Jean Hanson

My friend and Human Resource expert Arlene Vernon recently published a number of HR tips based on questions she receives during the year. Using some of her suggestions, I put together the following list of things you should consider doing to prepare your business for 2010:

1. If you've hired people as independent contractors instead of employees and they're performing the same work under the same conditions as an employee would, then the government sees them as an employee and you should be paying them as an employee. You should also be deducting employment taxes. For more information visit the IRS website's pages on hiring independent contractors.
2. If you're using temp workers through a temp agency, investigate whether or not they're conducting the proper I-9 documentation and background checks on your behalf. Some are, some aren't.
3. If you give your employees company property to use (such as keys, vacuums and other cleaning equipment), have them sign a form that lists all the property in their possession. You may also want to state on the form that you will deduct the cost of damage, loss of property or non-return of property from their paycheck (or final paycheck).
4. If you pay your employees a salary and no one is eligible for overtime so that your payroll handling is convenient, think again. You're probably not in compliance with FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act). Go to www.dol.gov to review the definitions of exempt and non-exempt so you understand which positions are truly exempt from overtime.
5. When you interview prospective employees, spend plenty of time asking open-ended questions. If you're spending less than 1/2 hour in the interview, then you might want to consider asking more questions or having another person do a second interview. People will tell you what you want to hear in this short interview so it will help you weed out the bad ones if you spend more time getting them to talk and reveal more about their motivations.
6. If you have employees who are doing a great job don't assume they know that you appreciate their good work. Tell them directly and regularly, and document it. Incident reports can also be used for positive feedback - not just for employee problems.
7. If you have problem employees and have tried moving them to a different location or position in hopes that they'll perform better, you probably found out that it didn't work. Instead, you've just moved the problem rather than dealing with it directly. Start documenting all the problems with employees and have them sign off on all incident reports. If they don't improve after additional training and documentation, let them go.
8. If you have an employee who hasn't called or reported to work, call to find out what's going on. If you can't reach them and they don't show up the next day, terminate them immediately. It's disrespectful of them to not notify you of their absence and you have no obligation to hold their job for them. If you find out later that there was a serious medical reason for their absence then you can always reinstate them later.
9. If you have a poor performing employee resign, accept the resignation. Don't try convincing them to stay just because you're short-handed. Look at this as an opportunity to get a better-performing person in the position.
10. If you want to terminate an employee but have no documentation regarding the poor performance issues, don't do it just yet. Start documenting things immediately, making sure you address the issues with the employee and having them sign all documentation. If they refuse to sign, have a witness sign the paperwork.
11. Never leave an employee alone with personnel files. Files or portions of files have been known to disappear when left alone with an unattended employee.
12. If you terminate an employee, don't let them go back into the client's building unsupervised. Get them off the premises as soon as you've terminated their employment. If they need to go back to the janitor closet to pick up personal possessions, escort them there and then out of the building.
13. If you're paying overtime based on hours worked in excess of an 80-hour pay period, you're not in compliance with FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act). Overtime is based on a 40-hour work week, so you need to evaluate the hours worked for each week, not just the total hours per pay period.
14. If you've terminated an employee for a company policy violation and then you receive a notice that they've applied for unemployment compensation, contest their claim. You'll need to provide a copy of your stated policy and documentation that the employee violated the policy.
15. Federal legal reminder: make sure you are using the most up to date I-9 form to stay in compliance with the law.

Please Note: This is not legal advice and you should check your state and federal laws for your business compliance.

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Jean Hanson helps owners of small cleaning companies build a more profitable and successful cleaning business through her online community at TheJanitorialStore.com. Read inspirational cleaning success stories at http://www.cleaning-success.com, and sign up for weekly cleaning tips at http://www.TheJanitorialStore.com.