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Posts Tagged ‘Employment’

Can there really be a silver lining to being laid off or caught in a reduction in force? While many are facing tough realities in the wake of the economic downturn, there are signs that the entrepreneurial spirit that fuels business innovation is alive and well. Fact of the matter is that the explosive growth in start-up businesses isn’t surprising.

While large corporations are reducing their workforce, they haven’t reduced their need for skilled work. Often, this work is being done by the same former-employees who are now consultants.
First off, how do you decide if you should look for another job or start your own business instead?

While each person’s situation is different, there are a few key questions to ask yourself:

1. Do I have marketable skills?
2. Would I prefer to fail or succeed based on my own efforts?
3. Am I willing to shoulder some risk for a bigger payoff and more freedom?
4. Do I have a passion for my field or industry?
If you answered yes, to three out of the four questions above, entrepreneurship may just be an option for you to consider.

But what are the pros and cons of working for yourself?
In speaking with many of our clients who are themselves entrepreneurs, there are a few common reasons why they love working for themselves. They love being at the helm and having success based on their own efforts. They are free to do the work they want to do and choose which clients they work for. Surprisingly, lower down on the scale is the increase in personal control of their office and schedules. 

However, there are some drawbacks to working for yourself if you aren’t careful. While you may be an expert in your field, for many there is a learning curve associated with gaining all of the skills to successfully run a business. As a start-up business owner, you are not only responsible for doing work for your clients, but you will need to handle the finance, HR, marketing, and all of the other components necessary to grow a business. In addition to needing additional skills, many people starting off find that they work longer hours than they did in their previous job because they not only do the work carried out by the business but all of the other administrative tasks.

How do you avoid the pitfalls?

- Check in your area and you will most likely find there are a number of organizations to help you both with education on how to run your business, and some will even help you find funding. Check out the Small Business Administration, government agencies, and local non-profit groups.

- Network as much as possible. One of our clients who went from bootstrap startup to one of the most profitable companies in Silicon Valley found that often times he could tap his network to solve problems and take work off of his hands.  As of today, much of his admin work is handled by the office network in our center – his corporate council is the attorney who works down the hall … same with his accountant.

- Tap services out there to help. There are many hosted office space and virtual office businesses out there like ours that can provide you with both the image to compete and the resources and expert support that allow you to focus on growing your business instead of being bogged down with administrative tasks. Instead of managing your office space – outsource it!

Employers have to do many types of tests of their employees to get right employees for right positions. There are many types of tests are done by the employers, among those Employment Testing and Performance Testing are very important. All these tests are done to know employees better. Employment Testing helps to know about physical, mental and historical background of employees. Many kinds of other tests are done in Employment Testing according to the requirement of the jobs. Getting Employees through Employment Testing satisfies Employers need. And by Performance Testing the Employers knows about a employee performance, dedication to job, interest for job and the ability of the employee.

Employment Testing strategies are that allow employers to use pre and post-hiring testing to place the right employees in the right positions. Although employment testing creates some risks, it can often provide employers with information that could otherwise only be gained the hard way – after failure of the employment relationship.
The following issues that pertain to testing in the employment context: general federal standards applicable to employment testing under the Civil Rights Act, medical tests under the Americans with Disabilities Act, psychological, personality, or character tests, drug and alcohol testing, and polygraph testing. Employment testing includes many other testing according to the job.

Types of Employment Testing

There are two types of employment testing:

1- Pre Employment Testing
2- Post Employment Testing

In total, Employment Testing includes: Pre Employment & Post Employment Testing, Training, Assessments and Appraisal.

Pre employment Testing includes the measurement of job matching, aptitude, abilities, interest, personality, sales skills, soft skills, integrity, work ethic, customer service and evaluation of competencies during the employee selection process.

Post employment assessments includes employee evaluations / performance reviews, team building, team analysis, customer service, succession planning, coaching, training, and 360 multi rater feedback used for management and leadership development.

Tests in Employment Testing

An employer cannot inquire or test as to whether an individual has a disability at the pre-offer stage of the selection process. The reference to “entrance examinations” allows employers to administer medical exams or physicals once an offer of employment is made but prior to actual work. Employers may make an offer of employment contingent on the results of a physical and mental examination, but only if all employees in the same job category are required to take the examination.

There are many types of tests are done in an Employment Testing. The tests are in Employment Testing includes:

1- Medical examinations and inquiries

Post-offer, pre-employment medical tests may be very extensive in scope and are not limited to job-related items consistent with business necessity; however, if an employer screens out an applicant based on information obtained in the medical tests, that particular factor must be job-related and consistent with business necessity. We do a medical test to know whether such applicant is an individual with a disability or as to the nature or severity of such disability. This medical test includes: health test, blood test, urine test, breath test and vision test etc.

2- Physical Testing

Physical Tests are done to know whether the employee is physically challenged or not.

3- Acceptable inquiry.

A covered entity may make pre-employment inquiries into the ability of an applicant to perform job-related functions.

4- Psychological or Mental Testing

A psychological test is designed to reveal mental illness, but a particular employer says it does not give the test to disclose mental illness (for example, the employer says it uses the test to disclose just tastes and habits). But, the test also is interpreted by a psychologist, and is routinely used in a clinical setting to provide evidence that would lead to a diagnosis of a mental disorder or impairment (for example, whether an applicant has paranoid tendencies, or is depressed). Under these facts, this test is a medical examination.

5- Personality, Character, Integrity, and other Qualities

Employers are increasingly relying on tests that attempt to measure an applicant’s psychological makeup, personality, character, integrity, or other qualities that may be relevant to a particular position. Collectively, we will refer to such tests as “character tests” for purposes of this paper. Character test, like all employment selection procedures, are subject to the general requirements; that is, they should be job-related and consistent with business necessity. Beyond that initial hurdle, character tests also raise other issues: whether they are medical in nature such that pre-offer testing is impermissible and whether they violate applicants’ privacy interests.

6- Psychscreen tests

In this test we asked about the applicants’ religious, sexual, and political beliefs to produce a psychological profile of the applicants. This employment testing is very personal and private of applicant’s.

7- Employee Drug and Alcohol Testing.

Drug and alcohol testing are increasingly popular means for employers to increase the safety and efficiency of their workforce, reduce workers’ compensation claims, and reduce losses. While the benefits of drug testing can be great, the risks posed by implementing a drug-testing program can be significant and daunting. Individuals who are currently using illegal drugs are specifically precluded from “disability” on that basis. It appears that drug use within two months of the test will be considered current. Therefore, it is permissible to conduct a drug test even before a job offer. The safer (and cheaper) course, however, would be to conduct a drug test after a job is offered but before employment begins, because the same test that can reveal the existence of illegal drugs may also reveal the existence of prescription drugs that indicate a disability. Since a test for the current use of illegal drugs is not a medical examination, employers may also drug test their existing employees without violating the ADA.
In contrast, an alcohol test will probably be considered a medical test. Alcoholism is a protected disability under the ADA and the EEOC takes the position that pre-offer alcohol testing is prohibited under the ADA.

8- Applicant Testing

Some employers require a drug screen of every applicant for employment. A test for current use of illegal drugs may be conducted before an offer is given, but an alcohol test may only be given to an applicant post-offer (though it may be given pre-employment). So applicant testing is considered the safest drug-testing alternative.

9- Reasonable Suspicion or For-Cause Testing

Some employers test current employees based on erratic performance or other indications that an employee may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Reasonable suspicion testing can be risky, since an employer will frequently have to base the suspicion on a supervisor or co-worker’s subjective impressions of an employee’s behavior or performance.
Employees often argue that the employer did not have sufficient cause to test the employee for drug or alcohol use and that the employer tested the employee for drugs in violation of contract or based on some discriminatory basis, such as race, sex, or disability. Therefore, before conducting reasonable suspicion testing, an employer should ensure that the “cause” includes specific behavior or performance, preferably documented by more than one source.

10- Random Testing

Some employers test randomly across their entire workforce. Random testing raises the possibility of invasion of privacy concerns most acutely, because it tests current employees, but is unrelated to behavior or performance. With random testing, it is therefore particularly important to place employees on notice that they are subject to random drug testing and may be disciplined if they fail or refuse to take a random drug test. Such notice reduces employee’s reasonable expectations of privacy and hence reduces the risk of an invasion of privacy claim. Random testing is preferred by many employers because the existence of a random selection process is easier to show than “reasonable suspicion” to conduct a drug test.

11- Post-Accident Testing

Some employers require an automatic drug test after any accident of at least a minimum level of severity. This approach can be effectively used in combination with other testing methods. Post-accident testing provides some of the benefits of reasonable suspicion testing because it tests employees after a mistake has been made, but also provides some of the benefits of random testing because the testing is based on an objective event, rather than a supervisor’s subjective belief. The key in implementing post-accident testing is to clearly define the types of workplace accidents that require a drug test and obtain employees’ consent to drug tests in such circumstances.

12- Polygraph Examinations

The Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 (EPPA) restricts the use of polygraphs by employers. An employer may request a current employee to submit to polygraph testing as part of an “ongoing investigation” only if the test is conducted in connection with an investigation of economic loss or injury to the employer’s business, if the employee had access to the property in question, and if the employer has a reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved in the incident.
Federal regulations provide that reasonable suspicion for seeking a polygraph test may be based on information from a co-worker, the employee’s conduct, behavior, or demeanor, and inconsistent statements made during an investigation.

Performance Testing

Post-employment Testing include Performance Testing. After being a employee of a employer, a employer use to do a regular Performance Testing of the employee. These Performance Testing are done to know a employee performance better and better. By Performance Testing we get to know about a employee performance, dedication, interest for job and the ability of the employee. Performance Testing is also good for the employee, because the probability of success of the employee depends on the performance of the employee. The better performance of the employee tends to success.

“Probability of Success” in Selecting A Top Performer: – Interview – 14% – Reference Checking – 26% – Personality Testing – 38% – Abilities Testing – 54% – Interest Testing – 66% – Job Matching – 75%

Conclusion

We do all these tests to get right employees for right positions. All these tests are done to know employees better. And many other kinds of tests are done in employment testing and performance testing according to the requirement of the jobs. And the main thing is getting Employees through Employment Testing and Performance Testing satisfies Employers.

With employment training costs on the rise, it is more important than ever for employers to carefully screen prospective employees to avoid wasting resources on candidates who will not ultimately succeed in passing a drug test. Employers also need fast turnaround and accurate reporting of drug testing results to avoid wasting time waiting for results and wasting money on errors. Employers need reliable, accurate information from quality vendors communicated quickly to keep the process moving.

Unfortunately, ordering and tracking pre-employment drug tests for candidates can be both confusing and time-consuming, often requiring Human Resources personnel to track the status and results of multiple screenings for each candidate across multiple vendors. Even if the vendors have websites that enable employers to check the status and results of drug tests online, learning each vendor’s system and tracking login information is difficult enough without having to track which screenings from which vendors have been ordered for which candidates and when results might be available.

But the burden of ordering and tracking drug testing, while necessary, doesn’t have to cost employers more by requiring excessive time and effort by Human Resources personnel in addition to the cost of the tests themselves. Thanks to advances in technology, smart employers can now find the variety of tests they want administered by a quality vendor they trust with the fast results notification they need.

Pre-Employ.com makes the whole process simple, providing an always-available, simple-to-use solution that makes ordering and tracking drug screening and other pre-employment background checks for multiple candidates fast and easy. Pre-Employ.com’s 24/7 Client Portal gives employers the ability to order and track a wide variety of tests, conducted at one of over 12,000 collection sites nationwide, and to receive expedited reporting of results via email or from the Client Portal dashboard.

In addition to the ability to manage drug screenings for multiple candidates in one always-available place, Pre-Employ.com offers a suite of other easy-to-manage pre-employment background checks. For more information on our drug screening services, please visit http://www.pre-employ.com/drug_screening_tests.aspx, and to learn more about our other background screening services, go to http://www.pre-employ.com/OurServices.aspx.

Human Resource professionals are challenged to meet many demands for their valuable time and services. A routine but necessary duty is the responsibility to provide employment and income verifications. There is a cost associated in terms of time and materials to provide this service. Estimates range from approximately $3.00 to as high as $5.00 per request. Human Resource professionals are asked to provide a wide range of other duties that have far greater value to the business or organization. A great time management principle is to learn to delegate tasks whenever feasible and appropriate.

There are options available to Human Resources as it relates to verification of employment and income requests. Outsourcing this responsibility to other trained professionals will allow for other duties such as hiring and consulting on employment related issues to take the priority they deserve in terms of time and effort. The solution to the problem can be found with the professionals at Past-Employ.com. Past-Employ.com, a member of the Pre-Employ.com family of companies, has been in existence since 1994 with the focus being on providing verification of employment and income services for busy Human Resource professionals in businesses and organizations. A visit to the Past-Employment.com website http://www.past-employ.com will reveal why outsourcing verification of employment and income makes sense from a time management standpoint.

The benefits obtained from outsourcing to Past-Employ.com extend beyond the savings in terms of time management. The business model utilized by Past-Employ.com requires that when a person outside of the business or organization requires past employment verification, they are charged a small fee for the service. A percentage of the fee is shared with the business or organization. Past-Employ.com is the only vendor on the market to offer this revenue sharing system. Visit http://www.past-employ.com/OurServices.aspx to discover how to turn verification of employment and income requests from a business cost into a revenue enhancer!

These are just a few of the reasons for utilizing the professional services of Past-Employ.com. Visit http://www.past-employ.com to learn more. Now is the time to free Human Resource professionals for other more crucial duties. The solution is Past-Employ.com.