January To-Do’s

“What are the things I need to remember to do this new year?”

My HR Survival Tip

Now that we’re back to work and it’s 2015, there are definitely a few things to add to your to-do list:

Sick Leave Law Poster — The most important thing is to post the information about California’s sick leave law. You can get the poster here. If you have a new 2015 employment law poster, this information may already be included. Check your poster and, if this sick leave law isn’t included, print this and post it next to your employment law poster.

Mileage Update — The Internal Revenue Service has updated the standard mileage reimbursement rate to $0.575 per mile for business use, effective 1/1/2015. I know many of you are not paying the full IRS rate but CA Labor Code states you must fully reimburse employees for all expenses “actually and necessarily” incurred.

Computer Professional Exemption — California is the only state with a special exempt category for computer professionals, thanks to the dot.com boom and bust years ago. Computer professionals can only be exempt from overtime under very special circumstances. The first requirement is a salary of at least $85,981.40 ($7,165.12/month or $41.27/hour), effective 1/1/2015. The next requirement is based on duties which include a high level of decision-making and knowledge, such as software professionals who are engineers, programmers, developers, and analysts.

Holiday List — Yes, I think this is the perfect time to send a memo to all employees stating specifically which dates this year will be company holidays. Don’t just say the holiday name, write the actual date so everyone can easily understand. Some holidays fall on specific dates and some are observed (when you close) on dates other than the actual date so it’s important to be clear. Also use this memo to clearly state whether or not your employees are paid for that holiday, which employees are paid, and what happens if they work it or take vacation around the holiday.

What else is on your list?

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