As a company grows from a one person operation into the tens of employees, the owner has to consider creating a human resources department within the organizational structure. The human resources department deals with identifying corporate needs and matching human resources to deliver those needs.
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) promulgates rules related to minimum wages, compensation related to overtime, and recordkeeping requirements. The Act also defines the terms ‘Exempt’ and ‘Non-Exempt’ employees related to overtime.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) is a federal law that protects workers age 40 and older. It is administered and enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The goal of the Act is to provide equal opportunity for citizens age 40 and older. The Act does generally exclude small businesses and this article is written to guide the small business owner, specifically the human resources manager in regards to the impact the Act has on your small business operation.
The employee manual is a guidebook and a tool to explain the policies and procedures for the small business operation. It addresses the basic expectations for performance and conduct of the employee. The manual is only a guide and the employee needs to understand its importance in the overall corporate policies and procedures hierarchy.
Every service related business wants to maximize the hours the staff bills or provides services to customers. When they are working, the business gets to bill for time and generate revenue. Maximum revenue means the best chance at creating the highest profit.
The primary goal of the Human Resources Department is to match the best person to the job in the company. This maximizes both effectiveness and efficiency for the company. In order to achieve the best matching of resources to the positions in the company, the human resources director should develop a position profile. This profile identifies the job title, describes the job in detail, pinpoints the best hours of work, defines the duties, and sets out the skills needed to perform the job.
I laugh at the definition of labor costs because in my opinion the so called experts only have it half right. Labor costs are more than just gross wages and benefits. It should include the costs of insurance, employer taxation, human resources management and incentives. All of the costs associated with delivering the human element of service should be included. Let’s explore these costs from the most expensive to the least.
