HRMG Blog – Sage Abra Payroll, HR, & Timekeeping News

An estimated 14 million employees are playing Fantasy Football. Many are part of office pools, and most spend time at work managing their team. Although there are many cons to this activity for the workplace, there are also some hidden benefits to Fantasy Football.

Fantasy Football is a diversion to doing work, say many analysts. Global outplacement agency Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. suggests that employers look to lose $10.5 billion in productivity during the regular football season. Time lost to internet activity and “water cooler talk” are big detriments to this hobby. Nielson Online suggests that employees spend an average of 1 hour and 19 minutes per week online at work playing Fantasy Football. Also, many companies prohibit the use of company PC’s for personal matters, so using work computers might also be a direct violation of company policy.

There are some positives, however. Having employees participate in Fantasy Football can be a morale boost. The hobby opens lines of communication and allows employees to strengthen bonds with other employees. It can also improve working relationships and make the workplace more enjoyable. Fantasy Football can even assist with employee retention, say some analysts.

There are legal matters to look at as well. Many companies (such as those in the financial industry) are legally bound not to have betting as it interferes with their ethics policies. Employers also need to look at betting laws, as fantasy football, when it involves real money, is illegal in many states.

As HR and Payroll professionals, you should make sure your employees understand your policies and how they affect games like Fantasy Football. If you have internet policies, reiterate them prior to and during the football season. But most of all, maintain a fair and balanced management of this and other extra-curricular activities. Depending on your organization and team culture, Fantasy Football could be a great positive for your workforce.

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Beginning September 11th, Pennsylvania’s new Clean Indoor Air Act goes into effect. This act will ban smoking in public places as well as workplaces. With exception to the City of Philadelphia, this ban is statewide.

“Workplace” is defined as an indoor area serving as a place of employment, occupation, business, trade, craft, professional, or volunteer activity. Place of employment is defined as the area that an employee uses for work or any other purpose. This includes restrooms, stairways, garages, cafeterias, to name a few.

Implementing a smoke-free policy may not be at the top of your to-do list, but the fines for not implementing a policy and following through are costly. Owners, operators, or managers of premises may be penalized for failing to post proper signage in the amounts ranging from $250 to $1,000. Owners can also be fined $250-$1,000 for allowing smoking. Finally, persons (patrons or employees) may be penalized $250-1000 for smoking. What to do ASAP:

• Post “No Smoking” signs.
• Communicate and educate all employees that smoking is prohibited in the workplace.
• Address the violations and the fines imposed by law.
• Define how violations will be addressed.
• Address how to handle smoking during work breaks.
• Provide employees with a copy of the policy.

For additional pointers, the PA Department of Health has developed a great Compliance Toolkit for download here: Smoke-Free Compliance Toolkit. You can also visit www.PACTonline.org for signage or sample policies.

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