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Now Hear This: ADA Covers “Invisible Disabilities,” Too

Even if you can’t see the results of a worker’s disability, you need to respect them, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Here are the rules to follow. Every time we look at the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), it seems there are additional disabilities being covered. That’s not really happening, of course. The […]

‘How’m I Doin’?’ Employee Survey Helps Answer that Question

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady Bob Brady invites you to take stock of employee satisfaction at your organization—and find out how you compare to similar employers—with the BLR® National Employee Attitude Survey. Third edition The former mayor of New York City, Ed Koch, was famous for asking people, “How’m I doin’?” He’d ask […]

Fingerprint Checks and Reference Checks in California

Yesterday, we got some insights on background checks from Jared Callahan, a licensed private investigator and the director of client services for Employment Screening Resources (ESR) in Novato. Today, his thoughts on two more common “checks”: fingerprint checks and reference checks.

How Startup Culture in the Workplace Can Help Attract and Engage Top Talent

By Brian Shapland, general manager of turnstone Startup culture is known for its agile workplaces, passionate founders, and “work hard, play hard” approach to getting things done. But these days it isn’t just Silicon Valley’s latest billion-dollar valuations grabbing headlines—it’s legacy giants like Ford, Cisco, and others looking to activate or awaken a sense of startup […]

Appellate Court Upholds Pension Plan’s Right to Stand by Employee’s Withholding Choice

A recent federal appeals court decision serves as a reminder that communicating with employees about their options for benefits calculation methods in defined benefit retirement plans is a very important aspect of preparing them adequately for retirement. Some DB plans offer more than one way to accumulate assets, and allow participants to choose the method […]

Workers’ Compensation: Why Cutting Off An Injured Employee’s Health Insurance Benefits Can Be A Costly Mistake

Many employers don’t realize that if you terminate health insurance coverage for an employee who has filed a workers’ comp claim, you can be hit with expensive penalties. In fact, even some comp insurers erroneously advise their policyholders that it’s OK to stop the health benefits of employees on workers’ comp so long as the […]

Self-Audits—Dangerous Documents of Self-Incrimination?

Regular examination of HR practices is critical to ensure compliance and to minimize exposure to very expensive lawsuits. But it’s risky business. Collecting data about your workplace is an important part of HR management. For example, employers may want to scrutinize whom they classify as exempt, or may simply want to know how the organization […]

Jerks at Work—You Can Deal with Them

What do you do with jerks at work, especially when they claim protection as whistleblowers or as members of protected classes? There are steps you can take, says attorney Jathan Janove. In fact, you can discipline and ultimately, if necessary, terminate your jerks, says Janove, a partner in the Portland, Oregon, office of Ater Wynne […]

Different pay for unequal jobs OK

by Charles S. Plumb The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA) prohibits sex-based discrimination in pay and benefits. Employers shouldn’t pay different wages to employees of the opposite sex for substantially equal work. “Substantially equal” work doesn’t mean identical work. It means substantially equal in terms of required skills, effort, and responsibilities.   An employer can […]