HR compliance that protects your practice's wallet from weight loss

HR compliance means sticking to any relevant employment and HR laws for your practice. The larger and more complex your organization gets, and the more regions you operate in, the more regulations you need to follow. Past a certain point, you’ll need to get HR software that’s made for your industry (like HR for Health for healthcare!).

Common HR compliance violations start in the hiring process and extend to termination. While you’re in the hiring process, make sure you aren’t accidentally creating a discriminatory job post, and that new employees complete their I-9 within three days of starting work. While they’re on the job, make sure you’re following the Fair Labor Standards Act and any state and local laws for minimum wage, overtime pay, child labor standards, and recordkeeping. Finally, when an employee is on the way out, make sure you’re meeting notice timing and COBRA continuation coverage requirements for insurance.

HR compliance audits are like a dental cleaning: not very fun, but incredibly helpful in the long run. They usually have two overarching parts. First, a review of your HR policies, practices, and processes. Next, a review of all of your current related data. Top of the list of what you’re looking for: complaints filed, pending legal complaints, turnover rate, and days missed. Next, check for missing, inaccurate, or incomplete data with a fine-tooth comb.HR software like HR for Health can make this FAR easier, with automatic recordkeeping and organization. Whatever you choose, It’s not fun today, but lawsuits are WAY less fun tomorrow.

First of all, government fines that range from annoying to practice-ending. More common and pernicious, lawsuits. Every year thousands of practices are attacked with expensive claims that not only cost a lot but cause irreparable reputational damage. Just keeping compliant will allow you to mitigate almost 100% of HR-related lawsuits.

Training your employees to be compliant is a critical part of HR responsibilities. First, make sure your providing the legal necessities. Although there’s no blanket federal training regulation, some laws and agency regulations do apply to specific employers and industries.Once that’s out of the way, there’s a few best practices to follow. Build employee engagement by focusing on positivity and aligning the training with your culture. Make training an ongoing part of everyone’s job, not a forgettable one-and-done. Use practical situations employees will actually find themselves in. And use data to reward positive changes and actions based on the training.

Staying up to date on HR compliance changes is tough. If you’re a small organization, you might be able to keep up with steps like attending training sessions with legal counsel, attending webinars, partnering with local professional organizations, and checking the US, state, and local Department of Labor websites.If you get beyond a few people, you’re going to need outside help. There are a LOT of HR laws, and they’re constantly changing. Lawyers and HR departments are expensive. So get software that’s built by legal and HR experts and keeps you updated automatically.

A wage and hour claim is when a non-salaried or non-exempt employee makes a formal complaint that they were unfairly compensated for work they performed. At the federal level, most wage and hour claims fall under the Fair Labor Standards Act.Common types of wage and hour claims include: Unpaid meal or rest breaks Unpaid (or underpaid) overtime Unfulfilled compensatory time (not giving future time off that was promised in exchange for working overtime) Unpaid training or meeting time Uncompensated work travel time Minimum wage violationsHow do you avoid them? First, write good policies and write them in your employee handbook. Second, stay compliant. Finally, keep complete, verifiable records.

exual harassment refers to unwelcome sexual advances, visual, verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature, or actions that create an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment based on an employee’s sex.Employees have the right to work in a safe, discrimination-free environment. If they feel they have experienced discrimination or behavior that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and, in California, the state Fair Employment and Housing Act, they can file a lawsuit.Want to protect your practice against sexual harassment claims? First of all, write good policies (California actually requires this) and include them in your employee handbook. Second, you and your employees need to stay compliant. We hope this isn’t difficult for you. Third, keep complete records and handle any violations promptly.

An employee discrimination claim means that an employee believes they have been discriminated against at work based on their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or other genetic information. This can be expressed by actions such as wrongful termination, workplace retaliation, or simply not hiring a qualified applicant in the first place.Employment discrimination regulations are based at the federal level on the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Make sure you stay on the right side of the law by staying compliant, making sure your decisions are based on the latest legal updates, and are carefully documented and stored.

An employee discrimination claim means that an employee believes they have been discriminated against at work based on their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or other genetic information. This can be expressed by actions such as wrongful termination, workplace retaliation, or simply not hiring a qualified applicant in the first place.Employment discrimination regulations are based at the federal level on the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Make sure you stay on the right side of the law by staying compliant, making sure your decisions are based on the latest legal updates, and are carefully documented and stored.