Shortly after I started my career in HR I met with an employee who was in the progressive discipline process for attendance issues. In the meeting, we were trying to help her get to the root of the problem when she confided in me that her attendance issues were the result of an abusive relationship with her boyfriend. Being new to HR, I wasn’t sure what to do. I connected her with a local domestic violence shelter and offered a personal leave for her to get the assistance that she needed. It wasn’t enough. She was murdered not long after our meeting. I always wished I could have done more in that situation and have worked to have better success with employees suffering from abuse since then. HR professionals are often in a unique position to identify employees who need help and to guide them to the appropriate resources. Here are some signs that an employee is being abused: • Unusual or frequent absences • Unexplained bruises or injuries • Significant changes in work performance • Noticeable fatigue If you notice these signs, ask the employee if they need help. They may or may not share details of their situation with you, but you can still provide them with contact information for an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), a local shelter like the YWCA, or mental health services. Do not try to function as their therapist unless you are qualified and authorized to do that work. If you believe that they are in immediate danger, report the situation to the police and take steps to protect them and your other employees in the workplace. Finally, identifying abuse can require attention to subtle changes in an employee’s performance and demeanor. Be on the lookout for the signs. You might just save a life.

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

Meet Kevin Brozovich, energetic entrepreneur, people-focused team-builder and HR practitioner-turned consultant. For almost 10 years, Kevin was Founder and Chief People Officer of HRM Innovations, a Kalamazoo-based Human Resources consulting firm many would consider the top in the region. After pulling his hair out making daily decisions about running the business (does it matter where the coffee comes from?), Kevin joined forces with the Rose Street Advisors team so he could solely focus on what he loves most: working with clients.

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Michigan Earned Sick Time & Minimum Wage Acts (published 1.27.23)

HOLD YOUR HORSES!

Just one week ago, the blog below was published stating that businesses should prepare for the likely implementation of the original ballot initiative language relating to the Michigan Earned Sick Time and Michigan Minimum Wage Increase.
Well, hold your horses! Yesterday, the Michigan Appeals Court overturned the initial decision reimplementing these two acts effective February 19th.
What happens now? Nothing for the moment. There will likely be a ‘homestretch’ appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court, but until then, there will not be any change to the Paid Medical Leave Act or Michigan’s Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act of 2018 as enacted. Employers in compliance with the 2018 Acts do not need to make any changes.
Is this the finish line? Stay tuned! We’ll keep you posted on the latest.

Michigan Earned Sick Time Act Update (published 1.17.23)

Chances are you’ve heard about the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act and are thinking, “isn’t this already in effect?” Well, yes and no. Let’s start with a short history lesson to bring us up to where we are today.

In 2018, a petition drive was headed to successfully get both a minimum wage proposal and a provision for earned sick time on the ballot for the fall election. The legislature at that time decided to adopt the ballot proposals, making the ballot initiatives unnecessary. The initiatives were dropped and the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act and the minimum wage standard were adopted. Then, during the lame duck session after the election, the legislature significantly changed the acts by passing the Paid Medical Leave Act and Michigan’s Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act of 2018. Several groups filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of those Acts arguing that the legislature usurped the rights of the people to implement a ballot initiative. The court agreed, struck down the two new acts and said that the ballot initiatives, as written, would go into effect on February 19, 2023.

What does this decision mean? If unchanged, the original ballot initiative language of the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act and Michigan Minimum Wage Increase Initiative increase will go into effect. Since the Michigan Attorney General has voiced support of the Court of Claims Judge Shapiro’s decision to reinstate the original ballot initiative language, the chance for legislative intervention under the Whitmer administration is highly doubtful. This case now rests with the three judge panel at the Michigan Court of Appeals. Attorneys have requested a decision by February 1^st so that employers have time to react, but there is no guarantee that the court will respond by then.

What should employers be doing?

Our advice is review your policies to see if they are in compliance with the new requirements. Most larger organizations will find that they already are. If not, you should prepare a plan to implement policies bringing your organization into compliance with the original provisions of the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act and the revised minimum wage. You can then wait until at least February 1^st before implementing those changes to your policy to be effective February 19^th.

Here's what is required by the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act:

• Employees accrue one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked.

• Organizations with more than 10 employees: Must provide the opportunity to earn at least 72 hours of paid sick leave annually.

• Organizations with fewer than 10 employees: Must provide the opportunity to earn at least 72 of hours of sick leave.

40 hours of it must be paid, the remaining 32 hours can be unpaid.

• Employers can limit employees from using paid sick time until after their 90^th day of employment.

• Employers do not have to pay out unused paid leave balances upon the termination of employment.

Here's how the Michigan minimum wage would change:

• The new rate would be $13.03 per hour, up from the current $10.10 per hour.

• The rate for tipped workers would increase from $3.84 per hour to 90% of the full minimum wage, equaling $11.73 per hour.

While nothing is certain, the questions asked by the appeals court would suggest that they will uphold the decision of Judge Shapiro. We won’t know the outcome until at least February 1^stand there may be an appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court following that. Our recommendation is to prepare for the changes now, but not to implement them, unless you want to, until there is a formal decision.

We’ll keep you posted on the latest decisions as they occur.

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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The end of the year is traditionally the time to plan for compensation adjustments. This year, with the competitive job market and inflation at 7.7%*, there is a whole new level of angst as employers try to determine how much to adjust wages for 2023. The Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) predicts a 2023 compensation budget increase of 4.6%. While notably higher than the recent year average, this is still significantly less than the cost of inflation for the second year in a row. That means employees will continue to feel the pinch until inflation slows down. The danger is if employees take advantage of the tight job market to increase their income by moving to a new organization. Worse, A SHRM survey of what increases HR professionals think employees want in 2023 came in at 8-10%. Market compensation rates have also been impacted by the opportunity to work remotely. This means that a professional position based out of California, can be performed in Michigan where the cost of living is significantly cheaper. While this may be a cost savings for California based organizations, it increases competition and wage rates for our local talent pool. What does that mean for us? Make certain that you are competitive by looking at the market compensation rates by position to see where you stand. Every year, some positions command higher increases than others. Using good quality data to assess the market is critical to determining appropriate compensation levels. Also, that 4.6% average compensation budget will go further if you focus on the high value and least competitive positions in your workforce versus using a blanket increase approach. Not all is doom and gloom. Remember that compensation is an employee satisfier, not a motivator. If you have a great culture, value your employees, and reasonably compensate them, they are likely to stay in a role where they feel that they belong, even if they could earn a few more bucks down the road. 2022 has been another tough year for leaders. Here’s wishing each of you a restful holiday season. We look forward to seeing each of you back and recharged in 2023. Happy Holidays! *US CPI all items 12 months ending 10/22

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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Picture your employment posters. Are they in the employee entrance? By the coffee pot or in the cafeteria? You know you love them and willingly fork over the subscription fees for endless reminders that you need to keep them up to date. Well, the bad news is that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) just issued a new poster titled “Know Your Rights” which is intended to replace the “EEO is Law” poster. Before you run out and buy a new poster set, remember that Michigan’s minimum wage has not yet been completely settled. Buying that updated, “all in one” poster might need to wait a bit. Fortunately, you can download an updated poster from the EEOC for free on their website at: https://www.eeoc.gov/poster. You can use this to add to your existing poster and be in compliance. Have an HR question? We’d love to help!

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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If you are like most businesses, October is prime time for budget development. For those employees who earn close to the minimum wage, the question is how much will we need to pay them in 2023? Let’s start with a little history. Back in 2018, there were two ballot initiatives, one started by Michigan One Fair Wage and one by Michigan Time to Care. The first advocated increasing the minimum wage rate to $12.00 per hour, the latter required employers to provide paid sick time. After successful petition drives to get the proposals on the ballot, the legislature adopted them prior to the election so they were not included in the vote. During the end of the year lame duck session, the legislature significantly modified both and implemented them as the Michigan Paid Medical Leave Act and the Michigan Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act. Both of those Acts were overturned by the July court decision which ruled them unconstitutional. Where does that leave us? Michiganders now have until February 19^th 2023, to come into compliance with the original ballot initiatives. While there is an appeal, it is not clear that anything will change. We will monitor the situation and keep you posted. In the meantime, you will likely want to budget for a $12.00 minimum wage instead of basing your increases off the existing $9.87 minimum.

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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I wear fun socks. I wear socks that have bright colors, tropical fish, palm trees, flamingos, fun jokes, and big dots. Last month I presented at a local chamber meeting, wearing socks with pictures of our building on it. While there, the question of why I wear fun socks and publish a blog with that name came up. Here’s the story of why we do what we do. When we started HR consulting, our blog was called HR Hot Topics. In 2015 we recognized what a snoozer that was and decided to rebrand our blog into something more relevant to business leaders. That’s where the name Fun Socks comes in. As a business owner at that time, I learned that running a business could be an all-consuming endeavor. If I wasn’t working on the business, I was worrying about it. As my wife told me at the time: “You’re stressed when business is too busy, stressed when it is too slow, and it is never in the middle.” That is not healthy or sustainable and wasn’t leading to the best results for our customers. When I attended a presentation by a company who sold cool socks, it got me thinking. We all need some levity in our lives. Why not do it with a splash of color and use socks as a reminder of the importance of doing something fun every day? That’s when I started wearing fun socks and used them to encourage others to embrace a positive approach to leadership, starting with themselves. The past two years have been especially tough on business leaders. Taking some time to care for ourselves is critical to being able to support the needs of our teams. At Rose Street, one of our core values is “Fun people creating a fun place to work.” What could be better than doing that through your socks? What are you doing to keep focused, stay refreshed, and in a good space personally? Share your tips with us, we’d love to hear!

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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Have you talked about compensation with your employees lately? Chances are that you have, and it was not an easy conversation for either party. What’s driving these challenges?

As of the end of May, the reported rate of inflation was 8.6%. Consumer prices were up 8.5%. Those are budget breaking numbers for many families. On the flip side, compensation increase rates are averaging in the 3.0 to 3.4% range for 2021 into 2022. Less than half the rate of inflation. Nationwide, our unemployment rate is 3.6% making it a job seeker’s market.

Employers are feeling the same economic pressures as their employees as expense costs rise and employees look to them for compensation increases to relieve their financial stress. Paying employees more may not be feasible or sustainable, but losing employees is also expensive when you consider the cost of sourcing, recruiting, and training new employees and the impact of losing their institutional knowledge. With these rates, employees are finding it advantageous to move to a new organization to increase their earnings. Employers are struggling to hire new talent while maintaining their internal equity.

Is there a good solution? Yes, but it’s not simple. First off, while compensation is important, it’s only one factor in the employment relationship. If you don’t have a healthy work environment, employees aren’t likely to stay regardless of compensation. Some of the nontangible factors that way into the employment decision for employees that don’t break the bank include:

Provide a Positive Work Environment

- Employees appreciate a positive work environment that recognizes the value they bring to the team and encourages them in their work.

Make the Work Interesting

- We must do the filing at some point, but there are ways to make certain that there is variety in the assignments and employees have opportunities to learn new skills.

Offer Flexible Work Arrangements

- Post covid, employees have come to expect some flexibility in their work arrangements to provide for a good work life balance. Demonstrate enough trust in them to do their work productively while flexing hours/locations when feasible.

Create a Team-Based Atmosphere

- We crave connections. Building a team-based work environment by bringing people together in intentional ways is powerful.

Make a Difference in People's Lives

- We want to know that our work has meaning and makes a difference. If your employees aren’t on the front line where they see the impact directly, make certain to communicate the results to them.

If you are looking at your compensation options, know that an employee who is compensated at or near the market is unlikely to leave unless they are motivated to look by one of the intangible factors. Some compensation options to consider:

Know the Compensation Rates for Your Market

- If you know the current market rates, you can make better quality compensation decisions for your employees to ensure that they are at or near the market.

Pay at the Midpoint of the Market

- If you can, pay at the midpoint of the market. That makes you competitive in the market and sends a message to your employees that you value them. An employee at the midpoint is going to be less inclined to entertain other options.

Consider Bonus Options

- Inflation isn’t going to last forever, so increasing your base compensation rates may not be the best long-term bet. Consider offering an incentive option to help your employees keep up without committing your firm to a long-term fixed cost.

Finally, our current compensation challenges are impacting the budgets of both employees and businesses. Keeping clear lines of communication about your compensation strategy can help keep everyone on the same page.

What creative solutions have you implemented at your organization? We’d love to hear what’s working for you!

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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Are Your Employees Happy at Work?

We all have those days. Maybe it’s the Monday after a long weekend when you keep hitting the snooze button, or the Friday of a painfully long week when it’s challenging to drag yourself into the office. We know what that’s like and whether we like it or not, we know that our employees face the same challenges. We’ll never eliminate those days, but what if we could reduce their frequency? How would that impact the engagement and productivity of your team?

Our customers routinely ask about things they can do to improve the workplace and their culture. And, let’s be honest, we want to know how to be happy at work for our own benefit as well.

Since this is such a complex topic and an evolving area, we reached out to an expert and have invited her in to help us make sense of how we can best support our employees. Dr. Tracy Brower is a Sociologist and the Vice President of Workplace Insights for Steelcase. She is also the author of the books “The Secrets to Happiness at Work” and “Bringing Life to Work.”

One area that that tops her list for employee engagement is the need for a sense of purpose. In her book, “The Secrets to Happiness at Work” Dr. Brower states that to be engaged, employees want to have a sense of purpose. That sense of purpose looks like this:

1. Feeling connected to something larger than yourself

2. Knowing your work matters to that bigger purpose

3. Knowing your works importance to people

She goes further to state that employees want to know how they impact the bottom line, but more importantly, knowing how they affect people is what gets them out of bed in the morning without hitting the snooze button.

Another aspect to engaging employees is providing a comfortable work environment. When we ask people to come back to the office, we need to make certain it’s a comfortable environment that meets employees’ varying needs. Those needs are different for each employee and can even change throughout the course of the workday. Doing some brainstorming? Get with the team and collaborate in front of the whiteboard. Writing a report, a blog, or doing data analysis? Give them a quiet distraction free place to go focus. Different industries and workplace cultures have unique needs as well.

Want to learn more about how to keep your employees happy at work? We will be co-hosting a lunch presentation with Dr. Brower on Thursday, June 2^nd here in Kalamazoo. Please join us for a conversation about how employee expectations have changed and what will make the work experience both magnetic and compelling. Dr. Brower will share research on fundamental human needs, what people want from their workplace, and how to lead not only to engage, but also to inspire.

Here's the link to register for the lunch:

The Future of Hybrid Work: Leading for Engagement and Inspiration (bronsonhealth.com)

We hope you can join us!

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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Relationships Are Foundational

Whether internal or external, our business works when it's personal.

At Rose Street the phrase “Relationships are Foundational” is one of our core values. Taken at face value, it’s hard to argue that our relationships with others are critical. They are, but there’s a lot more to it than that. My wife and I recently had a funny conversation about trust and driving. In it, I stated that I trust her to drive, once we’re out of the garage (there might be some history there…). But it brings up a good point. Relationships are so important to us that we are willing to sacrifice ability for trust. In many cases we would rather have help from someone we like and trust than from someone we don’t know as well, but who has greater skills. For us, the sweet spot is knowing the boundaries of our expertise. Fortunately, at Rose Street we have a team of dedicated professionals knowledgeable in the fields of Human Resources, Employee Benefits, Wealth Management, and Life Insurance. We also have a network of community connections with experts in other fields. When a customer comes to us with a question, we know when to answer and when to refer, internally or externally, to a source who can help. We believe that building and retaining trusting relationships is only achieved by consistently providing high quality, friendly and responsive support. As much as I do trust Tami to drive (once we’re out of the garage), I would not trust her to fly a plane. Fortunately, we know where to find experts for that.

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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Energizing Your Pandemic Fatigued Employees

Let’s face it, we’re all tired of talking about the pandemic. But it’s still here and it’s giving leaders a run for their money. Usually, stressful situations are more short term. Something bad happens, we find a way through it, and we’re back on our way again. Two years in, that’s just not true for this. During 2021, SHRM reported that 75% of employees reported feeling burned out and 78% said that their mental health was negatively impacted by the pandemic and surrounding events. That’s not the recipe we usually think of for energizing our employees. Ironically, some employers tried to reinvigorate their teams during the quarantine with more virtual meetings, happy hours, etc., but then received pushback that another virtual meeting wasn’t the solution for employees who are tired of Zoom. In person gatherings created their own concerns for employees who did not feel safe attending. So what can we do? As employers, the last thing we want to do is to turn our backs on the time we’ve spent developing a positive culture. But this one is a real challenge. A couple of things to consider if you want to rebuild those energy levels:

Check in with your team members regularly. Even if you aren’t fixing anything, letting your employees know that you are checking in on their well being will go a long way to showing them you care. That helps. A lot.
Offer resources. Let your employees know what options are available for mental health coverage in your benefits plan. If you offer an EAP, remind employees of the resources there as well.
Meet employees where they are: Have some extroverts on your team who can’t stand another day at home? Provide opportunities for them to meet, gather, and connect. Have employees who are immunocompromised or who are concerned about avoiding Covid? Make certain that you keep the appropriate safety measures and options in place for them.
Be flexible. If two years of surprises has taught us anything, it’s that we should expect more surprises in the future. That may include new ways of doing business, new ways of working, etc. Be flexible and willing to try new things.

Kevin Brozovich

SPHR | CHIEF PEOPLE ADVISOR

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