IN THIS ISSUE:

1. Feature Story: Operating An Energy-Efficient Office

2. Cathie's Corner: The Day After Thursday Holidays

3. Holiday Gift Giving 101

4. Free Report: Get Ready For The New FMLA Rules

5. HR Soapbox: Waging Germ Warfare In The Workplace

AHI's We Couldn't Make This Up

There are many uses for duct tape. For welders at an oil refinery in Delaware City, DE, one of those uses was to garner some laughs while on break by completely wrapping up an employee with the tape from his ankles to shoulders in a company restroom. The employee claimed he was injured during the incident and required surgery on his lower back and knee, so he sued his co-workers for negligence. Although Workers' Compensation is typically the exclusive remedy for an employee who suffers an on-the-job injury, injuries caused by co-workers that do not arise out of or within the course and scope of employment are not covered. Unfortunately for the employee, the court held that horseplay was an expected part of the work environment, and this wasn't the first duct-taping incident. Therefore, the negligence claim was dismissed. However, he was able to collect $300,000 in WC benefits.

1. FEATURE STORY:
OPERATING AN ENERGY-EFFICIENT OFFICE

The official start of winter is only a few days away. If employees in colder climates haven't already, chances are good that they'll turn up the thermostats to keep warm or needlessly flip on the lights in unoccupied spaces simply to compensate for the early setting sun. Recreating a warm, sunny summer day doesn't come cheap; not to mention, the ill effects on the environment.

A quest to save the environment and company dollars needs to start with effective communication. Tell employees why it's important to use energy wisely. If the company's commitment to environmentally friendly practices isn't enough to convince employees who turn up the thermostat in the winter to turn it back down, appeal to their pocketbooks. Say something like, "Every dollar the company saves is an extra dollar available for benefits and raises."

In addition to explaining the importance of conserving energy to employees, remind them of that importance by posting "don't forget to turn off" signs near light switches, near communal appliances (like a coffeepot), on individual computer monitors, etc.

If you're entertaining the idea of adopting a formal policy to ensure employees conserve energy, think twice. Such a policy will be a bear to enforce. An easier approach is to exert some old-fashioned peer pressure. If an employee constantly forgets to turn off her office lights at the end of the day, remind her, noting that she's the only one in the department who forgets.

Simple, Yet Effective 

• Share these tried-and-true ways of conserving energy with colleagues and employees.
  
  
• Use natural light whenever possible; adjust blinds to reduce glare. In the winter, open the blinds on south-facing windows during the day to allow sunlight to provide natural light. At night, close the blinds to reduce heat loss.
  
  
• Be careful of placing desks too close to the windows, though. According to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, windows are a source of drafts and draw heat from people in the winter, making them feel colder.
  
  
• In the absence of natural light, use task lighting instead of overall lighting, if possible.
  
  
• Clean light fixtures. According to the University of Houston, dirt can absorb as much as half of the light given off by fixtures, tubes, and bulbs, requiring the use of additional light sources.
  
  
• Shut off lights when leaving an area that is no longer in use, and get out of the habit of turning on all of the lights at the start of each day. There's no need for a light to be on in the conference room, for instance, until the room is going to be used.
  
  
• Unplug equipment that drains energy when not in use, e.g., cell phone chargers, fans, coffeemakers, desktop printers, radios.
  
  
• Turn off computers, monitors, printers, and copiers at the end of the workday. When leaving your desk for an extended period during the day, turn off your monitor.
  
  
• Keep the area around thermostats cool. The University of Houston pointed out that nearby computers or other appliances may be giving off heat, tricking the cooling system to work harder to cool what it thinks is a warmer room. 
  
  
• In the same vein, check that heating vents are not obscured because, if they are, the system will work even harder.
  
  
• Report dripping faucets. Wasting water wastes electricity. The California Energy Commission found that a faucet that leaks enough water to fill a soda bottle every 30 minutes will waste 2,192 gallons of water a year.

Live Web Conference

Complying With The New FMLA Regulations:
What Employers Need To Do Before January 16th

New Date Added: Tuesday, January 13, 2008
1:00 PM to 2:30 PM Eastern
Charles P. Stevens, Esq.

Register Today! 

Learn exactly what steps you need to take now to get in compliance with the new regulations and get your questions answered by an attorney for just a fraction of what you would have to pay in legal fees.

You will also gain answers to critical questions that include:

• How have employer and employee notification requirements changed under the new regulations?
  
• What are the new rules concerning medical certification?
  
• How do the regulations alter the time-keeping requirements for intermittent leave?
  
• How do the regulations clarify what qualifies as a serious health condition?
  
• Who can contact an employee's doctor directly to clarify a medical certification?
  
• How do the new regulations clarify the definition of a "qualifying exigency"?

Visit our website to register today. Or, if you prefer to register by phone please call 800-879-2441.

2. CATHIE'S CORNER:
THE DAY AFTER THURSDAY HOLIDAYS

So Christmas and New Year's Day are on Thursdays this year. That means that, with Thanksgiving, we have three holidays with only one workday standing between us and a four-day weekend. What do you do?...Continue the story. 

3. HOLIDAY GIFT GIVING 101

If you live by the motto "it's better to give than to receive," you're probably inclined to pick up a little something this holiday season for all of your employees, especially if you know raises and year-end bonuses will be non-existent because of the financial hit your company took in these tough economic times. To ensure your small gesture goes a long way, make a list and check it twice!...Continue the story. 

4. FREE REPORT: GET READY FOR THE NEW FMLA RULES  
 

Check out the Free Report, "Get Ready For The New FMLA Rules," which gives you a detailed breakdown of the new Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rules finalized by the Department of Labor (DOL), and even points out where these final rules differ from the proposed rules. Learn about the new procedures used for taking military family leave, the new definitions of "continuing treatment," "periodic treatment," and "qualifying exigency," and much more.

5. HR SOAPBOX: WAGING GERM WARFARE IN THE WORKPLACE

Sing with me: "Sore throat burning like an open fire, cold germs dripping from your nose…." Yes, it's the holiday season, but unfortunately, it's also cold and flu season. So while a few of the employees who call in sick during this period may actually be playing hooky at the mall, chances are, most of them really are stuck at home in bed, miserable....Continue the story.