This audio conference was recorded on Thursday - March 12, 2009

Credits:

This program has been approved for 1.5 recertification credit hours toward PHR and SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI homepage at www.hrci.org. The use of this seal is not an endorsement by HRCI of the quality of the program. It means that this program has met HRCI’s criteria to be pre-approved for recertification.

Description:

Many employers swear by flexible work options, such as flextime and alternative workweeks, to keep their workers happy these days. With rising gas prices, a souring economy, and higher stress levels at home, these “work-life balance” strategies can help you attract and retain the best talent. They can also help cut your HR costs by reducing turnover and absenteeism, decreasing benefits expenses, and increasing productivity.

But you need to be careful. Flexible work options can wreak havoc if they’re not implemented and managed carefully; many workers simply aren’t responsible enough to handle them. You can easily run afoul of wage and hour rules and other employment laws. And, surprisingly, more employees these days say they feel forced to pick up the slack for co-workers who are taking advantage of these new work options.

Learn the latest strategies for introducing and expanding flexible work schedules during this 90-minute audio conference recording. Our expert will explain why these scheduling options work for many employers in a tough economy and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Speaker(s):

Theresa Murphy, PHR, is the principal consultant for HR Partners, an independent human resources advisory firm based in North Carolina. She launched her own consultancy after more than a decade of experience in delivering human resources results for both small and large companies. The firm’s services range from planning and launching human resources departments, preparing employee handbooks, and developing policies to payroll procedures, compliance audits, recruitment, and benefits programs. She earned her undergraduate degree at Johnson & Wales University.

You and your colleagues will learn:

• How flexible work schedules can boost your bottom line - from fewer unscheduled absences to lower-than-expected benefits expenses
• Why it may make sense to adopt these strategies in your workplace - and how you can deal with the most common objections
• How to analyze your workforce’s needs for flexible work options and weigh the costs and benefits of changing your schedules
• Why it’s critical to set up equitable policies for flexible schedules that actually work in the real world
• How to pitch schedule changes to your organization’s top leaders (and train frontline supervisors to deal with them)
• Best practices for rolling out flexible work options to your employees, communicating your new policies, documenting their use, and preventing abuse
• How you can minimize the administrative burdens of flexible schedules and track them accurately
• The legal issues you must address with flexible work arrangements, including the accurate reporting of hours worked by nonexempt employees to the use of flextime as a possible accommodation for a disabled worker
• Practical solutions for the most common problems posed by flexible schedules - from staffing your operations during core hours to avoiding overtime claims created by unexpected absences