JULY 4TH, OTHER HOLIDAYS, PAY AND EMPLOYEE EXPECTATIONS

Have we forfeited supervisory and administrative responsibility 

by giving too many holidays with pay?

Who doesn't love a holiday off.

This year the 4^th of July holiday was easier for employers to schedule since it fell on a Monday, but you may have had people call in sick or take another day off causing some disruption.  One year I called in sick the day after the 4^th of July.  This is a no no.  According to policy I was to bring in a note from my doctor or lose out on the pay.  It was doubly embarrassing because I worked for Human Resources! 

When I worked at a university as a professor whether employees had Martin Luther King day off varied from year to year.  Some years classes weren’t scheduled so professors didn’t come in.  On other years, support staff had the day off, but classes were running.  A newly merged YMCA-YWCA closed for Martin Luther King day in keeping with the YWCA mission to end racism.  Later years, it remained open but had special events to honor MLK.  Many employees take the week of the 4^th off for summer vacation so it is a planned vacation.  A lot of governments give the day off Thanksgiving even though it is not a scheduled holiday.  Watch next year to see if your governor gives state employees these days off.  For some nonprofits, those with pools or camps, its full steam ahead on the 4^th. No day off.  These decisions show the many issues nonprofit and government employers face when it comes to a holiday.  

A town manager I know presented the cost of giving an extra day off to employees.  With spreadsheets and query programs, you can figure out exactly how much it costs in wages and benefits to give employees an extra holiday.  Even with the cost most nonprofit and government employers no longer bother to force their non-exempt employees to do without pay if they are sick the day after a holiday.  They bite the bullet and eat the cost.  

Others have opted for Paid Time Off (PTO) combining sick, vacation, bereavement, other leaves, and sometime holidays.  Rolling in holidays allows employees to choose what holidays are important.  (Employees with children in school may want Columbus Day off when their kids are off but others don’t care.)  PTO avoids a managerial problem of having to actually supervise employees and a bureaucratic problem of ensuring employees are using their sick time for sickness or family sickness.  The downside is that when an employee leaves they are owed for time unused whereas when leaves are separate, employees are only owed only for vacation time.  (Of course, some employers also pay out unused sick time but that isn’t required.)

Employers justify giving, say, the day after Thanksgiving or the day before Christmas assuming that very little work is actually done.  I think they are right.  Except those working in healthcare, nonprofit and government employees are very lucky to have these extra days.  

Is this a good enough reason, low productivity, or are we opting out of managing employee expectations, managing employee sick time at the expense of taxpayers, members, clients?  What do you think?  By the way, my employer, a hospital, did pay me without requiring a doctor’s note.  The town council approved a day off after Thanksgiving.

If you would like a review of your policies for compatibility with your mission and with your finances, please contact us at

Management.Vision http://management.vision/

Words Matter. Definitions Matter

Words matter. Definitions matter. Have you ever said one thing only to be completely misunderstood? That's why all legislation has a series of definitions right up front. You have definitions in many of your policies even though you don't have a definitions section. Even with definitions, employees can be confused. When do I have enough time to go on vacation?

My Dad was a veteran and the family decided to get a maker for his grave. I think I, my brother, and our spouses all imagined a marker you would put on a pole.  My brother received the package from Veterans Affairs, Memorial Program Service, but hadn't opened it up before he visited me. His wife thought it was quite heavy and large but didn't think too much about it. This Memorial weekend we opened the package ready to go to the cemetery. Imagine our surprise when we received a large brass plaque, one to place on a grave stone or to put directly in the ground. We had to laugh on this Memorial weekend. Have you had an experience where words mattered? Funny or serious?

Comparing Presidential Leadership to Nonprofit Leadership

Is it Image, Issues or Ideology that Makes a Great Leader?

We are past the half way mark in the primaries/caucuses for both parties.  Perhaps we can compare our nonprofit leaders with how voters think about political candidates, our political leaders. Mid-century political scientists developed a formula to predict the vote based upon three factors: how voters evaluated a candidate's image, issue positions, and the voter’s political party or party identification. 

Warren Bennis, Leadership author

The formula doesn't work as well in the 21st century since more of us identify as Independents, but it's a good exercise in looking at leadership from different perspectives.  Leadership and management theorists have had an equally tough time figuring out how to assess a great leader.  Right now management literature emphasizes leadership style. 

Let's take a look at the formula and apply it to our nonprofit managers.  When we think of candidate image we often think about whether he or she is charismatic, inspiring, likable, trustworthy. Those are characteristics we might ascribe to the president or director of our nonprofit, too. Nowadays, we seem to focus on the negative characteristics but for the exercise think about the positives.

The second part of the formula is issues. We vote for the candidate who takes issue positions we favor.  In politics we often split issues down to the economy and foreign policy. It's not that you and I have to know the details of a candidate's immigration policy, position on more or fewer troops in Syria, or position on job creation.  It's whether we agree or disagree in general with the most prominent policies being discussed by the candidates. Applying it to the nonprofit executive, the focus he takes on the budget and fund raising or the kids, the members, the day-to-day operations of the nonprofit meshes with what you value. Ignore some of those minor disappointments or disagreements for the purpose of this exercise.

The third part of the formula is party identification, your ideology.  You might know whether your president or director is a Republican, Democrat, or Independent and you might agree or disagree.  This third part, translates better as her vision, a belief in the mission and vision of the nonprofit.  The director walks the talk. She seeks input. Or she emphasizes the need to run the organization like a business with standardized policies and places less emphasis on the actual mission.  The organization is well managed and not chaotic and that is what is important in her vision.  If you share a similar ideology, you’re more likely to think of the exec as a leader.  

Put the three parts of the formula together.  Think of your boss. What characteristics do you like/dislike, her image? What goals or policies are in the strategic plan that you like or don't like, the issues?  What is her belief in the mission and vision, her ideology?  In this formula, you’ll consider her a great leader if the image she portrays, the issues she prioritizes, and her ideology match what’s important to you. Now would you vote for her if you had a chance?  Is there something missing from the formula? 

For a great author on leadership, see the works of Warren Bennis. Two of my favorites are On Leadership and Why Leaders can't Lead

See how the candidates size  up on the issues 

Could you become a citizen?

I recently had the honor of attending a citizenship ceremony.  It was absolutely wonderful. There were 26 future citizens from 12 different countries.  A chorus from a local high school sang a serenade of three patriotic songs.  It made me tearful and proud.  Of course, the chorus sang the Star Spangled Banner as the audience and new citizens sang.

Bangor High School Chorus

One of the judges told about his family's emigration from Italy to the United States and how it affected his life.

What I found most surprising was the oath.

Getting her citizenship certificate

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

I had no idea as a native born that the Oath placed an emphasis on your support of the military, defending the United States.  The Oath values, not democracy, equality, freedom, liberty, but your general support of the Constitution.  Take a look at the words, "defend the Constitution and the laws...against all enemies", "bear arms", "perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces",

Mary Calder, citizen

My friend became a citizen is in her early 60s (I'm in my 60s too) so she's probably not going to join the military.  She's a nurse so she is definitely serving her new country.

If you were writing the oath, what would you put in it?  What would you emphasize?

Management.Vision emphasizes practical and proven methods to ensure a better work environment.

Right to Privacy of Government Employees

Snooping on the San Bernardino Shooter as a Public Management Responsibility

The IPhone and San Bernardino shooter controversy has an important facet that is not as often discussed. The news has focused on the Apple’s desire to protect the privacy of its customers.  However, Sayed Farook was not an Apple Customer.  The customer was San Bernardino County.  The County gave its permission to the FBI to investigate his phone.   Does a public employer have the right to snoop in a public employee's desk, phone, computer?  Should I even call it snooping?

In some ways, public employees have more protections of their privacy than private sector employees.  The Fourth amendment gives public employees rights against unreasonable search and seizure and by extension a reasonable right to privacy.  In the case of a phone issued by San Bernardino to conduct public business, Farook, had little expectation of privacy.  The Courts balance “[public] employees’ legitimate expectations of privacy against the government’s need for supervision, control, and the efficient operation of the workplace.” (O’Connor v Ortega 1987). The phone was to be used for government business so it makes sense that the County would supervise and control the Iphone.

If you look at the government’s motion [for Apple] to comply, it is strictly about its authority under the All Writs Act to obtain compliance. Apple’s response indicates that it doesn’t support terrorists, it has complied thus far, and it needs to protect the privacy of its customers by not creating a backdoor means to open the iPhone.  The fact that the phone is owned by a government entity is not mentioned in either party's proceedings.

Although it is interesting for us to speculate whether we agree with the position of the government or with Apple, a manager needs to consider what responsibilities and rights he or she has to investigate a public employee's workplace.  I suspect that the FBI also went through Farook's work computer, work phone (land line) and desk as well as the provided cell phone. The Courts tend to favor balancing tests, is it reasonable vs an employee’s right to privacy.  Your best bet then is to consider whether the search is work related and not excessively intrusive (Quon v Ontario 2010).  Is it reasonable to search a public employee’s electronic communication? The Supreme Court said yes to search a pager and employers whether public or private have been able to investigate an employee's download habits that yield visits to porn sites.

For the government's and Apple's position, go to http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Passcode/2016/0219/Read-DOJ-s-motion-to-compel-Apple-to-crack-the-San-Bernardino-iPhone

If you would like a consultation, please contact me at Ball@maine.edu

Should you advertise your nonprofit as employment at will?

Should you advertise that you are employment at will?

While I was attending a school board meeting, a superintendent differentiated his staff from the unionized school staff as employment-at-will.  Employment at will means that you can terminate an employee at any time for any reason.  He was actually wrong about his status and that of his staff.  He has a contract.  If his employer, the school board, decides to dismiss him at any time, then it has violated the contract.  I’ve seen this time and time again in local government.  Local governments are surprised when they have to pay a town manager when they’ve violated the contract they sign. Second, public sector employees have constitutional due process right to their job.  In effect that means that the public employer has to provide some sort of grievance procedure, an appeal procedure of some sort. 

It’s true that the remainder of employers are employers-at-will with the caveat of those with employees who have a union contract or individual contract.  Most courts have upheld this common law principle with very few exceptions, even whistleblowers lack protection according to NY courts.  This is good news for the nonprofit (or private sector employer) that wants to be free of interventions.  Do you have a statement to this fact on, say, your application, in an employee handbook, or letter of a job offering?  Do you make new employees sign a statement that the offer letter or employee handbook does not constitute a contract?  If so, then you are highlighting your right of employment at will.  Now take a look at your policies? Do they conflict with this idea?  Do you actually want to be known as an employer-at-will? 

Do you have

• An individual or union contract with any employees
• Grievance procedure
• EEO policy (you can’t fire a person based upon Sex, National Origin, Race, Religion, Color, Disability, Age, and in some states Sexual Orientation)
• An introductory period or probationary period
• An evaluation process, a promotion process based upon favorable evaluations
• A disciplinary process
• An exit interview process

All these policies are the types of policies your lawyer on your board would recommend you have, but they send a decidedly different message from prominently stating your right to be an employment-at-will. 

As you review your policies, consider what you are trying to do.  Is employment-at-will the policy you most want to highlight.  If so, then you might want to eliminate some of the policies highlighted above.  If not, then you might highlight your mission, your good reputation as an employer, your family friendly policies, great benefits, or satisfied employees.

No matter what you decide, your employees who are let go without cause or documentation are eligible for unemployment.  Firing for no apparent reason will most certainly cause you to pay unemployment no matter what state you are in and no matter whether you say you are employment-at-will or not.

Should you pay volunteers?

Can you have paid volunteers?  

Isn't that an oxymoron?

It has long been custom to pay volunteer firefighters for the time they spend training, attending training, for accommodations, travel, and meals if the training is a distance.  That is the custom in many other nonprofits as well.  In addition, firefighters sometimes receive a stipend for the time they work on a fire, usually a flat amount.

Firefighters whether paid or volunteer love their job.Talk to any firefighter about the last job he or she was on and you'll see.  That doesn't mean they can't gripe, but they are admittedly a pretty satisfied group with their jobs.

Fire departments are running into a problem even with the dedicated volunteers.  There just aren't enough of them.  Fire departments recruit  new volunteers by word of mouth. That's been a pretty good way. Firefighters are highly visible in any community.   I got into a conversation with an employee at a local business in a neighboring town and suggested she talk to our chief about volunteering.  I did that even though I'm not a volunteer, just know lots of them. Fire departments have actively set up junior firefighter programs to help with a pipeline of the next recruits.   If you are familiar with the Rotary, a service organization, it too has set up a pipeline of young people, Rotaract,  who may join the Rotary in the future.

Even with the most ambitious plans, rural and suburban fire departments are increasingly finding it difficult to find enough recruits.  In Vacationland,Maine, (where I am writing this) many communities have the additional problem of losing not only jobs half the year, but population as well. That doesn't mean they need half the firefighters.  There are still 24 hours in a day.  Some of  lack of new recruits  is due to the decline in independent businesses. Employees can no longer take time away from their jobs.  It also has to do with the loss of jobs in our small communities.  It's not uncommon for fire fighters to live in one community and work in another and even volunteer as a firefighter in both communities.  Still that means that many firefighters are not available at the drop of a hat, that is the call over the phone or whatever communication device the fire department uses.  ay.

That leads to the incremental use of more paid firefighters.  Firefighting has long been a skilled practice with new ways and means of fighting being developed, more and more involvement in emergency planning, and even cross training with EMTs and police.  It makes sense that a small departments may now need a professional chief responsible for insurance issues, equipment depreciation, training, etc.  Then a fire department might need a paid Asst. Chief.

You can see where I 'm going now.  One department near  me is considering paying an on-call hourly wage initially of $8.00 for a minimum of two hours to volunteers.  Its an attempt to provide an incentive for more to volunteer.  The proposal also calls for hiring additional full time firefighters at a competitive rate.  Now you are seeing the problem.

Alfie Kohn, has said in Punished by Rewards, that incentives can often be a disincentive, reducing self-motivation.  So oddly enough paying volunteers to work along side paid firefighters, may not work, particularly as volunteers are paid about half of what a full-time firefighter would is paid.
 
So what is a fire department to do or any other volunteer agency that relies primarily on volunteers to deliver its primary service?  Paying volunteers more won't change the basic structural problems in our rural communities, an older population and a lack of jobs to keep younger volunteers in the community. This then though not the best solution will buy time while considering the costs of a full-time department. For the full article, see http://tinyurl.com/zxw4zlo