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Readers Take Offense over ‘Commitment’ Column

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady BLR CEO Bob Brady’s “Commitment” column generated some surprisingly strong backlash. Here’s his response. In last week’s column I wrote about “commitment” in the workplace and tried to make a joking comparison about male-female relationships. My offhand attempt at humor backfired and provoked a mini-controversy. In the column, […]

Possible Impact of New NLRB on Employers

by Brian R. Garrison By now, most everyone has heard about organized labor’s biggest priority, the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) — an unprecedented attempt by labor unions to organize non-union employers. But while the EFCA has garnered the lion’s share of media attention, a recent less publicized change may have a similar impact on […]

Stay Tuned!

The new season of The Office starts Thursday. The first episode is entitled “Weight Loss,” and the promo features Michael in some sort of fat suit. I can already see we’re going to have some issues. On the bright side, Michael and the new HR gal Holly are apparently going to continue developing their friendly […]

Health Plan Developments: Mental Health Parity, GINA, and Health Risk Assessments

By Michelle Sullivan, Holland & Hart LLP Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary, issued a statement on October 2 indicating that employers awaiting guidance before implementing changes to medical plans required by the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 should not expect […]

Layoffs: Big Brother is watching you

Breaking News: President Bush Signs ADA Amendments Act Yesterday, President Bush signed the ADA Amendments Act of 2008. For more details on the new law, click here. The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2009. Get ready to comply–attend our audio conference on the new law on Oct. 8.

Can Benefits Bills Distract Congress from Debt Acrimony?

This summer, the U.S. House and Senate took a break from its floundering over debt and deficits to consider a few measures affecting employee benefits. Perhaps it was refreshing, spending at least a little time thinking about something else. Let’s take a look at the latest House and Senate bills that could affect employee benefits. […]

What My Beloved Packers Teach Us About Consistency

My beloved Green Bay Packers take on their biggest rival, the Chicago Bears, Sunday for the National Football Conference crown and an opportunity to play in the Super Bowl. The rivalry between the two teams is the NFL’s longest, beginning in 1921.  During the span of the last 90 years, the two teams have faced […]

Even more mysteries of mitigation

By Michel Bellemare Last fall, we reported on the mysteries of mitigation. Those articles (“When do employees have a duty to mitigate termination claim?” and “More mysteries of mitigation”) reported on the Ontario Court of Appeal’s decision in Bowes v. Goss Power Products Ltd. that confirmed that the duty to mitigate doesn’t necessarily apply where […]

Happy People Don’t Sue! (There Aren’t a Lot of Happy People)

There aren’t a lot of happy people at work these days, says Hunter Lott, and that means that HR managers have their work cut out for them in preventing lawsuits. Lott, an HR practitioner dedicated to the “rights of management,” is known for his entertaining yet informative approach. His remarks came during his annual “Please […]