a:26310 Norfolk Street, Inkster, MI 48141

Assess Where Your Employee Morale Stand?

         

The worst  you want to do is wait until your employees’ morale is in the toilet!  You want to catch employees’ morale and bring it to a HALT before it is too late.  Trust me on this!  It is relatively easy to tell when employee morale is high or low.  When reviewing employee morale over time, however, you have to measure it. Although it’s not an easy task, it is task worth completing.

What’s some signs employee  morale is low?

• Unmotivated employees are a sure sign of low employee morale. Employees sometimes go through the motions, taking an inactive role  within the organization.  It is important to foster an environment wherein employee are challenged, creative and being problem solvers.

• Signs of unhappy employees will show.  Be cognizant of red flags such as increased negativity, excessive absenteeism and reduced cooperation or commitment.

• Decreased performance resulting in missed deadlines and increased mistakes and service level declines. If you workforce seem overworked, considering taking on temporary employees to ease the workload.

What are some signs of high employee morale?

• Better production.  Face it when employees feel positive and work environment, their production is higher normally.

• Reduced absenteeism.  Motivated employees miss less work and far more engaged.

• High/positive morale yields increased collaboration among workers.

• Motivated employees fix problems without being asked.

Of course the latter is what all employers strive!

Some ways to discover exactly WHERE your employee morale is?

• Record the number of improvement suggesting given by employees. According to the BSC Designer, the number of suggestions per employee reflects engagement and morale.

• When implementing new company initiatives, pay close attention to feedback from employees, rather negative or positive. In other actually survey employees and their response to initiative(s). 

• Conduct a personal assessment of individual employee morale during performance reviews.

Once you have surveyed employees -- where do you go?  and what do you do?

Click here if you would like us to email you an Assessing Morale Survey, you can use TODAY.  Put Assessing Morale Survey in the subject line

Until tomorrow. 

April D. Halliburton, BSBA, MBA

Founder/CEO, HR Strategist, Problem Solver/Visionary

April D. Halliburton Founder/CEO, All-4-HR & Business Solutions p:313-355-3061 | e:all4hrbiz@gmail.com | w:http://www.all4hr.net | a:26310 Norfolk Street, Inkster, MI 48141

How’s Your Employee Morale Doing!

Employee morale will make the difference between the success and/or failure of your organization. We’ve talked about employee engagement that goes hand-in-hand with the level of your employees’ morale and organizational culture.

Sometimes, there are decisions made in an organization that may be intended for good; but may have the opposite effect on employee morale. For example: An employer may implement or have in place a rule that prohibit personal items in the workplace to maintain a professional workplace.  Such a rule, however limits employees’ ability to create a workplace where they feel comfortable. Even worse, such a rule can create a sterile, institutional environment.

Improving employee morale involves motivating employees by creating an encouraging work environment, providing support and feedback, and implementing effective management and leadership techniques. Providing support and feedback lets employees know that the company values their efforts and are glad to have their contributions to the team(s).  Keep in mind not all motivation techniques apply to all employees. Unfortunately, there are no one-size-fits-all techniques that apply to all employees.  While some employees prefer to work and keep to themselves -- focusing on work; others require interpersonal support and positive reinforcement and feedback.  Consider what motivates each type of employee and strive to provide that motivation.  Motivating employees means both managing and leading.

As an employer who is focused on employee morale, you want to be sure that you are not allowing toxic employees or environments to surface and/or spread.  We’ve had that discussion on the damage toxic employees can cause, including toxic managers.  That is another discussion right?

Some Things to keep in mind for motivating your employees are:

·         Show employees that they are trusted to handle responsibility;

·         Give trusted employees flexibility in completing tasks.

·  Empower rather than manage employees. Empowering employees grants them freedom. Be sure there are managers or supervisor available if employees need assistance.  Giving employees freedom does not mean isolating them.  You were make sure assistance is available if needed.

Motivation Do’s and Don’ts

Situations or actions that can damage employee morale and motivation include:

·         Poorly communicating expectations,

·         Excessive rules and restrictions,

·         Activities that are “removed” from production (excessive meetings),

·         Internal competition that leads to “in-fighting,” and

·         Giving criticism without positive feedback or suggestions for corrections.

Situations or actions that can enhance and increase/maintain motivation include:

·         Providing variety and rotation to break up “routine” work,

·         Defining and clearly communicating goals,

·         Showing support and giving constructive criticism for mistakes,

·         Allowing flexibility in how the work is done, and

·         Trusting employees to handle responsibilities.

You get from your employees what you put into your employees! 

Until Tomorrow!

April D. Halliburton Founder/CEO, All-4-HR & Business Solutions p:313-355-3061 | e:all4hrbiz@gmail.com | w:http://www.all4hr.net | a:26310 Norfolk Street, Inkster, MI 48141

April D. Halliburton

Founder/CEO/HR Strategist/Visionary

Happy May from All-4-HR & Business Solutions!