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The 5 Key Comp Trends for 2011

Wudyka, who is founder and managing principal of Westminster Associates, a Wrentham, MA based, full-service HR and compensation consultancy, forecast the following trends at a recent webinar sponsored by BLR. 1. Fewer Salary Freezes The number of employers freezing salaries continues to decline: 32 percent froze salaries in 2009. 12 percent did so in 2010. […]

Can You Base Hiring Decisions on Information from Social Media Sites?

In yesterday’s Advisor, attorneys Chad Richter and Cynthia Sandoval discussed discipline for blogging. Today, they weigh in on hiring decisions based on social media information, plus we introduce a very useful collection of job descriptions. One of the most controversial questions in HR today is whether to rely on social media sites for information on […]

The Importance of Good Habits

A colleague shared this poem with me the other day: The Habit Poem I am your constant companion. I am your greatest helper or heaviest burden. I will push you onward or drag you down to failure. I am completely at your command. Half of the things you do you might as well turn over […]

Hot List: Wall Street Journal’s Bestselling Hardcover Business Books

The following is a list of the bestselling hardcover business books as ranked by the Wall Street Journal with data from Nielsen BookScan. 1. StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths by Tom Rath. Are you unsure where your true talents lie? Do you feel […]

Make Smart Post-Recession, Performance-Based, Pay Decisions

How can you make smart decisions on pay budgets, merit budgets, and overall compensation given the economic turmoil of the last few years? Consultant David Wudyka tells us what’s going on and what we can do about it. Wudyka is founder and managing principal of Westminster Associates, a Wrentham, MA based, full-service HR and compensation […]

No Separate Duty of Fair Treatment in Accommodation in British Columbia

By David G. Wong The British Columbia (BC) Supreme Court, in Emergency Health Services Commission v. Cassidy, has recently confirmed that a BC employer’s duty to accommodate doesn’t extend to including a freestanding procedural requirement that the employer treat the employee fairly, and with due respect for his dignity, throughout the accommodation process. Facts At […]

The Top 5 Questions Before You Discipline for Blogging

Special from SHRM Las Vegas It’s not easy to comply when technology changes every day and the laws are archaic, say attorneys Chad Richter and Cynthia Sandoval. But that’s no excuse—employers have to deal in spite of the confusion. The two Jackson-Lewis attorneys (Richter from the Omaha office and Sandoval from the Newport Beach, California […]

When Handing Out Severance Pay, Don’t Forget Employees on Leave

If an employer grants severance pay to laid-off employees, it must also pay those who were on leave for disabilities at the time of the layoff. A California auto plant failed to do so and has now agreed to pay into a $6 million settlement fund (along with Toyota) to settle an Americans With Disabilities Act […]

Be Aware: IRS Eyes Join DOL’s on Your Form 5500

If you file the Form 5500, you know what an odious exercise that can be. And you’d better get it right. Not only is the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) examining the form you file — so is the IRS. The DOL wants the forms to be complete and accurate, of course, […]