Hello BIS Community,

Season’s Greetings to all of you! There are so many different holiday and cultural celebrations happening at this time of year, so however and if you celebrate, I hope this season is bringing you lots of love, light, and all things bright!

Upcoming Winter Holidays

·  December 16-24 Los Posadas 

·  December 7-15: Hanukkah

·  December 21: Winter Solstice/ Yule 

·  December 25: Christmas Day

·  December 26-January 1: Kwanzaa

·  January 6: Epiphany (Three Kings Day) 

·  February 10: Chinese/ Lunar New Year (year of the Dragon) 

 

Office Spotlight: the BIS Metro Office will be closed on Monday, 12/25/23.

• We will resume regular hours on Tuesday, 12/26/23 (8:30am-5pm), however; there are a lot of people out of the office during the holiday week, please be sure to call ahead or confirm an appointment time with the administrative staff to ensure we can provide the assistance you need!
• If you need immediate assistance during this time, please reach out to your site supervisor or the ISL On Call Phone below:
  • ISL On Call Phone:   314-624-8404

 

Attendance Spotlight: November 2023

We had some stellar attendance for last month! I’m happy to announce that our Perfect Attendance Winner for the month of November 2023 is Denzel Washington! Denzel, is a DSP Floater who works at a variety of ISLs and we are so lucky to have him! Thanks so much for your great attendance last month! In order to show our appreciation you will be a receiving a $50.00 gift card. Also, you are eligible to spin the prize wheel up at the BIS office!  Congratulations, Denzel! Look out for a separate email from me on how to claim your prize.

 

Winter Weather Spotlight: With December brings impending winter weather! Driving during winter weather can be very unpredictable. Therefore, it is essential to keep your vehicle stocked for worst-case scenarios. Whether your car breaks down or you get stuck in the snow, a little preparation can make a bad situation bearable and may save your life. Below are some tips to winterize your vehicle. Also see the attached Auto-Winter Driver flyer to learn more about how to keep yourself (and your clients) safe when driving this winter.

WINTERIZE YOUR VEHICLE

·     Have a mechanic check the following at the start of the winter season

·     Antifreeze levels – make sure to keep levels full

·     Battery and ignition system

·     Brakes

·     Exhaust system – leaks in your exhaust system can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning

·     Fuel and air filters

·     Heater and defroster

·     Oil

·     Thermostat

·     Windshield wiper equipment and washer fluid

·     Install good winter tires

·     Always maintain at least a half tank of gas

 

Tax Forms Spotlight: The end of the year is coming and due and that means tax season is just around the corner! As a reminder, W-2s are distributed electronically free of charge and paper copies have a $5.00 processing fee. Make sure you’ve “Opted In” on Paycor to receive your W-2 as quickly as possible. Paperless W-2s and 1095-C forms are highly encouraged. If you elect to receive electronic forms, you must opt-in no later than Friday, December 15, 2023. Scan the QR code or view the attachment in this email for instructions on how to receive your tax documents electronically.  If you have already opted into paperless, you can disregard this message.

 

https://support.paycor.com/s/article/Employees-How-to-Opt-Out-of-Printed-Form-W-2s-1099-1095c-and-Pay-Stubs-and-Opt-In-to-Paperless

·        Please make sure we have your most recent address on file to process your W-2 as accurately as possible.

·        Anyone that has recently moved or would like to update their tax forms should do so by completing the forms below or attached. Forms can be printed for pick up at BIS office with appointments only.

• Federal W4 2023 and State W4 2023 are attached to this email.
• Completed W-4 Forms must be completed and submitted in person in order to update your information. Forms will not be accepted through email, mail, or fax.
• Be sure to watch for more information about W-2s and tax forms in the next coming weeks.

 

***Should any employee have a question on how to fill these out forms, they should seek the guidance of a knowledgeable tax professional*** 

 

 

Holiday Hustle Spotlight: BIS is going to be holding a drawing to give away a CAR!

Don’t forget there’s a Holiday Special for the entries this week! Anyone who picks up a shift on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day will receive 5 extra entries into the car drawing!! If you’ve already picked a shift up, then you will receive those extra entries.

 That’s right, we have a 2016 Ford Escape that will be going to one lucky employee on January 8th, 2024!  Car is in good condition and runs well.  It has 151,000 miles and the value is approximately $10,000. There are no guarantees or warranties that come with the car and it is being given away without any additional guarantees about its future performance.  An additional $150.00 stipend will also be provided to the winner to assist with the cost coverage of the first couple of months insurance on this vehicle. How can you enter into this drawing?  Every EMPLOYEE(must be Full Duty status) is eligible for the raffle. You can earn entries in three different ways, which include:

 

1.  Picking up open shifts! This includes ISL, Grow Day Program and Sprout (if available).
   1. **5 entries for anyone who picks up an ISL Shift on 12/24 or 12/25**
   2. For every open shift you pick up Monday through Friday, you will receive one entry
   3. For every shift you pick up from Friday at 3pm to Monday at 8:00am, you will receive two entries.
   4. Shifts covered by an ISL Manager, Assistant Director, or Director.

                                                              i.      If there is an absence at any point on the week that you pick up a shift(s), you will not be able to earn any entries for that week.

 

2. For any person you refer to work at BIS!
   1. For every person you refer to BIS who starts training (completes first full day), you will receive one entry.
   2. Once that person completes training, you will receive a second entry.

 

3. Help us promote BIS!  You can earn entries for positive reviews of BIS online!  You don’t even have to leave your couch to earn entries in this category!
   1. For very five star review you give BIS on Google, Indeed, or GlassDoor, you will receive one entry.
   2. You will receive a second entry if you expand on your five star review to say a few nice things about BIS!
   3. Max of 6 entries per person
   4. Once you’ve completed the review, please take a screen shot of the review or copy your review and email it to jklamert@bis-stl.com . This way we’ll know it’s your review.

 

4. Recruit for BIS! Earn 1 entry for a new idea on recruitment. For more information email Lisa Arnett, Hiring Manager at larnett@bis-stl.com
   1. If you have a great idea of a board, group, or avenue to get our job posting out to let me know. If it’s an idea we haven’t used= an entry
   2. Currently we are using college boards, Indeed, LinkedIn, Snag a Job and social media to get the word out that we are hiring. We have tried ZipRecruiter and Monster in the past as well. Got a new idea? Send it Lisa’s way!

Entries are happening NOW!  We will have a live drawing on January 8th, at BIS headquarters located at 2644Metro Blvd..  Staff are welcome to come attend the drawing and have lunch with us on January 8th.  Feel free to bring your client up for lunch as well if you are on shift.  

 

Policy Spotlight:

782 Communication Expectations

Effective Date: 1/1/2015

Revision Date: 1/1/2021

 

BIS hopes to create an environment in which all employees are timely and professional when communicating or seeking a response to a question or query.

 

The following communication expectations should be followed by all individuals in the agency to ensure that accepted forms of communication are followed and the response times are honored according to the method of communication.

 

While at work or billing time for the agency, all employees should follow these guidelines:

 

MEDICAL EMERGENCY: CALL 911 FIRST, THEN SUPERVISOR.

 

Call your supervisor and leave the number where you can be reached when:

 

·         You witness or suspect abuse/neglect

·         Non-medical emergencies

·         A client is ill

·         A client is missing

·         Staff injury (workers compensation)

·         Situations when staff/client are feeling threatened

·         Whenever an EMT/internal incident report is filled out

·         You do not have a vehicle with you

·         Questions or concerns about your shift

·         Items not completed or completed incorrectly by the shift you are relieving i.e.:

·         DPN’s not completed

·         money discrepancies

·         medication errors,

·         doctors’ appointments

·         or any other supplies needed to complete your job, etc.

·         When you are calling off and only after initiating the call in/shift coverage procedures

·         You are not properly relieved on time (relieving staff is not there within 15 minutes of start time).

 

The employee must make contact with the supervisor within one hour of the start of shift to inform them of any issues found so they can work on how to resolve it.

 

Any calls received during work hours should be returned within 20 minutes by your supervisor. If an employee does not receive a return call within 20 minutes they should contact that person’s supervisor for assistance as they could be working with another staff member/client. Staff may use text messages with supervisors but must ensure the information has been received by their supervisor.

 

Send an email to the appropriate person when you have:

 

·         You have paycheck concerns

·         Personnel types of concerns

·         Guardian/case manager concerns that are not emergencies

·         Something that the supervisor needs to respond to or be made aware.

·         Supplies are needed but are not necessary to complete your job

·         groceries (unless needed during that shift)

·         laundry

·         Setworks issues and concerns

·         General information that does not require immediate attention by the supervisor

 

Non-emergency phone calls can be placed to your supervisor during office business hours.

 

Email communication can be done at any time to your supervisor however phone calls are to be made to your supervisor as outlined above.

 

Emails from families and DMH/DDRB are to be responded to on the same business day the email was sent.  All other emails need to be responded to by the end of the following business day.

 

All on call positions within BIS are required to have their phones on them at all times unless they have specifically been approved to be off call. If a person is approved to be off call the following items must be completed:

 

·         An all user email through Outlook/Office 365 is sent out letting others know they are off call and who to contact.

·         Anyone supervised by the individual is informed they are off call and let know the contact person for them and their information.

·         The outgoing message on their phone will need to be changed alerting the caller they are off call and who to contact for needed assistance. The message also needs to include when they will be back on call.

·         Any supervisor who fails to do the above items or handle issues that they were to have completed before going off call will be contacted by their supervisor and required to go back on call.

 

When in doubt as to whether to call a supervisor, call your supervisor.

 

Behavior Analyst are not required to ever be on call or return calls during non –business hours (unless there would be a dire emergency involving behavior-specific events).  If a Behavior Analyst chooses to return a call during non-business hours, it is at their own discretion. They are required to return all calls within 24 business hours of receipt. (i.e., non-emergency calls on the weekend would be required to be returned on Monday)

 

Direct Support Professionals and Behavior Line Therapists are not considered on call positions and are thereby required to return calls and emails received during non-work hours during their next scheduled shift. In rare instances, there may be situations in which a supervisor will need a response during a non-work day. In those cases, conversations and questions will be limited as much as possible to allow for a mostly uninterrupted day off.

 

A failure to respond to an email or phone call within a reasonable time period (by the end of the next business day) for supervisors, by the next work day for hourly employees) will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.