7 Must-Have Technology Skills for Every HR Professional in 2022

Important HR-related tech skills.

As the entire world continues to digitalize, recruiters, managers, and other HR personnel need to have the right tech skills in their armory. Whether it is working on the go with tablets and smartphones, sharing and storing information through the cloud, or interacting with people on social media platforms, being tech-savvy is no longer a bonus but a fundamental requirement for any HR professional.

HR professionals handle a number of personnel-related demands for their organizations, including:

  • Finding and recruiting the right employees
  • Managing training and on-boarding for new recruits
  • Tracking attendance, holidays, and payroll records
  • Handling employees’ professional or even personal issues
  • Letting go of employees not delivering satisfactory results
  • Trying to retain valuable employees should they give notice

Modern tech can simplify these and other responsibilities and tasks, but only if you know which tools to use and how. In this blog, we will discuss the tech skills that are non-negotiable for HR professionals operating in 2022.

Must-Have Technology Skills for Every HR Professional in 2022

 

1)  HR Software

There are a number of HR software programs that can help HR departments function in a more organized and efficient manner. Such software programs are essentially employee-management systems that allocate personal and professional data to each worker.

With an increasing number of companies relying on technology for the better management of employee data, not being familiar with HR software programs could put you at a disadvantage during your job hunt. Being familiar with these programs shows employers that you can incorporate this tech into their HR department. Or, if your prospective employer already has an HR software system, it shows that you already have experience with these programs and would be able to start using them right away.

2)  Social Media Platforms

Social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram have become an integral aspect of business networking in 2022. Hence, you should not only be familiar with these platforms, but also be able to use them for the below purposes:

  • Sharing information about the job openings on the company’s pages and profiles, and encouraging employees to share these posts in order to reach out to a greater number of candidates
  • Assessing your prospective candidates’ public posts and social media profiles to try and determine if they are a good fit for the organization
  • Using social media to announce any upcoming events can help improve your brand’s image and visibility

3)  Talent Management Systems

Talent management systems are software programs that ease the recruitment process for new hires, and help managers manage and record the new employees’ performances and their contributions to the organization.

This is an excellent skill to have, particularly for people looking for positions in HR planning or HR management departments, because it shows an ability to use tech to find, recruit, monitor, and retain top talent for the organization.

4)  Human Resources Information System

A Human Resource Information System (HRIS) can streamline a number of HR processes and tasks, and also help cut down on manual errors. Below are a few benefits of such a software program:

  • Reduces paperwork

By allowing you to fill out forms online and store documents electronically, an HRIS can reduce the hassle of filing, storing, and maintaining paperwork.

  • Improves efficiency

Automation of payroll and other HR processes improves your team’s efficiency and productivity, saving both time and money for your organization.

  • Improves compliance

Documents stored and filled digitally are easier to complete, secure, and retrieve when required. This helps minimize compliance-related issues.

5)  Talent Acquisition Software

Talent acquisition software – also referred to as an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) –can significantly improve an organization’s recruitment and hiring process. Here is how:

  • If your company’s ATS is integrated with its social media profiles, you can easily share openings across multiple job boards, social networking sites, and career pages through a single platform
  • Automated candidate screening, resume parsing, and interview scheduling significantly reduces the manual workload for hiring managers and recruiters
  • Smart filters allow you to quickly shortlist the most suitable candidates, leaving you with more time and energy for conducting interviews and finding the best fit for your organization
  • By automating tasks like job posting, interview reminders, and other communication, an ATS can help reduce both personnel-related and administrative costs

6)  Cloud Technology

Since almost the entire recruiting process is being completed online, it is important to be familiar with cloud-based pre-selection systems, applicant tracking systems, and other HR tools. Below are a few HR-related applications of cloud technology:

  • Centralization of business and HR data makes it easier to manage and organize things like onboarding, feedback, and payroll
  • Having employee and candidate data in a single location reduces turnaround times by doing away with the need for back-and-forth communication between departments
  • Cloud-based HR systems help improve transparency and communication within an organization, leading to higher employee engagement, satisfaction, and, consequently, retention
  • With best practices, policies, and performance metrics on the cloud, you can boost consistency and uniformity across the organization, even in different locations

7)  Talent Management Software

Talent Management Software (TMS) helps streamline the recruitment, onboarding, and training and development processes in the following ways:

  • TMS-driven data allows you to make more informed and strategic decisions with respect to long-term talent acquisition and HR goals
  • Monitoring employee performance feedback and reviews, along with their skills and career goals, puts you in a better position to retain your most valuable employees
  • Analyzing TMS data helps you better plan promotions, or provide development and training opportunities to employees who need it
  • By automating data collection, a TMS helps catalyze the onboarding process and also cuts down on the time-to-hire

Wrapping Up

To become an effective and capable HR professional in 2022, befriending the above tech and tools is no longer optional.

Employers are constantly on the lookout for tech-savvy HR professionals and, the more you equip yourself with the latest technology and software, the more value you can add to your organization’s human resource department and operations.

 

 

 

Evolution of Automated HR Processes in 2022

Role of automation in HR.

The HR (Human Resource) department is an integral part of any organization. Whether it is recruitment, training, or compliance with labor laws and regulations, HR processes play a key role in ensuring the smooth functioning of a company.

Traditionally, HR processes have been considered highly manual: HR professionals are used to rolling up their sleeves and getting things done all on their own.

But, thanks to the modern, digital world, that no longer the case.

Like almost every other area, automation has also penetrated the HR space and, any processes that offer room for automation are being rapidly automated. In order to survive in this automated environment, embracing tech is no longer an option for HR professionals.

What is HR Automation?

HR automation refers to the use of technology that frees HR professionals from tedious, repetitive tasks, and increases the productivity and efficiency of the department. The less time HR employees spend on monotonous work, the more they will be able to focus on complex, cognitively-demanding tasks like formulating strategies and making decisions.

By automating standard HR activities, companies can reduce the cost and time they spend on manual HR processes and planning.

Benefits of HR Automation

As mentioned, HR automation allows employees to focus on more valuable and intricate tasks. It allows organizations to create, streamline, amalgamate, and utilize the necessary services at a fraction of the cost it would take to do so manually. With proper implementation, HR automation can be indispensable for any organization.

Below are a few crucial benefits companies can derive by automating their HR processes:

1) Reduced Wastage

Switching to HR automation can minimize the use of paperwork, leading to reduced cost of manual workflows and materials.

2) More Informed Decisions

Using HR software to track data across various functions enables organizations to assess the efficacy of different processes. The compiled data can be used to generate reports, derive actionable insights, analyze workforce experience, and identify patterns and trends.

All of this information can then be used to create or modify policies and best practices.

3) Consistency and Transparency4

Automated workflows improve transparency by establishing clear roles among management and employees.

For businesses operating in multiple locations, automated processes can create uniform HR practices across the organization.

4) Better Resource Allocation and Higher Efficiency

By automating mundane but tedious tasks, HR departments can spare more time and energy for more mentally-demanding and complex processes.

Employees will also have to spend less time on HR processes like choosing benefits or requesting time off.

5) Greater Organizational Growth

The ability to optimally recruit, train, and retrain employees for at low optimal costs will present greater opportunities for organizational growth and to develop a competitive edge.

Examples of Automated HR Processes

Below are a few of the most common HR processes that provide room for automation:

1) Onboarding

Currently, employee onboarding is among the most manual HR processes. It involves collecting documents, verifying the information on them, giving tool access to new employees, and making device requests. However, a good onboarding software program can help automate most, if not all, of these and other onboarding tasks.

These programs usually offer an easy checklist that can be accessed by all parties involved in the onboarding process. This checklist allows recruiters to collect documents online, deliver devices without having to wait for a response from the IT department, and providing tool access in hours (instead of days or weeks).

2) Leave Requests

Approving and calculating leaves manually is far from optimal, since the HR departments need to check the number of remaining leaves, seek manager approval, record the leave, and incorporate it in the payroll calculations.

A robust leave management software program, however, can automate this entire process and prevent employees’ leave requests from disappearing into a sea of unread emails.

3) Employee Timesheets

To say that manual timesheet tracking is inefficient would be a huge understatement.

An automated timesheet management solution helps you manage and track timesheets automatically, making the process quicker and more accurate.

4) Performance Management

A dynamic HR process, performance management involves tracking, measuring, and analyzing employee performance by aligning it to the broader organizational goals. An automated performance management program can offer a number of advantages, including streamlining the process, ridding it of any bias, and making it engaging for both the employers and employees.

5) Exit Interviews

Exit interviews are crucial in assessing and improving employee engagement. However, manual, paper-based exit interviews are not only tedious and time-consuming, but also quite ineffective at serving this purpose.

By inculcating automation to the exit interview process, companies can swiftly identify possible problems and receive actionable insights for improving employee retention without having to go through mountains of paperwork.

Factors to Consider when Choosing an HR Automation Software

HR automation is fast becoming the norm and, as such, there are a number of automation systems available on the market. When choosing an HR software program for your organization, make sure to look for the following features:

1) Actionable Insights

A good HR software program should offer interactive dashboards and visual-rich reports to facilitate easier comprehension and swifter decision-making.

2) Omni-Channel Access

You should be able to access the software at any time, from anywhere, and using any device.

3) Quick Integration

The program should allow for synchronization with other HR systems through API integration.

4) Risk Mitigation

To make your HR processes immune to tampering, pick a software program that comes with 360-degree visibility and audit trails.

5) Automated Alerts

The software program should also allow for automated alerts; these alerts will help keep employees on track and adhere to deadlines.

6) Dynamic Workflow

You should be able to use the software program to design automated, unique HR workflows that are aligned with other HR processes within your organization.

 

Wrapping Up

Far from being the future, HR automation is a pressing need in the current corporate environment.Not only can it help you reduce costs and streamline HR processes, but it can also enhance the overall employee experience and make you more attractive to the top talent within your industry.

 

 

7 Ways Employer-Employee Relationship is Transforming Post-Pandemic

As the pandemic continues to define and redefine working trends, it is forcing organizational leaders to take a closer look at the work patterns previously believed to be optimal, namely, the 9-5 office culture.

In order to navigate the pandemic and the restrictions brought about by it, employers had to rethink their workforce management and planning, as well as broader organizational strategies. In order to mitigate the risks posed by a crippling global economic crisis, organizations have been forced to take a number of unprecedented measures, many of which have affected employees for the better or worse.

Over the last 30 odd months, working from home has gone from being a luxury to becoming the norm, with an increasing number of companies moving towards a hybrid working culture. As such, the employer-employee relationship has become ‘digitized’ to an unparalleled extent. Companies find themselves at a crossroads: those that successfully adapt to and capitalize on the post-pandemic trends will be better poised to retain their best employees and even lure the top talent in the ‘new normal’. On the other hand, organizations that continue to display rigidity and denial will be more vulnerable to financial distress, layoffs and downsizings, and even closures.

The Redefined Dynamics of the Employer-Employee Relationship

The pandemic has produced a host of unique challenges for employees and employers. Besides, the subsequent COVID-19 waves further exacerbated these challenges and problems. To overcome these obstacles and improve relationships with their organizations’ most valuable assets, employers have taken a number of measures that have affected employees considerably.

Remote Working

The pandemic forced a large majority of businesses to shift to either partial or complete remote working. These measures were taken to ensure the continuation of business activities and improve employee productivity amidst the pandemic. However, remote working brings with it a number of challenges that may affect an organization’s efficiency. The government, too, has failed to deliver any clear guidelines or regulations with regards to remote working.

The WFH (Work from Home) or hybrid culture is evolving and is already beginning to become an integral part of the current and future corporate world. That said, as far as remote work is concerned, there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution, and organizations must figure out what works best for them.

New Skill Requirements

The number of skills required – both soft and technical – to effectively do a single job is exponentially increasing, with old skills rapidly turning obsolete and making way for modern ones. In a study conducted by a renowned staffing organization, 29 percent of skills required in a typical 2018 job posting will have turned obsolete by 2023.

This need is further highlighted by a lack of collaboration between workers brought about by remote working, resulting in greater self-reliance. For this reason, organizations are under huge pressure to devise and deliver the resources and processes that will help employees acquire new skills.

Catering to Employees’ Varying Emotional Needs

An effective way to survive in the face of these never-seen-before challenges brought about by the pandemic is for organizations to develop more humane employer-employee relationships where the needs of the workers are heard and prioritized.

Every HR leader, regardless of sub-function, has a role to play in ensuring that the EVP (Employee Value Proposition) treats employees as human beings instead of as mere resources.

Greater Trust in Employees

Emergence of the hybrid or WFH culture can only be successful if employers start trusting employees in a way they have never done before. It is important to establish new expectations based on increased trustworthiness accompanied by elevated responsibilities and greater accountability. Intrinsically motivated employees thrive when entrusted and empowered, and this increased trust and responsibility could translate to higher productivity and reduced needs for micromanagement.

Entrusting employees with greater responsibility could include being requested to undertake extra managerial tasks when managers are overloaded with work, or being asked to guide and mentor coworkers due to their current expertise, or experience with hybrid working.

Creating a Support Framework

To manage your organization effectively during the pandemic, one of the first things you need to do is create a comprehensive support framework. Your framework should be based on elements like confidence, connection, calmness, competence, and cover. Use these fundamentals to determine what your team needs to continue working productively and efficiently; to feel valued and cared for and to feel connected to their team members and the rest of the organization.

Coordinate with other members of the management as well as your mentors to come up with the best ways to support your employees in the required manner.

Offering Safety and Health Resources

It is important to provide up-to-date and authentic health resources should your employees struggle to find them on their own. These resources could include the CDC’s guidelines, and any national or state travel restrictions. Help your workforce reduce stress and stay healthy, and offer professional assistance for employees dealing with mental health issues brought about by the pandemic. At the company level, make sure that all employees are informed about any pandemic-related updates (plans to extend WFH, for example).

Providing Extra Assistance

Based on your support framework and the available health and safety resources, identify the kind of extra assistance (if any) that might be required by your employees. The pandemic has affected everyone differently, so make sure to have flexible plans capable of catering to each individual situation.

Generally, though, extra assistance can take the form of additional PTO (Paid Time Off) or flexibility for workers dealing with high-risk family members (children, elderly, or those with existing health conditions). You could also consider extending the number of paid sick days for employees who have contracted or been exposed to the virus and may require quarantine and/or treatment.

Final Word

To sum up, COVID-19 is here to stay, for at least the foreseeable future

As such, it is up to the employers to see the changes brought about by the pandemic either as unassailable challenges or as an opportunity to reshape the working environment in a way that benefits both the employees and the organization.

 

6 Ways to Build a Customer-Centric Culture

 

Even though customer-centric cultures seem like a recent phenomenon, it has been around for almost two decades now.

But why is it so important for organizations to be customer-centric? Well, probably because it plays a central role in establishing customer loyalty. After all, a supreme customer experience does not magically happen; it requires active efforts on an organization’s part – efforts that start with a commitment to creating a customer-centric culture.

How can organizations determine if they have a winning customer experience in place? Revenue is a pretty good indicator. According to research conducted by Forrester, brands with high-rated customer experience see their revenues grow at twice the rate compared to brands with a sub-par customer experience.

And you do not need to make major CX improvements to see noticeable gains – as portrayed by the Temkin Group’s ‘ROI of Customer Experience Model’. According to this model, a typical $1 billion business can, on average, increase its revenue by $775 million over three years, merely by making small modifications to customer experience. These modifications could be as simple as streamlining the purchase process or reducing customer waiting times.

When you convert these one-off changes into consistent, inherent, and replicable practices and policies, you can create a larger positive impact on your revenue and brand image.

Here are six ways to create a customer-centric culture.

6 Ways to Build a Customer-Centric Culture

 

1) Emphasize on Customer Empathy

Empathy is a lovely buzzword to throw around, but very few organizations understand the meaning behind it. Customer empathy has a three-part definition:

  • Identifying the customer’s emotional needs
  • Understanding the reasons driving those needs
  • Responding to those needs appropriately and constructively

Despite all the hype around it, customer empathy is far from the norm: as per PwC, only 38% U.S consumers believe that the organizational representatives they engage with understand their needs.

 To establish empathy as a universal organizational value, leaders must walk the walk. Slack, the business communication software company, is one example of organizations that practice genuine customer empathy.

For example, the company employees dedicate a large chunk of their work hours reading client messages and noticing customers to identify their needs and wants. Customer support specialists, meanwhile, are encouraged to learn more about the consumers and create mini-personas to better understand the different ways in which people use Slack.

2) Support Customer Representatives in their Interactions

Salespeople are the face of your organization, and yet, are often handcuffed by procedures, policies, and paper. Do you want your sales team to focus on helping customers? Or do you want them to use up their energy trying to abide by the rules enforced upon them by the accounting, HR, legal, marketing, finance, and other departments?

To truly assist your sales team, you need to conduct listening sessions and learn about the elements keeping it from doing its core job. Get rid of all obstacles preventing your salespeople from spending time with customers.

Get rid of restrictive policies, redundant procedures, and unnecessary rules. You could even invest in sales tools like CRM, sales intelligence, sales analytics, and sales productivity programs.

3)Recruit for Customer Orientation

Every candidate, from the very first interaction with your company, should be clear about the organization’s customer-centric culture. They should know and understand how important it is for your company to keep the customer at the heart of all important decisions.

For example, come up with an interview question that will help you determine a potential employee’s customer orientation. You should also ensure that the candidate is an effective communicator and is comfortable with CRM tools and other sales-related tech. This not only ensures that every potential employee is aligned with your customer-centric culture, but also helps emphasize your company’s commitment to creating superior customer experiences.

4) Tie Compensation to Customer

An organization’s compensation program can also help reinforce a customer-centric culture. Employees should know that they are expected to act and behave in customer-centric ways, and that their compensation packages will be reflective of how well they do it. In other words, employees should have some skin in this game.

Adobe implemented such a program where employee compensation was tied to the customer. The company’s cash incentive short-term program focused not only on its revenue growth, but also on customer success indicators like retention percentage. Such a program helps make tangible each employee’s contribution to customer experience, while also ensuring company-wide alignment since everyone is now working towards the same goals.

5) Seek Out Customer Feedback

Customer advisory boards are a unique but effective way to engage customers and obtain valuable insights. After all, no one is more familiar withyour business than your key customers.

These measures can help validate your overall organizational strategy, and guide you with regards to new markets, partnership and synergistic opportunities, branding and position, competitive weaknesses, and the best way to leverage new trends. Other than that, valuable customers are often in pole position to validate your service or product offerings.

6)Make Customer Insights Accessible to Employees

To help employees adopt a customer-centric mindset, you must help them understand the customer. This requires you to democratize customer insights; you cannot keep these insights within the marketing and sales departments, and expect the other departments to mind their own businesses.

Adobe created a combined ‘customer and employee experience’ team with the purpose of helping its workforce better understand the customer. The team set up listening stations where employees could go – either remotely or through an Adobe office – and listen to customer phone calls. And, at each all-employee meeting, the management would give updates about the organization’s performance with respect to customer experience.

Wrapping Up

Organizational leaders are beginning to understand that culture and strategies work in tandem, and one cannot exist without the other.

Hence, it is important to develop strategies and policies that support and further your vision of a customer-centric organizational culture.

 

 

 

Employer’s Checklist for Hiring

  • Ascertain the need for a replacement or new position.
  • Schedule a recruitment planning meeting with the recruiter, the head of human resources, the hiring manager, and a potential internal coworker or client.
  • Analyse and prioritize the key requirements for the position such as special qualifications, traits, characteristics, and experience that a candidate has to possess
  • Develop the job description for the position.
  • Discuss and determine the salary range for the position.
  • Decide if the department can afford to hire an employee to fill the position.
  • Publish the post internally. If you anticipate having difficulty finding a qualified internal candidate for the position, please indicate in the publication that you are externally advertising the position at the same time.
  • Send a company-wide email to notify staff that a position has been posted and that you are hiring employees.
  • Encourage interested internal candidates to complete the Internal Position Application.
  • Assessing candidates on Cultural Fit, Technical Qualifications, Customer Responsiveness, and Knowledge are several of the selection responsibilities.
  • Ask interviewers to complete the Job Candidate Assessment Form.
  • If an internal candidate is selected for the position, provide a written job offer describing the new job description and salary.
  • Agree on a transition schedule with the current supervisor of the internal candidate.
  • If qualified internal candidates do not apply, broaden your search to external candidates, develop your candidate pool from various applicants through Word of Mouth Outreach, social media postings, classified ads, on-campus interviews, employment agencies, etc.
  • Send emails to each applicant to acknowledge receipt of the resume only and don’t make other statements. (If the candidate appears to be a good candidate for the position, relative to his other applicants, he will contact you to schedule an interview. Otherwise, he will keep your application / resume on file for a year in case other opportunities arise. )
  • Once you have developed a series of applicants for the position, complete a resume and / or applications based on the established prioritized criteria and qualifications.
  • Select applicants after reviewing the applications they have received for a particular job.
  • Determine the candidate’s salary requirements, if not indicated with the application, as requested. (Note that an increasing number of jurisdictions in the US are making this practice illegal, so know the laws where you work.)
  • Schedule qualified candidates, who fits to your salary range,
  • Ask the candidate to complete their official job application upon arrival at the interview.
  • Give the candidate a copy of the job description for review.
  • Conduct evaluation interviews during which the candidate is evaluated and you have the opportunity to learn about their organization and their needs.
  • Complete the Candidate Evaluation Form for each candidate interviewed.
  • Meet to determine which candidates (if any) you will invite again for a second interview.
  • Shortlist the appropriate candidates for the second round of interviews. Only include people with authority who can have a significant impact on the hiring decision.
  • Schedule additional interviews if any.
  • Keep the second round of interviews with each interviewer about the Cultural fit, technical qualifications, client responsiveness, and knowledge are several of the selection responsibilities.
  • Conduct tests for the potential candidates as per position requirement.
  • Interviewers have to fill out the candidate’s evaluation form.
  • HR Checks the final list of candidates (who are considered for offering the position) subject to credentials, references, background checks, and other qualified documents and statements.
  • Anyone who has dishonestly declared their qualifications or fails the background checks is removed from the shortlisted finalists.
  • Throughout the entire interview process, HR and managers, whenever they want, will keep in touch with the most qualified candidates by phone and email.
  • Reach to an agreement on whether the organization wants to select a candidate.
  • HR and the hiring supervisor agree on the offer to be made to the potential candidate, on the approval of the manager and the departmental budget.
  • communicate informally with the potential candidate about whether he or she is interested in the job at the salary offered and under the stated conditions. Make sure the potential candidate agrees to participate in a background check, a drug test, and sign a Non-Competition Agreement or a Confidentiality Agreement, depending on the position. (There should be a signed consent when completing the job application). If so, continue with an offer letter subject to contingent checks.
  • If not, determine if there are negotiable factors that will lead the organization and the candidate to arrive at a reasonable agreement.
  • If informal negotiation leads the management to believe that the candidate is viable and worthy, HR prepares a written offer letter stating the position, salary, reporting relationships, supervisory relationships and any other benefits or commitments that the potential candidate has negotiated or as promised by the company
  • The potential candidate has to be provided with an offer letter, job description, and the Company’s Non-Competition or Confidentiality Agreement.
  • The candidate may accept and sign the offer letter documentation or reject for the position.
  • If accepted, schedule the new employee’s start date. Welcome the new employee after providing the acknowledgement of acceptance of job Offer.
  • If not, start over to review the candidate pool and redevelop a new list if necessary.
Source of Information: EEOC, US Bankruptcy code, EPA, FRCA, IRCA, Civil Rights Act
Note: Information collected is not legal advice nor a substitute for such advice

Laws and Regulations impacting Hiring Process

At Federal level

1. Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII

Employers of private establishment with 15 Full-Time Employees (FTEs) or Full-time equivalents and more who fail to hire any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, or to limit, segregate, or classify applicants for employment in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin shall be considered as an unlawful employment practice.

2. Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA)

As per PDA, Employers of private establishment with 15 Full-Time Employees (FTEs) or Full-time equivalents and more, as a subset of “gender” for discrimination law purposes which is incorporated by the amendment made in the Title VII statute should not show any discrimination based on pregnancy at the time of hiring and any other terms or conditions of employment.

3. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)

ADEA prohibits a private employer with 20 and more to discriminate against a person because of his or her age (above 40 years) while hiring with respect to any terms and conditions, or privilege of employment.

Advertisements and Job Notices

It is unlawful to include age preferences, limitations, or specifications in job notices or advertisements. A job notice or advertisement may specify an age limit only in the rare circumstances where age is shown to be a “bona fide occupational qualification” (BFOQ) reasonably necessary to the normal operation of the business.

Pre-Employment Inquiries

The ADEA does not explicitly prohibit any covered employer from asking an applicant’s age or date of birth subject to inquiries which may deter older workers from applying for employment or may otherwise indicate possible intent to discriminate based on age, contrary to the purposes of the ADEA.

4. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

ADA prohibits private employers with 15 and more to discriminate on the disability ( as defined by the ADA Law) and treat such applicants less favorably because he or she has a history of a disability or he or she is believed to have a physical or mental impairment that is not transitory.

Disability Discrimination & Reasonable Accommodation

A covered employer cannot discriminate or reject a job applicant with disability for the reason to provide a reasonable accommodation unless doing so would cause significant difficulty or expense for the employer.

Disability & Medical Exams During Employment Application & Interview Stage

The law places strict limits on employers when it comes to asking job applicants to answer medical questions, take a medical exam, or identify a disability.

Disability & Medical Exams After A Job Offer For Employment

After a job is offered to an applicant, the law allows an employer to condition the job offer on the applicant answering certain medical questions or successfully passing a medical exam, but only if all new employees in the same type of job have to answer the questions or take the exam.

Recordkeeping requirements as per ADA

Covered employers have to keep all medical records and information confidential, in separate medical files.

5. Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act of 2009 (GINA)

GINA prohibits private employers with 15 and more to make an employment decision, based on the genetic information provided which is not relevant to an individual’s current ability to work. It is also unlawful for a covered employer to disclose genetic information about applicants, and must keep genetic information confidential, in a separate medical file.
genetic-information-non-discrimination
immigration-reform

6.Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA)

This law says, it is an unfair immigration-related employment practice for a covered employer to discriminate against any individual (other than an unauthorized alien) with respect to the hiring of the individual for employment based on national origin or citizenship status

7.U.S. Bankruptcy Code, Section 525

Prohibits employer of any size to discriminate based upon bankruptcy history or bankruptcy claim filing status
bankruptcy
civil-rights-act

8.Civil Rights Act of 1866 (42 U.S.C. §1981)

Prohibits an employer with atleast one employee or more to discriminate based upon race or color (additional cautionary note: some national origin discrimination claims can be turned into race or color discrimination claims, depending upon the circumstances) while hiring another person to perform any kind of work or services for pay (thus, it covers even independent contractor situations)

9.Ban the Box Law

Ban the Box is to provide all job applicants a fair chance by taking out the conviction history question on the job application and delaying the background check inquiry until later in the hiring process. The law prevents employers from using past compensation as a basis for current salary and benefits negotiations with job applicants at the time of hire.
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equal-pay-act

10.Equal Pay Act

While hiring, employers have to satisfy the regulations in understanding a candidate’s compensation history during the interview and application process and it is illegal to pay men more than women for the same work

11.Fair Credit Reporting Act

FRCA requires an employer to draft a separate document asking for approval to conduct a background check that conforms with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, to perform such background checks
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At State level

Every employer has to check with their State and Local laws and regulations. Every state in the United States has one or more laws which prohibits all the forms of discrimination covered in the federal laws noted above in the hiring process.. Some states have more regulations for additional protected classifications such as sexual orientation, veteran status, history of filing certain types of claims, and so on.
Source of Information: EEOC, US Bankruptcy code, EPA, FRCA, IRCA, Civil Rights Act
Note: Information collected is not a legal advice nor a substitute for such advice. State and federal laws change frequently and may not reflect your own state’s laws or the most recent changes to the law.

FLSA Compliance and employer’s liability

FLSA sets basic standards for Minimum wages and Overtime Pay, at the same time an employer needs to check with the state laws which have even more stringent requirements of wage and hour laws to follow. The employer covered under FLSA needs to comply with federal as well as State and Local laws and the law that is most beneficial to an employee must be followed. Even a company is insured under Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI) which covers businesses against many claims made by workers, legally where the company(employer) has violated laws in such areas, and still may not cover wage and hour issues. So, in order to be compliant and avoid back wages, an employer has to adhere to the wage and hours requirements for the purposes of FLSA. Generally, the manager or the business(company) owner is more likely to be in an authority position who is liable for wage and hours practices in a company. Their conduct of doing business impacts the good faith of the company, if the employer does willful violations under FLSA may be subject to criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment. The employer is liable to back pay penalties depending on the seriousness of the violation.

Department of Labor Audits

Authorized representatives from the Wage and Hour Department conduct investigations and gather data on wages, hours worked and other employment conditions or practices, in order to determine an enterprise or employer’s compliance with the FLSA law. Investigators may recommend changes in employment practices where violations are found to bring an employer into compliance.
Note: To fire, or in any other manner, discriminate against an employee for filing a complaint or for participating in a legal proceeding required for the purposes of FLSA regulations is a violation of the FLSA

Penalties for violations of FLSA

  • Employers who willfully or repeatedly violate the minimum wage or overtime pay requirements are subject to a civil money penalty of up to $1,000 for each such violation.
  • Violators of the child labor provisions are subject to a civil money penalty of up to $10,000 for each young worker who was employed in violation.
  • Willful violations of the FLSA may result in criminal prosecution and the violator fined up to $10,000. A second conviction may result in imprisonment.

Tips to be Complaint

The thumb rule for avoiding FLSA non-compliance is to make the best practice of complying with accurate record-keeping, payroll records and time-tracking of employees, the proper classification of employees, and providing applicable FLSA minimum wages and overtime pay threshold to employees in adherence to both federal and state law.
These requirements may seem like very simple and straightforward issues, but in reality, legal requirements are very confusing and often complex when it comes to the point of compliance and these laws are subject to frequent regulatory changes.
Source of Information: https://www.dol.gov/

Fair Labor Standards Act – Overview

FLSA is a federal labor law enforced by the U.S Department of Labor which sets out various labor regulations on minimum wage, overtime pay eligibility, recordkeeping, and child labor standards both in the private and public sectors in the federal, state, and local governments.FLSA protects workers against certain unfair labor practices on wages and hours of work. FLSA is administered by Wage and Hours Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL)

FLSA Regulations

  1. Employees covered under FLSA are subject to Minimum wages and overtime pay based on the exempt and nonexempt status of the employee
  2. Exemption status of an employee is decided on the standards specified in the FLSA Act and is considered on multiple factors such as
    1. How much money they earn
    2. What type of work they do
    3. Their specific responsibilities and job duties
  3. Covered nonexempt employees are entitled to a minimum wage of not less than $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009 subject to both state and federal minimum wage laws, the employee is entitled to the higher minimum wage.
flsa-regulations
  1. Covered nonexempt employees are entitled and must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 per workweek (implies to any fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours – seven consecutive 24-hour periods) at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate of pay subject to both state and federal overtime pay laws where the employee is entitled to the higher overtime pay that benefits the employee more.
  2. Exemption for Minimum wages and overtime pay is applicable to employees who are classified as executive, administrative, professional, computer, highly compensated, and outside sales employees.
  3. To qualify for a bona fide exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $684* per week. Job titles alone do not determine exempt status. An employee is deemed for an exemption if an employee’s specific job duties and salary threshold meet all the requirements of the Department’s regulations as defined in the FLSA Act.
  4. There is no limit on the number of hours employees of 16 years or older may work in any workweek.
  5. The FLSA does not require overtime pay for the employees who work on weekends, holidays, or regular days of rest unless overtime is worked on such days.
  6. Hours worked by an employee ordinarily include all the time during which such employee is required to be on the employer’s premises, on duty, or at a prescribed workplace.
  7. Recordkeeping – Employers must keep employee time (log) and pay records.
  8. Poster requirement – Employers must display an official poster outlining the requirements of the FLSA.
  9. Child labor regulations prohibit individuals younger than eighteen years old from working in certain jobs (Youth employment law) and additionally sets out certain rules concerning the hours and times of employees under sixteen years of age may work.

Employee Benefits

What employee benefits are required by law

Employee benefits can be classified as benefits required by law and voluntary benefits provided by an employer to employees. Legally required benefits include benefits provided to employees and their family members with medical care, retirement income, hardships due to loss of job and disabilities, and liabilities due to workplace illness and injuries.
  • Social Security and Medicare Taxes
  • Unemployment Insurance
  • Workers Compensation Insurance
  • Disability Insurance
  • Family Medical Leave
  • Health Insurance
  • COBRA Benefits
  • Other Benefits

Social Security and Medical Taxes (FICA)

Every employer in the U.S is required to measure up to the employee’s social security and Medicare Tax contributions irrespective of the size of the business. FICA is a federal payroll (employment) tax used to fund Social Security and Medicare. The amount and percentage of contributions from both employers and employees are based on the age of the employee and their earned income.

Unemployment Insurance

Irrespective of the number of employees in a company, the company has to contribute to the unemployment tax requirements. The cost of Unemployment Tax may differ from state to state. Both full-time and part-time employees are covered and entitled to unemployment benefits when such employees are involuntarily separated from the company due to reasons such as Lay-off etc. Companies must have to register with the State Workforce Agency to make payments. Note: Proper documentation has to be recorded for the termination of any employee to avoid the claims against the company for the charges filed by any former employee for a wrongful Termination

Workers Compensation Insurance

Workers’ compensation is very essential to any employer as it gives a replacement and financial aid to employees who are not able to perform regular work due to workplace injury or illness and it protects business owners from potential and legal lawsuits. Different options are available to an employer to select for benefits packages, in which an employer may choose a self-insured plan where the business owner takes the risk of providing benefits or an employer can also claim coverage through their state insurance coverage at a premium rate but it’s consistent.

Disability Insurance

Disability Insurance is a state-specific and mandated in some states where an employee is benefited with Partial wage replacement insurance coverage in an event who suffers from an illness or injury caused by a work not related to employment and stopped him or her to attend his or her regular duties. The businesses operating in the following states such as New York, California, New Jersey, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island are mandated to provide disability insurance benefits to their employees, whereas in all other states, the employer (business owner) have the option and not mandatory to provide disability insurance benefits to their employees. Generally, the cost of the policy is paid for in full by the employee.

Family Medical Leave

For businesses in private establishments, who employ 50 or more Full-time employees (FTE) or Full-time equivalents are mandated to provide applicable family leave benefits, subject to employees eligible to receive up to 12 weeks of job-protected and unpaid leave for qualifying family and medical reasons, qualifying exigencies during a 12 month period. As per law, Employers are not required to provide any financial compensation to an employee during medical leave. Family medical leave can be used for the events such as childbirth, child adoption, to care for an immediate family member with a serious medical condition, or on the severity of employee’s own medical condition Note: Some states and local jurisdictions require paid family leave and/or paid sick and safe leave. 

Health Insurance

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) enacted in the year 2010 enforces employers of private establishments with employees 50 or more Full-time employees (FTEs) or Full-time equivalents are mandated to offer acceptable health insurance coverage to their FTEs or Full-time equivalents and their dependents. Violation of  ACA requirements leads the employer to face excessive penalties from the government at the time of Tax payments. Employers need to check with the current requirements of ACA benefits coverage and are mandated to satisfy reporting requirements.

Cobra Benefits

COBRA Benefits are required for employers with 20 or more employees who are subject to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA).  COBRA allows the employee to maintain their insurance coverage at the employer’s group rates for a period of up to 18 months. This coverage applies to former employees, former employee spouses, dependent children and retirees

Other benefits

Employees may be entitled to certain more benefits such as 

Time off for/reinstatement after military service

The employers are required to provide with time off or reinstatement of a prior position following military service for applicable employees as per the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)

Time off for jury duty or to vote

Every state mandates his or her employer to provide a required period of Time off for jury duty or to vote for their employees and the regulations for such events may vary from state to state.

Voluntary Benefits at the whole discretion of the employer

There are many more voluntary benefits provided to an employee at the whole discretion of the employer as a best practice and are required to provide as per law and can be added to the benefits package provided to an employee which may include life insurance, retirement savings plans, dental and vision care, wellness programs, and some salary perks, educational assistance, child care assistance, and paid vacation life and disability insurance (in some states, short-term disability leave is mandatory) If an employer has decided to offer retirement planning such as 401(k), they must meet certain rules and regulations set forth by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Plans subject to ERISA generally include medical, dental, 401, and retirement plans.Note: Employers have to refer to their state and local regulations to check whether they apply to your business Sources: https://www.dol.gov/ http://irs.gov/

GCP – CLOUD PROVIDERS – PART 2

GCP Clousd
GCP Clousd

There are good number of cloud providers available in the market. Some are public cloud providers revolves around the service providers that offer software-, platform- and infrastructure-as-a-service offerings. There are many more cloud providers that specialize in some part of the enterprise software stack. This article provides a quick view of cloud provider timeline and top cloud providers.Cloud providers timeline:Top Cloud Vendors (Ranking based on Annual revenue)

Microsoft Azure:

Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing service created by Microsoft for building, testing, deploying, and managing applications and services through a global network of Microsoft-managed data centers. It provides software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and supports many different programming languages, tools and frameworks, including both Microsoft-specific and third-party software and systems.Website: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/Amazon Web Services:

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a subsidiary of Amazon.com that provides on-demand cloud computing platforms to individuals, companies and governments, on a paid subscription basis. The technology allows subscribers to have at their disposal a full-fledged virtual cluster of computers, available all the time, through the Internet.Website: https://aws.amazon.com/IBM Bluemix:

IBM Bluemix is a cloud platform as a service (PaaS) developed by IBM. It supports several programming languages and services as well as integrated DevOps to build, run, deploy and manage applications on the cloud. Bluemix is based on Cloud Foundry open technology and runs on SoftLayer infrastructure. Bluemix supports several programming languages including Java, Node.js, Go, PHP, Swift, Python, Ruby Sinatra, Ruby on Rails and can be extended to support other languages such as Scala through the use of buildpacks.Website:https://www.ibm.com/cloud/Oracle:

Oracle Cloud is a cloud computing service offered by Oracle Corporation providing servers, storage, network, applications and services through a global network of Oracle Corporation managed data centers. The company allows these services to be provisioned on demand over the Internet.Website:https://cloud.oracle.com/homeGoogle Cloud Platform/G Suite:

Google Cloud Platform, offered by Google, is a suite of cloud computing services that runs on the same infrastructure that Google uses internally for its end-user products, such as Google Search and YouTube. Alongside a set of management tools, it provides a series of modular cloud services including computing, data storage, data analytics and machine learning.Website:https://cloud.google.com/Alibaba:

Alibaba Cloud, a subsidiary of Alibaba Group, is a global cloud computing company. Alibaba Cloud provides a comprehensive suite of global cloud computing services to power both international customers’ online businesses and Alibaba Group’s own e-commerce ecosystem. Alibaba Cloud’s international operations are registered and headquartered in Singapore, and the company has international teams stationed in Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, New York, Paris, San Mateo, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.Website:https://www.alibabacloud.com/References:https://www.zdnet.com/article/cloud-providers-ranking-2018-how-aws-microsoft-google-cloud-platform-ibm-cloud-oracle-alibaba-stack/https://medium.com/@dougpollei/there-can-be-only-one-37667ff80647