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Do Your Employees Need Stress Management Training?

Whatever the cause, and however it manifests, workplace stress continues to be a problem—one that can cause reduced productivity, an increase in accidents, and a spike in costs. Stress Stats The American Psychological Association (APA) observes, “While stress levels appear to be balancing out, they remain high and exceed what Americans consider to be healthy.” […]

‘Trainee’ Informed She’s Not Entitled to Minimum Wage, Overtime

A salon in Queens will pay more than $5,000 to a manicurist after allegedly telling a worker she was a “trainee” and not entitled to minimum wage or overtime. The employer also informed the woman she would have to pay a deposit to work at the salon. According to a press statement by New York […]

New Way to Commute—It’s Not the Love Boat, It’s the Nerd Boat

Planes, trains, automobiles … and buses, subways, and vanpools. Mass transit is the enviro-friendly (and cost-conscious) way to get to work. Soon the list may include a new way for techies in the Big Apple to get to their jobs—they can take the “nerd boat” to DUMBO! Administration and the New York State Department of […]

Are College Alums Displacing High School Grads in the Workforce?

One-third of hiring managers and HR professionals said they are hiring more employees with college degrees for positions that were historically held by high school graduates, according to a recent CareerBuilder® survey. This hiring trend varies across industries: Financial Services—53 percent Healthcare—40 percent Manufacturing—38 percent Transportation & Utilities—37 percent Information Technology—33 percent Professional & Business […]

Sales Compensation Strategy: Cost of Sales vs Cost of Labor

Should your organization have a sales compensation strategy that focuses on tying salaries to the costs of the goods sold, such as a commission-only program or one with significant revenue or profit-based incentives? Or should you ensure your sales compensation strategy keeps your salesperson pay competitive in the marketplace, regardless of how much sales revenue […]

Q&A Session: Using Social Media in the Workplace

Using social media in the workplace without causing legal headaches can be complex. But the simple fact that social media is entwined in our lives makes it hard to escape. There are many benefits to be had, but also many risks. How can employers strike a balance? "Social media – like LinkedIn, Facebook, and all […]

Obama urges swift confirmation of new NLRB nominees

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), crippled by a January court ruling against two recess appointees, has the potential to get back to full strength if the Senate confirms nominations President Barack Obama made April 9. Previous attempts to fill the NLRB have failed over congressional opposition to Board actions and Obama’s nominees. On April […]

Urban Institute Criticizes Use of Stop-Loss Insurance by Small Employers

If small companies self-insure their health plans and in doing so can get stop-loss coverage with very low attachment points, they could siphon healthy lives away from the new insurance market designed by health reform to insure millions of new lives, the Urban Institute warned in a April 2013 report. The Institute explained that low […]

Reward Top Performers with Reverse Robin Hood Approach

Rob from the poor, give to the rich, says consultant Joseph DiMisa, and you can structure your incentive program so it really rewards top performers. You have to lower incentive payments to poor performers to liberate funds to give bigger rewards to your top performers, says DiMisa. Rewarding performance is the first of his Incentive […]

Workers’ Compensation: Q&A on Return to Work Scenarios

Returning employees to work after an injury can raise questions from both the employee and the employer. Must you keep someone on staff who is restricted to part-time hours (when the position needs to be full-time)? If an employee comes back to work without restrictions but still requests a reduced time schedule, how should you […]