Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
by Carol A. Hacker The November 2008 U.S. job loss report was staggering. More than 500,000 jobs shed in one month, the worst one-month job loss since December 1974. That brings the 2008 job loss total to 1.9 million.And according to a New York Times report on the job loss situation, deeper cuts will probably […]
by Sara Parchello While U.S. employers know that their human resources policies may need to be tweaked to comply with Canadian laws, many are surprised at how different Canada’s drug testing laws are. In the United States, drug use and impairment in the workplace are seen the same as any other criminal activity. In Canada, […]
Litigation Value: $1,000,000 The folks at Dunder Mifflin must have felt like giving because they were essentially writing checks on the “Moroccan Christmas” episode of The Office. As always, there was plenty of inappropriate conduct going on this week, but rarely does it rise to this level. Michael served excessive amounts of alcohol to Meredith, […]
Among the add-ons to the $700 billion financial rescue package that Congress recently passed was a measure that will affect many employers whose health plans offer mental health benefits. The Paul Wellstone-Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 builds on and closes employer-friendly loopholes in the limited mental health parity measure […]
by Sam Fulkerson A new decision from the Tenth Circuit makes an important distinction about what constitutes a “consumer report” under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). In addition, new amendments under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) designed to prevent identity theft amended the FCRA effective November 1, 2008. Let’s look at […]
by Brian Smeenk Much has been happening on the political front in Canada in the past two weeks. It has kept us spellbound, but all the politics has certainly not advanced the government’s economic agenda. On Monday, December 1, the three opposition parties in the federal Parliament announced that they had formed a coalition and […]
by Karen Sargeant During these tough economic times, employers are often looking to increase flexibility. Several of our recent blog entries have discussed ways in which employers can do so – furloughs, work-sharing programs, changing employment contracts, and adjusting the size of the workforce. Recently, the British Columbia Court of Appeal granted Raytheon Canada some […]
For the second year in a row, we’ve been selected as one of the ABA Journal’s Blawg 100, a list of the 100 best blogs for lawyers as chosen by the editors of the ABA Journal, the flagship magazine of the American Bar Association. They’re running a contest to determine which blawgs are the most […]
Seasons greetings! It’s that time of year again. No, we aren’t talking about shopping ’til you drop, New Year’s resolutions, or holiday parties (at least not in this article). It’s time to start thinking about employee performance evaluations. Evaluate your employment practices, including performance evaluations, with the Employment Practices Self-Audit Workbook A gift that keeps […]
Seasons greetings! It’s that time of year again. No, we aren’t talking about shopping ’til you drop, New Year’s resolutions, or holiday parties (at least not in this article). It’s time to start thinking about employee performance evaluations. Evaluate your employment practices, including performance evaluations, with the Employment Practices Self-Audit Workbook A gift that keeps […]