As a cooperative that prides itself on being “people-powered,” hiring, supporting and retaining the best and brightest employees is an essential function for Baldwin EMC.
That means the contribution of the cooperative’s Human Resources department can’t be understated.
This team of four at Baldwin EMC diligently oversees the administrative life cycle of each of the co-op’s nearly 200 employees. This starts with recruitment, interviewing and hiring, and goes on to include processing timesheets and payroll, managing insurance and other benefit packages, and maintaining legally mandated employee records.
When employees face a career change – anything from a promotion, to a title change, to a retirement – they can turn to the HR team to help walk them through the next steps. In those scenarios, they become exactly what their name implies: a resource.
Because the electric utility industry is one of the most dangerous in America, co-ops like Baldwin EMC have detailed and fine-tuned policies that ensure every employee performs to the best of his or her ability, unimpaired and able to work in a manner that keeps them and their coworkers safe. The challenging, but necessary job of overseeing and at times, enforcing, these behavioral policies also rests on the shoulders of the Human Resources team.
In early 2020, Baldwin EMC’s Human Resources team was handed an unprecedented new set of responsibilities, when the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic became unavoidable. As it was for most organizations, these were totally uncharted waters for Baldwin EMC. Not only did the co-op have to constantly stay abreast of official health and safety guidelines, our Human Resources team also had to be heavily involved in the cooperative’s efforts to minimize the spread of the virus.
With concern for employee privacy always in mind, the Human Resources department closely monitors the procedures that dictate how possible exposures are handled, and works with those on the co-op’s team who have been affected by the virus.
With the American job market becoming more competitive with each passing month, companies like Baldwin EMC have to continually analyze what they’re offering employees, whether it’s salary and benefits, or employee incentive programs, to not only attract, but also retain talent. Baldwin EMC’s HR team routinely works with wage and salary consultants to ensure the co-op’s employee benefits are comparable and competitive.
Through all of these efforts, Baldwin EMC’s human resources team works to help the co-op thrive by way of the talented people who power it.