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Pay Budgets and Variable Pay—What’s Really Happening?

Increases. Budgets. Bonuses. Variable Pay. Compensation is never a simple issue, but it’s an important cornerstone of employee engagement and satisfaction, as well as talent acquisition. What’s happening with pay budgets and variable pay in the real world? What are your competitors up to? Help us find out!

The Tech Effect: Tailor Your Tactics for Better Engagement

In part 1 of this article we uncovered the latest pulse of tech-employee engagement—along with a peek into the differences that are fueling its low ratings. Today we continue with three more ways to refocus your workforce strategies on this all-important employee group, as suggested within fresh research by Willis Towers Watson.

Age diversity becoming new priority for employers

The statistics don’t lie. More people are planning to work beyond what once was a traditional retirement age. The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has projected that the primary working-age group—those ages 25-54—will decline from 66.9 percent of the labor force in 2010 to 63.7 percent in 2020. Workers 55 and older are projected […]

Workers’ Compensation Mental Stress Claims May Be Expanded

By Bill Duvall Employers in Canada have taken comfort from the fact that most provincial workers’ compensation agencies provide benefits for workplace mental stress only in very limited circumstances. But that comfort may be threatened, at least in British Columbia. Earlier this month, the B.C. government introduced legislation that, if passed, will expand workers’ compensation […]

Public Official Forgot to Work Extra Hours per Week—For a Few Years

It’s hard to explain why you forgot that you had to work 8 hours extra per week, especially when minutes of a public board meeting show that you were present. And especially when you forgot for 5 years and over 2,000 hours’ worth of pay! That is the dilemma facing a fire marshal in Connecticut, […]

From My Cold, Dead Hands

You might have heard that the Supreme Court recently threw out the District of Columbia’s decades-long ban on handguns. Of course, there are limitations. If you are mentally insane or a convicted felon, then you’re out of luck. So, many of our favorites on The Office probably still can’t pack heat into the Capitol — […]

Supreme Court Decides Legal Costs in Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Case

By Hadiya Roderique The Supreme Court of Canada recently considered whether the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal has the authority to award legal costs to a successful complainant. As we noted in an earlier bulletin, this case could have major ramifications in human rights litigation across Canada. Complaint Donna Mowat brought a human rights complaint against […]

Obama Reveals Choice for Supreme Court Justice

Since Justice David H. Souter announced his intent to retire from the U.S. Supreme Court, there has been much speculation regarding President Barack Obama’s first nomination to the high court. After a long Memorial Day weekend, the wait is over. On Tuesday morning, Obama announced that he would nominate Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be the […]

SCOTUS Asks Where to Draw the Line on FLSA Definition of ‘Clothes’

Spectators could be excused for confusing a recent U.S. Supreme Court oral argument session with an episode of TLC’s What Not to Wear. On Nov. 4, the Court heard arguments in Sandifer v. U.S. Steel Corp.(No. 12-417) which focused on how to define “clothes” versus protective equipment and whether time spent donning those items is compensable. The […]

Can you keep a secret? Court upholds termination for breach of confidentiality

By Hannah Roskey When will an employee’s breach of confidence justify immediate dismissal under Canadian law? A recent decision by the British Columbia Supreme Court demonstrates that clearly drafted employer policies intended to protect confidential information can indeed be strictly enforced. In Steel v. Coast Capital Savings Credit Union, the court upheld the dismissal of […]