Business

Unit VII Lecture Transcript

Slide 1

Unit VII, Employee Benefits and Workplace Safety, Health, and

Security

Slide 2

In order to gain a deeper understanding of the concepts presented in

this course, the unit lessons will be structured in question and answer

format. Each slide will provide at least one question based on concepts

presented in this unit and an accompanying audio response from a subject

matter expert. Review each slide to further enhance your practical

knowledge about the field of human resource management.

Slide 3

Meet Marilyn Pike. Marilyn has over 20 years of experience in HR

leadership positions in both the public and private sector, large and small

businesses, and union and non-union environments. She currently holds

both the SPHR and SHRM-SCP.

Question: Are companies required to offer employees benefits?

Answer: Some benefits are mandatory, due to federal and state

statutes, like the Social Security match. Some employees may not be aware

that the employer matches the amount that an employee is taxed for Social

Security. And some benefits are optional. Benefits a can offer a competitive

advantage in terms of both retention and recruitment. The totality of an

employee’s compensation, including their benefits package, is one major

factor in keeping employees happy, engaged, and willing to create a

competitive advantage for the company. Today’s workers demand more

benefits and a better mix to fit their lifestyles. Because people demand it,

companies add new benefits. There are studies which show that the more

benefits an employer lists in a job ad, the better the response. The benefits

don’t always have to cost the employer. Sometimes, just being able to take

advantage of a group rate can allow employees to purchase services at a

lower rate than they can individually. Pet insurance, long-term care

assistance, legal assistance are examples. Probably everyone has seen the

AFLAC commercials. Employers can offer their employees AFLAC at no

additional cost to the employer. I’ve noticed some employers offering not

only tuition assistance but a student loan repayment.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2019), benefits

average roughly 30% of total employee compensation cost. For example, if

you earn $60,000 a year, your benefits cost your employer another $18,000,

bringing wage and benefit cost to $78,000 for your job. Most employees

don’t understand the true cost and value of the benefits that organizations

provide. As a result, they don’t perceive the value that they are get from

having the organization provide their benefits. There are many indications

that employees who are satisfied with their benefits are more satisfied with

their jobs and their companies.

Slide 4

Question: What is OSHA?

Answer: OSHA stands for Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.

OSHA requires employers to provide workers a safe workplace. Workplace

safety deals with the physical protection of people from injury or illness

while on the job. OSHA can inspect a worksite without advance notice. In

addition to inspecting the workplace, the inspector has the right to interview

employees during the inspection. The inspector will provide the employer

with a list of any issues they may find during their inspection. Employee

rights during the inspections include the right to refuse to be interviewed, or

if an employee agrees to an interview, they can request that an employer

representative be present or that the interview be held in private. The

employee also has the right to legal representation during the interview if

they request it, and they can end the interview at any time just by

requesting that the interview be discontinued. Finally, employees have a

right against company retaliation for taking part in an interview with the

inspector and telling the truth.

Slide 5

Question: Can you explain psychological wellness in the workforce

further?

Psychological wellness, as well as physical wellness, is important for a

productive workforce. We need to provide our employees with the ability to

maintain both. In analyzing the needs of the workforce, work-life balance is

high on the list of issues facing both employers and employees. Work-life

balance is a perpetually a hot topic. With mobile technology, especially the

smartphone, the boundary between work and non-work hours has become

fuzzy. Studies show that some 44% of Internet users regularly perform

some job task outside of work. Employees will check in at work during their

weekends and vacations, increasing the likelihood of what is known as work-

family spillover. Then on the other side, you have employees using company

electronic devises for personal use during work hours, such as social media

and shopping.

EAPs (Employee Assistance Plans) and EWPs (Employee Wellness

Plans) help employees with their work–life balance. EAPs provide confidential

counseling and other personal services to employees to help them cope with

stress created by personal issues related to either work or home life. EWPs

help employees with their physical wellness. EWPs provide programs to

employees such as health education, training and fitness programs, weight

management, and health risk assessments. And there is stress. According to

Forbes, 35% of Americans have thought about leaving a job because of

stress at work, and 42% have actually done so (Dill, 2014). Absenteeism is

costly, and there is a relationship between absenteeism and workplace

stress. More than 80% of Americans said they were less productive at work

because of stress. Excess stress costs an estimated $300 billion a year in

absenteeism; decreased productivity; employee turnover; accidents; and

medical, legal, and insurance fees (American Institute of Stress, 2018).

Stress is definitely an individual perception matter. Managers should

try to be aware of the types of things at work that stress their employees.

Sometimes, something the manager considers to be a simple extra task, can

cause an employee a great deal of stress. I recall a time I asked an

employee to describe to a visitor how she did her job. Unbeknownst to me at

the time, I caused that employee enormous stress because I did not give her

a heads-up ahead of time so she could prepare. It honestly never occurred

to me that explaining how you do your job would stress someone out. That

was definitely an eye-opener for me. We are all different, we should never

“assume.” Stress is an individual perception matter.

Slide 6

Question: Can you talk about workplace security?

Answer: The five biggest concerns of employers today are

Internet/intranet security, workplace violence, active shooter threats,

business continuity planning, and mobile security. Cyber security in the form

of both Internet/intranet and mobile security deals with the company’s

computers and network security, including how mobile devices connect to

those company systems. Workplace violence is another major issue because

of the continuing rise in incidents of workplace violence. Active shooter

threats, while uncommon, have to be taken seriously, and companies have a

responsibility to take precautions and have a plan in place to respond if such

an incident happens to them. Workplace violence is rarely spontaneous; it is

more commonly passive-aggressive behavior in rising steps, related to an

unresolved conflict. Employees do give warning signs that violence is

possible, so it can be prevented if we are aware of the signs and take action

to defuse the anger before it becomes violent. I have found that being

careful to allow employees to maintain their self-respect in any potentially

confrontational situation goes a long way toward diffusing anger.

Slide 7

Question: What are some trends and issues in human resource

management and OSHA?

Answer: One important recent ruling everyone might not be aware of

is that OSHA has basically made it illegal to do blanket post-accident drug

and alcohol testing. OSHA says these blanket policies have the effect of

retaliating against workers who report injuries. Employers can continue to

test when there is “a reasonable possibility” that drug use by the reporting

employee was a contributing factor. Then, there is eDocAmerica, which is an

online provider of occupational and employee health-related services that

gives individuals and their family members unlimited email access to board-

certified physicians, psychologists, dietitians, and the like who provide

personal answers to all health-related questions. The main benefits are that

the employee can take control of their health and that it takes some

pressure off of the larger healthcare system because employees are not

constantly going to the doctor’s office.

Slide 8

This concludes the Unit VII question and answer session with subject

matter expert, Marilyn Pike. Reflect on this question and answer session as

you review your readings for this unit.

Slide 9

References

American Institute of Stress. (2018). Homepage. Retrieved from

https://www.stress.org/workplace-stress

Dill, K. (2014). Survey: 42% of employees have changed jobs due to stress.

Retrieved from

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathryndill/2014/04/18/survey-42-of-

employees-have-changed-jobs-due-to-stress/#117b88a23380

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2019). Employer costs for employee

compensation—March 2019. Retrieved from

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ecec.pdf