Berks & Beyond Blog

When it comes to the ways Pennsylvania employers classify employees, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

More and more, federal government agencies are cracking down on companies that violate worker classification guidelines.  The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has strict regulations about employment classification – specifically, how much control the employer has over the way work is performed.  To ensure compliance, the IRS is increasing on-site audits.

At the state level, lawmakers are also drawing a line in the sand.  Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and California are among those that have enacted worker misclassification laws, imposing severe penalties on violating employers.

Given the risks, why would an employer classify a true employee as an independent contractor?  One word – money.  Classifying workers as independent contractors helps a business significantly reduce employment-related expenses by:

• eliminating Social Security, Medicare and unemployment taxes;
• working around overtime and anti-discrimination regulations, as well as minimum wage levels;
• avoiding costly fringe benefits, such as health insurance, vacation pay and sick pay.

But while it may be tempting to save money this way, it’s also dangerous.  If a business owner is found to have misclassified employees, the IRS will collect delinquent employment taxes and may also impose severe financial penalties.  Misclassification can also lead to a host of other unpleasant consequences, including problems with benefits eligibility, work authorization and ultimately the company’s reputation.

The rules governing worker classification are notoriously complex.  Still, as a responsible employer, it’s important to follow a proper vetting process to ensure you are properly classifying independent contractors.  If one or more of these criteria applies to your contractors, they may actually be improperly classified (according to IRS guidelines):

• the employer has control over the means and/or methods of accomplishing work;
• the employer furnishes tools, equipment and/or materials for the worker;
• the worker is not allowed to work for other employers;
• the worker has agreed to work for the employer for an indefinite length of time.

These general criteria are no substitute for professional legal advice.  If you suspect you may be misclassifying employees, be safe and consult your attorney.

Temporary and Contract Staffing Services – A Smart Way to Prevent Worker Misclassification

If you have work to be performed which is temporary, project-based or otherwise outside of your core business, consider using temporary or contract staff – as opposed to independent contractors.  Berks & Beyond’s temporary and contract employees can help you complete critical projects, access specialized expertise and avoid the pitfalls of worker misclassification.  Contact us today to learn more.

Hiring decisions are critical to your company’s success.  Logically, you should do everything in your power to make sure your candidates are upstanding, law-abiding citizens with spotless criminal records, right?

Maybe, maybe not.

While it may be reasonable for you to not want to hire an axe murderer, you need to be careful about your company’s criminal background policies.  They could cost you dearly.  In fact, Pepsi Beverages recently agreed to pay $3.13 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over alleged discriminatory background screening practices.

The case centered around Pepsi’s policy to not hire applicants on a permanent basis whose background checks revealed an arrest that did not lead to conviction for positions at their factory.  The EEOC said that 300 black applicants were denied permanent employment due to arrests that did not lead to convictions.

The policy was deemed discriminatory because there was “reasonable cause to believe that the criminal background check policy formerly used by Pepsi discriminated against African Americans in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.”

Some experts predict that these types of enforcement actions will only increase with time.  So what’s a responsible employer to do?

In some cases, criminal background checks are a necessary part of business.  Too often, candidates give incomplete – or downright false – information, because they know that certain facts about past actions may disqualify them from consideration.  If you do choose to conduct a background check to get more information about an applicant, use these common-sense tips:

• Get the applicant’s consent in writing – before you check anything.  Explain clearly what you plan to check and how you will gather information.  This gives candidates the opportunity to remove themselves from consideration before embarrassing details are discovered, and it prevents applicants from later claiming that their privacy has been violated.
• Make sure your inquiries are relevant to the job in question.  If you are hiring a security guard who will carry a weapon, it’s reasonable to want to check for past criminal convictions.  If you’re hiring an administrative assistant, however, a criminal background check may be unwarranted.  As a reminder, Pennsylvania only allows employers to consider felony and misdemeanor convictions to the extent that they relate to the applicant’s suitability for a specific position.
• Apply your policies consistently.  Conduct the same checks for every candidate who makes the “final cut” and is being considered for a certain job.
• When in doubt, consult with your attorney.  It’s smartest and safest to work with an attorney when reviewing and/or changing your criminal background check policy.

Minimize Your Employment Risks with Berks & Beyond. 

As our temporary and contract employees’ employer of record, we assume all employment-related risks.  When we send you temporary employees, rest assured they are thoroughly screened and authorized to work for your organization.

To make staffing safer and simpler for you, Berks & Beyond chooses to participate in E-Verify.  Since 2007, every employee we’ve placed has been screened with this system.  Want to learn more?  Contact Berks & Beyond today.

When it comes to staffing, recruiting and talent management, the one thing you can count on is change.

Each December/January, staffing and HR experts publish their predictions for the upcoming year.  Here are a few of the top picks which will likely affect employers throughout Central and Southern Pennsylvania:

Rapid increase in mobile technology as a platform for recruiting.  Dr. John Sullivan, a highly respected thought leader in HR, says that if 2011 was the year of social media, 2012 will be “The Year of the Mobile Platform.”  By the end of this year, Sullivan predicts that mobile technology will have become the dominant communications and interaction platform in use by leading-edge companies.  As such, talent management leaders should invest in recruiting initiatives that leverage smartphone and tablet technology.

• Staffing tip:  Work with a staffing partner who already incorporates social media as part of its recruiting strategy (like Berks & Beyond).  Staffing companies that keep pace with changes in technology will have a distinct recruiting advantage as mobile platforms take an even stronger hold.

Unemployment will remain high.  Dr. Ira Wolfe, author of The Perfect Labor Storm 2.0, predicts that we will continue to experience relatively high unemployment for as much as 10 years.  While this may lead you to assume that you won’t need a staffing service to recruit top talent, that’s not necessarily the case.  Wolf says that despite high unemployment rates, employers are finding it increasingly difficult to find people with the mix of hard and soft skills they need.

• Staffing tip:  Beyond matching traditional skills, work with your provider to identify the soft skills (the ability to fit in, work collaboratively, etc.) needed for success in your available position.  Your staffing firm can leverage its network of specialized experts to pinpoint candidates with the skills, traits and experience to thrive in your environment – all while saving you time and money.

Workers will continue to move away from long-term employment with one company.  Experts predict that contract, part-time and other non-traditional employment arrangements will increase, due to the recession and increased life span.  Gen X workers do not subscribe to the notion that you have to sit at a desk to work, so they’re much more receptive to contract and remote work.

• Staffing tip:  Work with your staffing partner to shift your thinking about how work gets done in your company.  With non-traditional employment arrangements becoming the norm, top talent is now more receptive than ever to shorter-term, project-based work.   Your staffing partner can show you the most cost-effective ways to use temporary and contract staffing to accomplish your goals.

Retention issues will increase dramatically.  Because most corporate retention programs have been so severely degraded, Sullivan predicts that turnover rates in high-demand occupations will increase by 25% this year.  In fact, retention could turn out to be the highest economic impact area in all of talent management.

• Staffing tip:  Work with a staffing provider that treats its employees well.  The better a staffing firm treats its employees, the better those employees will perform for you – and the more likely they’ll be to stay on through the assignment’s duration.  To reward and retain our employees, Berks & Beyond provides its temporary and contract employees with benefits, value-added services and free online training resources.

Contact Berks & Beyond to discuss how these staffing trends will impact your business.  As a leading staffing firm serving Central and Southern Pennsylvania, we can help you develop a strategic, proactive workforce strategy that helps you capitalize on the changes in our industry.

How’s business?

Overall, an initial glance at January’s first-week economic data shows a positive trend.  Although a few economic indicators came in slightly lower than expected, our economy is undergoing a solid (if slow) recovery.

Here is a look at some of the key statistics, courtesy of Business Insider:

The ASA Staffing Index fell by seven points to 86 last week.  This is due to seasonality and, in fact, the index is back above last January’s levels (after stagnating in mid-2011).

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that Initial jobless claims fell by 9,000 to 372,000. The four week average declined by 1750 to 373,250.  This is the lowest level since mid-2008.  Seasonality will remain significant for a couple of more weeks, so caution is still warranted in reading too much into these extremely good numbers.

Construction spending, Institute for Supply Management manufacturing and services reports, factory orders, vehicle sales, and most importantly, payrolls, all were positive month over month.

Housing data was mixed.  The Mortgage Bankers’ Association reported that seasonally adjusted purchase mortgage applications decreased 9.7% from two weeks ago. While they did not report a year-over-year (YoY) figure, it is nevertheless clear that YoY purchase applications were down, continuing a decline that began about a month ago.  On a positive note, for the sixth week in a row, YoY weekly median asking house prices from 54 metropolitan areas at Housing Tracker were positive, up +2.1% YoY. This is the best reading in close to 5 years.

So, while global worries generally continue to increase, we can rest a little easier for the time being.  In the U.S. (with the sole exception of mortgage applications) there is no hint of any present or imminent downturn in any of the data as we begin 2012.

How is business for your organization?  What’s on tap for 2012?  We at Berks & Beyond would like to know.  As a leading Central & Southern Pennsylvania staffing service, we can help you develop a comprehensive workforce plan to capitalize on our increasing domestic economic stability.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again:  effective interview methods significantly increase your odds of hiring a top performer.

But just how, exactly, do you do this?

A few months back, I posted Five Tips to Help Improve Your Hiring Process to get you started.  As promised in that post, here are a few more strategies to help you eliminate interviewing biases, inconsistencies and inefficiencies – and ultimately hire better:

1. Minimize interviewer inconsistency.  If you can’t personally conduct every interview, you should train interviewers to enhance consistency.  Interviewing styles and effectiveness vary greatly, depending on personality, confidence and amount of formal training.  Some interviewers excel at asking questions; some are great ambassadors for your company; some are very detail-oriented and systematically process responses.  But unfortunately, few are strong in all these areas.  To improve consistency, require interviewers to cite specific candidate statements to back-up their evaluations and/or conclusions.  Train them to support their ratings with examples – rather than recording opinions, impressions or hunches.
2. Ask the recruit why he wants the job.  Our current job market is flooded with the type of applicant who indiscriminately shoots off résumés in response to any posting that matches his keyword search – all in desperate hope of landing any type of interview.  If a recruit can’t tell you why he wants to work for your organization, you probably don’t want him on your team.
3. Make a good first impression on the candidate.  While you are evaluating a candidate, the candidate will be sizing up you and your company.  Increase the likelihood that a top performer will accept your job offer by making a positive first impression:  respect the candidate’s time by being on-time and prepared for the interview; supplement the interview with written or on-line information about the company and/or position; allow time for follow-up questions (a candidate needs to learn about your organization, culture and the available position at the same time you’re learning about him).
4. Plan multiple interviews.  Always conduct at least two interviews (three for higher level positions).  Why?  Recruits may be able to fool you in one interview, but the chances of them misrepresenting themselves successfully across multiple interviews are greatly diminished.  In addition, a more rigorous process will help weed out those candidates who are apathetic and/or unreliable.
5. Hold a post-interview review meeting.  Establish a formal process for finalizing the interview process and making a hiring decision.  Provide a form interviewers can use to summarize each candidate’s interpersonal skills, cultural fit, competency evaluation and technical knowledge.  Give each interviewer equal time to share feedback and make recommendations.  The primary decision maker/hiring manager should give the last report, after which you can begin open discussions about a hiring decision.

Incorporate these suggestions with the tips in my last post, and you’ll be well on your way to better hires in 2012.

Ensure Great Hires with Berks & Beyond

If you lack the time, resources or desire to hire on your own, Berks & Beyond is here to listen and help.  Our direct placement services quickly and cost-effectively deliver candidates with skills, experience and behavioral traits to succeed in your organization.  We use professionally trained interviewers, skills-specific testing, thorough background checks and satisfaction guarantees to ensure the success of your next hire.

Ever feel like your staffing needs are a moving target?

The truth is, effective staffing is often challenging because your needs change so frequently.  For any number of reasons (workload fluctuations, local market conditions, the economy, available labor, etc.), a staffing approach that worked for you a year ago may not be as effective today.

This doesn’t mean you’re out of luck; it just means that you may need to re-examine your staffing strategy.  So start 2012 off right.  Consider these staffing best practices which have proven effective for corporate human resources executives across the country, courtesy of workforce.com:

• Make sure the staffing partner has an adequate balance sheet. Given the relatively low barriers to entry, it is too common to see staffing companies struggle financially.
• Be sure the staffing partner has sufficient size and financial resources to manage the contract. Sourcing 100 or more contract workers on an ongoing basis requires a very different type of staffing organization than providing two or three temps at a time.
• Visit the local office of the staffing company as part of the due-diligence process, especially for large projects, to make sure the operation meets expectations.
• Give your staffing partner feedback on all candidates that you review to help refine the recruiting strategy, and make it easier to find the best candidates.
• Be open-minded about “teachable” candidates, especially for hard-to-fill skill sets. Candidates who are a strong cultural fit and possess transferable skills are likely to succeed and thrive with some training and support.
• Provide enough training, rewards and feedback to keep temps engaged and motivated. One employer notes that small rewards—a free lunch for good performance, for example—go a long way toward winning the loyalty of temps.
• Beware of unfair negative stereotypes about the quality of temp workers. Temps can be—and often are—as qualified as full-time employees, and their skills can be equally useful.

Berks & Beyond – Your Best Staffing Strategy for 2012 and Beyond

With over a decade of experience, Berks & Beyond has grown to become one of Southern Pennsylvania’s largest, and most well established, staffing companies.  You can rest assured we are a stable, successful partner you can trust with your all your workforce management needs – no matter how large or small.

Call us to schedule a 2012 workforce consultation.  Together, we can identify your upcoming needs and develop a proactive, cost-effective staffing strategy that will deliver real bottom-line results.

Looking to climb the corporate ladder in human resources?

It turns out that “soft skills” – things like leadership ability, cross-cultural competence and interpersonal expertise – are now just as essential as traditional skills and experience for HR professionals looking to advance their careers.

If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to get a promotion, follow this link to a March Harvard Business Review article titled “The New Path to the C-Suite.”  The article, which examines the evolving roles of seven executive-level positions (including chief human resources officer), shows that forward-thinking companies are increasingly seeking HR officers from nontraditional backgrounds.  To find individuals with the “balanced skill sets” they need (including understanding of commercial models and change management), organizations are filling the CHRO role with candidates from business functions like operations and marketing.

Here are the “new requirements” CHRO candidates will need to possess to adeptly juggle the changing needs and contributions of diverse employees, including boomers, millennials and professionals from emerging economies:

• Commercial acumen;
• Understanding of cultural differences and shifting demographics;
• Change management skills;
• Facility with cultural change initiatives;
• The credibility needed to act as an internal adviser to the CEO and the board;
• Ability to work with the board to manage succession;
• Technology savvy;
• Expertise in building compensation and performance into governance structures;
• Skill at marketing the CHRO position to the rest of the organization.

In summary, the skills needed for top jobs in human resources is changing with the times.  Functional and technical expertise, while still important, has become somewhat less critical than understanding business fundamentals and strategy.  To be upwardly mobile in HR, you must grow and develop the soft skills needed to engage a diverse workforce, and find pragmatic solutions to complex human capital issues.

Upwardly Mobile in HR?  Berks & Beyond Can Provide the Support You Need

Berks & Beyond can provide the administrative, clerical and HR support you need to be even more successful in your job.  Contact us today to learn more.

“To train or not to train?”

That is certainly not the question when it comes to your staff.  To remain competitive, ongoing employee education is important for many reasons:

• It keeps you and your staff on the cutting edge of your industry.
• It keeps your employees motivated, interested and innovative.
• It increases efficiency levels, while minimizing errors and delays.
• It boosts worker morale, confidence and collaboration.

So when it comes to your staff – especially knowledge workers – the question isn’t so much, “Do we need to train,” it’s, “How are we going to afford it?”  Here are a few effective ways to enrich your staff – without breaking the bank:

Cross train.  To keep workers from feeling isolated or stagnant when budgets are tight, consider rotating them through different tasks and/or projects.  Their new skills will make them more versatile assets to your organization, while encouraging collaboration among work groups.

Use inside trainers.  Does anyone within your organization already have the expertise you’re trying to teach other employees?  If so, consider developing that individual as an in-house trainer.  You can easily go online and access a “train the trainer” program, and then use your new inside trainer to educate other staff.

Leverage your training resources.  Building on the last point, your inside trainer can create a PowerPoint which covers the training material.  You can then use a software sharing program (such as NetMeeting or WebEx) to conduct the training with small groups at other locations – and save yourself the travel costs.

Bring in temporary experts.  If you lack internal knowledge or resources, consider hiring a trainer through a staffing service for a short-term contract.  Give him access to existing materials and the direct staff he’ll be training, so he can quickly and cost-effectively customize the training to your company’s culture, values and goals.  Once the training is complete, so are your additional expenses.

Barter training services with other companies.  Collaborate with other organizations to share your knowledge.  If a company is in the midst of a systems upgrade you’re considering, send a representative from your staff to observe, learn and share his findings with his colleagues.  Likewise, if your workers are well-versed in operating a specific type of new equipment, invite team members from another organization in for a training seminar.  Not surprisingly, collaborative efforts like these work best when participating companies are not in direct competition.

When you need highly trained and experienced workers immediately, give Berks & Beyond a call.  Throughout Central and Southeastern Pennsylvania, we rapidly deliver temporary, contract and direct staff to keep your business competitive.  Contact us today to learn more.

While retention is a hot buzzword these days, you can’t talk about retention without talking about turnover. Do you realize how much it’s costing you? Turnover costs most companies thousands if not millions of dollars a year – but most employers don’t realize it!

Companies routinely record and report costs such as wages and benefits, workman’s compensation insurance, utilities, materials and space, yet most companies have no system in place to track and report the cost of employee turnover.

How to Estimate Turnover Costs

• SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, once estimated that it costs $3,500.00 to replace one $8.00 per hour employee when all costs — recruiting, interviewing, hiring, training, reduced productivity, etc., were considered. But SHRM’s estimate was the lowest of 17 nationally respected companies who calculate this cost!

• Other sources estimate that turnover costs you 30-50% of the annual salary of entry-level employees, 150% of middle level employees, and up to 400% for specialized, high level employees.

• Do a quick calculation: Think of a job in your organization that has experienced high turnover, maybe supervisors. Estimate their annual average pay and the number of supervisors you lose annually. If their average annual pay is $40,000, multiply this by .125% (125% of their annual pay). The result? It costs $50,000 to replace just one supervisor. If you lose ten supervisors a year, you’re spending $500,000 in replacement costs just for supervisors. And that’s the bottom line cost. The top line cost? If the company’s profit margin is 10%, then it costs $5,000,000 in revenues to replace these ten supervisors.

Do These Numbers Seem Unbelievable?

Actual turnover costs are usually much higher than we think they are.

If you want to find out exactly how much turnover is costing your organization, find an online employee turnover calculator. Just remember that only tangible costs can be calculated on these sites. Intangible costs are just as real and sometimes much greater than quantifiable costs, but they are difficult if not impossible to measure.

Why Don’t More Companies See This as a Costly Problem?

Many companies don’t realize the true cost of turnover, which costs companies in both expertise and dollars, because they have never examined it. Here are five possible reasons:

1. No process is in place to tabulate the costs of turnover.

2. If they are measured, those costs are not reported to top management.

3. Employers think it’s an inescapable cost of doing business — but it’s not!

4. Everyone thinks it’s an HR problem, but it’s really a strategic issue requiring top management and HR’s combined attention and actions.

5. Costs are underestimated, so they don’t cause concern.

How Can You Measure Turnover Costs in Your Organization?

A comprehensive program measures the following costs:

• · Separation costs
• · Replacement costs
• · Training costs
• · Vacancy costs

Separation costs include:

• costs incurred for exit interviews
• administrative functions related to termination
• separation/severance pay
• any increase in unemployment compensation.

Replacement costs include the cost of:

• attracting applicants
• entrance interviews
• testing
• preemployment administrative expenses
• acquisition and dissemination of information.

Training costs include both formal and informal training costs. Vacancy costs include the net cost incurred due to increased overtime or temporary employees needed to complete the tasks of the vacant position.

How can you reduce turnover?

When turnover costs are unacceptably high, do an assessment. Find out who is leaving and why. Exit interviews can help you gain information. Then develop a retention program based on your findings.

You can always contact Berks & Beyond to find out how we can help lessen your turnover costs!

Are you capitalizing on new recruiting and interviewing technology like Skype, Twagalus and Twubs?

The names may sound bizarre, but the power they afford recruiters and HR managers is no joke. If your company wants to remain competitive in recruiting top talent, it’s time to pay attention to these emerging media:

Remote Interviews

Online interview technology has revolutionized the hiring process.  This cost-effective tool allows you to rapidly connect with viable candidates anywhere, while greatly simplifying interviewing logistics.  Instead of spending valuable time and money on travel, you can now use services like Skype and TokBox to virtually meet applicants and determine their potential early on in the recruiting process.

Mobile Technology

According to statistics from Pew Research Center, 83 percent of Americans own cell phones.  Nearly half of them (44 percent) use their mobile devices to get access to the internet.  Leverage mobile technology to reach potential job seekers anytime, anywhere by sending text alerts about your job openings and recruiting events.  Additionally, you may want to consider making your website more “smart phone friendly,” so that it facilitates the job search and application processes.

Video

Digital video enables you to get your company’s message across like no social media tool can.  By allowing candidates to literally see and hear what the true employee experience is like, video offers a powerful way to influence and engage potential candidates:

• Use online videos to enrich your online job postings.
• Add video clips of your offices, production facilities, etc.
• Interview current employees about what it’s like working for your organization.
• Demonstrate ways you take care of your employees, work for the greater good and/or stay on the cutting edge of your industry.

To ensure your videos are viewed, add them to your homepage, job postings and social media, or use QR codes to direct job seekers to them.

Twitter

Twitter can help you contact candidates in real time by instantly broadcasting or “tweeting” available jobs.  If you have a Twitter account:

• Search for relevant hashtags that qualified candidates might be using and integrate them into your tweets.  Tools like Search.Twitter.com, Twubs and Tagalus can help you identify hashtags your target candidates may be using.
• Shout out new job listings.  Services like jobshouts.com and jobamatic.com allow you to automatically feed new job listings to your Twitter account.  You can even add custom prefixes and hashtags to make the content more user-friendly and searchable.

Making changes in the way you recruit can be intimidating; however, you need to embrace emerging media to remain competitive.  Thankfully, you don’t have to do it alone.  As a leading employment agency in Southern Pennsylvania, Berks & Beyond leverages cutting-edge recruiting technology to help you win the war for talent.

With staffing offices in Harrisburg, Allentown, Pottstown, York, Reading and Carlisle, we are strategically located to provide you with the most highly-qualified and trained professionals available throughout Central and Southern Pennsylvania. Contact Berks & Beyond today!