PSHRA-SCP cheat sheet

Just cause discipline generally requires a reasonable rule, advance notice, timely investigation, substantial evidence, equal treatment, progressive penalty, and an opportunity to respond.

A typical grievance procedure moves through supervisor, department head, human resources or labor relations, and then binding arbitration if the collective bargaining agreement provides it.

Public-sector impasse resolution methods include mediation, fact-finding with neutral recommendations, and interest arbitration with a binding award, often for essential employees.

Weingarten-type representation rights allow a unionized employee to request union representation during an investigatory interview that may lead to discipline; public-sector scope is set by statute, contract, or case law.

An agency shop requires nonmembers to pay representation fees, while right-to-work laws prohibit compulsory union dues or fees for covered employees.

Unfair labor practices include refusing to bargain in good faith, retaliating for union activity, bypassing the exclusive representative, and failing to provide relevant bargaining information.

Essential employees may be prohibited from striking; public-sector strikes are often illegal and can result in injunctions, discipline, or arbitration.

Progressive discipline commonly follows oral warning, written warning, suspension, demotion, and termination, with the starting step determined by severity and prior record.

Kotter's eight change steps are urgency, guiding coalition, vision, communication, empowerment, short-term wins, consolidation, and anchoring in culture.

The ADKAR change sequence is Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement.

SWOT analysis classifies internal Strengths and Weaknesses and external Opportunities and Threats.

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

Span of control equals the number of direct reports per supervisor; wider spans flatten hierarchy and increase supervisory workload.

Psychological safety is a climate in which employees can speak up, admit error, and raise concerns without fear of punishment.

Learning organization disciplines include systems thinking, personal mastery, mental models, shared vision, and team learning.

High-performance culture aligns mission, competencies, performance expectations, recognition, and accountability.

Four-fifths rule: a protected group's selection rate below 80% of the highest group's rate suggests adverse impact and warrants review.

Time to fill equals calendar days from requisition approval to accepted offer; time to hire equals days from application to acceptance.

Cost per hire equals total recruiting costs divided by the number of hires in the same period.

Structured interviews use predetermined job-related questions and anchored rating scales to improve reliability and validity.

Merit system selection requires job-related criteria, public announcement, consistent rating, documentation, and any statutory veterans' preference.

FLSA exemption requires the salary basis test and duties tests for executive, administrative, professional, computer, or outside sales employees; public-sector comp time follows 29 U.S.C. 207(o).

Form I-9 must be completed by the employee on the first day and reviewed by the employer within three business days.

Onboarding milestones commonly include preboarding, day one, 30/60/90-day check-ins, and a probation review.

Total compensation equals base pay plus differentials, overtime, bonuses, benefits, retirement contributions, and paid leave; comparison uses total rewards value, not salary alone.

Market pricing uses salary surveys to set pay ranges; benchmark jobs should match at least 70% of duties and similar scope.

Pay compression occurs when new hires or subordinates approach or exceed experienced employees' pay; remedies include range adjustment, equity increase, or market lift.

FLSA Section 207(o) allows public-sector compensatory time instead of overtime for non-exempt employees at 1.5 hours per overtime hour, subject to caps and agreement.

Defined benefit pension value depends on the benefit formula, service credit, and final average salary; vesting and normal retirement age determine eligibility.

GASB 68 governs pension liability reporting, and GASB 75 governs other postemployment benefit liability reporting such as retiree health insurance.

Section 125 cafeteria plans allow pre-tax premium conversion and flexible spending accounts; HSA eligibility requires a qualifying high-deductible health plan.

457(b) deferred compensation is a public-sector retirement savings plan; contributions reduce taxable income and may allow catch-up provisions.

Turnover rate equals separations during the period divided by average headcount during the period, multiplied by 100.

Vacancy rate equals vacant funded positions divided by total funded positions, multiplied by 100.

Absenteeism rate equals unplanned absence hours divided by scheduled work hours, multiplied by 100.

Leading indicators predict future outcomes such as engagement and vacancy duration; lagging indicators report past outcomes such as turnover and injuries.

Data governance defines HR data ownership, stewardship, standard definitions, access, retention, and quality rules.

Validation controls include range checks, format checks, duplicate detection, referential integrity, and reconciliation to source systems.

Dashboards require consistent definitions, denominators, time periods, and drill-downs to source data.

Predictive analytics uses historical data and statistical models to estimate the likelihood of outcomes such as attrition or time-to-fill.

The policy cycle is issue identification, research and analysis, drafting, stakeholder review, legal review, approval, communication, implementation, evaluation, and revision or sunset.

SMART criteria are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

SWOT analysis identifies internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats.

Stakeholder analysis maps interest and influence to plan engagement and communication.

Environmental scanning examines political, economic, social, technological, legal, and demographic trends, often using PESTLE.

Impact analysis estimates costs, benefits, risks, equity effects, and operational changes before policy adoption.

A sunset clause sets a scheduled expiration or review date unless the policy is renewed.

Strategic plan elements include mission, vision, values, environmental scan, goals, objectives, initiatives, metrics, and evaluation.