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Exit Interviews
Long ago, William Shakespeare penned the well-known phrase, "Parting is such sweet sorrow." In the business world, this may ring true when employees voluntarily leave an organization. Parting may be sweet for the exiting employee because they may feel they are on to greener pastures. However, for the employer this may be sorrowful because they may be losing a valuable employee without knowing the real reasons why. Employers may also miss out on the opportunity to gain feedback on what they can do to make their businesses better. Exit interviews give management an opportunity to find out why employees leave their company and those things that can improve their business. These interviews are a great opportunity to gain information on employment conditions within your company. These discussions can provide objective feedback on the conditions and patterns of management behavior that may have contributed to an employee's decision to leave. Departing employees are usually more willing and comfortable to provide information regarding what is right and wrong in the workplace. Exit interviews provide a rare glimpse of the inner workings of your company from an employee's perspective.
When Exit Interviews Are Appropriate
Most exit interviews are conducted with employees that voluntarily leave their jobs. Some companies also choose to conduct these types of interviews with employees that transfer from one department to another. Some companies also choose to conduct exit interviews with discharged employees; however, discharged employees may choose to use the interview as a chance to argue the reason for termination and may be less likely to provide unbiased feedback. Whether you choose to interview employees who voluntarily quit, fired employees, or both, be consistent in your interviewing. Develop a policy on who you will conduct interviews with, don't just pick and choose departing employees at random.
Exit interviews should be scheduled during the last day of employment or a few days before if the employee provides advance notice of their resignation. Make sure the employee is given as much notice as possible of the exit interview. If possible, provide the departing employee a written questionnaire prior to the interview so that they can think about and provide thoughtful answers during the interview. Exit interviews should be conducted face-to-face in an office or area where the employee's responses cannot be overheard by other employees. A face-to-face interview allows the interviewer to observe the employee's non-verbal cues and expressions and also allows the interviewer to ask additional follow up questions.
What to Ask
Exit interviews need to be done properly to receive the best results. It is essential that you find out the real reason the employee is leaving. The exit interview should be conducted by an individual that did not directly supervise the employee and that can provide a non-biased perspective. Your local RMI HR Representative can conduct the exit interview if requested. The person conducting the interview should not spend time trying to defend the company or its managers, but should listen carefully to what the employee says to learn from their viewpoints and opinions. Also, the exit interview is not the time to try to convince an employee to change their mind about leaving. It is also not the time to discuss whether your company will serve as an employment reference for the employee.
The exit interview should focus on what is most important to your company and how you can better meet your goals. Questions should be open ended to allow the employee to provide a detailed answer, not just yes or no. Questions should focus on:
- The employee's reason for leaving
- The employee's job expectations
- Benefits
- Compensation
- Training
- Advancement opportunities
- Management
- Company culture.
Resource Management, Inc. provides clients with an Exit Interview Form that lists several different questions that can be asked during the interview. This form can be found at www.rminc.com. The interviewer should take thorough notes throughout the interview so that the information gathered can be used later. While taking notes the interviewer should remember to make eye contact with the employee and show interest in what they are saying.
What to Do With the Information
The information gathered during an exit interview should be used to help identify areas of concern within your company. The departing employee's perception was their reality during their employment and it may also be true with current employees. Don't jump to conclusions about information you might hear. Look for trends in the information and comments that are gathered during several exit interviews; however, if an employee discloses that they were harassed or discriminated against, notify your local RMI HR Representative immediately. Once the information has been analyzed, develop a plan of action of how you are going to improve those areas that are of concern to your company. Set specific goals on how your company is going to improve in those areas and be sure to involve management and your employees in this plan for improvement.
For more information and assistance with exit interviews, contact your local RMI HR Representative. |
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| Disaster Preparedness At RMI |
Natural disasters seem to be fairly prevalent in the news lately: volcanoes and tsunamis in Japan, earthquakes across the globe, and flooding of near Biblical scale. Add to that already epic mix the always present non-natural disasters like fire and you wind up wondering whether or not you'll make it to next week. Well, how about your business? Or, more pertinently, how about the companies your business counts on, like RMI. We want you to rest assured that RMI is doing its best to ensure that your business can count on us, even if an epic-sized disaster befalls Salt Lake City.
At RMI, we're well aware of what some disaster could do to disrupt our business, and thereby disrupt your business. As a result, RMI has for some time now been building and implementing a business continuation plan that enables RMI to continue to operate its core functions on your behalf, even if RMI's corporate facilities in Salt Lake City are rendered unusable.
One of the ways in which we've done that is to fully utilize the capabilities of our branch offices. Because we have branch offices outside of the Salt Lake Valley (in St. George, Utah, and in Seattle, Washington), if some natural disaster were to occur in the Salt Lake Valley that would make it hard or impossible to utilize our offices here, we'd still be able to run our operations for our clients in those other locations. And, one of the methods of operation that will enable RMI to do that is that RMI has for some time now been moving some of its critical functions off-site, for example, storing information in the "cloud." In "cloud" computing, users do not download and install software applications or store data on their own server or computer. Rather, all processing and storage is maintained by the "cloud" server, which is simply a server (or many servers) maintained by a cloud provider at a remote site. By taking this step, RMI is able to ensure that it can still tap into all of its payroll, benefits, and other services' information so that it can continue to conduct its business and provide you its services in the event of a disaster.
RMI also has contact information for all of our clients, service providers, and others stored in the cloud. So, if something happens, RMI is able to access that information, regardless of what happens. It enables us to contact our clients to let them know that we're still up and running and to obtain all of the usual and necessary information to run their payrolls. It also enables us to contact all of our vendors that we count on to get our job done. Similarly, RMI's payroll software provider securely backs up all of the payroll information that RMI inputs each day. So, even if RMI's corporate office is inoperative, RMI can continue to provide its clients with payroll services from either its branch offices or some other location.
RMI has also been busy updating and improving its physical facilities. Even though RMI's corporate offices are in a building that was built to Salt Lake City's earthquake code standards, RMI has expended additional funds and taken additional steps to ensure the continuity of our services. For example, RMI recently installed a backup generator that is run on natural gas and propane and that provides enough power to run all of RMI's critical functions. So, in the event of a power failure, RMI will still be able to get your employees paid.
In short, even if we suffer some disaster here, whether it's limited to the RMI offices alone, or something that hits the entire Salt Lake City area, RMI is prepared to weather that disaster and continue to function on your behalf. We want you to know that RMI is constantly updating and upgrading its systems and procedures so that your information is secure, and our services to you will continue. |
| E-Verify Update And Reminder |
Last month's client newsletter included a discussion of E-Verify and who it applies to. Since posting that newsletter, three additional states, Alabama, Tennessee, and North Carolina have passed legislation mandating statewide participation. Alabama's law takes effect January 1, 2012 and requires new employees in the general workforce statewide to have their employment eligibility confirmed by E-Verify. Tennessee's law also takes effect January 1, 2012, followed by North Carolina on October 1, 2012, with both following a stepped process similar to Georgia's law to gradually implement E-verify for the general workforce statewide. This stepped process will be complete for Tennessee by January 1, 2013, and North Carolina by July 1, 2013.
Also, by way of reminder, E-Verify participation became mandatory for employers in Utah, and for state and federal contractors in Indiana, on July 1, 2011. For questions or concerns about how this may affect you, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| IRS Increases Mileage Rate To 55.5 Cents |
| In recognition of recent gasoline price increases, the IRS has made a special adjustment to the optional standard mileage rate for the final six months of 2011. The rate will increase to 55.5 cents a mile for all business miles driven from July 1, 2011, through December 31, 2011. Click HERE to see IRS Announcement 2011-40. |
| FUTA Rate Decreases To 0.6% |
Effective 7/1/2011, any employee who has not yet met the FUTA wage limit will be taxed at .6% (instead of .8%). |
| Reminder From RMI's Benefits Department Concerning Employee Addresses |
RMI's Benefits Department would like to remind you to encourage your employees to contact RMI when they have a change of address. Our medical, dental and vision providers, as well as John Hancock, RMI's 401k provider, receive hundreds of pieces of returned mail each month for employees who have either changed their address and have not yet notified RMI or have changed their address but not put in a forwarding order with the Post Office. In fact, John Hancock is not allowed to forward quarterly statements to participants due to the type of correspondence that is being mailed. This means that if an employee has had a recent address change, and has not notified RMI, their quarterly 401k statement will be returned to John Hancock, even if a forwarding order is in place through the Postal Service.
Items such as Explanation of Benefits from the insurance providers, benefit identification cards, important notices regarding an employee's medical or dental coverage, or correspondence concerning the 401k Plan are important items that need to be in the hands of the employees. The only way to ensure that employees are receiving these items is to insure that RMI's payroll system has their current address. Please remind your employees to contact either the RMI Payroll or Benefits Departments any time they experience a change of address so that we can update not only our internal records, but the records of the various benefit providers. |
| Safe Driving Tip |
| Distracted Driving |
As technology advances, people have more access to information than ever before. Although there are benefits, this technology can become a safety concern when it is operated by someone who is driving a vehicle. Smartphones, GPS units, audio systems, and other electronics have an increasing number of functions, making operation more difficult for the user. While driving, the use of these types of devices can be a source of distraction.
Distracted driving is any nondriving activity a person engages in while operating a motor vehicle. Such activities have the potential to distract the person from the primary task of driving and increase the risk of crashing. Most distractions fall into three categories: visual, manual, and cognitive. Visual distractions, such as reading a text message, cause a driver to look away from the road. Manual distractions such as holding a cell phone, may cause a driver to take one or both hands off the wheel. Cognitive distractions cause drivers to take their minds off the driving task. Having to make a business decision during a cell phone conversation would be an example of a cognitive distraction. Some tasks, such as texting, can involve visual, manual, and cognitive distraction. Researchers have linked all three types of distraction to degraded driving performance.
A Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety study published in 2003 concluded that"…such in-vehicle technologies (i.e., cell phones) erode performance safety margin and distract drivers from their critical primary task of vehicle control." In a study conducted by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, it was found that 80 percent of all crashes and 65 percent of all near crashes involved driver inattention caused by distracting activities. Other studies have documented slowed response times to external events, greater likelihood of missed events, and decreased lane-keeping ability and speed control.
Tips To Minimize Distracted Driving:
- Be well rested and alert before driving.
- Safely pull out of traffic when responding to or initiating email, faxes or other communication with devices that require keystrokes.
- Allow incoming calls to go to voicemail while driving.
- Do not install video entertainment systems in vehicles where you can physically see the screening while driving.
- Use hands-free interfaces whenever possible.
- Familiarize yourself with in-vehicle technologies before attempting to operate them while driving.
- While driving, do not engage in conversations that require complex thought or are emotionally difficult.
- Know your route in advance and make sure that you have a good understanding of your directions.
- Manage your time so that you do not have to multitask or drive aggressively on the road.
- Make safe driving your priority.
For additional information about safe driving, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| Workplace Safety Tip |
| Reducing The Risks Of Workplace Violence |
Workplace violence can potentially occur anywhere and at any time. On an average day, three people will be murdered on the job in the U.S. One million workers are assaulted and more than 1,000 are murdered every year, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Homicide is the second most frequent cause of death on the job, after motor vehicle accidents. You can help protect your employees, surrounding community and business reputation by reducing your risks in the workplace.
Workplace violence is categorized in one of four ways, based on the perpetrator's relationship with the company:
- Employee-related violence - the perpetrator works for or formerly worked for the same company as the victim(s) and the violence is rooted in conflict arising out of a business relationship.
- Personal relationship - the perpetrator has a personal relationship with a current or former employee (boyfriend, girlfriend, domestic partner, relative) and enters the workplace to commit a violent act against the employee or co-worker.
- Service recipient - someone who has a legitimate business reason for being on your premises (customer, client, patient, vendor) commits a violent act against one or more employees.
- No relationship - a person with no connection to your company enters the workplace to commit a violent act.
Risk Factors for Workplace Violence:
- Inadequate security
- Working alone or in small numbers
- Exchange of money with the public
- Working late at night
- Working in high-crime areas
- Guarding valuable property or possessions
- Excessive job stress
- Downsizing
- Authoritarian management styles
- Easy accessibility of firearms
- Working in a community setting (cab drivers, police, firefighters, clinic workers)
Guidelines for Managing Workplace Risk Factors:
- Provide security personnel on-site.
- Require employees to use photograph name badges to enter the building and wear them at all times. These should be retrieved immediately upon termination or resignation.
- Require visitor identification. Log all visitors both in and out and provide visitors with badges to be worn at all times.
- Provide internal emergency phone number or panic button that directs security personnel to location of emergency.
- Restrict deliveries and messengers to reception area - contact employees to receive items and prohibit undesired or unexpected items from being left on premises.
- Have a key control system in place and rekey or replace locks when keys are lost.
- Secure parking areas - provide adequate lighting and monitor with security cameras or personnel.
- Secure loading dock areas - restrict access for both employees and vendors, monitor with security cameras or personnel, and prohibit unloading of cargo until receiving personnel have checked both truck and cargo.
- Train all employees to follow company security policies and procedures.
- Background and reference check all employees.
- Establish a liaison with local law enforcement.
- Treat all employees and nonemployees with dignity and respect.
- Use nonviolent response and conflict resolution methods to defuse or de-escalate potentially violent situations.
- Call for assistance before potential situations develop.
- Take advantage of psychological support such as employee assistance programs following a workplace violence incident.
For more information on reducing the risks of workplace violence, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| To access the online Workplace Safety Training Log click here. |
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