7 Ways Conservation Can Save Your Business Money

Date: October 25, 2020 Author: Rinehart Insurance

Embracing conservation can be advantageous for your business. Not only does it benefit the environment, it also can save your company money, increase employee productivity, enhance a company’s reputation and make it more attractive to environmentally conscious employees and applicants.

Reduce Energy Usage

Here are some tips to make your organization more environmentally friendly:

Employees should turn off lights if they plan to leave a room for more than 15 minutes.
Purchase Energy Star-rated light fixtures and bulbs, which use two-thirds less energy than normal lighting. Visit www.energystar.gov for more information.
Install timers or motion sensors that shut off lights when no one is present.
Purchase LED desk lamps that use minimal energy.
Arrange your workspace so more employees have access to natural light. This is proven to increase productivity and job satisfaction as well as use less electricity.

Use Computers Efficiently

Computers waste an enormous amount of electricity each year, particularly in the business sector.

Employees should turn off their computers and power strips they are plugged into (if applicable) before leaving work each day.
Employees should set their computers to “go to sleep” when they are away for a short period of time since sleep mode uses 70 percent less energy than a normal screen. This is not the same as using screensavers and standby settings, which still draw power even when the machine is not in use.
Invest in energy-saving computers, monitors and printers when purchasing new materials for the company.
Recycle electronic equipment properly when the company has no more need for it. Visit www.epa.gov for more information on recycling electronic waste safely. Or, donate electronics that are less than five years old to a charity such as www.techsoup.org. Tax deductions generally apply to these donations.

Print with Care

On average, an office worker uses 10,000 sheets of printer and copy paper per year.

Instruct employees to print on both sides of the page or use the back of old faxes, scrap paper or drafts to make new copies.
Print in draft mode versus regular mode and avoid using colored ink whenever possible.
Purchase remanufactured toner and ink cartridges, and recycle the old ones.
Request 100 percent recycled paper when using a print company to make copies or print materials for your company.
Ask that employees reduce font sizes, use narrower fonts, decrease line spacing and decrease margins when feasible, to use less paper when printing.
Purchase chlorine-free paper made from a high percentage of recycled materials. Be wary that not all paper labeled “recycled” is truly made from recycled materials. In fact, some paper simply contains the trim waste from the production process which reduces costs for the manufacturer but does not necessary help the environment. Instead, purchase post-consumer recycled (PCR) or post-consumer waste (PCW) paper. This is still high quality and can be used in inkjet and laser printers. Also consider paper made from bamboo, hemp, organic cotton or kenaf as an alternative.

Reduce the Paper Trail

The following strategies can be used to help cut back on paper usage:

Request that employees stop receiving unnecessary industry newsletters, magazines and junk mailings. Instead, sign up for emails on industry-related topics and information, or check if various publications have an e-newsletter as an alternative to receiving a print version.
Post employee manuals and policies online versus printing out paper copies of these documents. This makes updating policies and procedures easier and more efficient too.
Store documents electronically instead of using a filing cabinet, write emails versus sending paper letters and review documents as a PDF versus printing.
Make use of a company intranet to cut down on printed materials. Post or distribute an e-newsletter (instead of mailing out a printed company newsletter), host an online bulletin board, and provide materials and communications online rather than in printed form.

Recycle

Considering the following recycling tactics to assist with conservation efforts:

Post employee manuals and policies online versus printing out paper
Recycle paper from faxes, envelopes and junk mail company-wide.
Visit www.epa.gov to learn more about recycling employee electronics such as cellular phones and PDAs.
Make recycling bins easily accessible to employees by placing them in high traffic areas and post information (electronically) about what can and should be recycled on a daily basis.
Reuse shipping boxes and use shredded paper as packing material.
Purchase office furniture and supplies made from recycled materials. Visit www.conservatree.org or www.thegreenoffice.com for more information on how to purchase these products.

Look for office products that do not contain harmful materials. These items are certified by The Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) and The Rainforest Alliance and are made from wood from sustainable harvested forests.

Eat with the Environment in Mind

Being mindful of the environment when purchasing and eating food can go a long way in helping reduce waste:

Ask that employees bring their own reusable dishes, utensils and glassware to work for eating meals, rather than items made of plastic or foam. Also suggest that employees bring food in a reusable lunch sack or container.
Purchase organic coffee or tea for employees, and organic and local foods for company parties and events.
Provide filtered drinking water devices to deter employees from drinking bottled water.
Suggest that when employees place food orders, they do so with others to eliminate added waste from individual orders.
Recommend that employees bike or walk when going out to eat for lunch.

Maintain a Healthy Environment

To promote a healthier workplace, consider the strategies outlined below:

Use nontoxic cleaning materials, biodegradable soaps, and recycled paper or cloth towels.
Buy cleaning materials in bulk and recycle their containers.
Suggest that employees bring a plant into work for their desks to absorb indoor pollution.
Purchase furniture, carpeting and paints that are free of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

If You Own A Child Care Business, You Need To Be Aware Of These Risks

Date: September 16, 2020 Author: Rinehart Insurance

Owning and operating a child care business, such as a day care center or preschool program, can be a fulfilling experience. And, studies suggest an increasing number of parents are working full time. This means there are more opportunities for industry growth.However, with a higher number of families utilizing these services, it’s more important than ever that child care providers understand the risks and challenges associated with their business.

Child Safety

When operating a child care facility, safety is of the utmost concern. Inadequate policies or a single lapse in oversight can lead to serious injuries or even lawsuits.To ensure you are doing the most to protect the children in your care, it’s important to understand some common safety concerns and how to address them:

Lack of Supervision

Children in your care need to be watched closely at all times. Just one momentary distraction can result in an accident. To help prevent incidents and to ensure children are appropriately supervised, keep a low child-to-adult ratio. Experts suggest caregiver-to-child ratios should be at least 1:3 for infants and young toddlers, 1:6 for older toddlers and 1:9 for preschool-aged kids. Be sure to follow any state or local laws related to caregiver-to-child ratios.

Improper Medication Use

It may seem unlikely, but children can be accidentally poisoned quite easily if prescribed medications are administered improperly. To help prevent this, instruct parents to give their children medications at home whenever possible. If this is not possible, medications should be provided to your staff members in their original containers along with specific instructions. Staff members will also need to be trained on proper medication handling and storage. You should also have written parental authorization when it comes to administering medicine.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

SIDS is the leading cause of death in infants between 1 month and 1 year of age. SIDS is generally the diagnosis given for the sudden death of children in this age group and has no known cause. However, there are a number of precautions you can take to ensure the safety of infants in your care:

Put babies to sleep on their backs.
Never place bumper pads, fluffy blankets or toys in cribs.
Avoid soft bedding.
Learn more by clicking here

The Presence of Toxic Substances

Accidental poisoning is a leading cause of death among children. As a child care facility, it is likely you will have harsh chemical cleaners, medicines and other potentially hazardous substances on-site. To safeguard children, it’s important to store these substances in locked, childproof cabinets. In addition, to prevent accidental poisoning, you should never store food and cleaning supplies in the same area.

Unsafe Toys or Equipment

Just because a product is made for children does not mean that it is safe. In fact, even when manufacturers test their products, safety issues can be easily overlooked, compounding injury risks for child care providers. To keep children safe:

Discard damaged toys. Inspect toys on a regular basis to ensure they are safe for children in your care.
Understand the intended use of toys and equipment you make available to children. Prevent children from using toys and equipment in an unsafe manner.
Stay up to date on toy and product recalls.
Keep play areas for younger and older children separate. This is particularly important when you consider that many toys are only appropriate for older age groups.
Ensure play areas are free of tripping and choking hazards.
Keep playground surfaces and equipment in good condition.

Poor Food Safety

There are a variety of risks associated with food for child care providers. For one, children are prone to choking and will need to be monitored during designated snack times. Also, foodborne illnesses can affect multiple children at once, making food safety all the more important. Instruct your staff to keep cooking surfaces, equipment and utensils clean to avoid cross contamination. In addition, food should be properly cooked, cut appropriately and allowed to cool before serving. It’s also important to be aware of any food allergies. Consider documenting these allergies so staff members can easily identify what foods are safe for each child in your care.

Maintaining a Clean and Healthy Facility

Ensuring the health of children and staff members alike can be a challenge for child care businesses. This is especially true when you consider that small children are vulnerable to a variety of illnesses and often carry germs that are easily spread to others. All it takes is one illness to infect all the children in your care as well as your staff. When this happens, not only can you experience staff shortages, but your child care facility can suffer serious reputational damage as well. It’s important to be proactive when it comes to protecting against contagious illnesses. The following are some tips to keep in mind:

Clean play areas daily, making sure to thoroughly sanitize all surfaces and toys.
Create and communicate a strict sick child policy. This policy should specify when children should stay home and procedures you will follow should a child get sick in your care.
Ensure staff members and children wash their hands regularly.

Staff Challenges

Hiring qualified and trustworthy staff members is critical to ensuring children receive the appropriate care. Poor employment practices can lead to safety hazards and affect your business’s bottom line. Child care facilities should be appropriately staffed. For added safety, and to avoid potential employee-related claims, consider doing the following:

Screen all of your employees, performing a detailed background check.
Ensure staff members are at least 18 years old.
Train staff members on child safety. Consider enrolling them in child-development related courses to further their education and learn new child care skills. Staff members should also be trained on pediatric CPR and first aid.
Create a reporting procedure for your staff members to follow should they suspect abuse, whether that abuse occurs in or outside of your facility.
Have at least two adults per each group of children in your care.
Hire enough staff to ensure children get the most one-on-one care possible. This can also protect you in the event that multiple staff members can’t come to work.

Behavior Concerns

As a child care provider, you must ensure children behave in a way that doesn’t jeopardize the safety of others in your care. However, this is easier said than done, and you must navigate potential disciplinary issues carefully. Just one poorly handled incident can lead to negative publicity or even costly litigation.

Your facility should have a clear disciplinary policy, to ensure behavior issues are addressed appropriately, . This policy should set expectations, account for appropriate disciplinary actions in a variety of scenarios and be communicated to parents. It’s also a good idea to keep a record of behavior issues and inform parents of recurring issues.

Above all, staff members should never physically discipline children. Staff members need to act tactfully when disciplining children, making sure to avoid any actions that could be considered verbal or psychological abuse. Thorough staff training is a must to ensure care providers know what is and isn’t appropriate when addressing child behavior concerns.

Further Managing Your Risks

There are considerable risks to consider when owning a child care business. While proactive risk management can help reduce potential liability concerns, the proper insurance coverage is equally important. To gain a better understanding of the risks associated with your operations and secure adequate coverage, contact us today or click here to learn more about business insurance.

5 Strategies You Need To Know To Reduce Benefits Costs In 2021

Date: September 2, 2020 Author: Rinehart Insurance

Health benefits costs are almost certainly going to rise in 2021. They’ve been trending upward for years—over 50% in the last decade, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation—and the current state of economic uncertainty over COVID-19 won’t slow things down. Realistically, after enduring months of business closures and managing exhausted workforces, many employers will be lucky to maintain uninterrupted operations.

That’s why it’s critical for employers to think about reducing health costs right now—figure out cost-effective benefits first so money can be shuffled as needed later. Having a solid plan going into 2021 will better position organizations facing limited budgets.
Here are five strategies employers should explore when looking to reduce benefits costs:

1. Dig Into Health Costs

Employers don’t let themselves overpay for the materials they use during production, so why is health care any different? Employers should look into every health care figure they can, from overall premium costs to individual employee expenditures. Understanding where money goes can help focus cost-cutting efforts.
For instance, if employees are going to the emergency room for every health visit, employers know they must promote more health literacy among their workforce.
Speak with Rinehart, Walters & Danner for details about digging into your health plan cost data.

2. Embrace Technology

The health care landscape of today is starkly different than the one of even a few years ago. Now, the name of the game is virtual health care or “telemedicine.” There are numerous ways for individuals to take charge of their health care without the hassle—and added cost—of in-person consultations.
For example, there is tech that can monitor glucose levels to help diabetic employees without test strips; there are virtual visits available for doctors, psychiatrists and other health professionals; and there are countless wellness apps that can help individuals make proactive health choices.

3. Consider Alternative Plan Options

Not every plan option will work for every organization. For years, PPOs were the standard, but now high deductible health plans with savings options are having their moment. These plans enable greater heath consumerism and put the decision-making power into employees’ hands. Employers should consider offering mechanisms like HSAs, FSAs and HRAs to help shift costs without compromising health care quality.

4. Require Active Enrollment

Some organizations allow employees to passively enroll in their health benefits. This may seem like a nice timesaver, but it can actually hinder employee health literacy. Instead, employers should require active enrollment among employees. This approach would force employees to review all their benefits options each year before making selections. Not only does this make employees consider important life events, it also affords them an opportunity to reevaluate the benefits they’re paying for and potentially not using. Ultimately, active enrollment can make employees wiser health care consumers, improve proactive health care and lower overall health expenditures.

5. Change the Funding Structure

Another, more drastic, cost-cutting strategy is changing how health plans are funded. Most organizations use a fully insured model, where employers pay a set premium to an insurance provider, but that’s not the only option. For some employers, self-funding, level-funding or reference-based pricing models may be more attractive solutions.

Let us help you review your options to reduce benefits costs

Suffice it to say, there are a variety of ways that employers can structure their health plans—even if that means requiring employees to seek insurance in the individual health market.

Whatever your needs, know that Rinehart, Walters & Danner is here to help. Contact us today to discuss your 2021 benefits and ways to reduce benefits costs.

Telecommuting, Is It Right For Your Business?

Date: April 8, 2020 Author: Rinehart Insurance

Telecommuting is the term for working from a remote location, usually an employee’s residence. Workers are connected to employers and company servers via the internet and are able to communicate regularly in real time using email, instant messaging, webcams and conference calls. Telecommuting can range from working exclusively from a home office to only working at home a few hours every week.

History and Prevalence

The term “telecommuting” was coined in the early 1970s by a University of Southern California professor researching communication and transportation. Companies and government offices began seriously promoting the idea later that decade during the energy crisis.

Technological innovation allowed telecommuting to increase over the next three decades. By 2011, data collected by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that 24 percent of employed Americans work from home on a weekly basis. Another survey by Global Workplace Analytics showed that the rate of telecommuting had increased 73 percent since 2005, and that 2.5 percent of the non-self-employed workforce (roughly 3 million people) primarily works from home.

But while the overall usage of telecommuting has steadily increased, many companies have chosen not to adopt it, and some have chosen to push back. For example, in 2013, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer prohibited telecommuting in her offices, where it had been established company policy. Yahoo’s shift in policy highlighted some of the downfalls of this way of conducting business.

Pro and Cons

Telecommuting brings advantages and disadvantages to the way companies do business. Here’s a look at some of them the pros.

Increased productivity. While it’s easy to imagine workers shirking their duties at home more readily than in the office, numerous studies show that workers who telecommute are 15 to 55 percent more productive. Two-thirds of employers report increased productivity among their telecommuters.
- Additionally, AT&T reports that employees work an extra five hours per week when telecommuting versus when they are at the office, and Sun Microsystems’ data shows that employees spend 60 percent of the time they would have used commuting working for the company.
Fewer costs. Over half of all employers reported cost savings as a significant benefit to telecommuting. By allowing workers to telecommute, companies reported big savings on real estate, absenteeism and relocation costs. In many areas there are also grants and other financial incentives for companies that offer telecommuting.
Increased employer flexibility. Telecommuting gives employers the option to hire from across the country without worrying about relocating workers to a central location. Employers can also more readily hire part-time, semi-retired, disabled or homebound workers.
Healthier employees. Telecommuting relieves the stress caused by commuting and other issues related to the workplace or being away from home. Telecommuters eat healthier and exercise more than their office-bound counterparts, and are less likely to get sick from contagious germs.

Below are some of the potential disadvantages of telecommuting:

Disengagement. Many employers say that telecommuting interferes negatively with the relationship between workers and management, and can foster jealousy and rivalries between telecommuters and non-telecommuters. Staying connected and supervising employees who work from home can also be a challenge for managers.
Lack of collaboration. Innovation can be stifled when workers are not physically interacting with each other. This is the main reason cited by Mayer for the discontinuation of Yahoo’s telecommuting policy.
Technology and security concerns. Not all employees are tech-savvy, and there can be problems trying to remotely access an office network or set up remote meetings. Sensitive company information carries the potential for greater risk of being compromised through unsecure home computers. Additionally, 59 percent of telecommuters do not use their company’s data backup system, risking the loss of hard work and valuable information.

Legal Issues

In addition to the strengths and weaknesses of telecommuting, employers must recognize legal issues associated with it before deciding it is right for them. The following are legal issues that may need to be addressed.

Property

Make sure you have a clearly stated company policy for employees who are issued company electronics that addresses what to do in the event they are lost, damaged or stolen. Consider insuring more expensive items.

One way to handle company property issues is to have a written policy in place. If you are issuing electronics to your employees, have them sign something that acknowledges their receipt of the equipment, and indicates who is responsible for maintenance and damages.

Privacy

Employees should be made aware of their privacy rights when working from home. Just because work is being performed on a home computer doesn’t mean that it’s exempt from being monitored or inspected by the employer. Though the location may be personal, employees are still acting under the scope of employment.

Security and Confidentially

Security concerns arise with workers accessing company information from their home computers. One way to guard against intentional leaking is to require that telecommuters sign a nondisclosure agreement. Have your company outline security measures employees should follow to protect information on their computers from exposure to external forces.

Payroll Records and Compensation

Telecommuting presents difficulties for employers in complying with hourly recordkeeping regulations. Employers with telecommuters should set up a way to track those hours and ensure their accuracy.

Similarly, federal rules on overtime and rest and meal breaks apply to telecommuters as much as they do to employees in the workplace. This makes an employer’s obligation to track employee hours especially important.

Employer Liability

What happens if an employee slips and falls at home, while on the clock? Or what if an employee commits a crime in the scope of his or her employment while telecommuting? What about workers’ compensation?

Employer liability remains a considerable concern for telecommuting employees. For starters, you should have a specific policy in place to address work-related injuries or torts that occur at a telecommuting employee’s home office.

Overtime Pay

Allowing employees to work remotely outside of normal work hours (for example, checking their emails at night) could trigger overtime wage issues for certain eligible employees under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). An employee working remotely is performing compensable work if he or she is completing a principal activity, or if he or she is on duty.

If employees are performing compensable work and are not covered by an FLSA exemption, they are entitled to overtime pay. FLSA violations can lead to lawsuits, criminal charges and fines. For more information on overtime compliance, contact Rinehart, Walters & Danner.

In Summary

Telecommuting is not the right fit for every company, but it has a decades-old record of being positive for many organizations. As the business world becomes more ensconced online than ever before, and a younger, more internet-connected generation moves up the ranks of the workforce, telecommuting may become far more common than it is today.

Before your company decides to embrace telecommuting, you should carefully weigh the risks and benefits of instituting a telecommuting policy to ensure it will be an asset to your organization.

Helping You Understand How To Protect Your Auto Body Repair Shop

Date: February 12, 2020 Author: Rinehart Insurance

While owning and operating an auto body repair shop can be a very rewarding experience, owners face a number of exposures that they will need to contend with on a daily basis in order to successfully run their business. It’s important to understand the challenges presented by these exposures, as they can cause significant damage to your clients’ property, serious physical harm to your employees and irreversible financial consequences for your business.

In addition to risks common to every industry, auto body repair shops face unique risks due to the movement of vehicles, the need to perform repairs, and the presence of equipment and chemicals. The list below provides an overview of these risks and more—helping you identify potential blind spots in your risk management and insurance programs.

Common Exposures for Auto Body Repair Shops

Significant property exposures are present in auto body repair shops due to the presence of toxic or flammable chemicals and materials used for repairs, as well as the constant moving of vehicles around the property. Vehicles, tools and equipment, office supplies and the building itself are all at risk of being damaged during day-to-day operations.
Even for a company that specializes in knowing vehicles inside and out, it’s important to protect yourself from commercial auto exposures. Auto body shop employees often use vehicles for business purposes, such as for picking up parts and materials, towing or providing mobile auto repair services. Additionally, if your business offers towing services, your commercial auto exposures will increase.
Equipment breakdown can lead to huge costs and lengthy delays.Equipment like jacks and lifts are necessary for your daily work and, if damaged, must be repaired or replaced quickly in order to maintain operations.
General liability exposures at auto body repair shops can directly affect customer safety and, when injuries occur at your business, you could be held responsible. Accidents related to slips, trips and falls are a source of concern. Slippery or uneven surfaces, under-lit exteriors and moving vehicles can all lead to accidents.
Continuity is critical in business, and there are few things more important than continuous revenue and cash flow, particularly for small to midsized organizations. In fact, just one brief business interruption can be incredibly costly for an organization, often leading to serious reputational damages or long-term closures. Common interruptions for auto body repair shops can include natural disasters, fires, part recalls, cyber events and staff shortages.
Due to the presence of toxic or flammable chemicals such as oil, grease, hydraulic fluid and other substances, auto body repair shops must contend with the possibility of environmental liability in the event of a chemical spill or similar incident. Environmental incidents are particularly concerning for body shops because they can cause harm to the surrounding community, involve costly cleanup and often cause damage to a business’s reputation. What’s more, businesses that cause harm to the environment are at risk of incurring fines that can exceed hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Crime exposures can be of particular concern for auto body shops because of the presence of expensive parts, equipment and vehicles. Auto body shops are also at risk of computer fraud, forgery or alteration, cash theft and employee dishonesty. In some cases, a body shop’s location and the type of vehicles they service can increase crime exposures.
Any time one of your employees is injured on the job, your business could face an expensive workers’ compensation claim. Normal, everyday tasks related to driving vehicles and performing repairs can all lead to accidents and, in turn, increased costs for your business. Musculoskeletal injuries, burns, shocks, respiratory problems, hearing loss, heat exhaustion, slips, trips, falls, sprains and strains are all common on-the-job injuries for employees of auto body repair shops.
Customers trust you to take care of their vehicles when they leave them with you, which creates garagekeepers liability. Auto body repair shops must contend with liability exposures with respect to damage to a customer’s vehicle left in their care for service or repair.

For More Information

While the proper risk management practices can reduce certain exposures, no system is 100% effective in ensuring an incident-free workplace. As a result, it’s all the more crucial to work with a qualified insurance broker to not only assess your exposures, but to secure the appropriate coverage as well. To learn more, contact Rinehart, Walters & Danner today