Equality in the workplace – is it really there?

Every Jan. 20 as a nation we celebrate and remember the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Most of us don’t need a history lesson to remember the passion, drive, and sacrifices that he made leading the civil rights movement. This movement changed our nation in every way, from everyday living, culture, laws and regulations and the way we do business.

Gone are the days of segregation and openly accepted discrimination – or are they? The laws and regulations passed and enacted since the mid-’60s -- the Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1967, Americans with Disabilities Act, and Age Discrimination in Employment Act to name a few -- have expanded protected classes to encompass everyone in the workplace. So the question remains is discrimination still a major issue in the workplace?

The answer should come as no surprise: yes. Discrimination cases extend to behavior that doesn’t involve just promotions or raises to members of a protected class. It can encompass even casual behavior in the workplace, like comments or jokes from co-worker to co-worker.  Over the past few years I have heard more times than I care to admit occasional jokes, comments and office banter that have made me cringe in fear that they were not isolated incidents.

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, my experiences are most likely are not rare or isolated. The number of cases reviewed by the EEOC was down in 2013, 93,727 cases reviewed, compared to 97, 252 in 2012. The monetary benefits collected increased, however, with the EEOC collecting over $372 million – a new record for private sector enforcement.  Despite the decline in cases from one year to the next, employers are having to pay more money to settle cases.  Companies like JC Penney and KFC recently settled minor claims for $40,000 each respectively. Ruby Tuesdays forked out $575,000 in a recent class action case.

That money doesn’t account for the time and headache involved in fighting these cases either. In recent cases that I have fought alone for small businesses in southeast Idaho, the average time for an initial decision from the Idaho Human Rights Commission was in between a year to a year-and-a-half. Luckily these cases did not result in formal investigations by the Human Rights Commission or lawsuits by the claimants, which would have prolonged the time and resources even more.

Now more than ever, it is important for businesses to take compliance with discrimination and harassment seriously. From annual training to solid policies for reporting and investigating possibly discriminatory or harassing behavior, taking the time now could save your business thousands in the future, or maybe save your business altogether.

Monica Bitrick is CEO of Bitrick Consulting Group, a small business offering customized business and management solutions. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (208) 932-8436.

Site plan filed for West Broadway strip mall

The ground where  the strip mall is being proposed is to the right side of the photo, facing Broadway.

If you're wondering where Walker's, Coco Beach, Karanation, etc., may be headed when the shopping center on Skyline Drive is torn down to make way for Walgreen's, a site plan has been filed for a strip mall on West Broadway between Arby's and Los Alberto's.

City departments are reviewing the plans for a 13,650-square-foot structure with an address of 1525 West Broadway (the building to the west, which was originally Kmart then Ernst Home Center, has an address of 1545 West Broadway). The mall will be divided into six units.

A site plan is the first step in any new development. People from different city departments examine the plans to make sure the details are in compliance with the city's codes and regulations. Once the plan is approved, a developer goes before the city planning and zoning commission, which makes a recommendation to the City Council. Once the City Council approves the plat, a building permit is issued and construction can begin.

CORRECTION: Based on conversations with city building officials, we reported in late December that the plan was to build a strip mall on the site where City Floral was. No deal has been made on that land, we learned.

How to stay out of e-mail trouble

It's early January, and thanks to some folks in the great state of New Jersey we've been hearing and reading a lot about e-mail and the trouble it can cause. Heads have rolled in the governor's office over e-mail messages sent months before.

It amazes me that anyone could think an e-mail with explosive contents could remain "personal and confidential." But the immediacy of e-mail, texts and social media messages make it hard to lay off the "send" button once you've put it in writing.

It's a good thing President Harry S Truman didn't have these things at his fingertips. Anytime he got hot under the collar about something (which was often), he would bang a letter out on his typewriter. He would then read it, fold it up and leave it in his desk overnight. If he felt the same way the next day he'd send it, but that usually didn't happen.

The interesting thing is that for all we've heard about social media and texting, e-mail is still the preferred means of communication in the business world. With that in mind, here are ten tips I've sifted from various sources as well as my own experience about e-mail etiquette and effective communication.

1. State what you have to say in the opening sentence. They taught you about topic sentences in grade school. I certainly learned about the "lede" in 25 years of daily journalism, and the best summation I've ever heard on that subject came from Richard Aregood, editorial writer for the Philadelphia Daily News. "If a train has crashed, you don't start the story with 'Engineer Jones was having a really bad day.'"

2. Always make the subject line something that will mean something to the recipient. Stay away from "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE," "URGENT" and "IMPORTANT."

3. DON'T OVERDO IT WITH THE CAPS LOCK BUTTON. It doesn't make what you're saying any more urgent, it's just annoying.

4. Stay away from exclamation points! Everything I post on Facebook tempts me to use exclamation points, and I hate myself for it. With e-mail, it ought to be easier to keep a more dispassionate tone.

5. Don't write an e-mail like ur writing a txt. Avoid such acronyms as PLZ, OMG and ROFL. Your recipient will wonder WUWT (what's up with that).

6. Be brief. Mark Twain once said, "I'd have written a shorter letter, but I didn't have the time." Most e-mails don't need to be more than three or four paragraphs long. If you have more to say, write a letter and make it an attachment.

7. Be courteous. If you're old enough, remember Captain Kangaroo's magic words. "Please" and "Thank you" still matter.

8. Give good contact information, e.g., name, business address and phone number. Your recipient might want to call you. He or she might even want to take you to lunch.

9. Edit and proofread your work. I know we live in an age where fewer and fewer people can spell, and don't even get me started on apostrophes, but do your best. If you have a grammar and spelling fanatic for a friend, ask for a consultation.

10. Respond to serious messages within 24 hours. I have been served notice by several people on this, including my priest, so it is my new year's resolution.

Snake River Landing awards $1k to Woodland Hills Elementary for food drive effort

Snake River Landing will be presenting a $1,000 check to Woodland Hills Elementary School at 10 a.m. Thursday for winning the Holiday Food Drive challenge.

In November, each school in the Idaho Falls area was asked to participate in the effort to collect food for the Community Food Bank. The school that brought in the greatest amount of food, by weight, would win $1,000 to benefit that school's educational efforts.

"Many of the schools in the area already were working on similar programs, but we had overwhelming support from a handful of our area schools, including Woodland Hills Elementary, Ucon Elementary and Discovery Elementary," said Liza Leonard, Snake River Landing's marketing director.

Overall, the drive brought in over 5,390 pounds of food, roughly equalling 4,300 meals for  families that would otherwise go without. This was 20 percent more than was collected the first time, in 2012. Donations collected per school: Woodland Hills Elementary (2,480 lbs.), Discovery Elementary (1,820 lbs.), and Ucon Elementary (1,090 lbs.)

For more information, please contact Liza Leonard, Marketing Manager for Snake River Landing, at 557-5300.

Woodland Hills Elementary is located at 4700 Sweetwater Way.

Idaho Falls declines to file motion on North Loop eminent domain decision

The city of Idaho Falls has no plans to abandon its North Loop electrical expansion project, but it will not be using powers of eminent domain to acquire land and rights of way.

Mayor Rebecca Casper announced late Monday that she and the City Council had decided not to file a motion for reconsideration with the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. On Dec. 31, the court released a decision authored by Judge N. Randy Smith saying municipalities in Idaho do not have the power to exercise eminent domain outside city limits for the purpose of constructing electric transmission lines.

That ruling came after Idaho Falls appealed a decision by U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill in a case involving a group of landowners called the Alliance for Property Rights. Although Idaho Falls has not sought to acquire land outside city limits using eminent domain, the Alliance filed suit against the city seeking a decision that would limit the city's powers.

Eminent domain is a power given to governments that allows them to acquire property for a public purpose at a fair price. The deadline for filing the motion to reconsider was today.

“I believe that we have concluded appropriate legal action with regards to the use of eminent domain to obtain property outside city limits for the North Loop project. We respect the court’s ruling and look forward to continuing to negotiate with property owners,” Casper said in a news release.

Idaho Falls has been planning the North Loop expansion for more than 40 years, to meet the City’s continually growing electric needs and customers' expectation of reliable service.