Yearly Archives: 2018

NEW Oregon W-4 form

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Oregon’s Department of Revenue has released the Oregon Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, Form OR-W-4, for employers to provide to their employees anytime Federal Form W-4 is provided. 2019 Oregon W-4 2019 Federal W-4 Effective January 1, 2019 employees will complete both the federal Form W-4, and the new Oregon Form OR-W-4 to ensure adequate allowances are claimed for federal and state purposes. Existing employees will NOT be required to complete the new form, unless they […]

Ask HR: Employees went over Sick Time, How to Correct?

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Dear HR, Several of our employees were accidentally allowed to use over 40 hours of Sick Leave during the year although our policy states the maximum use of 40 hours. This occurred because our managers did not know they needed to check the employee’s sick leave time accrued balance before approving. We will make this policy clear to all managers going forward, but our question is this: Can these excessive Sick Leave hours that were […]

Ask HR: Can compassion override policy?

This entry was posted in Ask HR and tagged Employee Handbook Employee Retention on

Dear HR, One of our great new hires failed to follow appropriate call-in policy before missing work.  We are aware that they had a death in the family – so we want to be kind and help our employee through this tough period, but how do we do that while still upholding our company policies and procedures?   HR Answer: Employers often find themselves competing for good employees and struggling to retain the ones they […]

What Employers Need to Know about Veterans Day

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Veterans Day is Sunday, November 11th –   Request for Veterans Day Off: Employees who are veterans (as defined by Oregon law) and are scheduled to work on Veterans Day, may ask for that day off. These employees must provide 21 days’ prior notice of their intent to take that day off by October 21, 2018, and document their status as a qualifying veteran.   Request Consideration Upon receipt of this request, an employer must […]

Ask HR: New Hire unable to complete drug test.

This entry was posted in Ask HR and tagged Drug Testing on

Dear HR, Upon completing the new hire steps – which include a drug test – our potential new hire let us know that they were unable to provide a timely urine sample due to a medial condition. We have never had this happen before, how do we proceed with hiring?   HR Answer: DRUG TESTING—always a challenge and always grounds for suspicious behavior? Let’s face it, when it comes to whether or not someone is […]

Ask HR: Do I have a “Reasonable Suspicion” drug test situation?

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Dear HR, We had a customer call and complain that when they got their vehicle back from service, half a bottle of their prescription pain medication was missing. May I drug test the employees who worked on the job?   HR Answer: Great question – DRUG TESTING is usually performed pre-employment, post-accident, for reasonable suspicion, or at random. “Reasonable suspicion” does not typically mean possible theft; generally it refers to suspicious actions a person would exhibit […]

Ask HR: Transitioning from Hourly to Salary.

This entry was posted in HR News and tagged Exempt or NonExempt on

Dear HR, I am trying to move an employee from hourly to salary pay but unsure how to make that transition. Is it possible to pay them a salary if they work under 50 hours a week, and hourly if they work over 50 hours a week?   HR Answer: This is a complex question and has many exceptions to your desired request! Paying an employee a “salary” does not necessarily mean they are exempt […]

What is Co-Employment?

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What is Co-Employment? Co-Employment is simply dividing up responsibility between the onsite employer and a professional employment services provider like Cardinal. As your “co-employer,” we pay the employee taxes and process employee paychecks which include tracking PTO, sick leave, and other information to keep you compliant with labor regulations.   But if I co-employ with you, am I still the boss? Am I still the one making decisions about my employees? According to employment law, […]

Ask HR: How far for Accommodating Medical Issues?

This entry was posted in Ask HR and tagged Employee Retention Medical Leave (OFLA/FMLA) on

Dear HR, My employee that has been missing A LOT of work for an extended period of time— at least one shift a week, and this is now adding up to weeks of work being missed. This is negatively affecting my business as no one is here to answer the phones or to get the front office work done. However, every time a shift is missed, my employee brings in a doctor’s note. My employee […]

Ask HR: Returning from Leave to Less Hours.

This entry was posted in Ask HR and tagged Medical Leave (OFLA/FMLA) on

Dear HR, My employee was recently out of work for three weeks due to having surgery and returned to work about a month ago. Before taking the time off, my employee was working a full-time schedule for two weeks. Now, due to slower business, I am only able to provide 28 hours per week. I could offer a few more hours if my employee is willing to work 7 days each week. My employee is […]