This is the time of the year to pay homage to our employees. Take pleasure in your Labor Day celebration! The workforce of our country provides economical democracy. So on Labor Day, we honor our American workers. Our nation has drawn strength and freedom from their efforts during these last 234 years.

While contemplating the value of our American workers, we need to ensure they’re paid a fair wage and their legal rights are upheld. The Obama Administration has instituted a vast array of new worksite employee laws, unprecedented health care regulations and business tax changes that are going to be very challenging to keep up with, even for the pros.

If you’re a business leader, you might want to take the time to look at your human resources (HR) policies and procedures. Your employees are your largest and costliest asset. It’s up to you, the employer, to make sure they’re protected.

American Employees

If you’re an employee, you might want to question certain things at work. There are laws protecting you in a multitude of areas regarding the work you do and what your employer can and cannot do or say to you.

Are you an employee or a contracted worker? Labor laws differ depending on your employment category. If you are you disabled, pregnant, union, non-union, white, black, male or female, your rights are protected under Title VII employment laws.

While undergoing the hiring process, were your rights protected? Were you asked questions that weren’t legal? Are your employer’s forms legal? What about drug testing? Was there just cause for your termination? Have you been discriminated against because of your race, age, sex, disability, national origin or religion? Does your company have a policy on harassment? You need to know if you’re being harassed, or if possibly your actions could get you in trouble.

Visit www.dol.gov for information on the laws that protect you.

American Employers

Mr. or Ms. Boss, if reading any of the above makes you a little nervous, you should become better educated on the laws regarding your employees. Meet with your management staff to ensure everyone is adequately trained in compliance with employment laws, so you’re not breaking any.

Certified professionals in human resources (PHRs) are the employees you should hire to assist in this area. They might be too expensive to employ if you’re not a large company. However, attorney fees, higher taxes and possibly fines are what you might be looking at if you don’t ensure compliance in the workplace.

A PHR’s expertise is a necessity to all businesses. It’s imperative that you have employee handbooks in place outlining your rules on time and attendance, dress code and various other policies that must be kept updated as the laws or your policies change. If your handbook has been in place since the Stone Age, throw it away.

Safety programs are needed for every company from white-collar offices to blue-collar workers in the field. A simple addition regarding safety in your employee handbook to a detailed safety manual for industrial-type workers should be in place and utilized. Intricate safety training and certifications are mandated by the DOL in many positions. OSHA is overhauling its penalty structure designed to increase penalties and inspections.

A viable option is to outsource your human resources to a professional employer organization (PEO). An excellent reason to outsource is to obtain a predictable cost for having employees. There are many employee-associated costs that can go up and affect your margins. Let the PEO provide the expertise to minimize this and help you have a more predictable cost each year.

Take advantage of the PEO solution, which offers compliance, assistance and multiple HR administrative services all within your budgetary constraints. The PEO also offers you, the employer, the advantage of time; the PEO puts the HR processes in place while you drive profits.

A PEO will provide you with payroll administration, a robust package of HR services, risk management, safety programs, workers’ compensation insurance with claims management and optionally, a full-blown health benefits program. The PEO will take the guesswork out of your HR!

If you have your own health care plan, the DOL has issued a helpful chart (http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/pdf/grandfatherregtable.pdf) stating the new health reform provisions relating to the act to grandfather plans.

Sweeping changes in various laws, health insurance and the ways businesses operate today are coming at warp speed. Take action now, and your bottom line will thank you.

How great a privilege it is to be an American! God bless America!

Connie Laughlin is a business consultant for UniqueHR, headquartered in Corpus Christi. Contact her at 852-6392 or conniel@uniquehr.com. Visit www.uniquehr.com to find out more about this highly accredited PEO.