You Want Me to Investigate WHO?

Posted on September 26, 2011 by awest

If you have ever been asked to investigation the CEO, VP, or other high level employee you know it can be quite challenging.

On Wednesday, I will be delivering a 90-minute webinar on the practical and legal implications of investigating a C-level employee, public or elected official or member of the legal or human resources department.

You’ll Learn:

  • Best practices for conducting this type of investigation, including who to involve and what to report
  • Tips for overcoming the legal issues associated with investigations of high-level or sensitive employees, attorneys or officials including:
    • Privilege issues
    • Confidentiality
    • Conflict of interest
    • Ethical obligations
  • Strategies for avoiding negative publicity as a result of the investigation

Plus in this webinar format, you can ask questions via the online chat function without having to reveal your organization or name.

I hope you will join me.

http://thompsoninteractive.com/site/offer.jsp?promo=00119666&priority=00295101316

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Dig deeper during your investigation interview

Posted on September 8, 2011 by awest

I will be delivering a three-hour session on How to Conduct a Legal, Thorough Work Workplace Investigation at the annual California Employment Law Update Conference in Berkeley on November 2.  As part of the promotion, I was asked to share what common investigator mistakes I frequently see and wanted to share some of my observations.

The most common mistake I see is that investigators don’t dig deep enough during the investigation interview.  For example, the complainant is a white 55 year old female.  She describes feeling “uncomfortable” with the alleged wrongdoer.  Most investigators will simply write down “uncomfortable” without asking what the person specifically meant by “uncomfortable.”  The complainant may have an entirely different definition than the investigator who is a 35 year old Hispanic male.  Or, a 25 year old white female.  Why is this important? You need to know what the words mean to the witness.  When you query the witness she explains,  ”I was scared, nervous. I was afraid for my safety.”  Okay – now you are getting somewhere. Her definition is a bit more extreme that you might have anticipated and gives great insight into what she was feeling.  By asking the witness to more fully describe a particular word you will be able to dig deeper and find out more about the facts.  If you had neglected to probe further you might miss – or misinterpret – what the witness is telling you.

Another common mistake I often see is when the investigator has not remained neutral. He or she comes to the table with some bias towards one of the witnesses, the complainant or the alleged wrongdoer.  It could be the investigator is too close to the situation, knows the parties too well or has preconceived notions about the parties because of past experience.  Staying objective is a critical part of conducting an effective investigation.

A third common mistake I see, and one that has a potentially perilous outcome for the employer, is when the investigator reaches a conclusion too early.  This happens when the investigator is engaging in the second mistake noted above – they are biased.  The investigator feels he or she knows what happens and does not conduct a thorough investigation.  They stop too early, don’t attempt to get corroboration, and worse yet, make assumptions without gathering all the facts.

Stay tuned for future posts about other investigation mistakes. Please share any common mistakes you see!

To register or learn more about the California Employment Law Update: http://celuonline.com/workshops/


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Me, too!

Posted on September 6, 2011 by awest

Put your seatbelts on, it’s going to be a rocky ride – it just got a little easier for a plaintiff to make his or her harassment case.

On August 9, 2011, the California Court of Appeal ruled in Pantoja v. Anton (No. F058414), that a plaintiff may present evidence the defendant engaged in harassing conduct towards others to make their case even if the conduct occurred outside of the plaintiff’s presence and at times when the plaintiff was not even employed.

This case has many implications with the most significant being seemingly unrelated conduct will now go into the plaintiff’s bucket of evidence.  The example I use in my harassment training is that I look at everyone in the workplace as having an invisible basket on their back.  My hope for everyone is that only good things go in that basket – compliments, rewards, acknowledgements of solid performance.  Alternatively, the basket can be filled with harassing, derogatory or discriminatory comments, inappropriate jokes, touches and a variety of other “unwelcome” conduct.  If the basket gets too heavy, the employee, or shall I say the soon-to-be plaintiff will have an easier time making their claim because they will have satisfied the “severe or pervasive” prong of the harassment cause of action.

The Pantoja case helps that basket get filled faster and with potentially more dangerous evidence.  Remember who sits on a jury: twelve pissed-off employees.  So, the more evidence the jury sees that the defendant – your employee – engaged in a pattern of bad behavior, well, you know how the story ends.

Here are a few tips to minimize risk:

1.   Investigate complaints even if someone did not experience the harassment first-hand.  Often HR professionals or investigators will not investigate a complaint where the witness did not experience the harassment first-hand.  Big mistake.  Remember, once you learn of inappropriate conduct you are on notice.  Investigate all claims whether first-hand, second-hand or rumor.

2.  Pay attention to those who have witnessed harassment. During the course of your investigation in you gather information that several witnesses observed the inappropriate conduct.  Or heard about it.  Remember to follow-up with these witnesses periodically to make sure they have not been the recipient of the unwelcome bad conduct themselves.

3.   Stop the bad behavior.  Don’t ignore complaints because you may not trust the complainant, or you think the complainant is a whiner.  Whiners can spend your settlement money just as easily as a more credible complainant.  Don’t ignore complaints against rainmakers, those in the “C” suite or those who wield power.  The law doesn’t say you have to fire everyone that has misbehaved – you must stop the bad behavior and make sure it doesn’t happen again. Protect your employees and create a safe and respectful workplace.

If you have any questions about this case, or need any help with investigations or training, please give me a call.

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HR = Customer Service

Posted on July 21, 2011 by awest

I really don’t mean to rub it it but I am writing this blog entry from Paris. Yes, France. I am on a two week vacation with my 8 year old son. I don’t speak French and although I have my handy book of French phrases and words, I am utterly pathetic when it comes to speaking the language. I have to say the French people have been very kind and helpful to us as we navigate our way around this amazing City.

This got me thinking about what that new hire must feel like the first week (or longer) on the new job. They start off feeling excited, pumped up, confident with their abilities to prove themselves and master the job. But then comes the data overload: meetings, orientations, more meetings, introductions, handbooks and all the rest that goes into trying to “fit in.” This is where you come in.

HR is really that new hire’s Customer Service Rep. You are the welcoming committee, the ones who help that new hire get acclimated and safely on their employment journey. Here are a few tips amd questions to think about:

1. Is your on boarding program accomplishing everything it needs to in order to help that new hire feel welcome? Similar to being in a foreign country, your new hires are learning some new words and phrases and customs particular to your company Md need continuing assistance along the way.

2. Do you think like Customer Service? Do you offer your help over and over again? Or, do you simply pass that person over to their manager after the orientation and move on to the next person?

3. Do you have a buddy system set up for new hires? I remember a job I started in 1990 as a paralegal. On the first day my manager and I went to lunch with someone she had selected to help me learn the ropes. Well, that person, my pal Maureen, has been one of my dearest friends since that day.

4. Have you checked your company”s culture lately? What does it take to “fit in?”. In most of my presentations I mention the recent Google case in California where one of the big issues was the manager often stating that Brian Reid just wasn’t a “culture fit.” while the Reid case involved age discrimination focusing cultural fits can certainly cover several protected characteristics.

5. Are your senior execs, including the CEO involved in your orientations? While the President of France didn’t seek out to make me feel welcome in his country, having your senior execs involved sends an amazing message to your workforce. I remember reading many years ago about the President of Southwest Airlines who attended all new hire orientations to introduce himself and to welcome everyone to the company. Wow.

Just a few thoughts on how HR is Customer Service. Send me your thoughts.

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Document, Document, Document

Posted on July 10, 2011 by awest

Everyone knows the importance of proper documentation. The only problem is…it’s hard to do. If you missed seeing my presentation on documentation at the Annual SHRM Conference, it’s not too late…

Please join me on Thursday, July 14 at 1:00 EST for this 90-minute webinar where I will help you delve deeper into “bulletproofing” your documentation.  Gain tips and tools to improve your notetaking during coaching and counseling sessions, as well as during investigation and hiring interviews.  The webinar will include information on preparing “new,” “improve” and “continue” statements for performance management, tightening up your action plans, and words to avoid.  You will also learn how to document delicate discussions concerning leaves of absence, disability and religious accommodation requests.

http://thompsoninteractive.com/site/offer.jsp?promo=00114446&priority=00295101041

 

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Is there a Weiner in your workplace?

Posted on June 20, 2011 by awest

Ok, the jokes are everywhere about now former Sen. Weiner.  But, as professionals focused on workplace issues, I encourage you to sit back and ask yourself if you could have an Anthony Weiner in your midst.  Many of you provide your employees with a smartphone, laptop, maybe even a tablet.  With social media in every aspect of our lives you can’t ignore the fact that someone like Sen. Weiner is in your midst.

So, be smart and protect yourself. Here are some tips on what to do:

  1. Have a policy.
    1. One size policy does not fit all so you will need to customize to your industry, business and work environment
    2. Cover all forms of online communication and conduct
    3. Decide what, if any, use of social networking sites are permitted during working hours or on employer devices, systems, etc.
    4. Reduce any expectation of privacy stating you have the right to monitor company property at any time
  2. Prohibit
    1. Any conduct that violates a federal, state or local law
    2. Refrain from posting anything abusive, obscene, defamatory, threatening, discriminatory, harassing, abusive, hateful, or embarrassing to a fellow employee, vendor or customer
    3. Employees from revealing confidential or proprietary information
    4. Client names, technologies, trade secrets
    5. Personal information of other employees
    6. Use of employer logos / uniforms / brands
    7. All postings must respect copyright, privacy, fair use, financial disclosure, and other applicable laws
  3. Do not restrict protected activities (i.e., employee speech relating to working conditions)
  4. Warn about possible disciplinary action if the policy is violated
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Welcome

Posted on June 17, 2011 by awest

Welcome to my new blog and the first of many blog posts.  This post is dedicated to what I love to do: speak.  Give presentations. Train. I love it all. I am very excited that I will be heading to Sin City (Las Vegas) to speak at the upcoming SHRM Annual Conference.

Several years ago I delivered a program at the 2008 SHRM Annual Conference in Chicago called Creating Bulletproof Documentation. I figured the program would attract a small audience as most HR professionals probably have a handle on documentation. SHRM viewed the program the same way.  We were both wrong. The program was standing room only 30 minutes before I was scheduled to start.  What I learned is that HR professionals, managers and everyone else in between are hungry for tips and tools about how to properly create documentation that will withstand the scrutiny of a judge, governmental agency or those twelve pissed-off employees who will render a verdict.  Since 2008, I have delivered that program dozens of times.

So, permit me to introduce my newest documentation program that I will be delivering on Monday, June 27 at 10:45 called Document, Document, Document.  This program will delve deeper into helping you perfect your documentation.  I will cover how to effectively write new, continue and improve statements and how to focus and provide more detail in an action plan.  Of course, no documentation program would be complete if I didn’t provide you many words and phrases to avoid in your documentation.

I have also included a section on notetaking.  I firmly believe if we can be better notetakers we can more accurately document events, incidents or whatever we need to in order to keep accurate records of what happens in the workplace.

On Tuesday, June 28 at 10:45 I will deliver a fun program as part of SHRM’s California track.  My program, California: The Golden State for Big HR Mistakes: What You Need to Know About Policies, Training and Key Statutes will help you maneuver the many laws and requirements here in the Republic of California.

So, if you head to the conference – stop by one of my sessions.  The conference promises to be a great experience and I look forward to seeing many of you there.

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