The HR Team June 2010 Newsletter

It's June, and I'm happy to say that the school year is almost over. I know that my children need a break from school, and so do I. Why am I so happy?  One word:  project.  Every parent I know hates school projects, and my husband and I are no exception. 

This spring, our 8th grader was tasked in her English class with her first group project.  The project was to create a Romeo and Juliet themed experience.  My daughter's group decided to create a movie.  They scripted a play and then set out to record it.  Most groups consisted of two to three students.  Somehow, my daughter's group (originally) consisted of four. 

When I arrived home one day, the group had begun their "work" with eight members and a lot of empty pizza boxes.  One word went through my head "party".

Did you know that one of my favorite interview questions is "can you tell me about a time when you have worked on a team where someone doesn't pull their weight?" 

Lesson number one:  you can have too many cooks in the kitchen, especially when the kitchen has pizza.

I'm happy to say that the teacher got wind of the group and broke them up into smaller parts. My daughter's group was now her and another girl.  The girls created their script, and then filmed it on her teammate's camcorder. 

I wish that was the end of the story.  However, it turns out, that the camcorder generated a VHS tape, and the girls struggled to get the movie off the tape and onto a format that could be edited.  The camcorder was digital, but apparently no one, including the owners of the camcorder knew how to use it.  They actually weren't even aware that the camcorder was digital.  Lesson number two:  if you're going to use technology, make sure you know how to use it.

The girls struggled for quite some time, and then finally let me know, two days before the project was due.  I then downloaded the user manual and drivers for the camcorder and was able to get the movie out of the camcorder and onto a computer.  Had I known ahead of time, I could have taken the tape somewhere to have it transferred.  However, the girls were under the gun, and options were limited.  How long did it take me?  Two hours.  Lesson number three:  If you know you need help, don't wait until the last minute to ask for it.

Edits were made by the girls, and the film was transferred to a portable disc and then taken to school.  The fun doesn't end there.  Apparently, the movie was in a Microsoft format and the school's computers run on Apple.  The solution: the teacher asked to have the file converted.  For those unaware, converting a movie into another format is actually a lengthy process, and my daughter realized that she needed help. Clearly, lesson number two needed some reinforcement. When did my daughter notify me of the her need for help?  10pm that night.  Yikes, lesson number three had not sunk in yet either.  

The movie was converted.  Then, one small problem, the new file was now 7G's.  You'll be surprised to hear that we (like most households) don't own anything that could hold a file that size.  At that point, it was 11pm, and I couldn't simply head out to Staples to buy something with a larger capacity.  So the decision was made to transfer the file from our home computer to our daughter's laptop and have her take the laptop to school.  I won't bore you with details of that transfer, but let's just say an ad hoc network was created in our house to enable the transfer process.  The next day, I was reminded of the numerous file upload services that exist for large file transfers.  Lesson number four: there is always a better way. 

What have I learned?  Lesson number five:  It is better to be the parent that doesn't understand technology.  You get more sleep.

Young Adults and The Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act requires plans and issuers that offer coverage to children on their parents' plan to make the coverage available until the adult child reaches the age of 26.

The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury have issued regulations implementing the Affordable Care Act by expanding dependent coverage for adult children up to age 26. Key elements include:

·         Coverage extended to more children.

·         Effective for plan or policy years beginning on or after September 23, 2010.

·         All eligible young adults will have a special enrollment opportunity.

·         Same benefits/same price.

A detailed fact sheet can now be found on the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) website. 

Confused?  Contact The HR Team for further assistance.


Franken Amendment Bars the Use of Mandatory Arbritration Agreements for Defense Contractors

Background:  Senator Al Franken introduced the amendment in response to Halliburton/KBR's treatment of one of its employees, Jamie Leigh Jones.  Jones began working for a Halliburton subsidiary when she was 19 years old and was required to sign employment paperwork that she did not understand.  One of the papers required her to use arbitration, instead of a court or jury trial, for any claims arising from her employment.  While working in Baghdad, one of her co-workers drugged and raped her.   Halliburton confined her in a storage container without food or water until a guard allowed her to borrow a cell phone to call her father.  Her father in turn called the State Department to get her released.  The company stalled Jones' lawsuit for rape, sexual harassment, wrongful imprisonment and other claims by using its pre-employment mandatory arbitration agreement.  

Impact on Prime Contractor:  The Defense Appropriations Act, enacted on December 19, 2009, contains the Franken Amendment which prohibits the use of appropriated funds for any covered contract or subcontract in excess of $1 million awarded after February 17, 2010, unless the contractor agrees not to:

 

  • Enter into any agreement with any of its employees or independent contractors that requires, as a condition of employment, that the employee or independent contractor agree to resolve through arbitration any claim under Title VII of the CRA of 1964 or any tort related to or arising out of sexual assault or harassment, including assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, or negligent hiring, supervision, or retention; or
  • Take any action to enforce any provision of an existing agreement with an employee or independent contractor that mandates that the employee or independent contractor resolve through arbitration any claim under Title VII of the CRA of 1964 or any tort related to or arising out of sexual assault or harassment, including assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, or negligent hiring, supervision, or retention.

This does not apply with respect to employment contracts that may not be enforced in the U.S.

 

The Amendment further states that any contract awarded, modified, or under which performance will continue beyond June 17, 2010 thereby using FY 2010 funds, the contractor must certify that all covered subcontractors (with a subcontract exceeding $1 million), agree not to enter into, or take action to enforce such arbitration agreements.

 

Contractor Preparation:  If you are a defense contractor, we suggest that you:

  • Determine if you are a recipient of DoD FY 2010 funds in excess of $1 million as a prime or subcontractor;
  • Identify whether your organization requires employees to agree to arbitration of employment claims; and if so, review your employment agreements to ensure that they are modified to comply with the new law.
  • Alert the appropriate departments to the prohibition against enforcing existing mandatory arbitration clauses.

The foregoing has been prepared for the general information of clients and friends of eQuest and Workplace Dynamics LLC. It is not meant to provide legal advice with respect to any specific matter and should not be acted upon without professional counsel. If you would like to contact Workplace Dynamics they may be reached at www.workplace-dynamics.com. 


COBRA Continuation Coverage Assistance Under ARRA

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), as amended, provides for premium reductions for health benefits under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, commonly called COBRA. Eligible individuals pay only 35 percent of their COBRA premiums and the remaining 65 percent is reimbursed to the coverage provider through a tax credit. To qualify, individuals must experience a COBRA qualifying event that is the involuntary termination of a covered employee's employment. The involuntary termination must generally occur during the period that began September 1, 2008 and ended on May 31, 2010. (An involuntary termination of employment that occurs on or after March 2, 2010 but by May 31, 2010 and follows a qualifying event that was a reduction of hours that occurred at any time from September 1, 2008 through May 31, 2010 is also a qualifying event for purposes of ARRA.) The premium reduction applies to periods of health coverage that began on or after February 17, 2009 and lasts for up to 15 months.

Further details can be found on the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) website. 

Sometimes The Obvious Isn't Obvious

Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson were on a camping trip. They had gone to bed and were lying awake looking up at the sky. Holmes said: "Watson, look up. What do you see?"

"I see thousands of stars," he said. "And what does that mean to you?" Holmes continued.

"I suppose it means we will have another nice day tomorrow. What does it mean to you, Holmes?"

"To me, Watson, it means someone has stolen our tent."  







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