Click to view video message from GMA SHRM President, 
Brittany Hanson, MBA, PHR
 

Hi GMA SHRM Members, 

While I can’t believe this year is almost over, I am thrilled to be connecting with you again for your November Newsletter President Update! 
 
I say this every month and I’ll say it again, please check out one of our Virtual Advice Network Round Tables or one our Meet Eat and Greets -  all dates are listed on our website. We are continuing to host these in the virtual space through this year and into next year.  This is an amazing way to connect to the HR community. This week I attended a Round Table for the first time in quite a while. I was overcome with emotion seeing all of my GMA SHRM colleagues and meeting some new GMA SHRM members!  
 
Two big events in November:
 
Student Night Out is going to be virtual on November 11th. This event is a way for GMA SHRM to give back to the community by offering HR students the opportunity to hear from speakers and a panel of professionals and learn about our Student Scholarship Opportunity. Our College Relations Committee volunteers are hard at work getting ready for this amazing event. If you know an HR student, please share this information!  If you would like to attend as a member to network with students and offer best practices, register here. 
 
November Professional Development Summit (PDS) will be virtual on November 17th. This summit will focus on employment law and wage and hour issues during the pandemic.  Get more information and register here!
 
With the year winding down, I want to say thank you again to GMA SHRM’s 2020 Corporate Partners. Corporate Partners allows us to provide such great programming for our members.  If your organization is interested in being a 2021 Corporate Partner, let us know!  Corporate Partner Program details can be found here.
 
Later this month a handful of GMA SHRM volunteer leaders will be attending the National SHRM Volunteer Leader Business Meeting.  This is an outstanding way to connect and learn best practices from other chapters across the country - an amazing perk of being GMA SHRM volunteer leader.  It is virtual this year, but historically had been in Washington DC. Volunteer leaders that attend go at no cost - including flight and hotel – a great way to network and a super perk of being a volunteer leader.
 
If you aren’t a national SHRM member, or your membership will expire soon, SHRM is offering a deal if you renew or register before November 30th.  You will receive a SHRM tote bag and e-book. Use the code DIGITALHR when you sign up.
 
Please stay safe, warm and healthy. I can’t wait to see you at an upcoming round table, meet eat & greet and other GMA SHRM events!
 
Thanks and  be well!
 
Brittany Hanson, MBA, PHR
President
GMA SHRM

COVID-19 Resources

Understanding the Latest Unemployment Insurance Developments

Submitted from Brian P. Goodman, GMA SHRM Programming Member, and Sarah J. Horner, both Attorneys at Boardman & Clark LLP

Brian P. Goodman

The ongoing economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many employers to lay off and furlough employees.  As a result, employers should take note of some important developments in Wisconsin’s unemployment insurance (UI) system.
 
First, Wisconsin recently approved a 60-day extension of the work search waiver for UI benefit claimants. This means claimants do not need to perform weekly work searches through December 5th, 2020. However, a furloughed or laid off employee may nevertheless lose UI benefits if the employee refuses an offer to return to work. Employers should contact the UI Help Center's employer assistance line to report an employee's refusal to return. Unless the refusal is for good cause, as defined by law, the employee could lose continued eligibility for UI benefits.
 
Second, employers may be eligible for financial relief if a claimant’s eligibility for benefits was caused by COVID-19. UI benefits arising from employment actions caused by COVID-19 will not be attributed to an employer’s account if employers file a Form UCB-18823-E within 30 days of receiving a Separation Notice (UCB-16) from an employee who is off work due to COVID-19. Both the form and instructions on how to submit it can be found on the Department of Workforce Development (DWD) website. However, as the COVD-19 public health emergency continues to deplete Wisconsin's UI reserve fund, all private employers may eventually see an increase in their UI tax rate.  
 
Lastly, employers should resist the temptation to help employees navigate the UI system and file claims. Despite an employer's good intentions, providing employees with incorrect information could result in claims against the employer. The DWD is solely responsible for making UI eligibility determinations.
 
Understanding these developments in the unemployment system will allow employers to plan for, and manage the financial impact of, UI benefits on their organizations.

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Professional Development

November 17th PDS - Legal Update

Session 1:  2020 Employment & HR Law Year in Review – and a Peek Ahead to 2021		Session 2:  Wage and Hour Issues in the Time of a Pandemic
Presented By:  Michael R Gotzler, Littler •8:00am-10:00am		Presented by:  Jim Chiolino,  Department of Workforce Development •10:15am-12:15pm
Participants will learn to:    Key recent changes in the law, enforcement priorities and litigation trends ​Anticipated changes to employment laws and regulations in 2021 Practical action items to consider		Participants will learn: Federal and state wage and hour requirements COVID-19-related discrimination issues WI and federal FMLA issues related to COVID-19

 

  
 

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GMA SHRM Dual Membership Contest

Happy Fall everyone from your Membership Team!  We are glad to have you in our network and we hope that you are fully utilizing all the resources available with GMA SHRM. 

Today we want to inform you of an exciting opportunity to renew your SHRM membership or become new member!

If you become a SHRM member or renew by November 30, you will receive a SHRM Totebag and DigitalHR Ebook.  This ebook is good for 3 recertification credits when you complete it. Current SHRM members can renew now and your current membership will be extended another year.   You will not lose membership time for renewing early.

Example:

• Your membership expires February of 2021
• Renew now
• Your membership renews and expires February of 2022

If you are not a SHRM member and are considering a national SHRM membership, now is a great time to get additional resources along with the coveted tote bag and ebook!
 
You know how important your roles have been in the past months and will be in the months to come.  The national membership can provide added resources to help you navigate and provide the needed support.  If you didn’t know already, your local GMA SHRM membership is only $75 as a national member.  
 
Use promo code DIGITALHR when you renew or become a new member.

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Informed Consumer in Health Care

Submitted by Al Wearing, Chief Business Development Officer at Group Health Cooperative of South Central Wisconsin

There seems to be a great deal of media and political attention these days on something called price transparency for medical care. It seems to imply that consumers of medical care have a great deal of choice and leverage in obtaining medical care, and they should be able to comparatively shop on a cost basis for medical services like they are comparing prices at Target, Walmart, or any other store with similar products. Easy to say, hard to do. It is difficult to comprehend the capability of a consumer to be able to price shop medical care. 
 
Medical care is dependent on long term relationships with physicians, and in particular, their system of ownership. The value of care coordination is critical in medical care, and a patient changing doctors every month due to price completely distorts any legitimate chance of care continuity. It does not work the same as finding the best price for pasta this week. In fact, most people who attempt to change physicians and pharmacies on a regular basis are generally called drug seekers because they want to disrupt the continuity of care principle. In reality, good medical care is dependent on prolonged continuity of care.     
 
There are a variety of obstacles in the delivery of health care which makes it very difficult to shop for medical care in the same manner as the rational consumer we all learned about in micro economics. Simply stated, medical care, especially in the contemporary environment of medical systems merging constantly, is that the environment does not support the theories of a rational market. As a medical care consumer, there are many constraints to shopping for services, but most importantly, physicians in the current environment work for large systems, and I can assure you there are plenty of incentives for any physician to keep their patients within their medical system. Why would any provider write an order to a competitor medical system? The days of independent practices are long gone, and as a consumer, you are destined to basically remain within the system of your primary care physician.  In addition, your available networks to choose your care are generally limited by your employer or insurer, and if you have other options, there will always be a strong financial incentive for the patient to remain in their defined network. Medical systems are not going to encourage their physicians to refer patients to their competitor’s hospitals or clinics. Also, for the purposes of both continuity and coordination of care, understanding that medical systems have varying levels of Electronic Medical Record (EMR) installations, there are still limits on the availability of medical record information between different medical systems. 
 
Of course, the fundamental challenge of price shopping for health care is the fact that hospitals and physician do not price their services in a consumer friendly way. The medical systems function in a manner which is based on a piecework basis, they do not know how many services you will require and their pricing is not bundled in such a manner. The learning curve would be steep as the patient would need to know what a DRG, CPT-4, ICD-10, along with all modifiers that are used in the system identifying and coding all of these services. In addition, there are a variety of ancillary services such as physical therapy, or consulting physicians, and laboratory services, as well as pathology and radiology services, and a whole slew of services all coded and identified separately. How informed must the consumer be in order to make a medical decision based on cost? Further, the patient needs to know the out of pocket cost exposure based on their insurance plan, and network restrictions to determine in or out of network status. These projected costs could change daily based on prior services being processed by the insurers or TPA’s claims processing every day. Another aspect of the process then is the quality or expertise of the provider or hospital system in delivering the type of care being needed for a patient. Hopefully, the patient has the capacity, time, and knowledge of where to look to determine the likelihood or volume of the procedure or service to assess outcomes to establish some level of confidence in the service results. Again, how informed must a consumer be to make a medical decision based on price?   
 
The important concept to understand is that there is limited value in trying to be an informed consumer, as there is very little chance that the general population has the tools or knowledge to comparatively shop for pricing in medical care.  The patient in the medical environment is practically dependent on the advice and recommendations of their primary care physician. There is no discussion on cost, it is based on the fact that a particular service is needed, and patients generally follow the advice of their physician. Physicians go through years of training to achieve their important role in our society to help take care of us, and their services are not compared like a can of soup at the grocery store.
 
Let me close with a simple story. I had a colleague one day who moved to Wisconsin and after a few months of working with and getting to know him a little, I asked in a conversation about whether his family found a medical provider since moving to Wisconsin. His answer sums it up for the informed consumer-he asked his neighbor the auto mechanic who his family uses for care and they went to the same place. It was that simple. Realistically, check with your neighbor and you may get the best advice ever for medical care.  
 
The concept of an informed and rational consumer of health care is a very tough proposition to accept and believe based upon the complexity of the medical industrial environment.  
 
 *The contents of this article represent the views of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views, beliefs or opinions of Group Health Cooperative of South Central Wisconsin and its management.


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Workforce Readiness, Diversity & Inclusion

Get to Know Our Diversity Committee Members

Submitted by Mary Vesely (Moua), Employee Engagement & Inclusion Manager at Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation and GMA SHRM Director of Diversity

Read why each of our members chose to join our Diversity Committee!
 
We are actively recruiting more members to join our Diversity Committee! If you are interested in learning, networking and sharing knowledge/perspective on the topic of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – please contact Mary Vesely, Director of the Diversity Committee at mary.vesely@fairwaymc.com
 
Our current top priority project is: Creating a DEI Resource Page on GMA SHRM website. 
 
Diversity Committee Mission: The Diversity Committee promotes increased awareness about the impact of Diversity and Inclusion, providing content through articles, speakers and events happening in the community related to Diversity and Inclusion topics and efforts. 
 

	Sherri Riach, SPHR HR Manager at Frank Lloyd Wright Visitor Center Diversity is important to me because the world is much brighter and more interesting when we can share everyone's diverse thoughts and experiences. From an employment perspective and personal perspective, I believe that we all deserve to feel welcome and be given on opportunity to flourish. I joined the committee to share my experience and gain increased access to resources that I can implement at my organization. As the sole HR practitioner at a small non-profit, the opportunity to discuss these issues with other HR professionals is invaluable.
	Rhonda Schemm, PHR, SHRM-CP HR Director at YWCA Madison I am a part of the GMA SHRM/Diversity Committee as I see the importance of Diversity in the workplace and have always worked towards diversity no matter where I am.  I feel that in being a part of this committee, I can support others in their journey to work towards diversity in their organizations.  I also work for YWCA Madison as their HR Director and part of our mission is to eliminate racism, which is a large goal, but the most important goal.
	Ashley Kidd, SHRM-SCP, PHR HR Manager at Iconica I want to help bring awareness to DEI within our community as well as our workplaces. It is a great opportunity to engage with fellow HR professionals in DEI conversations.
	Nadine Mobley Sr Manager of Learning & Knowledge Management at CUNA Mutual  I wanted to be part of this committee to take equitable action on diversity and inclusion efforts. Every day we are faced with challenges and options to show we are anti-racist and/ or inclusive, and it would be nice to provide support and resources to anyone who doesn't have the confidence to speak up, or who doesn't have the resources or tools to know when to speak up and how to deescalate situations. I have a diverse family (my children are half Native American and I am part of the LGBTQ+ community) who I encourage every day to be inclusive contributors of society. This committee provides additional tools and resources to share with our work teams and family, where I can take equitable actions to create a better community.
	April Bevars, SHRM-CP Compensation Specialist at Promega I wanted to join the GMA SHRM Diversity Committee because I have always been passionate about diversity and drawn to learning about different cultures. This work is personal to me as I have a bi-racial child and I have always made it a priority to educate myself. This is important, hard, and humbling work and I’m eager to continue to share and learn with others.
	Alyssa Brant HR Generalist at Smart Solutions I joined GMA SHRM to build my HR network and collaborate with HR professionals. Recently, I joined the Diversity Committee to deepen my DEI knowledge and resources so I can help others strengthen and build their knowledge to create inclusive workplaces.
	Amber Hanson HR Manager at Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) WiCell & WiSys I joined this committee because I want to be part of the diversity, equity and inclusion conversation in our community and bring positive ideas for change back to my organizations.
	Kyle Carr Talent Acquistion Specialist at Wegner CPAs I am interested in the GMA SHRM Diversity Committee because I want to make sure that Madison has as much representation as possible and give those BIPOC (black, indigenous and people of color) as much of an opportunity as possible.
	Stacy Lee HR Business Partner at M3 I joined the committee as Inclusion and Diversity has always been close to my heart. I want to be part of changing people’s lives, opening their eyes, and working toward equality for all.
	Mary Vesely, SHRM-CP Employee Engagement & Inclusion Program Manager at Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to lead our Diversity Committee along with our wonderful committee members! My Director role lines up perfectly with my current day job. All the knowledge I acquire at work and getting to share with our GMA SHRM members is very rewarding and a wonderful way to pass on knowledge. Knowing there is a wealth of information and contributions to be passed along across our committee and members, we are creating a DEI Resource Page dedicated to just that – knowledge sharing and links to external resources, tools and opportunities to share stories, topics of interests and anything else that relates to DEI. This is a very important topic right now and welcome any insight, suggestions or recommendations sent to me at mary.vesely@fairwaymc.com in regards to how we, as a committee, can help you, our GMA SHRM members.
	Not pictured: Raj Vaidyanathan, Employee Solutions Manager at Exact Sciences, and Lisa Barry HR Manager at People Link Group.

 

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College Relations

GMA SHRM is Accepting Applications for the 2020/2021 Academic Scholarship!

Submitted by Erin Faella, GMA SHRM College Relations Committee Member and Trainer at Epic

GMA SHRM would like to provide assistance to students pursuing an HR education by offering two $750 scholarships. Full-time students pursuing a degree in Human Resources (or a related major) can submit a purpose statement, resume, and transcript by December 11th, 2020. To view full scholarship eligibility requirements, selection criteria, and submission information, students can view the GMA SHRM website: http://www.gmashrm.org/studentscholarship. For more information on how GMA SHRM supports and inspires future HR professionals through student networking, career building activities, and scholarship, please reach out to the College Relations committee.
 

Student Night Out! - November 11th, 2020

Join us for GMA SHRM’s Annual Student Night Out – a premier event for students that are pursuing a career in Human Resources.

Students and Members - Enjoy an evening of VIRTUAL networking with local HR professionals. Here, students will learn from the best in the human resources profession. A live panel of HR leaders, a keynote speaker, networking, scholarship and mentorship information, and more will give a perspective that students will not get anywhere else!

More Information!


 

GMA SHRM welcomes the following members who joined our chapter in September 2020!

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Member Awards and Recognition

GMA SHRM member Elineed Goode, Owner of Goode Solutions, Inc, was interviewed by blog Caffeine Clarity. Read the article here!


Have you recently earned a professional achievement award? If so, we want to hear about it. 
If so, we want to hear about it. Send us an e-mail, and we’ll publish your good news in the next HR InTouch!  

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In Transition

If you are a member who is in between jobs, or who is currently employed but seeking new positions or career paths, write us a brief description of your skill set, areas of expertise, what you’re looking for, etc. Send us an e-mail. We’ll publish your information in the next HR InTouch.

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HR InTouch Guidelines

Article Writing:

Do you have an interest in writing for the HR InTouch? We have an interest in learning more about your area of expertise!

Why should you volunteer? Top three reasons: 1) to share your knowledge and experiences to educate others; 2) to become more connected in the HR and Dane County communities; and 3) to contribute towards the advancement of GMA SHRM and the HR profession.

The first step is for you to choose a submission option: you can pre-submit an article to GMA SHRM at any time for us to use in any of the upcoming newsletters, you can sign up to write for a particular month, or we can put you on a list of people to contact in future months whenever we need articles.

Article length:

Because the HR InTouch is now in an online format, the size is flexible. The article should be engaging and hold readers’ attention. Include the core information in your article, and we will advise if it is too lengthy.

Solicitation:

GMA SHRM is conscious not to allow solicitation through the articles, in an effort to protect the interests of our partners and members. The nature of the article should be educational (i.e., what are the business advantages of having a product like yours) or informational. Otherwise, if you truly are interested in advertising through the HR InTouch, you can work with our Marketing Committee. As a rule of thumb for article writing, if the submission relates to a for-profit event, or specifically markets your company (vs. your industry), it is an advertisement, and should be purchased. If it is a not-for-profit event that your company is hosting, or an announcement (i.e., a SHRM member recently joined your company), it is an acceptable addition to the HR InTouch content. If you have any questions related to the appropriateness of your submission, please contact us.

If you have questions, or to submit an article, contact GMA SHRM at chapteradmin@gmashrm.org .