For sins 1 through 6, click here.
Sin #7. Not Knowing and Not Enforcing Policies
We’re busy now. Talk to me about that harassment business next week.
If you think the work’s not safe, you’re free to quit at any time.
Nobody in this department can talk about salaries or benefits with other employees or outsiders, especially online.
Supervisors and managers are the front line for interpreting and enforcing the company’s policies. But if they don’t know the policies and their associated responsibilities, even with the best of intentions, they’ll be setting you up for a lawsuit.
Yes, you do have the budget and time to train managers and supervisors with BLR’s 10-Minute HR Trainer. Try it at no cost or risk. Get details.
Sin #8. Making Wage and Hour Blunders
We’re out of overtime. Can you clock out and then set up for tomorrow?
You new recruits will be working alongside our regular employees, but you will all be independent contractors.
Tracy, make sure you stay close to the phone during lunch.
Sandy, keep your phone near you evenings for calls from the West Coast.
Wage and hour should be simple, but it just isn’t. The most common problems are:
- Overtime. You must track it, pay it, and include nondiscretionary bonuses in the “regular rate” for overtime calculations.
- Off the clock. You must pay for all hours worked, even if the employee volunteers and even if you’ve forbidden the employee to do work.
- Misclassification. Many “independent contractors” are actually employees who need to be paid overtime. And many “exempt” employees have duties that do not meet the criteria for exemption.
Sin #9. Letting Problems Fester
Teresa’s crossing the line with her behavior, but she surely knows it—she’ll figure it out.
Oh, that’s just Jimmie. He means no harm—he’s just “old school.”
With bad behavior, it’s always tempting to ignore it in hopes that the behavior will improve on its own. But you know that’s not going to happen. Unfortunately, as time goes by, you appear to be condoning the behavior.
Train your line managers with BLR’s 10-Minute HR Trainer. There won’t be time for classroom boredom. Get details.
Sin #10. Making ‘Side Agreements’
Stay after you clock out for the next 2 weeks until we get this job out the door, and I’ll make it up to you by writing in extra overtime next month when the budget switches over.
Take this transfer, and I’ll guarantee you a promotion at the end of the year.
I can’t pay you for this extra work, but you and your spouse can go out for a nice dinner on the company account.
Managers under stress may be tempted to make “side agreements” that either go against policy or consist of promises that likely won’t be kept.
Three problems arise with side agreements:
- They are illegal, and there will eventually be lawsuits.
- Employees will be left feeling that agreements haven’t been honored.
- Others who didn’t get the special treatment or privilege may sue.
OK, that’s our top 10 sins of supervisors and managers. Train your people to avoid them so that your organization can stay hassle- and lawsuit-free.
Training supervisors to avoid lawsuits is just one of the many challenges that training pros face. Trainers need to keep on top of issues like FMLA intermittent leave, overtime hassles, ADA accommodation, and whatever agencies and courts throw in your way.
The good news is that BLR® has seen the need for quick and easy-to-use updated training materials—and has produced 10-Minute HR Trainer to help fill that need. Every 10-Minute HR Trainer session includes a trainer’s outline, a takeaway handout, and a follow-up quiz. And you get all these for 50 key HR topics right off the bat in the initial book—plus quarterly updates with more essential training.
With this training resource, we’ve provided an easy-to-manage program that lets you train in discrete, 10-minute chunks. It’s a program that’s easy for you to deliver and that requires little time from busy schedules. And it’s remarkably affordable.
As its name implies, this product trains managers and supervisors in critical HR skills in as little as 10 minutes for each topic. 10-Minute HR Trainer offers these features:
Trains in 50 key HR topics, including manager and supervisor responsibilities, under all major employment laws and how to legally carry out managerial actions from hiring to termination. (See a complete list of topics below.)
Uses the same teaching sequence master teachers use. Every training unit includes an overview, bullet points on key lessons, a quiz, and a handout to reinforce the lesson later.
Completely prewritten and self-contained. Each unit comes as a set of reproducible documents. Just make copies or turn them into overheads and you’re done. (Take a look at a sample lesson below.)
Updated continually. As laws change, your training must as well. 10-Minute HR Trainer provides new lessons and updated information every 90 days, along with a monthly Training Forum newsletter, for as long as you are in the program.
Works fast. Each session is so focused that there’s not a second’s waste of time. Your managers are in and out almost before they can look at the clock, yet they remember small details even months later.
Evaluate It at No Cost for 30 Days
We’ve arranged to make 10-Minute HR Trainer available to our readers for a 30-day, in-office, no-cost trial. Review it at your own pace and try some lessons with your colleagues. If it’s not for you, return it at our expense. Click here and we’ll set you up with our 10-Minute HR Trainer.
Download newsletter sample.
Download product sample.
Download table of contents.