It’s easy to do, but often forgotten. OSHA regulations require employers to visually inspect each of their fire extinguishers once a month. This simple check can significantly reduce damages and even save lives in the event of a fire. Simply do the following: Ensure the fire extinguishers are mounted in their proper place Make sure nothing blocks access to the…
Performance management is integral to getting the most from your employees, and performance evaluations are just a small part of that. Join us in this webinar as we discuss the key aspects of performance management and how to write a truly effective- and honest!- evaluation. The webinar will be at 11am on July 18th and will be led by APEI’s…
Did you know that as a school district or municipality you are a political subdivision of the state and can take advantage of a variety of contracts the State of Alaska has negotiated? AS 36.30.700 allows the State of Alaska to make a number of procurement contracts available to political subdivisions and local public procurement units. Qualified public entities include…
As we start the 2019/20 policy year, I wanted to thank our members for their support and confidence in APEI, welcome some new members, and let everyone know of some upcoming offerings at APEI. This was a challenging renewal for many APEI members. Several large property and liability losses in Alaska have resulted in an increase in the cost of…
According to the National Safety Council (NSC), a worker is injured on the job every seven seconds in the United States. That is why the National Safety Council and safety professionals around the country are working to prevent these injuries. One of the ways that the NSC promotes safety is through National Safety Month which takes place during the month…
Form I-9 is used for verifying the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment. All US employers must ensure proper completion of Form I-9 for each individual they hire. Incomplete, incorrect or missing Forms I-9 can result in monetary penalties to your organization. Instructions for completing Form I-9 are available at the US Citizenship and Immigration Services website.…
Did you know that a recent study showed that workplace injuries cost US companies an average of $1 billion dollars per week? While preventing these injuries is the best option, there are things that employers can do to reduce costs even after an injury has occurred. Below are a few tips to help keep your costs down: Timely reporting –…
With challenges in hiring in our smaller communities, employers may look for creative ways to recruit or retain workers, especially those with specific skills that are more difficult to fill. One option they may consider is allowing an employee to work from a remote location; perhaps in another Alaskan city, or even another state. This type of arrangement is referred…
Alaska is very fortunate to have some of the best educators in the country. In February, Danielle Riha from the Alaska Native Cultural Charter School was selected as one of four finalists for the 2019 National Teacher of the Year award. The winner will be announced this spring. Only two months later, Meghan Redmond of the Southwest Region School District,…
According to the National Safety Council, at least nine Americans die and 100 are injured in distracted driving crashes every day. More than 400,000 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2018 alone. Cell phones, dashboard touchscreens, voice commands and other in-vehicle technologies pose a threat to our safety. The consequences of those distractions are not worth the convenience…
The Family and Medical Leave Act presents a variety of challenges for employers due to the complexity of the law. The US Department of Labor website has a variety of resources available to employers to provide guidance in navigating the law’s many requirements. The following is a list of some of the resources that APEI most commonly refers employers to.…
Sexual abuse of both children and adults is, unfortunately, a too-common occurrence in Alaska, and too many children are abused by the adults who should be caring for them. While only a very small proportion of adults abuse children, the impact of this abuse is far reaching, and can significantly impact the lives of the people involved. There are many…
When conducting interviews with potential job candidates, it is important to know how to conduct lawful interviews and avoid questions that may be considered discriminatory. Laws that pertain to interview questions include: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (race, color, religion, national origin, sex) Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Immigration Reform…
Volunteers are a vital part of every community. From helping to install the playground equipment at the school, to picking up trash throughout the City, volunteers have an enormous impact throughout Alaska. APEI values the work of volunteers who participate throughout the community and the Liability policy provides volunteer coverage to APEI members at no cost. This volunteer coverage helps…
There have been several notable data breaches recently, affecting Marriott, Panera Bread, and Facebook. You don’t have to work for a large company to suffer the same breach related costs and data privacy fines, which can reach into the tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars. Over 50% of notifiable data breaches are caused by human error, according to the…
Here at Alaska Public Entity Insurance, we know that our school district members have some phenomenal teachers. That was brought to the national spotlight when Danielle Riha from the Alaska Native Cultural Charter School in Anchorage was named one of four finalists for this year’s National Teacher of the Year award. Please read this story by the Alaska Department of…
Throughout the employment lifecycle, clear communication with employees is crucial for strong business operations and employer/employee relationships. This is the fourth of a series of articles that focus on four key periods of employment: Recruitment and Hiring, Orientation and Onboarding, Retention and Development, and Transition and Exit. I encourage employers to analyze their communication strategies for each key period and…
Throughout the employment lifecycle, clear communications with employees is crucial for strong business operations and employer/employee relationships. This is the third of a series of articles that focus on four key periods of employment: Recruitment and Hiring, Orientation and Onboarding, Retention and Development, and Transition and Exit. I encourage employers to analyze their communication strategies for each key period and…
Throughout the employment lifecycle, clear communications with employees is crucial for strong business operations and employer/employee relationships. This is the second of a series of articles that focus on four key periods of employment: Recruitment and Hiring, Orientation and Onboarding, Retention and Development, and Transition and Exit. I encourage employers to analyze their communication strategies for each key period and…
As of January 1, Carleen Mitchell is APEI’s new Deputy Director. Carleen has been with APEI as our Administrative Manager for almost three years, during which time she has been assuming more and more responsibility for a wide variety of functions within the company. Carleen is probably best known to our members as our Human Resources specialist, and has been…
