Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
The massive healthcare reform proposal that was brokered between Gov. Schwarzenegger and the California legislature has died in the Senate Health Committee, which voted overwhelmingly not to move the bill forward. Key reasons for the committee’s move included the state’s huge budget deficit and the lack of available funding for the bill’s provisions. The measure […]
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has ruled 3-2 that an employer didn’t violate federal labor relations law by having a policy that barred employees from using the company’s email system for union activities and other non-job-related solicitations. Employers have basic property rights to regulate and restrict the use of company property, including an email […]
Multimillion dollar harassment settlements and judgments just keep on coming. Recent headlines run the gamut from “Unwanted Touching at McDonalds” to “Harassment at Madison Square Garden.” How can HR help? Is harassment happening at your workplace? Has it continued over time? If so, experts offer two explanations as to why: Either management is unaware (unlikely} […]
The following is a list of the bestselling hardcover business books as ranked by the New York Times on February 5. 1. Jim Cramer’s Stay Mad for Life by James J. Cramer with Cliff Mason. (Simon & Schuster, $26.) The host of “Mad Money” on CNBC explains how to get rich and stay rich. 2. […]
by Kate McNeill of McCarthy Tetrault and Brian P. Smeenk formerly with McCarthy Tetrault Canada’s federal parliament has passed a law to protect workers when their employers become insolvent A key component of Bill C-12, passed December 14, 2007, is the creation of the Wage Earner Protection Program (WEPP). The WEPP provides statutory wage protection […]
The National Bank Act (NBA) grants banks the power to dismiss their officers “at pleasure.” Courts have interpreted this to mean that the NBA protects banks from wrongful termination claims by officers, including employment discrimination suits. A new decision, however, makes it clear that job duties—not job title—are the determining factor in whether an employee […]
What are you doing for Valentine’s Day? How about a nice romantic interlude … say, an audio conference on workplace romance? We’ll get to that in a minute. First, as promised, attorney Joseph Beachboard on Love Contracts. In yesterday’s Advisor, employment law attorney Joseph Beachboard discussed the challenges of romance in the workplace. Today, he […]
With Valentine’s Day in the air, thoughts naturally turn to the workplace romance: it’s cute, it’s touching … and it’s dangerous. Most such romances eventually break up, and then show their dark side: charges of harassment, hostile environment, favoritism, and retaliation. What do Bill Clinton, Bill O’Reilly, presidential advisor Paul Wolfowitz, and space shuttle astronaut […]
We’ve had a string of sad situations recently that have really tested our bereavement leave policy. We currently offer three days off for the death of an employee’s immediate family member. One situation involved the death of a family member on the East Coast, for which our employee wanted five days of bereavement leave. Another […]
Brian Perez, a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves, was terminated the day he returned to work at Uline, Inc., in Orange County, following a one-week military leave. Uline presented Perez with a severance agreement, which stated that Perez would receive six weeks’ salary in exchange for releasing the company from all claims, including […]