Archives

Employers Can Restrict Union Use of Company E-mail

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has ruled that employers can prohibit employees from using company e-mail to send union-related messages while allowing some personal use of e-mail. In a 3-2 decision dated December 16 but released December 21, the NLRB majority ruled that the e-mail policy of Eugene, Oregon, newspaper The Register-Guard wasn’t a […]

New Year’s Resolutions for HR

Around the New Year, many of us start to consider what we could do better in the coming year. We consider things like joining a gym and eating more vegetables. It’s also a good time to think about how we could improve our work performance. Audio Conference: New Year, New Laws, New Employee Handbook? What […]

It’s College Bowl — and Office Pool — Season

by John Husband Individual commitment to a group effort — that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work. ~ Vince Lombardi I understand what it means to be an avid college football fan. In my earlier days, I was fortunate to be on three Big Ten Conference […]

Outsourcing and Self-Service HR: Stalled at the Gate?

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady In a poll at the last HR Technology Conference our CEO attended, only 2% at one session said they are considering more outsourcing of HR. But wasn’t outsourcing supposed to be the future of HR? Here are Bob’s thoughts on the matter. Well, guess what! The wave of […]

Never Put This in a Job Description

Last issue, we talked about what to include in job descriptions; today we tell you what to leave out. And we’ll reveal a handy program that makes quick work of all your job description tasks. Essential job elements, exposure to physical hazards, pay grade … the list of what should be in a job description […]

Job Descriptions: 5 Myths About Essential Functions

Chances are, your boss isn’t screaming, “Where are those job descriptions?” But come court time, come EEOC investigation time, it’s “What? You didn’t update the job descriptions?” A new year is starting.  That means it’s time to review those job descriptions again. And as always, the focus is on the essential functions decision. We’ve collected […]

Small Decencies: King Wenceslas’ Job and Yours

At this time of year, we remember King Wenceslas, the 10th-century monarch who took food and firewood to the poor. That small decency was long ago, but author and company CEO Steve Harrison reminds us that small decencies, day after day, still build great companies. A CEO is the business leader, but a CEO is […]

Merry Christmas

No post today. Call it a sympathy strike (yes, I know that sympathy strikes are illegal – take it up with the NLRB). Well, better yet, call it a holiday hiatus as the truth is that I’m blowing off my responsibilities this morning and heading for the mall to finish up my Christmas shopping. In […]

DOL Fails to Help Employers Out of FMLA Conundrum

By the BLR Editors Just My E-pinion At long last, a response has come from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on its call for public comments on the FMLA. Too bad DOL is a day late and about 10 dollars short. First came the hope … that, after requesting public comments, the U.S. Department […]

Terminations: What Should We Cover When We Conduct a Termination Meeting to Fire a Poor Performer?

One of our employees isn’t working out. His sales have been consistently low, he has trouble meeting deadlines, and he doesn’t interact well with clients. We’ve decided to let him go. What should we cover when we meet with him? Thank you. — Maryanne P., Santa Monica   Mishandling a termination meeting could lead to […]