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Here we go again: dealing with political discussions in the workplace

by T. Harold Pinkley As election season heats up, we thought it would be worthwhile to remind you about important issues to consider when you’re dealing with discussions about politics in the workplace. We hope our readers will relate to the experiences of Gertrude, the fictional HR director featured in this article. The phone call […]

The 3 Key Criteria for Choosing Your Payroll Auditor

Lambert, who offers payroll training as “The Payroll Advisor,”says that you can’t give payroll auditing over to just anyone who’s free.  There are three points that are critical for choosing the auditor.  1. Not the Person Who Does the Job First, says Lambert, you want someone other than the one who does the job to […]

How Will the Election Affect Health Care Reform?

Eye on the Election For today’s topic—likely changes to health care reform after the election—we turned to BLR legal editor Jessica Webb-Ayer, J.D., editor of the Benefits Compliance Advisor online newsletter and the benefits manual Benefits Compliance: Strategies for Plans, Programs & Policies. Although health care reform (also known as the Affordable Care Act or […]

Suggested HR Metrics for Significant C-Suite Impact

Yesterday’s Advisor discussed the C-Suite and HR metrics; today, suggested metrics for different functions. Again, our insights come from the all-HR-in-one website, HR.BLR.com. Here are suggested metrics for various HR functions: Metrics for the Recruiting Function Time to fill a vacancy Quantity and quality of applications based on recruiting source HR cost per hire Voluntary/involuntary […]

Pension Rights Group Seeks Temporary Freeze on Lump-sum Retirement Payouts

As a growing number of large U.S. companies announce plans to “de-risk” their traditional defined benefit plans to lower their pension obligation and retiree distribution costs, the Pension Rights Center called for a moratorium on such actions until Congress can look into the risks these strategies pose to workers and retirees. On Oct. 17, Verizon […]

California vs. federal travel pay

Travel pay poses a significant risk for wage and hour claims since the line between employer time and employee time can easily blur. With employees commuting to and from the workplace; to and from jobsites; and to and from hotels, airports, and conferences, the line between personal time and work time isn’t always clear. The […]

Internal Fraud—How to Audit for Common Crimes

Lambert, who offers payroll training as “The Payroll Advisor,” says that if you are doing an audit, might as well audit for fraud as you go. She’s found a lot of fraudulent behavior that way. Auditing for Fraud Payroll fraud is defined as “anything that uses payroll to take money from the company in a […]

Working late at the office

What message are you sending about what is important?

Two of my colleagues forwarded me a recent New York Times article about the temptation of managers to reward employees who work long hours instead of those who produce results. Maybe they were trying to send me a not-so-subtle message! The article cited a study published in 2010 in which researchers found that employees who […]

Post-contractual duty to act faithfully: a protection limited to a (too) reasonable period

by Isabelle East-Richard Throughout Canada, whether under article 2088 of the Civil Code of Québec in Quebec or the common law elsewhere, employees have a duty to act faithfully and honestly toward their employer once the employment relationship has ended. That is the case even when there is no noncompetition clause in an employment contract. […]

HR Metrics the C-Suite Will Appreciate

To be business leaders, HR professionals must utilize C-Suite thinking in reporting and decision support. And that means metrics. For guidance we turned to the all-HR-in-one website, HR.BLR.com. A metric is simply a way to quantify, measure, and track key performance indicators. Metrics can support decisions related to: Compensation programs Hiring and retention Succession planning […]