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Pipeline for the Future.  Apprenticeships: A Talent Acquisition Strategy That May Help You Replenish Your Tanks
by MaryLouise Steinwachs


HR professionals are slicing and dicing the talent pool to entice potential candidates to fill the tanks and develop pipelines for the future of their businesses. The Department of Labor in September 2018 cites the national unemployment rate at 3.9% which applies to people age 16 and older. The unemployment rate for college grads is 2.1 percent and 3.9 percent for high school grads. Is your panic gauge heading north?! Competition for talent continues to sizzle requiring you to react by re-inventing your benefit strategies to "seal-the-deal" in a new era where potential candidates hold the bargaining leverage further elevating your meter. Press the red button on the meter! There may be a possible solution for consideration. One viable option to consider is to develop apprenticeship opportunities.

Apprenticeships date back to the middle ages. The term "Indenture" was imported from Europe in the late 1600's when craft works settled in America creating the master-apprentice relationship. Benjamin Franklin is an example of an apprentice who was an indentured apprentice in the printing industry under his brother, James' tutelage until the age of 21. James apprenticed with his father following his migration to America. His brilliance shined through as early as the age of 15 when he negotiated his food benefits in the form of cash payment to save money opting for less expensive dining options. The premise for the apprenticeships today remains the same, however, more refined.

As HR professionals, you may wish to investigate apprenticeships either through a Department Of Labor sponsored program or choose to develop a customized plan. There are pros and cons to both options requiring you to weigh them within your organization. An example of each may include: Pros; you may minimize reporting and administrative requirements. Cons: your program can fizzle if structure and time lines, regardless of resources initially, are expended. In both cases buy-in and continuation of programs from senior leadership may also dissipate without positive outcomes. When considering apprenticeship programs:

Development Phase: Identify key stakeholders in your organization. Prepare questions to ask which may include: Which roles are crucial to your department's future? What are the specific skills and competencies required? Who do you envision can lead as a mentor or coach? Do you wish to outsource training? How do you envision HR's role in helping you prepare your apprenticeship program?

Planning Stage:  Assess your organization overall and prepare metrics. Unless you are a subject matter expert in analytics or utilize an HRIS which enables you to capsulize data efficiently, tap talent within your organization to assist in this facet of the project on how to best tell the story. Your focus area might include:  Demographics in critical roles; Predictive analytics may consist of pending retirements or turnover; preparing a budget inclusive of resources and training costs; identification of opportunities for funding; which areas are most dire to your organizations future; ranking and scheduling execution; and finally how will you assess and evaluate your program.

Apprenticeships present potential solutions to a range of both social and employment issues. Some of these benefits include: Fostering engagement and inclusivity with all employees; proactive transfer of intellectual and intangible assets; knowledge transfer of highly specialized roles prior to separation of employment; attracting new talent with a phase-out/phase-in strategy (pending retirees/high schoolers); development of a sharing culture of collaboration and learning; cultivating community involvement by all championing your corporate brand with all partners. It is essential to incorporate these messages when presenting to your C-suite.

Green Light Approval: Presenting to your leadership team and keep the presentation focus on high level ROI - what are the tangible benefits? Include what if-scenarios, i.e., what happens if no action is taken? Include examples of success stories in your own community. Don't despair if you are turned down - ask why and go back to the table after you have reassessed and refined.

Implementation:  Select a champion for your first apprenticeship program. Determine if you will tap into a DOL program or need to work with your local representative to develop a new registered indentured program. If you choose to work on an internal program, work with your managers and supervisors to establish a training design to include on the job training and academics or technical training.

Execution and Evaluation:  This step will include; developing educational partnership; involvement in your workforce development organization; managing administrative and compliance requirements; organizing open-houses; preparing marketing materials inclusive of social media and assigning a leader to spear-head the apprenticeship initiative; developing feedback opportunities and corrective action plans as necessary.

Apprenticeships may not guarantee a 20+ year commitment by employees as we saw in the baby-boomer generation, but it does create goodwill in the community and a collaborative spirit in competition. Failing to consider apprenticeships because you fear you will invest financially and consume resources without a guarantee of a significant return on investment may be taking a path with considerable risk. Consider the opposing perspective; what if you don't? You may miss an opportunity to develop a new Benjamin Franklin in your pipeline.


REFERENCES: 
https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/unemployment-rate-2-1-percent-for-college-grads-3-9-percent-for-high-school-grads-in-august-2018.htm.

Rorabaugh, William. The Craft Apprentice from Franklin to the Machine Age in America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986.

 

Washington State Department of Labor & Industries https://www.lni.wa.gov/TradesLicensing/Apprenticeship/About/History/Default.asp

2018 Upcoming Programs

  • October 10th:  Finding Keepers: Engage & Retain the Best Talent! HR Conference
  • November 14th: How to Develop Organizational and HR Strategic Plans
  • December 12th: Developing Leaders for a Culture of Accountability

Changes to the Taylor Law
by Alina Nadir, Esq - Underberg & Kessler

This year, Governor Cuomo signed a law making changes to the Taylor Law, strengthening public unions.  The Taylor Law, officially the Public Employees Fair Employment Act, defines the rights and limitations for public employees in New York. The major changes to the existing law include the following:
 

  1. Previously, there was no deadline by which an employer had to start collecting union dues.  Now, dues deductions have to begin no later than 30 days after dues deductions cards are signed.
  2. Within 30 days of an employee's hiring or rehiring, the employer has to notify the union of the hiring, transfer or assignment into the bargaining unit.  The notification has to include the employee's name, address, job title, employment agency, operating unit or department and work location.  This means if an employee simply transfers to a different bargaining unit within the same employer, the employer still needs to notify the union.
  3. After the employer has notified the union, within 30 days the union will have a meeting wit that employee for a reasonable amount of time during work hours without charging the employee's leave of absence balance or accrual, unless the collective bargaining agreement provides differently.
  4. An employee's dues deduction card remains valid if the employee leaves employment for no more than one year.
  5. If an employee is removed from payroll or is on a voluntary or involuntary leave of absence, the employee's union membership remains active when the employee resumes active service.  Whether the leave was paid or not has no effect.
  6. If an employee wants to withdraw from their union, the withdrawal must be in conformance with the language on the deduction card.
  7. Unions subject to the Taylor Law are not obligated to represent non-dues payment members in any investigation of employee misconduct, evaluation, grievances, arbitration or any other process concerning evaluation or discipline contained in the collective bargaining agreement.
  8. Unions subject to the Taylor Law only have to present non-dues payment members in the negotiation of the terms of collective bargaining agreement or the enforcement of the agreements terms.

Of course, these changes are subject to the subsequent U.S. Supreme Court decision which provides that nonmembers of public unions could choose to stop paying dues.  If some of the new provisions of the Taylor Law are subsequently found to be illegal due to the Supreme Court decision, the remaining provisions will remain in effect.

The Pathway to Success: Selecting Your HR Partner 
by Christina Stroud, EVP

 

In our current candidate-driven market companies are forced to recruit swiftly and compete for the best of the best.  In some fields, candidates are entertaining multiple offers at one time which leaves little time for multiple visits and extended recruiting time-lines.

This is why partnering with an external search firm is one of the best ways to ensure finding the best talent quickly and smoothly throughout the entire recruiting process.  However, you need to make sure the recruiter is the right one for you.

How do you know which is the right recruiting professional to use? Ask yourself these questions and it will lead you down the right path:
  • When presenting a candidate can they explain how this match is beneficial to both the candidate and the company?
  • Does the recruiter not only have your interests in mind, but are they also looking out for the candidates? A great recruiter should want a great match for both parties.
  • Can the recruiter explain how the candidate fits in your culture and describe how not only will the candidate survive, but actually thrive?
  • Does the recruiter have industry experience -- especially in the industry or the field that you are recruiting for?
  • Does the external recruiter fully understand your needs? Do they understand what you are looking for -- even the skills and traits that aren't't listed on the job description?
  • Does the recruiter guide you through the decision-making process rather than simply sending you resumes?
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Wellness Incentive Update

by Tiffany Passmore, WPV, Inc


Late in 2017 the decision in the AARP v. EEOC case sent a shock-wave rippling through the benefits and wellness community. The judge in that case vacated the incentive limits established by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for employer wellness plans and ordered the agency to revise the current incentive rules (e.g. incentive limits must not exceed 30% of the cost of self-only health insurance coverage) by August 31, 2018.

The EEOC  has not yet delivered a revision to their incentive rules and has indicated that it may wait for the confirmation of the new commissioners nominated by President Trump before taking action. Because the timing of the Senate confirmation of those nominees is currently unclear, it is unlikely that employers will get answers in time for their 2019 wellness planning.

According to Anu Gogna and Ben Lupin of Willis Towers Watson, "as of January 1, 2019 (when the incentive portion of the EEOC wellness rules is vacated), a sponsor of a wellness program with components subject to the EEOC's incentive limit rules - such as an annual physical, health risk assessment or bio-metric screening - will need to consider one or more of the following courses of action:
  1. Maintain status quo under new EEOC wellness incentive rules are released.  Employers may continue to follow the EEOC's limits on incentives. the EEOC is unlikely to challenge an employer that voluntarily complies with the rescinded incentive limits (unless new rules are issued).
  2. Follow HIPPA/ACA wellness rules and ignore the EEOC's "voluntary" requirements.  Wellness programs could comply with applicable incentive limits in the HIPPA wellness regulations (as amended by the ACA) while employers wait for future guidance from the EEOC.  This essentially would be the same course of action many employers were taking before the EEOC issues its regulatory guidance.  While there would be no guarantee that the wellness  program would not be challenged by the EEOC, it seems unlikely given that the rules for incentive limits will be vacated in 2019. Employers should remain aware, however, that compliance is still required for the rest of the EEOC wellness regulations, including notice requirements, nondiscrimination rules and others.
  3. Self-define "voluntary".  Under the ADA and GINA wellness programs must be "voluntary." While the EEOC regulations define a program as voluntary if incentive limits do not exceed 30% of the cost of self-only coverage, the definition will be vacated along with the rest of the incentive rules on January 1, 2019. So, employers might be able to redefine permissible incentive limits for the purpose of ADA and GINA.  A literal interpretation of the court's ruling might conclude that no incentives are allowed for wellness program components subject to the ADA and GINA - that a strictly voluntary program could not include any incentives or penalties. In making that determination, however, the employer would effectively be setting the rules for the government, so few employers are likely to adopt this position.
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