Rancho Mesa's Alyssa Burley and Media Communications & Client Services Coordinator Megan Lockhart discuss holiday policies, everything from what’s expected at the company holiday party to holiday schedules.

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Director/Host: Alyssa Burley

Guest: Megan Lockhart

Producer/Editor: Lauren Stumpf

Music: "Home" by JHS Pedals, “News Room News” by Spence

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transcript

[Introduction Music]

Alyssa Burley: Hi! This is Alyssa Burley with Rancho Mesa’s Media Communications and Client Services Department. Thank you for listening to today’s top Rancho Mesa news brought to you by our safety and risk management network, StudioOne™. Welcome back, everyone. My guest is Megan Lockhart, Media Communications and Client Services Coordinator with Rancho Mesa. Today, we’re going to discuss holiday policies, everything from what’s expected at the company holiday party to holiday schedules. Megan, welcome to the show.

Megan Lockhart: Thanks for having me in the studio.

AB: It’s November and the holiday season is upon us.  And, this can be a tricky time of year for employers as they want to make sure their employees have time to celebrate their preferred holidays, but while also making sure the day-to-day business activities continue when they’re needed. So, what’s the most important thing employers need to remember during the holiday season?

ML: Yeah, the key is to set employee expectations, early. This allows your employees to plan for their holidays well in advance. Employers might create a holiday calendar that identifies which holidays are observed and which ones aren’t. And, depending on the industry, the employer may not be able to give the holiday off to all employees.  For example, if you’re in the home health care industry, your clients still need care, regardless if it’s a holiday.  But, if you’re a construction contractor, you may be able to shut down a jobsite for a day or two, so everyone has time off. Whatever your policy is, make sure that it is written out and everyone knows about it well in advance.

AB: Should the holiday calendar be in the employee handbook?

ML: Employers can put it in the handbook or make a generic list of the holidays that are observed with or without included dates. Something to think about is your policy for holidays that fall on a weekend.  If the holiday is on a Saturday, do you observe it on Friday or not at all? Are holidays paid or unpaid? Do part-time employees get holiday pay? Whatever you decide, as long as it’s legal, make sure that you spell it out so your employees understand the policy and know what to expect.

AB: In our Smart Employee Handbook builder, there is a holiday policy that addresses this. But, you can certainly modify it if you want to. Now, switching gears – I think many companies are finally feeling comfortable again to host holiday parties.  Do you have any tips for companies that are planning to have a celebration either on-site with just employees or off-site with employees and guests?

ML: Yeah, in our RM365 HRAdvantage™ portal, we have a Holiday Party Risk Mitigation Checklist clients can use. Some of the recommendations are:

• Don’t make holiday events mandatory. Make sure it is clear that they are optional. This is really to ensure that people who may not celebrate a specific holiday are not forced to participate.

• And avoid conducting any work-related activities like handing out merit awards or providing company updates. To further expand on this, plan the celebration outside of normal business hours.

• Also, set the expectation for respectful behavior and encourage employees to drink responsibly.

• Have a plan to ensure minors and intoxicated guests don’t have access to alcohol. This might mean having a bar tender.

• Plan for how employees who have been drinking will get home. Encourage employees to use designated drivers.

• Provide ample food and non-alcoholic drinks.

• And last, even if you aren’t planning to provide transportation, don’t hesitate to order a ride for Uber, Lyft or a taxi for an employee who needs a safe ride home.  Just pay for it – from a cost-benefit point of view, it’s worth the expense to ensure your employees gets home safe.

AB: Megan, if listeners need to update their holiday policies, how would they go about doing that?

ML: Rancho Mesa clients can update their policies in our HR portal. If they have questions about their policy, they can contact our live HR experts by phone or through the portal. For listeners who are not Rancho Mesa clients, review your policies to make sure they are up to date and reach out to your HR person if there are changes that need to be made.

[Outro Music]

AB: Megan, thanks for joining me in StudioOne™.

ML: Happy to be here, thanks.

AB: This is Alyssa Burley with Rancho Mesa. Thanks for tuning in to our latest episode produced by StudioOne™. For more information, visit us at ranchomesa.com and subscribe to our weekly newsletter.