Here is the latest issue of “This & That” Tuesday. I hope you find it to be informative and useful.

 

Announcements

You can always check out my website for upcoming speaking engagements that are guaranteed to be of value to business owners or for a list of topics that I can speak on at Chambers, Clubs, Business Associations, etc. More details about the events, topics and Human Resources 4U, in general, can be found on my website.

 

Upcoming events are on May 23 "The Three Biggest HR Risks Effecting Business Growth" sponsored by FSRG and on June 28 "Hiring for Consistent Performance"

 

Full Day Workshop on June 25: my last HR4U 101 Workshop for 2013.

 

‘Charlie Rose’ Show Agrees to Pay Up to $250,000 to Settle Interns’ Lawsuit

Charlie Rose and his production company have agreed to pay as much as $250,000 to settle a class action lawsuit brought by a former unpaid intern who claimed minimum-wage violations.

Under the settlement Mr. Rose and his production company, Charlie Rose Inc., will pay back wages to a potential class of 189 interns. The settlement calls for many of the interns to receive about $1,100 each — $110 a week in back pay, up to a maximum of 10 weeks, the approximate length of a school semester.

 

The main plaintiff said she was not paid when she worked for the “Charlie Rose” show. She said her responsibilities at the show, which appears on PBS stations, included providing background research for Mr. Rose about interview guests, putting together press packets, escorting guests through the studio and cleaning up the green room.

 

This is the first settlement in a series of lawsuits brought by unpaid interns who asserted that they had suffered minimum-wage violations. Other such lawsuits have been filed against the Hearst Corporation and Fox Entertainment. Both companies deny that they failed to comply with wage and hour laws regarding their interns.

 

Workplace experts say hundreds of thousands of young Americans work as unpaid interns each year as they seek to gain experience in desired industries. But some interns and labor advocates believe that many employers are violating federal and state laws by using unpaid interns essentially to do the jobs of other workers and by not providing a true educational experience.

 

The $110-a-week settlement payment is based on an average internship day of six hours and an average internship week of 2.5 days. The 10-week maximum will not apply to those who interned for the show for more than one semester.

 

The lawsuit noted that unpaid internships have proliferated among many white-collar professions, including film, journalism, fashion and book publishing. As more interns have complained and the Labor Department has threatened taking action, some companies have changed their compensation policy. Fox Entertainment started paying its interns in July 2010 — most were unpaid before that — and Condé Nast adopted a policy of giving its interns a $550 stipend per semester.

 

Changes to California's Pregnancy and Disability Discrimination Regulations
Pregnancy Regulations:

When applicable, California employers must provide a “pregnancy disability leave” or PDL independent of job-protected leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), or the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

 

Employees “disabled by pregnancy” are entitled to leave, transfer to a less strenuous or hazardous position, or other reasonable accommodation. The definition of “disabled by pregnancy” now may include a pregnant employee’s inability to perform a single essential job function. Examples of “disabled by pregnancy” include conditions such as pre-natal or postnatal medical care and post-partum depression.

 

The regulations clarify that applicants and employees merely “perceived” to be pregnant, are also protected from discrimination.

 

The “intermittent leave” definition becomes more involved under the new regulations when the employee works a reduced schedule or takes leave intermittently. The new regulations coincide with the FMLA’s definition of “intermittent leave.” 

 

The regulations also provide guidance regarding the employer’s obligation to provide “reasonable accommodation” to women disabled by pregnancy. The obligation to accommodate is independent of leave, unless time off is the accommodation. The regulations require employers to engage in an interactive process to determine appropriate accommodations.

 

The regulations require employers to notify employees if they require employees to obtain medical certification of disability. 

 

Disability Regulations:

The regulations include several updates to the definition of “disability” to conform to the federal ADA Amendments Act of 2008 and the broad definition contained in Government Code Section 12926.1. The Commission added a section providing some examples of disabilities to include “chronic and episodic conditions” and even temporary disabilities. There are a few exclusions from the term “disability,” such as the common cold, mild cuts or abrasions, and the flu.

 

The regulations add guidance regarding “essential job functions” to conform to legal developments. The elements of a discrimination claim now require the employee to establish he or she can perform the job’s essential functions, with or without accommodation.

 

The Commission also added detail regarding the “interactive process” obligations for both employers and employees, which conforms to the FEHA and EEOC’s interpretative guidance. Of note, an employee’s exhaustion of CFRA or FMLA medical leave is now considered notice to the employer that the employee may need an accommodation. Additionally, the regulations specify employees’ obligations to cooperate and facilitate the employers’ requests for information from the employee and his or her healthcare provider.

 

The regulations recognize a medical leave as a form of accommodation, but expressly state employers need not provide “indefinite” leave. Employers also do not have to remove essential job functions to accommodate.

 

Not-So-Free Lunch

A caution for the companies offering free meals to employees: The Internal Revenue Service may be coming for its piece of the cake.

 

According to a Wall Street Journal article, the IRS is examining whether the free food enjoyed by employees is a fringe benefit on which they should pay additional tax.

 

According to tax rules, offering free food as a way to promote morale or attract prospective employees is considered taxable compensation, however, an exception that allows employee meals to remain untaxed if they are served for a “non-compensatory” reason for the “convenience of the employer.” This exception has typically been applied to remote workers, or those in professions in which reasonable lunch breaks aren’t feasible.

 

Assuming a fair-market value of between $8 and $10 per meal, a Google employee eating two meals on campus each workday could be looking at an extra $4,000 to $5,000 in taxes a year, according to the Journal.

 

The IRS “often takes a dim view” of employers’ claims that free food is integral to maintaining a collaborative corporate culture.

 

According to a silicon valley tax attorney, if the IRS challenges the free meal policy, employers typically settle and determine a fair-market value for the meals, which they include in employees’ future paycheck stubs. In these instances, firms frequently give employees a bump in pay, to cover their bigger tax bills.

 

A failure to carefully and correctly treat the taxation of employee meals could prove even costlier for the company. While individual employees would technically be on the hook for any unpaid back taxes, experts say the IRS is more likely to pursue the employer for failing to withhold taxes.

 

Factoids

• Only 25% of employees have met with their manager to discuss their careers
• 2/3 of employees say they aren’t receiving any feedback or recognition
• 48% of employees say that good managers are the reason they stay
• 52% of employers say they are having a difficult time filling positions
• 53% of employers provide some of their employees some type of flexible work arrangement

Quotes

“You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.”

~Henry Ford~