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What Tennessee Election Results Mean for Employers

By John B. Phillips, Jr. After the midterm elections, Tennessee’s congressional delegation will be made up of seven Republicans and two Democrats, a net gain of two seats for the GOP. Tuesday’s election continues Tennessee’s move toward a solid-red Republican state. Both U.S. Senators are Republicans, though neither was up for election this year. In […]

‘I need FMLA—I’m his father in loco parentis’

Who’s a son or daughter under FMLA? Not as easy a question as it might appear to be. And the flip side—who’s a parent is equally murky. Fortunately, the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has clarified the situation somewhat. It’s not that hard to determine family relationships when there’s a biological or legal relationship, […]

Accommodation of Family Status on Same Footing as Other Human Rights

by Ralph Nero and Ida Martin Do parents of young children have the right to refuse a geographic transfer? In the case of three employees at the Canadian National Railway (CNR), the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) has recently answered “yes.” Last month, the CHRT released three decisions dealing with three CNR employees, Cindy Richards, […]

Timekeeping—If It’s So Simple, Why So Many Lawsuits?

In yesterday’s Advisor, we offered tips for managing the basics of HR legal issues. Today, the rest of the tips and an introduction to a program specially designed for smaller or even one-person HR departments. Once again, a tip of the Advisor hat to attorneys John K. Skousen and Christopher J. Boman, partners at the […]

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 on November 1. 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? […]

Four Arizona Ballot Measures of Interest to Employers

By Chris McFadden As a reminder, tomorrow will be your opportunity to make a difference in Arizona by heading to the polls! Four measures on the ballot may be of particular interest to employers. Proposition 113 (secret ballot): If passed, this measure would guarantee the right to vote by secret ballot in union representation elections. […]

Most HR Failures Come from Ignoring the Basics

There are dozens of picky technical ways to run afoul of employment laws, but more often than not it’s the most fundamental failures that get employers in trouble, say attorneys John K. Skousen and Christopher J. Boman. Unfortunately, Skousen says, employers have the money and the power, so there’s an automatic bias towards them. That […]

Experience: What You Get When You Don’t Get What You Want

I saw a sign the other day that read, “Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.” It sounded pretty true to me. Sure, you get experience when you succeed, but if you think about it, the truly valuable lessons are learned when we don’t get what we want. This short […]

Lady GaGa’s Door is Open

Litigation Value: More fodder for Darryl’s racial harassment claim and $1,000 to re-write Sabre’s Open Door Policy. Where to begin, where to begin? I knew as soon as I saw the Hallowe’en costumes that we were in for quite an evening. And I must say, I agree with Kelly — can’t Michael just let the employees […]