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Employees Can’t Sue for Unpaid Vacation Before It’s Earned

By now, most employers have at least heard that California prohibits “use it or lose it” vacation policies—meaning that once an employee earns vacation time, that time can’t be forfeited for any reason. But can an employer decide not to award vacation time right away to new employees? The answer is yes—according to a recent […]

Labor Seeks New Funding to Boost FLSA, FMLA Enforcement in 2013

The Obama Administration’s proposed 2013 budget  includes funding to hire 92 additional Wage and Hour Division investigators. The budget would allocate $6.4 million to hire investigators to enforce the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act, said Nancy Leppink, acting WHD administrator during a webchat on Monday. The funding would allow […]

Ban Raises Texting-Driving Issues that Go Beyond Big Rigs

The federal Transportation Department’s announcement banning texting by drivers of commercial vehicles is sure to make employers think twice about their policies even if they don’t have trucks or buses on the road. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood made the announcement January 26 that an interpretation of standing rules prohibits texting by drivers of commercial […]

Avoiding a Clash Over FLSA Contractor Classifications

Before they find themselves under a wage enforcement microscope, employers need to be aware of potential problems and misclassification errors when designating workers as independent contractors instead of standard employees. The U.S. Department of Labor has had the misclassification of workers squarely in its cross hairs for a while. In particular the designation of “independent […]

Hiring: What Are the Pitfalls of Hiring Internet Applicants?

Just in the past year, we’ve started doing almost all of our hiring through online sources. In some ways, it works very well, but I’m becoming increasingly concerned that we’re sort of losing control of what was a pretty solid commitment to diversity. Are we exposing ourselves to discrimination and affirmative action problems by recruiting […]

Hot List: Wall Street Journal’s Bestselling Hardcover Business Books

The following is a list of the bestselling hardcover business books as ranked by the Wall Street Journal with data from Nielsen BookScan on November 1. 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? […]

Is "Feelings" Training Next for Your Managers?

No one needs training to feel emotions around the Thanksgiving table, but how about around the conference table? Has the time come for emotional intelligence testing and training? “I wish I had a decoder for each relationship at the office.” “When one of my direct reports starts talking to me about her medical problems, I […]