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We Are Family—and Now We Have Protected Status

By Joan Farrell, JD On January 1, 2016, a new law in New York made “familial status” a protected characteristic under the state’s fair employment law. With the new law, New York joins several other states (including Alaska, Oregon, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia) that expressly prohibit an employer from discriminating against an […]

Employee Allergies and the ADA—What Should HR Do?

In our “What Should HR Do?” interactive video series, we present real-life scenarios similar to those HR professionals face in the workplace every day. For each scenario, you, the viewer, get to select what you believe is the best response from a few possible options. Then, we’ll let you know whether you made the best […]

Keeping it real: litigation insights from ‘Making a Murderer’

It’s mid-January, and I’m sitting in my office writing this post while snow falls outside. (Yes, we get snow in South Carolina and, yes, it terrifies us.) The snow, however, reminds me of the frozen northern Wisconsin landscapes featured in my latest binge-watching favorite, Netflix’s Making a Murderer.  If you’ve not seen it yet, Making a Murderer […]

What is GHS?

In every workplace—even simple office spaces—there are chemicals used that could have an impact on employee health and well-being. To address this fact and to minimize risks from exposure to chemicals, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has created requirements that explain what employers must do to ensure employees have information about the chemicals […]

Results of Holiday Survey, 2015

A recent BLR® survey asked the question: How does your company conduct itself concerning holidays? Check out the results of our 2015 Holiday Survey. Thanksgiving When asked which days will be paid holidays for employees for Thanksgiving 2015, 92.1% of survey participants indicated that Thanksgiving Day was a paid holiday. Additionally, 65.1% provided a paid […]

This End Up: Ensuring Employees Sent Abroad Remain Intact

Companies in America do international business all the time. As a result, they sometimes have to send employees to the four corners of the globe. Unfortunately, the journey can be fraught with difficulty. Today we’ll discuss how to take the most common difficulties into account and minimize their potential damage. If you are looking to […]