Sorry for the hiatus! Changing roles equaled some things slipping

Hi all, yes, we are still here, alive and well at Training Time! Sorry for the silence for the past week or so...we've had some priorities that shifted and our beloved blog fell through the cracks for a bit.

But fear not! We are here, and ready to continue bringing you the best in training information, advice, tools, and yes, the much needed giggles now and then.

One thing I would like to add to our blog is more of a dialog. What would you like to know about training? Send me the burning issues impacting your company's training program, or the hot button topics you see in the HR and training world, so I can include them in our blog. Credit will be given, unless you'd rather keep your name out of the limelight (in which case, Mum's the word -- we can just attribute the idea to "a reader" or if you wish, make up a fun name for you to cleverly disguise your identity.)

Have a happy HR day!

Saying goodbye to summer...

Tomorrow, September 22, is the first day of fall. Goodbye summer, goodbye beaches, vacations and steamy temperatures. Hello football, prime-time TV and sweater weather.

In celebration of the new season, we’re taking a look back at the great summer we had here at Thoughts from Training Time.

And taking a look back at the posts readers enjoyed most during the past few months:

1. 10 low-cost employee incentive ideas


2. Employee incentive ideas on a budget


3. 5 tips to build employee morale in a down economy


4. Friday office humor: Olympics at work


5. Employee recognition ideas on the cheap, it’s easier than you think


6. Great ice breaker ideas start with three words


7. New icebreaker activities for meetings


8. Creative Icebreaker Games: Guess Who?


9. Taking steps to improve employee morale


10. How to have fun at work: Work like a dog

Keep training short ... but how short?

When it comes to elearning, we’ve been told that keeping it short can improve retention, but cutting it down too much can backfire. So, how do we know when short is too short?

“It used to be that formal learning programs in a corporate environment could be a week long. People would pack up and spend an intensive five days in a dedicated facility and immerse themselves in a new skill set.

Then the tolerance by employees and middle managers for a formal learning program shifted to two days. Then one day. Then half a day. Then one hour. Now it is probably about fifteen minutes,” according to Simulation Designer Clark Aldrich on his Simulations and Serious Games blog.

Of course, technology has improved instructional design, significantly reducing the amount of time it takes to complete training and learning courses. And since the advent of Google, we’ve been trained to find and learn information using the fastest methods available.

Whether it’s in response to the recession or not, training has gone from weekly retreats to days of on-site training, to an hour-long webinar. We’re trying to get the most bang for our buck by racing through a mountain of information as quickly as possible.

What do you think? Is it possible that we’re losing out on quality because we’re so focused on efficiency? Are we trying to squeeze too much training and learning into a window of time that’s way too short?

Is cramming it all into 15 minutes ever a good thing?

Unpaid training time puts employer in trouble

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recovered $117,023 from America’s Car Mart in overtime back wages for 103 current and former management trainees, following an investigation that found the company violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The DOL found that America’s Car Mart failed to pay its employees overtime compensation they were legally entitled to receive for the time they spent in training.

“This company failed to follow federal wage and hour regulations,” said Cynthia Watson, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. “In this case, non-exempt trainees were not compensated at time and one-half their regular rate of pay for overtime hours while in training.” (DOL press release)

The company cooperated with the DOL investigation and agreed to future FLSA compliance.

Remember:

The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $6.55 for all hours worked, plus time and one-half their regular rates of pay for hours worked more than 40 per week, unless otherwise exempt. Employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records. Effective July 24, 2009, the minimum wage will increase to $7.25 per hour.

To determine whether an employee is exempt or nonexempt, they must meet certain job responsibility and salary tests. Current information on FLSA exemptions can be found on the DOL’s site at www.dol.gov/fairpay.

Because FLSA violation lawsuits can critically damage your business, it’s important to understand all of the federal the state labor laws on employee time and pay requirements. Know how to navigate the confusing FLSA compliance waters now, and eliminate the risk of fines and penalties later.