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How to Prepare Employees for Leadership Roles

How do you help your new managers succeed? The last thing you want is for a new leader to fail and let down other employees. Clearly, that situation is no good for anyone. But not all employees who take on leadership roles are prepared for what that means. Even for people who excelled in their […]

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Is It OK to Allow Exempt Employees to Perform Some Nonexempt Duties?

You may have employees whom you have properly classified as exempt from receiving overtime pay under federal and state wage and hour law. What happens when you are short one or more hourly employees and you ask an exempt employee to pick up their duties? Under certain circumstances, you may have overtime liability. Read on […]

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Salaried Employees Can Be Exempt or Nonexempt—Clearing the Confusion

Determining whether to classify salaried employees as exempt or nonexempt can be tricky. We often think of salaried employees as being exempt from overtime. But salaried employees can fall into either the exempt or nonexempt categories depending upon several key factors. On the other hand, hourly employees are generally nonexempt with a few very specific […]

New Arizona law outlaws double-dipping unemployment benefits

by Dinita L. James A new Arizona law going into effect July 24 means employees who are let go with severance pay won’t be eligible for unemployment benefits right away. The law adds a new section to Arizona Revised Statutes § 23-621 to define severance pay, a term that was undefined in earlier legislation, which […]

Pros, Cons of Using Signing Bonuses to Attract Employees

Everywhere we turn, store fronts and restaurants are posting signs seeking applicants for vacant positions. And the phenomenon isn’t limited to just the service industry. Employers in the transportation, logistics, and manufacturing sectors are just as desperate for applicants.

Be Aware of the Wage and Hour Implications of Telecommuting

The practice of allowing employees to work from home—known as telecommuting—is a growing trend. Today’s technology allows many employees to work from anywhere. Telecommuting can be a plus for both you and your employees. Your company benefits because you pay less in fixed overhead costs when you don’t have to provide a traditional office for workers, and employees often enjoy the flexibility of working from home.

FMLA and ADA Overlap

As employers we all strive to be in legal compliance, especially when it comes to federal regulations that protect our employees, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But it can admittedly get confusing when some legal regulations seemingly overlap or even seem almost contradictory to […]

Halloween Costumes at the Office: Keep It Tasteful to Avoid Spooking Employees

Although warnings about Halloween costumes at work aren’t as common as the warnings about office holiday parties, what originally starts out as amusing can quickly turn into awkward or offensive. If someone is offended when a coworker shows up at work in an inappropriate costume, you can reduce the employment-related problems if you handle the […]