February 2023 Edition

RKL’s Workforce Strategies team is here to help you navigate the complexities of today's HR environment with the updates, reminders and insights you need to maximize your most important asset — your people. We value your feedback, so let us know what you think of this newsletter!

Here are the trends and hot topics we’re tracking this month.

Workforce Minute Book Review: Love + Work

The Workforce Strategies team heard author Marcus Buckingham speak at a recent conference, and grabbed his book, "Love + Work: How to Find What You Love, Love What You Do, and Do It for the Rest of Your Life," to learn more.

How much time have you spent learning about yourself? We spend all our lives identifying our faults and learning what not to do. On the flip side, Buckingham notes, we don’t spend nearly enough time learning about ourselves, focusing on the good aspects of our personality and figuring out what we love. In his book, Buckingham explores how to do just that.

Over the next few months, we will discuss highlights from "Love + Work" and share ways to apply them to yourself and your team. We hope these tidbits and takeaways from "Love + Work" inspire you and help you bring enjoyment to the things that you do, whether it is personal or professional. Next month, we will start with “Where Did the Love Go? An Epidemic of Lonely People,” the first section of part one, “Signs of Love.” We hope you enjoy this series — and if you’re reading along, let us know what you think!

What’s on the minds of your HR peers? Check out this recent client FAQ. 

Q: We want to offer flexible hybrid schedules, but don’t want to lose our company culture. How can we find the right balance while encouraging our employees to still show up at the office? 

A: Flexibility in the workplace is a common demand from candidates and can pose a recruiting challenge for companies who don’t offer it. A Gallup survey from August 2022 found that 60 percent of employees capable of doing their jobs remotely want a long-term hybrid work arrangement. We’re also seeing more major companies, including Starbucks, Disney, Citigroup and Apple, requiring their employees to work from an office for a specified number of days per week.

So how can employers navigate these competing desires? Here are two big things we recommend to our clients:

1. Put a defined flexibility policy in your employee handbook, so employees know what it means and supervisors know how to implement and enforce it. Check out Indeed’s roundup of flexible work policy definitions, types and tips. 

2. Find creative, not punitive, ways to get team members to use office space. As a Microsoft executive notes in this Harvard Business Review guest column, “the value of the office is in the people, not the place.” Create in-person opportunities for your team to reconnect and engage with colleagues, such as dedicated team days in the office, catered lunches or even theme days to encourage comradery and friendly competition between departments.

…the new standard mileage rate?

Each year, the IRS sets a standard mileage rate for business transportation or travel. For 2023, this rate increased by three cents to a rate of 65.5 cents per mile.

…Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has a new location/address?

Effective February 13, the Workers’ Comp Bureau moved to the PA Department of Labor & Industry headquarters. Please update your records with this new mailing address: Department of Labor & Industry, Bureau of Workers' Compensation, 651 Boas Street, 8th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17121-0750

…the minimum wage increased in 23 states and Washington, D.C.?

More than eight million workers started the year with a new hourly pay rate, as 23 states and D.C. raised their minimum wage. Get more information on these increases (which range from 23 cents to $1.50 per hour) in this post from the Economic Policy Institute. And make sure you understand all of the minimum wage rates in the states where you operate — use this tool from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Deadline to Provide 1095 Forms Permanently Extended

The IRS recently announced a permanent extension to the deadline for employers to provide Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to employees. Starting with the 2022 tax year, employers now have until March 2, 2023, to provide the applicable forms — 30 days later than the January 31 deadline from prior years. In addition to following the new timeline, get more tips for Affordable Care Act reporting in 2023 in this post from the Society for Human Resource Management. 

AI Recruiting and Screening Tools Coming Under Regulatory Scrutiny

Many employers are tapping into screening tools that rely on artificial intelligence and algorithms to determine whether applicants meet minimum job requirements. As this practice becomes more frequent, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and several state and location governments are taking a closer look. The biggest concern is that this could lead to bias or discrimination in the hiring process. Learn more in this post from myHRcounsel. If your company is using these types of tools, here are a few quick reminders to maintain compliance with anti-discrimination laws and regulations:

• Understand the laws or regulations around the use of AI screening tools in all of your locations.
• Make sure job descriptions, postings and qualifications are aligned with objective criteria.
• If you are using these tools, consider conducting occasional bias audits to assess any disparate impact.

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