No more need for knowledge workers? The jobs lost in a months-long cascade of white-collar layoffs triggered by over-hiring and rising interest rates might never return, corporate executives and economists say. Companies are rethinking the value of many white-collar roles, in what some experts anticipate will be a permanent shift in labor demand that will disrupt the work life of millions of Americans whose jobs will be lost, diminished, or revamped partly through the use of artificial intelligence.  “We may be at the peak of the need for knowledge workers,” said Atif Rafiq, a former chief digital officer at McDonald’s and Volvo. “We just need fewer people to do the same thing.” Companies are for the moment focused on keeping blue-collar employees—restaurant servers, warehouse workers, drivers, and the like—who remain in short supply, according to economists and human resources specialists. For C-suite executives under pressure from investors, that exposes middle managers and other white-collar workers to layoffs.  Moreover, it is making employers more cautious as to white-collar hires. The Labor Department projects that of the 20 occupations that will create the most jobs through 2031, about two-thirds will be blue-collar jobs that pay around $32,000 a year, including home health and personal care aides, restaurant cooks, fast food workers, wait staff, and freight movers. Source:  The Wall Street Journal 5/15/23

Did you know about FSAs and service animals?  An emotional support or service animal provides necessary assistance to their owners. However, they can be pricey. If you spend money on a service animal or its care, you may be able to use a flexible spending account (FSA) to relieve some of the costs. FSA pays for medical expenses if health insurance doesn't. Since service and emotional support animals count as medical care, it covers them. However, some animals are ineligible. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), they're only service animals if they are dogs trained to perform disability-related tasks. These expenses for a service or emotional support animal are eligible for FSA reimbursement:  The animal itself: The initial cost of a new service animal.  Vet visits: Necessary treatments, routine checkups, and vaccines. Grooming: Cutting, brushing, and other grooming needs. Training: Training, certification, or registration costs.  Task-related items: Accessories that help your pet carry out a disability-related task. For example, a harness or reflective vest.  Source:  EBN 5/11/2023

Are you hotdesking or hoteling for your hybrid or remote staff when they come to the office? Hotdesking gives employees access to desks on a first-come-first-serve basis, while hoteling requires employees to reserve desks in advance. If hotdesking, employees hate it.  Employees complain about the nuisance of having to hunt for a workspace every day they’re in the office, not being able to find a station that suits their needs, and no longer having a permanent space that they can personalize. Collaboration is harder, they say, and they feel less connected to their colleagues. And managers often find it more difficult to manage their team because they aren’t always close to one another.  Moreover, the problems employees have with hotdesking could spill over.  Dissatisfied workers who don’t feel supported in the office are more likely to leave an organization, and the costs of replacing talent can outweigh the cost-saving measures that hotdesking can provide.   Best bet, use hoteling.  Apps such as Ronspot is an easy-to-use program that employers can use for hoteling.   Source:  The Wall Street Journal 5/13/23

Need to recognize mental health stigmatization in your workforce: Kaiser Permanente states that untreated depression costs $9,450 per employee per year in absenteeism and lost productivity. Why don’t we talk about mental illness as easily as we talk about asthma or a broken wrist? You don’t get demoted or repurposed for being hospitalized for an asthma attack or needing surgery for a fractured wrist. According to Kaiser Permanente, 62% of missed workdays can be attributed to mental health conditions. This is the cost of silence. This is the cost of stigma.  HR should see what programs they have or could have to reduce any stigma and prevent possible ADA violations by leadership who have knowledge of an employee’s situation.  Source:  Psychology Today 4/30/23

Unfair labor practice charges are increasing:  Following a surge of union activity last year, unfair labor charges filed with the National Labor Relations Board increased 16%, from 8,275 to 9,592, during the first six months of fiscal year 2023, which ended March 31, the agency said Friday. At the same time, union representation petitions for that period inched 2% upward, from 1,174 to 1,200.   In FY 2022, NLRB saw record-breaking increases in cases. Between unfair labor charges and union representation petitions, the total number of cases the agency handled rose 23%, from 16,720 to 20,498. That marked the biggest single-year increase in 46 years and the greatest percentage increase in 63 years, NLRB said. At its current pace, FY 2023 is on track to record the second-largest increase in filings since FY 1959. Since NLRB protects the rights of all employees, whether union or nonunion, ASE members should consider training for their managers to avoid being part of this growing trend.  ASE can assist with this training. View our catalog here.  Source:  HR Dive 4/10/23, NLRB

Governor DeSantis Signs Bill to Defund DEI Initiatives at Colleges:  Governor Ron DeSantis has signed Senate Bill (SB) 266, officially prohibiting the state’s public colleges and universities from spending state or federal money on programs or campus activities that advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). The legislation aims to replace “niche subjects” like Critical Race Theory (CRT) and gender studies with “more employable majors,” according to the governor. The law would also restrict public colleges from providing initiatives like anti-bias, DEI, and cultural competence training for educators, staff members, and students.  Source:  Littler 5/16/23