Q: Can HR plan offsite retreats for team building as a mandate in the state of California and for numerous days?
Currently I'm dealing with a new Director of human resources who are making a mandatory offsite team building at a campsite in the Napa Valley for two days. I have three of my four reports who state that they cannot accommodate an overnight stay due to other reasons for such as childcare and other such reasons. When pressed for alternatives, it seem human resources came back with another option in a way that felt as a punishment to myself and my reports of eight weeks of two hour trainings which would include off time homework when not working. Three of my reports are janitorial staff and I feel that the human resources are being restrictive and not accommodating and being too restrictive. I am concerned that my reports will quit leaving me in a lurch to try to find other hires. Is there any legalities with comes to team building guidelines for organizations in the state of California? And can you human resources dictate an overnight stay and dictate homework off hours?
A:
A company can require attendance at overnight, weekend or evening team building retreats, and it can discipline or even terminate anyone who will not attend. The issue will be whether the participants will be properly paid the time they spend.
If everyone is an exempt salaried employee, then no additional pay will be due. If any of the participants are hourly non-exempt employees, then they will need to paid for all time spent on these retreats, including reimbursement of costs for the travel to and from the events. If the alternative is used, the employees may well incur overtime if they are required to work after putting in an 8 hour day. Any time spent doing mandatory homework is also compensible.
Good luck to you.
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