Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Wall Street is taking a beating. Still. AIG’s collapse is just the latest in a series of events that is increasingly having an effect on our lives and the companies we work for. Dunder Mifflin has encountered its share of financial problems including layoffs and even a branch closing. As you recall, the gang in […]
Your employees are probably feeling the pinch, and in many workplaces, talk has already turned to winter survival and energy costs if heating oil, natural gas, and electricity are as expensive as it looks like they will be. You’d like to help, but businesses are feeling the pinch, too. Rising energy costs make it more […]
The current recession has taken its toll on the United States, and many Americans are still fighting to stay financially afloat. Consumer confidence is down. According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, consumer bankruptcies rose by 24 percent nationwide in August from the same period a year ago, and during the first six months of 2009, […]
by Gary Jiles Q: The continuing increase in gas prices has caused me some concern lately because I often have to send my employees on work-related errands or trips. When and how much am I required to reimburse my employees for mileage, or am I even required to reimburse them at all? And do mileage […]
By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady BLR CEO Bob Brady is on vacation this week, so we’re offering one of his most popular columns that deals with a problem that most all HR managers face—negativity. A reader recently wrote to ask how to deal with “negativity,” specifically, employees who can see only the dark […]
“Let’s talk about how to handle abuse of intermittent leave rules,” says attorney Jeffrey A. Wortman. Then he chuckles, underscoring the near impossibility of easily managing intermittent leave under the FMLA. Wortman, a partner in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, and Nancy M. Cooper a partner in the Portland, Oregon, office of […]
Most California employers know by now that a California appeals court recently issued an important decision in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court, interpreting the state’s meal and rest period requirements and giving employers and employees welcome flexibility in scheduling breaks. (See our complete coverage here.)
Employment law attorney Michael Maslanka reviews the book 45 Effective Ways for Hiring Smart by Pierre Mornell. Review contains tips for hiring the best employee, from interview questions to checking references. Recently, I ran across an excellent book, 45 EFFECTIVE WAYS FOR HIRING SMART: How to Predict Winners and Losers in the Incredibly Expensive People-Reading […]
Ask most HR managers what their biggest headache is, and about 90 percent say “FMLA.” From eligibility to notifications to managing intermittent leave, it’s an ever-present problem. And FMLA is also widely abused. However, the good news is that abuse can be tamed to some extent, say attorneys Jeffrey A. Wortman and Nancy M. Cooper. […]
by Brian Smeenk Suppose you want to change an important term of your Canadian employee’s employment contract, such as the bonus plan, future salary adjustments or the termination package. Can you do it without the employee’s agreement? If so, how? Western Inventory Service Ltd. recently found out the hard way that it couldn’t unilaterally alter […]