Category: HR Management & Compliance

There are dozens of details to take care of in the day-to-day operation of your department and your company. We give you case studies, news updates, best practices and training tips that keep your organization fully in compliance with ever-changing employment law, and you fully aware of emerging HR trends.

Thompson’s Top HR Stories of 2015

The start of a new year offers the opportunity to take stock, and to plan ahead. It’s anyone’s guess what 2016 will hold for human resources professionals, but looking back at the stories that drew the most interest from our reader community provides some useful insights on what to watch for in the new year. […]

Time for California employers to be ready for $10 minimum wage

by Elizabeth J. Boca The minimum wage in California will increase from $9 to $10 an hour as of January 1. Employers must understand that paying the higher minimum wage alone doesn’t satisfy their obligations because the upcoming increase will spark a domino effect in various compliance areas.  Exempt “white-collar” employees. Each time the state […]

Littler Forecasts Top 10 EEOC Trends to Watch in 2016

Systemic investigations, hiring scrutiny and pregnancy discrimination are among the trends at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that employers should be looking out for in the coming year, according to attorneys at Littler Mendelson PC. A report issued by Littler analyzes and examines key statistics from the EEOC’s Performance and Accountability Report for fiscal […]

Do Management Teams View HR as a Strategic Partner?

It’s a given that HR professionals are actively involved in many areas of an organization, but where exactly? A recent BLR® survey looks at how HR plays a role in strategic business planning and other key strategic areas. According to Your HR Department survey, HR is viewed as a strategic partner by management teams for […]

Common Mistakes Made When Providing Training on Workplace Violence

Addressing the very real threat of violence in the workplace is never a pleasant thought—but you can’t allow that negative reaction to derail your training. “When it comes to workplace violence training, a lot of organizations are ‘doing the right thing the wrong way,’” says Jay Hart, director of Force Training Institute. Hart says, “Three […]

Was Truck Driver Owed Overtime under MCA Exemption?

By Arielle B. Sepulveda, JD The U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—recently ruled that an employee who worked on both large trucks—the operation of which is exclusively regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)—and smaller vehicles was entitled to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

HR Director’s FLSA Complaint Was Protected Activity

A wage and hour complaint lodged by a human resources director can be “protected activity” under the Fair Labor Standards Act if she is not responsible for compliance with the law, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The director — who was fired for complaining — can continue with her FLSA retaliation […]

Being Good Enough Just Isn’t Good Enough

“Be all that you can be.” For years, that was the recruitment slogan used by the U.S. Army in its advertising. I think most of us would say we want to be all that we can be. We unabashedly claim we want to be the BEST. People don’t claim they want to come in second […]

Termination for Reporting Theft—A Big Mistake for One California Employer

By Cathleen S. Yonahara Under California law, employers may not retaliate against employees for reporting illegal activity to law enforcement. However, an employer did just that when it fired a worker for filing a police report after the worker’s wedding ring was stolen while on the job—and that action proved to be an expensive error […]

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A Class Certification Speed Bump for California Truckers

By Michael Futterman and Jaime Touchstone A truck driver sued his employers alleging wage and hour violations. The trial court refused to certify the lawsuit as a class action but failed to provide a reason for its decision. The California Court of Appeal sent the case back to the trial court because it could not […]