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News KNOWING EMPLOYER-RELATED LAWS IMPORTANT, EXPERT SAYS By Wes Clement/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF Today’s employers are required to act according to a number of rules when dealing with applicants and employees. Ignorance of the law can be costly, an employment specialist said. Freddy Jacobs, manager of the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services’ Equal Opportunity Department, spoke to the West Pine Bluff Rotary Club Thursday at the Pine Bluff Country Club. “You always want to talk to the person in charge to find out what that person knows and if they know what is going on,” Jacobs said. “I’ve had situations where a person said, ‘I’m a supervisor, but I didn’t really know what’s going on’.” It is a role of management, he said, to observe what is going on among employees at the workplace and to prohibit harmful behaviors. “One thing that is important is to always try to know the law,” Jacobs said. There are local, state and federal laws dealing with monitoring workplace conduct, conducting background checks, accommodating disabled persons, sexual harassment and many other issues that employers should be aware of, he said. The ability to listen to and work with people is important when dealing with personnel complaints, he said. “Sometimes complaints are not as silly as they seem,” Jacobs said. “I had a complaint one time where there was an open area where people worked and a lady had made an imaginary office. She had put tape on the floor around her desk and she did not allow you to walk across her tape. “I thought to myself, I know this is ridiculous. Here’s a lady who has used tape to make herself an office,” he said. He said the employee explained she frequently conducted business over the phone and co-workers would often walk close to her desk talking loudly to one another. The noise, she said, made it difficult for her to hear while on the phone. “It began to make a little sense,” Jacobs said, “so I spoke with her supervisor about getting her a cubicle.” Jacobs discussed the importance of being reasonably flexible when resolving problems with employees and the proper way of firing a worker when necessary. “When you fire an employee, do it with dignity,” Jacobs said. He also discussed being mindful of how some employees may react to such a situation. Some people, he said, may become violent when fired and it is important to be aware of surroundings and safety measures when breaking the news to potentially volatile employees. |
Copyright © 2010 Stephens Media, LLC