Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Well, it’s a little difficult to write about the perils of working in Scranton with Michael Scott as your boss when the entire office is attending a wedding, but here goes. After watching last night’s repeat episode of Jim’s and Pam’s wedding, I can’t say that getting married to a coworker is always a bad […]
by J. Robert Brame, McGuireWoods LLP In the 1990s, there was a growing concern about the “criminalization” of corporate law, in part justified by the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which placed real criminal risks on top managers. While Sarbanes-Oxley was no threat to HR managers at first, innovative prosecutors and plaintiffs’ attorneys are changing […]
by Ralph Nero and Ida Martin Can an employer require a single parent to start occasionally working the night shift? A recent board of arbitration decision out of Alberta answered — yes. This Alberta decision is the latest in our coverage of decisions wrestling with the workplace application of discrimination on the basis of family […]
Litigation Value: Settling various claims related to Dwight’s bat hunting = $30,000; replacing shredded textbook = $100; convincing your coworker you’re a vampire = priceless. Given that a colleague of mine has already thoroughly covered the employment law issues in last night’s repeat, let’s rewind to one of my favorite episodes from Season 3 — […]
by Robert C. Nagle Employers can expect increased enforcement efforts from federal and state labor and tax authorities over what’s believed to be a rising tide of misclassification of employees as “independent contractors.” There can be significant payroll savings associated with classifying workers as contractors. For example, employers typically aren’t required to withhold or pay […]
Q&A with Jamie Naughton, Cruise Ship Captain at Zappos.com Q: What’s the secret to getting on Fortune‘s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America” list? A: I don’t know if there’s a secret but I do know what they look for. Two thirds of the score is based solely off of what your employees […]
By Derek Knoechel and Lorene Novakowski On June 17, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its much anticipated decision in City of Ontario v. Quon. This was its first decision regarding the monitoring of electronic communications in the workplace by employers. What impact, if any, will the Quon decision have on Canadian law regarding employer […]
Litigation Value: An education on management from the master (of disaster) … priceless. The Office didn’t air in my little corner of the world last night, and I’m currently battling symptoms of withdrawal. So I decided to take a little walk down memory lane and relive some of my favorite lessons from Season 6. Remember, back […]
This year’s “perfect storm” of events — from terrorism in Times Square to the dreaded 1,000-year flood in Tennessee to the devastating oil spill off the Gulf Coast — should again remind employers of the need to establish a crisis management and business continuity plan (CMBCP). The time for corporate complacency is long gone. Workplace […]
By Suzanne Porteous and Wendy Wang The bad news is that one of your employees has just commenced a long-term disability (LTD) leave. You may well have concerns like: (1) Will the employee ever return to work? (2) If so, when? (3) What accommodations would be needed to allow a return to work? (4) What […]