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Final HITECH Omnibus Rules Tighten Breach Notification

The HITECH Act is now here in full. The whole litany of tighter privacy and security requirements is in the long-awaited, long-delayed “omnibus” rules finalized Jan. 17 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and most of these will have to be met by this Sept. 23. The omnibus rules also include changes […]

Dress Codes: Worker Reinstated After Being Fired For Wearing Tongue Stud

An apartment leasing agent for Los Angeles-based real estate management company Oakwood Worldwide filed a discrimination suit after being fired for allegedly refusing to remove a tongue stud. Mary Haudenshield claimed the stud was not visible and did not violate the company’s dress code. Oakwood has now agreed to reinstate Haudenshield and pay her back […]

News Notes: More Employers Having Difficulty Administering Family Leave

A new Department of Labor study reveals that employers are generally less positive about the Family and Medical Leave Act than their employees. Although a majority of employers reported that the FMLA is easy to administer, the figure dropped sharply from 85% in 1995 to 63% in 2000. More employers in 2000 than in 1995 […]

OSHA to Publish Five New Final Rules in 2011

On Wednesday, January 5, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hosted a live Q&A Web chat to answer questions about its Fall 2010 Regulatory Agenda. The assistant secretary of labor for OSHA, Dr. David Michaels, started the session by listing some of OSHA’s 2010 achievements. He noted that the agency: published final rules/interim final […]

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. 1. Tell to Win: Connect, Persuade, and Triumph with the Hidden Power of Story by Peter Guber. Shows how to move beyond soulless Power Point slides, facts, and figures to create purposeful […]

Hurricane Irene Is Over, So Barring Locusts, Business Recovery and Clean Up Can Begin

In just a few days, the East Coast was struck by an earthquake and Hurricane Irene. As one colleague put it: What’s next, a swarm of locusts? Hopefully, all that is next for businesses adversely impacted by these events is cleaning-up and recovering so that normal operations can resume as quickly as possible. Companies should […]

IRS Further Explains Reform Rules on Health FSAs

Employers and plan administrators that offer health flexible spending accounts have been bracing themselves for Jan. 1, 2013. That’s when the $2,500 limit on health FSA salary reduction contributions provided for in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act kicks in. The IRS on May 30 issued Notice 2012-40, which provides guidance on the limit, […]

Inadvertantly Encouraging Your Best Salespeople to Leave? What to Avoid

Compensation pros, are your sales incentive policies actually driving your best salespeople away? It’s likely, if you aren’t careful, says Chally Group’s Vice President of R&D Sally Stevens. Even with the best of intentions, you can incentivize your best people to leave, says Stevens. Chally Group Worldwide is a global leadership, sales potential, and performance […]

Wage and Hour: Supreme Court Upholds “Companionship Services” Exemption

Evelyn Coke, a domestic worker who provided companionship services in New York, sued her employer, Long Island Care at Home, Ltd. She alleged that the company didn’t pay her overtime wages, in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The employer asked the court to dismiss the suit because Coke and workers like […]

NLRB ratifies some actions taken with recess appointees

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has announced that it has ratified some of the actions it took while it was made up of mostly recess appointees who have since been judged to be invalid. However, the ratification likely won’t have any effect on the cases decided during that time, according to John P. Hasman, […]