Hi there,
This is your monthly roundup of Spot product updates and HR-related content.
đ¨ Compliance alert
Reminder: Since January 1, 2025, California employers must display a standardized whistleblower rights notice in the workplace. This new rule ensures employees understand their rights, how to report issues, and how they're protected from potential retaliation.
To stay compliant, employers should download the official notice, update workplace postings, and ensure remote employees have access. Itâs also a great time to refresh reporting policies, re-communicate about your reporting channels, and train HR teams.
Spotoffers a whistleblowing channel, including a telephone hotline! If you need whistleblowing functionality, please reach out.
⨠Rethinking workplace relationships
Recent research shows that employees no longer care as much about workplace relationships. As Adam Grant, Glassdoorâs new chief worklife expert, notes of coworker friendships:
People seem to be both less interested in [building] that in a hybrid and remote world, and also struggling more at it. Work is the last remaining place where you can meet people as an adult, and thatâs not even happening now.
Even as trust in the workplace has erodedâwith systemic layoffs leaving employees to wonder if loyalty will be reciprocatedâstrong ties at work continue to be the biggest predictor of job satisfaction and engagement.
So instead of planning off-sites that feel more like a chore than a benefit (and which are a lot of work to organize, letâs be real) Grant suggests letting employees âchoose their own relationship-building experiences.â For example, âwe should be pairing people up for lunch and paying for it. Whether they talk about work or not, catalyzing those connections is probably a net positive.â Employer-funded learning opportunities for small groups are another option.
đ˘ Real-life example: Spotâs remote-first parent company, All Turtles, offers an initiative called Turtle Crossings. Employees can meet in person with colleagues anywhere, to do anything, and expense $100 each. You can have a cappuccino or a three-course meal, or go mini-golfing. The activity is up to the people involved; what matters is the in-person connection. According to Grant, theyâre on the right track.
đď¸ Planning ahead
April is Financial Literacy Month, a chance to support employees with resources on budgeting, tax prep, and financial planning. In the US, itâs also Arab-American Heritage Month, a time to recognize the contributions of Arab Americans by highlighting authors, artists, and employees. Here are some dates to keep in mind:
- April 2: World Autism Awareness Day â Share resources on autism, workplace inclusion, and ways to create a more supportive environment.
- April 22: Earth Day â Organize a green initiative such as volunteering in a park cleanup, and encourage sustainable habits and programs at work.
- April 23: Administrative Professionals Day â Show appreciation for the people who keep everything running.
