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Ethical dilemmas in the workplace are quite common, and they’re not always easy to answer. The concepts are straightforward, but the challenge is in the execution. Even when organizations have great policies and procedures and follow the laws and regulations, there’s still a high risk of unethical behavior. For example, some employees may not know […]
Ethics in the workplace aren’t always black and white. Sometimes the issues are obvious and we can easily see when a company is – or isn’t – acting ethically. Other times, actions we may not associate with ethics really can become ethical considerations. This is very important for companies to consider because ethical values set […]
Maintaining employee records can be a time-consuming and arduous task. What pre-employment files should be kept in employee records? Should supervisor notes be included? Are electronic versions of mandatory records acceptable? These questions and many more were addressed by Jason Ritchie in a recent BLR webinar. Here’s a selection of the questions and answers. Q. […]
How many years back into the past can a criminal background check go? What is the difference between an investigative consumer report and a regular consumer report? Can you have different screening processes or factors that warrant disqualification for different positions? These are just a few of the questions that were asked by participants in […]
What policies do you have in place regarding personnel record maintenance? When can you get rid of personnel records? General Guidance for Personnel Record Maintenance “Files should be obviously kept in a central location and someone, typically the HR department, should be the designated custodian. Only the custodian should put things into the file or […]
Employers performing employee background checks are actually subject to Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulations. FCRA applies to all consumer reports and investigative consumer reports, whether they’re conducted in house or by a third-party such as a consumer reporting agency (CRA). FCRA “is a federal law, and it imposes minimum standards on employers that they […]
Employee background checks are used by an estimated 92 percent of organizations in one form or another before hiring someone. They can be quite useful, but employers should be careful because the EEOC has been cracking down on illegal use of background information. Are you aware of what you should and shouldn’t be doing with […]
Employers may implement whatever dress guidelines they feel are appropriate, as long as they do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, religion, disability, or any other federally protected status. Nonetheless, it may be best to avoid imposing rigid or highly restrictive dress requirements. Overly restrictive requirements may create resentment among employees and negatively […]
Canada employment laws can be quite different to their counterparts in the United States. US employers with operations in Canada need to be well-versed in these differences to stay in legal compliance on both sides of the border. Here are some of the big-picture differences of which to be aware. Canada Employment Laws: Minimum Employment […]
Social media policies have come under scrutiny from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), primarily in relation to an employee’s rights to conduct concerted activity. This right is protected by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) Section 7. The problem is, the NLRB’s recent interpretations have been so broad that you may not even have […]