Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A few weeks ago, we reported on a recent survey that collected real-life excuses employees used for being late. Employers beware of employees indulging in Thanksgiving leftovers; one worker blamed his tardiness on the turkey. (He was sleepy after eating it!) We asked our readers to share the strangest excuses they’ve heard for being late […]
What do you think workers are most thankful for this holiday season? Having friendly colleagues beat out supportive managers, according to a recent survey. The OfficeTeam survey asked respondents, “Aside from salary, what are you most thankful for at your current job?” Here are the top five responses: Friendly coworkers—24% Good benefits […]
Associated Builders and Contractors has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Labor alleging that its new hiring regulations for federal contractors exceeds the department’s statutory authority. The regulations, which implement Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, require federal contractors and subcontractors to aim to have individuals with disabilities make up 7 percent of […]
This summer, I had the chance to visit the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C. There were many highlights, from the elephants to the pandas, but one thing that stuck out to me (and especially my 3-year-old niece), was the Orangutan Transit System, also called the “O-line.” It can be roughly described as two cables, […]
You may think working at your company has you in a rat race, but at a Wisconsin company, employees are in a roach race—literally! And this company also holds bedbug training camps. Well, not to train the vermin. So you probably have guessed that the company is a pest management firm. NewsRadio 620/WTMJ reports that […]
Your emergency response workers may someday have some of their tasks done by replacements, and they won’t mind a bit. And you won’t mind because these workers won’t be on your payroll. Researchers at North Carolina State University have been studying the movements of cockroaches, especially how they “wall follow”—find a break in a surface […]
Direct homecare and domestic service employees are currently not covered by the overtime and minimum wage requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), but this is going to change in 2015, says Susan Prince, JR, BLR Legal Editor. Happy Thanksgiving, Readers! Here’s Prince’s summary of the changes: Direct Care Workers Effective January 1, 2015, […]
Meeting the needs of overnight guests is big business in the United States. According to the American Hotel and Motel Association (AHMA), lodging is a $134 billion industry. In most U.S. states it is the first- second-, or third-largest employer. Overall, the sector employs about 1.8 million people. Employees who clean guest rooms, serve meals, […]
by Mark I. Schickman True or false: You cannot ask a job applicant if she has a disability and consider her answer during the hiring process. I would have said true―you can’t inquire about a disability. Rather, the question for every job applicant is the same: Can you perform the job’s essential tasks with or […]
A nurse’s inability to perform essential job functions, either with or without reasonable accommodations, prevented her disability discrimination claim from advancing to a jury trial and warranted summary judgment by the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota in Attiogbe-Tay v. SE Rolling Hills LLC, No. 12-1109 (D. Minn. Nov. 7, 2013). Comfort Attiogbe-Tay, […]