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Is Obesity a Disability? Fat Chance!

by Gary Jiles Q: Can an employee be fired for being so obese that he can’t do his job? In other words, is obesity a disability protected by law? Americans with Disablities (ADA) Compliance Manual A: The employee must be qualified to do his job or he faces termination. With a few exceptions, the latest […]

Addressing Indoor Heat Hazards (and Citations) in California

California’s outdoor heat illness prevention standard is the only one of its kind in the United States—and a recent ruling by the California Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board has made it so those working indoors are protected from heat hazards as well. The ruling comes after a worker suffered heat illness while inside a […]

NLRB proceeds with ‘quickie election’ rule implementation

by Tammy Binford As the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) controversial “quickie election” rule moves a step closer to implementation, employers are being warned to be ready. On April 6, NLRB General Counsel Richard F. Griffin Jr. issued a 36-page guidance memo that outlines how new unionization efforts will be processed from the time a […]

Avoiding Bias When Hiring Security Officers

The challenge for the security guard industry has always been: How do we hire the best and the brightest, even though we can’t pay them as much as we need to? How do we attract qualified people? Security officer firms that need to hire a lot of guards to staff a new or expanding contract […]

Crusade to Eliminate Base Pay Merit Increase

Special from Atlanta–SHRM Annual Conference and Exhibition “I’m on a worldwide crusade to abolish merit increase base pay systems,” says consultant John Rubino. “They are demotivational.” Rubino, who is founder and president of Rubino Consulting Services in Pound Ridge, New York, offered his suggestions at the 64th SHRM Annual Conference and Exhibition, going on this […]

Basics of Overtime Law in California

Overtime laws in California differ from the federal laws. If you have employees in California, you need to know your overtime obligations. In a CER webinar titled “Exemption Audits in California: Practical Strategies for Conducting a Successful Self-Audit of Your Job Classifications,” Allen M. Kato outlined some overtime basics for us to help employers understand […]

A “Get-Together”

Litigation Value:  Call it what you will — a get-together, party, or bacchanalia. By any name, tonight’s gathering at the soon-to-be-former home of Robert California could prove costly for both Dunder Mifflin Sabre and its chief executive. “Are you ready for some meatballs?”  At night’s end, The Office‘s figurative answer to that literal question by […]

Are Your Safety Trainers Effective?

Charlotte Grove and Denise Augustine described the basic delivery methods for effective EHS training. Their presentation was modeled on the new American National Standard Institute/American Society of Safety Engineers Z490.1 Criteria for Accepted Practices in Safety, Health, and Environmental Training. The first criterion for ensuring effective delivery is to make sure the trainer is qualified. […]