Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
We have a policy we’re planning to change. We told the affected employees that we will be handling the issue a particular way, but we didn’t explicitly tell them that the new practice is contrary to what is in the handbook, or that we intend to change the policy as it is currently stated in […]
We think that drug use in our company might be growing, and management wants to institute a broad, random testing policy with a zero-tolerance standard. I believe that random testing might be a privacy violation in California. Is it advisable to have a random testing policy, and if not, what do you recommend for curbing […]
Do you think exit interviews are helpful? We just had a case in which an ex-employee, during the exit interview, accused a manager of discrimination. The manager blew it off, saying, “Oh, she’s just a disgruntled employee who’s letting off steam on her way out,” and nothing came of it. I don’t know whether it’s […]
Wage and hour investigations are often the result of a complaint filed by an employee or former employee. But sometimes the U.S. Department of Labor, or a state agency, targets specific industries for audits. During an investigation, the DOL will visit the business and gather data on wages, hours, and other employment conditions or practices. […]
Target Corporation has paid the U.S. Department of Labor $92,400 in penalties to resolve charges that the retailer exposed young workers to hazardous machinery, in violation of federal child labor standards. The violations occurred at several New York stores and one in New Jersey. In connection with the resolution, Target also provided the DOL with […]
The U.S. Department of Labor, which enforces the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), has announced that it will soon publish—by June 2006—a new rule conforming the department’s regulations to recent court decisions concerning the FMLA.
Some of my nonexempt employees want to work through their meal periods so they can take off early. Is this OK?
Do I have to pay employees who go on jury duty? What about court appearances?
As a result of an upcoming merger, we are going to have a lot of situations in which there is a disparity in salaries. We have a plan for addressing that over a period of three years, but in the meantime, I would like to institute a policy that prohibits employees from discussing their salaries […]
We are a cold storage facility and recently received a doctor note for one of our employees indicating that the employee must not work in the freezer area. Our facility is divided into different temperature areas but is always at a cold temperature. What do I do moving forward with this employee? Her job requires […]