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How to Develop a Stress-Free Company Culture (Part 1)

Businesses lose hundreds of billions annually in healthcare costs, missed workdays, and lost productivity due to stress employees experience in the workplace. According to one study, 52% of employees admit to calling in sick because they’re stressed out. And 60%–80% of accidents that occur on the job are due to distractions or sleepiness caused by […]

Penn State and Paterno: Loyalty Unchecked Leads to Headaches and Heartache

Legendary college football coach Joe Paterno died recently after a battle with lung cancer. But by many accounts, some people who knew him well say the 85-year-old died of a broken heart. I think Joe Paterno’s career at Penn State University is worth closer examination because there are lessons for employers and employees alike, says […]

Is a HIPAA Audit Coming Soon to a Workplace Near You?

By BLR Legal Editor Jennifer Carsen, JD As a part of its continued efforts to assess compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has begun a round of audits of covered entities and their business […]

Bank of America Wins Suit Over Investing in Affiliated Funds

Court Fails to Find ERISA Breach  Plan sponsors, especially those in the financial services industry, have some assurance about their right to invest in affiliated mutual funds and other assets for their retirement plans, based on a recent ruling by an appeals court. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Jan. 14 upheld the […]

Leading, Unofficially

This edition of The Oswald Letter is a guest post from Elizabeth Petersen, Project Director for Simplify Compliance. For most of us, the path to becoming a leader starts years before an official leadership title and a team of employees are granted.

Second Obama WHD Nominee Goes Down in Flames

These Queen lyrics fit what’s going on with President Obama’s nominees to the Wage and Hour Division: And another one gone, and another one gone; another one bites the dust! President Obama withdrew the nomination of Leon Rodriguez to be Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor on Aug. […]

Employer ‘Mistake’ Leads to FMLA Retaliation Claim

A nursing assistant who requested intermittent leave because of her son’s serious health condition says that her employer fired her for taking the leave after it had mistakenly told her that she could take it — and a Pennsylvania district court judge has permitted the retaliation claim to move forward. The case is Medley v. […]

Millions of Older Workers in Physically Demanding Jobs

Hard Work? Patterns in Physically Demanding Labor Among Older Workers, a study from the Center for Economic and Policy Research, examines the population of older workers and how raising the retirement age affects those in jobs with difficult working conditions. The study notes that high physical demands are a major reason for “early labor-market exit […]

Good and Bad News in 2011 Compensation Survey Results

There’s good news and bad news to be found in the results of HRHero.com’s 2011 Compensation Survey. The good news is that last year 32 percent of respondents said they were going to have a wage freeze in 2010, but this year only 21 percent say they are planning to have a wage freeze in the […]