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Workers’ Comp 101: When Can You Discipline an Injured Worker?

How can you stay in compliance with workers’ compensation laws when disciplining a worker who was previously injured? Administering discipline in this scenario can be tricky, but it can be accomplished by following some guidelines: have good cause, treat employees consistently, and have good documentation. Workers’ Comp 101: Disciplining an Injured Worker with Good Cause […]

religious

5 Tips for Handling Tricky Religious Accommodations

When an employee’s religious beliefs conflict with a workplace policy, you need to consider whether a reasonable accommodation can be made without creating an undue hardship. Many times, religious accommodations present challenging issues for supervisors and HR professionals, but these five tips can help ease the struggle.

25 Teambuilding Activities That Actually Interest Workers

The term “teambuilding” often elicits groans and eye rolls from employees. Many workers see them as unwelcome interruptions in already packed workdays, thinking that these feel-good activities have little value and serve no real purpose.

The First Amendment and Burping

At the beginning of one episode of The Simpsons, Bart is seen writing “The First Amendment does not cover burping” on the blackboard. Although the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that “Congress shall make no law abridging” freedom of speech, more than two centuries of practical application have taught us that even the […]

roles

Importance of Clearly Defined Job Roles

One of the most frustrating situations for a manager is expecting a deliverable while the rest of the team looks around the room or points fingers. At the same time, it can cause a lot of tension when multiple staff argue over who has “jurisdiction” or decision-making authority over a given situation.

romance

How to Get Employees to Goof Off Less at Work

Have you ever been frustrated to see how much time employees spend doing things that are not work related while on the clock? Or, perhaps the organization has a renewed focus on productivity, and you’ve been enlisted to help with brainstorming process or policy changes that could help? An area of concern for employers analyzing […]

Intermittent/Reduced FMLA Calculations for Dummies

Alexis, Of Counsel at the Kinaga Law Firm in Los Angeles, offered his FMLA tips at BLR’s Advanced Employment Issues Symposium held recently in Las Vegas. Two Keys to Leave Calculations Alexis says that there are just two questions to answer in order to calculate intermittent or reduced-schedule FMLA leave. What is the employee’s regular […]

How Leadership’s Understanding of “Psychological Safety” is More Important than Ever

Whether you’ve been leading a remote workforce for decades, recently ventured into this space, are dabbling with hybrid models or fully returning your staff to in-house status, one thing is certain: The concept of “workplace” has changed forever. The pandemic effectively recast it. And the hard, sacred work of nurturing company culture has gotten even […]

Ask the Expert: Are Airline Carriers Exempt from New Overtime Regs?

Question: We are an airline carrier covered under Title II of the Railway Labor Act. Are all of our employees exempt from FLSA? Or only certain employees performing non-exempt work? We have several exempt employees well below the $47,476 threshold set to take effect December 1. Do we have to pay them according to the […]