COBRA Subsidy. By now, there's no doubt you're fully aware of the need to communicate with any recently involuntarily terminated employees about the opportunity to take COBRA continuation of benefits at a subsized rate (65% paid by Washington, 35% paid by the former employee). If you haven't quite worked through the details of getting credit for subsidies through your payroll tax processing, the latest information is available here.
FMLA Changes. Most of the changes made this winter were behind-the-scenes administrative interpretations that don't require changes to your employee handbook policy regarding FMLA (for schools with 50+ employees). However, there was one significant change (dating back to 2008, actually) that now covers certain circumstances related to caring for family members in the armed services. This change absolutely should be reflected in an updated policy statement in your employee handbook. More information is available here.
FMLA Changes, Part 2. Following from the updates to FMLA, the Department of Labor has issued new model forms for administering FMLA leaves. ISM has adapted certain of these forms for easier use within private-independent schools. If you are interested in receiving a set of these forms, please e-mail our HR Consultant, Michael Brisciana, and he will be pleased to provide them to you.
Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (or, "Is It Easier to Sue the School for Pay Discrimination Now?"). The answer, simply, is "yes." Over riding a recent Supreme Court decision, in January Congress passed, and the President signed into law provisions that re-set the statute of limitations every time a new paycheck is issued that is based on past discrimination. For example, if a female faculty member was offered a lower starting salary due to her gender when she first started teaching at the school 20 years ago, the school is still liable for potential discrimination claims—as long as she files suit within 180 days from the time she received her most recent paycheck. ISM will be providing more detailed advice for protecting the school against claims such as these in an upcoming issue of I&P. In the meantime, more information is available here.
What's on the Horizon That I Need to Be Aware of (and Concerned With)?
Overtime applies to private-independent schools, too. Washington is ramping up "wage and hour" enforcement, increasing the financial and legal risk to schools that do not pay non-exempt employees (usually clerical staff members) properly with respect to overtime (i.e., "time-and-one-half" for hours worked over 40 in one week—and/or, over eight hours in one day in certain states). If your school doesn't have proper procedures in place to record time-worked by non-exempt employees—or doesn't properly classify employees as "exempt" or "non-exempt"—NOW is the time to clean up these issues. For more information on these issues (which are governed by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act—FLSA), click here.
Doesn't Harassment Training Provoke Harassment Lawsuits? In a word, "no." To the contrary, employers (including schools) that lack harassment training programs for their administrative personnel eliminate important lines of defense for themselves if they are ever subject to a harassment claim. Some states (California, Connecticut, and Maine) require this training. ISM recommends it for ALL schools in ALL states. A wide variety of sources are available for this training (both online and in-person). A school can simply Google the term "sexual harassment training" and go from there. Given the increase in harassment and retaliation claims, this training is more vital than ever. Case in point: A private school in the mid-West was hit with a $950,000 judgment this past fall for harassment retaliation.
They Couldn't Form a Union at My School, Could They? Actually, yes—they could. This has always been true, though it has been very uncommon in the private-independent school world in general. Up until now. More information will be forthcoming in a future issue of I&P, but many are already aware of strong legislative interest in the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which would dramatically reduce the rigorous steps needed to form a union today. Schools concerned about this issue may choose to voice their opinions to their congressional representatives. Here are two more resources for additional information.
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