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How to Entice Employees Through Workload Crunches
Your staff is overworked, and if you don't do something about it now, you're going to start losing some of your best people. Here's what you can do immediately to turn the situation around:
* Be the one to bring it up. Make certain your people know that you recognize how hard they're working. Some managers actually believe that if they don't talk about it, employees won't notice it. Wrong! They'll notice the extra workload - and resent you and the company for not addressing it.
* Explain the reasons behind the increased workload. Often, employees will put up with being overworked as long as they understand why it is happening - a push to beat a competitor to market, for example.
* Give them extra resources. Ask employees what you can do to help them survive the rush. Do they have the equipment they need? Would hiring interns or temps help? If employees think you're sincere about helping them get through the work onslaught, they won't entertain thoughts of leaving the company the first chance they get.
* Drop low-priority projects. Do anything you can to relieve the pressure. Are there projects you can drop - or at least put on hold until the staff has more time to handle them? Cut as much as you can, so employees can focus on high-priority jobs.
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Effective Communication: When You're Losing Their Attention...
Whether the topic is the new leave policy or world peace, even the best speakers find their audience's attention occasionally drifting away.
It's a common problem, but one that can be overcome with three effective tactics:
*Pause for a few seconds. What's the easiest way to wake up someone who's dozing in front of the TV? Shut it off.
A break in consistent sound pattern tends to jar people out of daydreams (and, in the TV instance, out of dreams.)
If you're preparing a speech, try scripting occasional pauses to wake up the audience. Make each pause as natural as possible, and follow it up with something interesting and insightful - that will keep their attention for a while.
* Alert them to your upcoming questions. Consider breaking your talk into small blocks, each one introduced with something like, "I'm going to talk about this for a few minutes, and then ask you a few questions." That tells the audience (1) just stick with me for a short time; that's all I need and (2) to pay attention so you can answer the questions.
Call this tactic a pre-emotive strike - getting their attention before it drifts.
* Expand on the traditional "show of hands" approach. We've all attended talks where the speaker asks for a show of hands - a vote of sorts - on a topic. That’s one way to get their attention. But there's more you can do.
After getting a show of hands, ask a few people why they voted the way they did. That brings other voices into the room - a good attention getter - and perks up interest from those who want to know why someone agrees or, especially, disagrees with them.
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Seven Helpful First-Aid Tips for Frostbite
Employees in remote locations on cold days should know how to treat frostbite. It could be some time until help can arrive when employees are isolated.
Frostbite is simply freezing in deep layers of skin and tissue. The skin becomes pale and waxy-white in color. It can become hard and numb. Most of the time, frostbite affects the fingers, hands, toes, ears and nose first.
Here is what to do if a coworker experiences frostbite:
1. Move the person to a warm, dry area. Don't leave the person alone.
2. Remove wet or tight clothing that may cut off blood flow to the affected area.
3. Do not rub the affected area because rubbing damages the skin and tissue.
4. Gently place the affected area in a warm bath of 105 degrees and monitor the water temperature to slowly warm the tissue. Do not pour warm water directly on the affected area because it will warm the tissue too fast, causing tissue damage. Warming takes 25-40 minutes.
5. After the affected area has been warmed, it may become puffy and blister. The affected area may have a burning feeling or numbness. When normal feeling, movement and skin color have returned, the affected area should be dried and wrapped to keep it warm.
6. If there is a chance the affected area might get cold again, do not warm the skin. If the skin is warmed and then becomes cold again, it will cause severe tissue damage.
7. Seek medical attention as soon as possible.
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2008 I-9 Forms Now Available!
On Wednesday, November 7, 2007, the USCIS released a revised Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9), which is now available for use. It is a federal requirement that US employers complete an I-9 form for all employees within the first three days of employment, and retain the form for one year after termination of employment or three years, whichever is longer.
Click here to download the 2008 I-9 Form
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HAPPY THANKSGIVING
HR to Go wishes you and your family a very happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday!
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