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Fair Pay Act Revives Police Employee’s Discrimination Claims

by Teresa A. Cheek The Third Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued a decision applying the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act — the first bill signed into law by President Barack Obama in January 2009. HR Guide to Employment Law: A practical compliance reference manual covering 14 topics, including discrimination Facts Mary Lou Mikula was […]

HOT LIST: BusinessWeek’s Bestseller List

BusinessWeek ranks business books that are the most recent bestsellers and provides a short summary. 1. StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths by Tom Rath. Are you unsure where your true talents lie? Do you feel that you are both a person who gets […]

Forbidden Questions—The Bad and the Ugly

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady Our recent column about forbidden interview questions asked readers to send in some examples, and send you did! This week we’ll share your horror stories and in a future issue, the “good” questions and comments. So here are the worst or most humorous questions readers submitted: “If you […]

DOL Audits Health Reform Compliance of Employer Plans

It may seem paradoxical that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) should begin auditing health plans for compliance with the health reform law’s mandates, given that the U.S. Supreme Court could very well strike down the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for being unconstitutional in early summer. But it’s better that plans be ready to demonstrate […]

Something Special for HR in the Hurd/HP Fiasco

It may seem to be just another in a long line of missteps—or misleaps—by corporate bad boys, but in this week’s HP debacle, there’s a special twist for HR managers. HR is always trying to find a way to convince the board that training is worthwhile, but for the most part, to do that they’ve […]

Disciplining Employees: Sprewell Defamation Claims Are Back In Play; 3 Ways For Employers To Avoid Backlash From Firings

When you fire an employee for misconduct, even if it’s for an egregious incident that occurred in public, you still need to be careful who you talk to about it both inside and outside your company. The case of former Golden State Warriors basketball player Latrell Sprewell illustrates how an employer whose termination of an […]

Broad Drug Testing Policies Approved by Arbitrator

By Brian P. Smeenk Drug and alcohol testing has long been a sensitive subject in Canada, especially in safety-sensitive workplaces. A recent 128-page arbitration decision by a leading Canadian arbitrator may have put to rest many of the remaining questions about what kinds of policies will be enforceable in Canada and what they should contain. […]

Examine Your Interview Process: Is It Effective?

Being able to identify employees with long-term potential is truly an art form, and companies that get it right typically outperform those that don’t. The companies that excel have a well-defined system in addition to having key decision-makers highly engaged early on and throughout the interview process. Furthermore, companies that are successful in identifying great […]

Wisconsin

FLSA: Workers’ Preliminary ‘Donning and Doffing’ Duties Compensable

By Troy D. Thompson of Axley Brynelson, LLP Earlier this year, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided that time spent by employees putting on and taking off company-required clothing to comply with federal regulations is compensable time for which they must be paid.  The court’s decision is largely consistent with a line of other recent decisions […]

Stereotypes Are Alive and Well

We are beyond the day when an employer could evaluate employees by assuming or insisting that they matched the stereotypes associated with their group. — U.S. Supreme Court Price Waterhouse Facts Brenna Lewis started working for Heartland Inns, a small hotel chain, in July 2005. She mainly worked as a night-shift auditor, and in the […]