Given the exceedingly tough job market over the past few years, I thought it would be helpful to give a few tips to job seekers on how to handle being turned down for a job. As a matter of law, an employer does not have to contact a rejected candidate to inform them that they were not selected. If you haven't heard back after following up with the prospective employer or recruiter, they have probably elected to move in another direction. However, losing out on a job could be turned into a future opportunity.
* Remember that recruiters or staffing agencies work with multiple accounts and may have other openings that would fit you better than the one you didn't get, so keeping good relations with them is imperative.
If you do happen to receive a call about the bad news, here are a few things that you might try to set up a future opportunity:
1. Always let them know that you appreciate their time and consideration, especially in that they've performed the courtesy of contacting you to tell you that you weren't selected.
2. Ask for feedback! Let them know you are always looking to improve yourself and their input can help you be a better candidate in the future.
3. Express a desire to keep in touch regarding future opportunities. Adding them to your LinkedIn network might be a good idea.
Vendor Discrimination?
I recently had an opportunity to work on a case where a company received a letter from an independent contractor that had been bidding to provide its services who claimed to have been discriminated against because he was not selected in the end. The employer was naturally concerned about the exposure to liability and sought assistance in replying to the allegations. As a rule of thumb, employment law only governs conduct between employers and employees. In this case, a vendor of services or independent contractor is, by nature, not an employee and is not covered by Title VII. However, this doesn't mean that you are immune from liability from every independent contractor on your roster. If you recall in my article about the misclassification of 1099 workers, the determination of who is and is not an employee will be based on their actual job duties with a company. Not only is it always important to carefully review the circumstances surrounding each allegation of labor law violation, but to proactively review the classification of your employees and independent contractors to make sure they are appropriate so there aren't any surprises if you should ever find yourself the recipient of a similar letter.
How much does health insurance cost?
Now that you've organized your business, this may be a good opportunity to flex that employer muscle to set up some benefits for yourself and your employees. This may even be an indispensable tool for helping you attract and retain quality employees, especially as healthcare has become an increasingly hot button topic for many.
Interestingly, the first question employers ask tends to be the least relevant. How much does it cost? Well, that depends on what you're looking to get and what kind of group your company is. Much like buying auto insurance, which is determined based on the type of vehicle, driver risk and policy provisions (deductibles, maximums, etc.), the cost of benefits are going to depend on multiple factors. Ultimately, there's no such thing as employee benefits that are "on sale" or discounted to create more value. Because the premise of insurance is the protection against risk, the results for premiums are very tightly controlled according to well defined mathematical formulas. As a result, you'll pretty much get what you pay for, so it's better to ask a different question and decide whether its in your budget.
The question everyone should actually start with is, "What kind of employee benefit platform is right for me?" This focuses the conversation on the needs of your business and employees rather than just cost. The answer will depend on a variety of factors:
Interestingly, the first question employers ask tends to be the least relevant. How much does it cost? Well, that depends on what you're looking to get and what kind of group your company is. Much like buying auto insurance, which is determined based on the type of vehicle, driver risk and policy provisions (deductibles, maximums, etc.), the cost of benefits are going to depend on multiple factors. Ultimately, there's no such thing as employee benefits that are "on sale" or discounted to create more value. Because the premise of insurance is the protection against risk, the results for premiums are very tightly controlled according to well defined mathematical formulas. As a result, you'll pretty much get what you pay for, so it's better to ask a different question and decide whether its in your budget.
The question everyone should actually start with is, "What kind of employee benefit platform is right for me?" This focuses the conversation on the needs of your business and employees rather than just cost. The answer will depend on a variety of factors:
- Group Size - There are essentially two markets, small group (2-50 employees) and large group (50+ employees). Small group policies have age banded rates, so the premiums will not only vary based on the plan features, but also the age and location of each employee. This makes it more difficult to budget for growth in your company since your costs can't be scaled predictably. Large group policies have composite rates that don't change based on the demographics of the employee. If you're currently under 50 employees, but would like to have access to the large group rate structure, consider joining a multiple employer plan through a PEO or fix your contributions to a specific dollar amount and leave it to the employee to absorb the variance due to their demographics.
- Industry Standard - A well trained HR professional should evaluate how common health insurance benefits are for each position in your company based on a compensation analysis using data from similar companies. You may not be able to avoid paying for health insurance if the new Systems Engineer you're looking to hire is offered these benefits everywhere else. This ought to be considered part of the overall compensation and budgeted for accordingly. Remember that benefits are a way to make your offers more competitive and attractive to potential candidates!
- Employee Demographics - As insurance companies have developed more focused programs, like HealthNet's Salud, it's becoming increasingly more relevant to make sure that the plan you're considering and it's network is appropriate for your employees. After all, it does you no good to offer a plan that doesn't have any coverage in the region your employees reside, even though it might be inexpensive.
In the end, your consultant should prepare a short list of options, focusing on high fit solutions and discuss a multi-year program of development for your benefits platform. Only then can you make an informed decision about whether your organization is ready to make the commitment to providing benefits!
Hidden Cost of COBRA
In the aftermath of the economic meltdown and resultant increase in unemployment, millions of American workers lost access to affordable healthcare through their employers. Normally, this would leave a former employee with a tough pill to swallow in paying 102% of the full insurance premium compared to what is normally a much lower cost since the employer's contribution is no longer applicable. In the past that meant that the only people likely to pay that increased amount were those who were most likely to cost the insurance more than they would be out of pocket otherwise. Statistically, it had been measured that a typical COBRA participant had a utilization of 150%, which means that for every dollar they paid in premium, they cost the insurance company $1.50 in claims. It's no surprise that the number of COBRA participants attached to a company's policy will significantly affect the overall premium for the group. After all, the insurance company must charge enough to cover their expenses and leave a profit on top. When the American Recovery and Relief Act (ARRA) was passed, it provided a subsidy to the COBRA premium of 65%, and it was expected this would draw in healthier COBRA participants and reduce the high utilization of that population. Oddly enough, although COBRA enrollment numbers climbed significantly due to the lower cost barrier resulting from the ARRA subsidy, the utilization remained at 150%. The high rate increases the last few years are a direct response to factors like this where the insurance company is attempting to balance out its losses by raising the costs to the healthier groups.
So what should an employer do? Since COBRA rights are fixed in the law and those participants will not be present in the work environment, the employer must focus their energy on the health of the active employees that are enrolled in the group plan in order to offset the claims of their COBRA population. Incentivizing healthy activities and eating habits are a great way to mitigate insurance increases. That kind of atmosphere also creates a more productive workforce with higher morale, so it's a win-win. A well trained HR professional can help craft, implement and maintain this kind of initiative with a minimal budget. The most valuable asset they'll need though, is executive support and buy in to help motivate the rest of the staff to follow suit.
So what should an employer do? Since COBRA rights are fixed in the law and those participants will not be present in the work environment, the employer must focus their energy on the health of the active employees that are enrolled in the group plan in order to offset the claims of their COBRA population. Incentivizing healthy activities and eating habits are a great way to mitigate insurance increases. That kind of atmosphere also creates a more productive workforce with higher morale, so it's a win-win. A well trained HR professional can help craft, implement and maintain this kind of initiative with a minimal budget. The most valuable asset they'll need though, is executive support and buy in to help motivate the rest of the staff to follow suit.
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