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Employment Law Tip: How to Avoid Trouble with Reference Requests

Providing references for current and former employees can be tricky. Improperly handling such requests can lead to lawsuits and claims from both the individual and the new employer. Each state sets its own thresholds for liability arising from employment references. Regardless of location, employers should exercise caution and err on the side of providing too […]

Interview Technique: More Than Just Good Questions

BLR’s HR subscription website, HR.BLR.com, explains that success at interviewing jobseekers means not just knowing what to ask, but the techniques of how to ask. Yesterday’s Daily Advisor gave you 20 key questions to use in interviewing job candidates. Question content is key, of course, to getting the information you need. But so is another […]

20 Top Job Interview Questions

If you could ask only 20 questions in a job interview, which should they be? BLR’s editorial mind weighs in with the answers. Back in the day, there used to be a TV quiz show called “20 Questions.” The contestant had a secret in mind, and the panel was challenged to learn it in just […]

Handling Employees Summoned for Jury Duty

John, a regular full-time employee of BigCo, received a jury summons from federal court. Upon learning he had to appear for jury duty, he called Jamie, BigCo’s human resources representative, to find out what he needed to do. Jamie told him that he needed to take personal leave for his absence. After hearing John complaining, […]

Ben Franklin

LITIGATION VALUE: $800,000+ If an executive learns that a regional manager has sponsored a bachelor party in the warehouse, hired a stripper, offered to “deflower” the bride, taken an employee to a sex store, received a lap dance, and allowed a pervert dressed up like Benjamin Franklin to make a lewd statement to the receptionist, […]

Why Are Women Paid Less? Our Readers Talk Back

HRDA readers respond to our CEO’s suggestion that the gender pay gap isn’t  decreasing faster because women simply often don’t know how to ask for more. A few Fridays ago, our CEO, Bob Brady, ignited a bit of a firestorm in this space with his column on why … and to what degree … women […]

Just How Much Should HR Professionals Be Paid?

HR salaries are rising, but how much does that mean in dollar terms at companies like yours in your area? Here’s a program to find out. Yesterday’s Advisor reported that HR salaries have risen sharply in recent years for those who have the skill sets companies are now looking for. Those skills go beyond the […]

HR Salaries Jumping Up … But There Is a Catch

A consultant survey says that HR people have the opportunity to greatly increase their pay these days, but only if they develop the skills that merit such raises. What level of salary increase is in your company’s plans for the coming year? Probably about 3 percent to 4 percent, if you fall within national averages. […]

Legislation: Health Care Measure Wins Key Approval in State Senate

A measure to overhaul California’s ailing health care system by extending health insurance coverage to all Californians and requiring employers to share in the cost has won approval in the Senate Healthcare Committee. The measure would, among other things, require all employers that don’t offer employee health insurance to pay a payroll tax of 7.5 […]