Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by H. Juanita M. Beecher Contractors entering into federal contracts on or after January 1, 2017, must comply with the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) new regulations requiring them to provide workers 56 hours of paid sick leave a year. The regulations implement President Barack Obama’s Executive Order 13706, which was issued on September 7, […]
by Paul M. Lusky One of the annual goals of a good CEO, manager, or supervisor should be to reduce the company’s exposure to employment litigation. The cost of litigation keeps going up, and just one lawsuit can make a sizeable dent in a company’s budget. In 2016, I resolve to . . . : […]
Most employment laws include provisions protecting employees from vindictive managers who would otherwise punish them for exercising their rights. The Family and Medical Leave Act is no exception. Late last year, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division released Fact Sheet # 77B explaining the FMLA’s anti-retaliatory provisions. Here are some highlights: Prohibitions An […]
By Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones Building better workplaces is not an alternative to, but rather a means for, responding to the new challenges of capitalism, for building productivity, unleashing creativity, and winning. Why Should Anyone Work Here? What it takes to Create and Authentic Organization provides the tools to help assess how your own […]
by Tammy Binford Although the U.S. Senate voted in favor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) on November 7, final passage of the bill, which would prohibit employers from discriminating against employees and applicants based on their sexual orientation and gender identity, faces an obstacle in the House. The Senate voted 64-32 to pass the […]
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 […]
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 […]
“Never let managers deal with leave requests,” says one expert, but that’s easier said than done. For every HR manager who doesn’t have a leave specialist on staff, here are Bob Gilson’s tips for dealing with leave requests. Gilson, an expert on employee relations, offers his tips on FedSmith.com, where he is a frequent blogger. […]
It’s a sobering realization, says attorney Kara Shea, that DOL statistics show 73 percent of its investigations result in findings of violations, but you can push the odds in your favor. Shea, who is a member of Nashville-based law firm Miller & Martin PLLC, made her remarks at BLR’s Advanced Employment Issues Symposium, held recently […]
Can you clarify for me what a probationary period means in terms of our legal rights as an employer? I thought that if we had a 90-day probationary period, that meant we could easily terminate a new employee without any legal hassles. But I went to a conference, and the speaker said that a) we […]