With the new year just a few short months away, employers will inevitably face new and emerging HR challenges and obstacles in complying with federal, state and local laws, maintaining workplace policies and managing workers.
Key 2018 Issues
In 2018, HR and employers are facing multiple challenges in the workplace. From new laws and regulations on hot button issues such as equal pay and reasonable accommodations to societal trends with the #metoo and #timesup movements, plus technological changes, employers have been forced to review their workplace policies and procedures in a meaningful way. Based on XpertHR’s survey and complimentary whitepaper, the following issues were top of mind for HR and employers:
• The Republican administration and federal issues;
• State and municipal trends;
• Workforce planning;
• Cyber breaches;
• Recruiting;
• Active shooters and workplace violence;
• Employee leaves; and
• Benefits and the ACA;
Fast Forward to 2019
When it comes to HR compliance, what does 2019 have in store? While many issues may remain the same, emerging compliance challenges will have a direct impact on the workplace and the manner in which employers conduct business.
The current presidential administration and Republican controlled federal government continue to impact numerous workplace issues including, but not limited to
• Managing the impact of immigration priorities (i.e., travel ban, hiring visa workers, increased enforcement efforts and audits);
• Understanding federal policy towards marijuana in light of rapidly changing state laws; and
The conservative makeup of the Supreme Court.
Against this framework, states and municipalities have taken an increasingly active role and enacted laws to aid workers and extend workplace rights and protections through the following measures:
• Predictable scheduling laws;
• Ban the box/fair chance laws;
• Paid sick leave laws;
• Paid family/parental leave law;
• Pay equity measures;
• Salary history inquiry bans;
• Reasonable accommodation laws; and
• Laws legalizing marijuana for medical and/or recreational purposes.
Employers also should be prepared to contend with a myriad of critical issues for protecting the health, safety, security and welfare of their workers and maintaining a fair and compliant workplace. Trending issues affecting employers and HR compliance include:
• Closing the wage gap and increasing pay equity for women and minorities;
• Managing and protecting employee privacy;
• Preparing for the use of robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and automation;
• Managing nontraditional workers (i.e., gig workers, remote workers);
• Drug testing in light of evolving marijuana laws and the opioid addiction epidemic;
• Handling employee mental health issues;
• Making workplaces more family friendly, diverse and inclusive;
• Providing reasonable accommodations for workers in a protected class (i.e., disability, gender identity, religion);
• Providing leave and time off for various reasons;
• Preparing and responding to an active shooter/workplace violence; and
• Preventing harassment and investigating complaints.
To learn more about these critical challenges, XpertHR is conducting a survey on the Most Challenging HR Compliance Issues for 2019. We invite you to share with us the trends and challenges that you believe will affect your workplace in 2019. This survey should only take approximately 10 minutes and your specific responses will be anonymous.
To show our appreciation for taking our survey, we will be awarding a $100 Amazon gift card to three lucky winners. Participants will also receive a copy of the survey report via email before it is released to the public.
The survey will only be open until October 5 so don’t miss your chance to take part in this survey.
The post How HR Challenges Will Change and Evolve in 2019 appeared first on XpertHR US Blog.