Most Popular

tips

DOL’s Proposed Tip Credit Rule Likely to Please Hospitality Employers

Employers in industries where tips are the norm are likely to welcome the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) new proposed rule relating to tipped workers. Although the proposal, announced on October 7, 2019, just codifies current guidance from the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division, it formally does away with Obama-era guidance that sometimes limited employers’ […]

Independent contractor’s behavior can lead to criminal liability for employers

By Antonio Di Domenico On Christmas Eve 2009, a swing stage (a work platform) suspended on the 14th floor of an Ontario apartment building collapsed. Four workers including the site supervisor died after falling to the ground. Metron Construction was charged with criminal negligence causing death under Canada’s Criminal Code. The company’s owner and sole […]

How to Use Your Introverted Tendencies to Your Advantage in the Workplace

I’ve dedicated my career to teaching the science of communication, and over the years, many people have approached me during training sessions, saying, “You’re so good at this. You’re clearly an extrovert!” This isn’t the case at all. I have always known that I’m an introvert, and communication hasn’t come easily to me. However, with […]

What Will Happen to Presenteeism?

Millions of employees around the world have experienced the pressure to stay late at the office, get there early, or work through lunch instead of going out or to the lunchroom with coworkers. It’s a phenomenon known as “presenteeism,” and it refers to the idea that there’s value to an employer simply from being present […]

leadership

Does Your Company Suffer from a Leadership Development Problem?

Businesses—indeed all institutions—need strong leaders. Even the company with the best talent, greatest infrastructure, most lucrative government contacts, etc., will ultimately flounder if it doesn’t have a leader to steer the course and put all those assets to good, productive use.

personalized

How to Develop Your Personalized Recruiting Process

You can glean a lot from psychology to develop a personalized recruiting process. Imagine your own prior interviews in which you were being queried. I bet the ones that made the biggest impact on you, regardless of whether you accepted the position, were the ones in which you connected in a personalized way with the […]

Back to Basics: No Retaliation Claim if No Protected Activity

Retaliation claims are among the most numerous types of employee claims processed through the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and state EEO agencies. Central to the claims is whether an employee engaged in protected activity and how the employer responded to it. A recent case from the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings […]

High Deductible Health Plans Have Mixed Results

If you are among the employers offering an high deductible health plan (HDHP), it’s likely you see it as a way to reduce health care costs for the company. It can also be a helpful step on the path toward creating better health care consumers, by allowing employees to understand the real cost of their insurance – an important aspect of containing costs.

What to say when CEO says don’t bother creating an employee handbook

Most human resources professionals understand the importance of a carefully written employee handbook. But sometimes the higher-ups in an organization don’t think about why such a document is advisable. Recently, a group of attorneys from the Employers Counsel Network, which focuses on employment law issues, was asked what to do when a CEO says a […]

When is Cancer a Disability?

Is cancer considered to be a disability when it comes to ADA protections? The short answer is yes. The longer answer will depend on the specific circumstances of the employee. So, when is cancer a disability? It will be when: Cancer or its side effects substantially limits one or more of a person’s major life […]