Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Over the weekend, I watched a movie with my wife. I won’t say which movie because my guy friends will make fun of me. But in my defense, this past weekend included Valentine’s Day. Anyway, the movie talked a lot about fate and destiny and got me thinking about how much of what happens to […]
We’re trying to straighten out our auto reimbursement policy. First, we have employees who drive their own cars between worksites each day as well as to different sites each day. The miles vary from 10 up to 100 miles in a day. Do we have to reimburse them and, if so, at what rate? We […]
by Rodney L. Bean West Virginia became the nation’s 26th right-to-work state Friday when both houses of the West Virginia Legislature voted to override Governor Earl Ray Tomblin’s veto of right-to-work legislation. The new law will take effect May 4, 2016. The legislation bans union security agreements—pacts between employers and labor unions that require employees […]
by Bob Kaiser, Daniel O’Toole, and Jeremy Brenner As anticipated, the Missouri Legislature has once again passed a right-to-work law. However, unlike the two prior right-to-work measures passed by the legislature but vetoed by former Governor Jay Nixon, the version passed on February 2 was signed into law by newly elected Governor Eric Greitens on […]
An employee who sued for religious discrimination after she lost her job for violating her company’s antiharassment policy was handed a defeat in a recent Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal decision. We’ll explain what happened and give you tips for avoiding similar problems.
A class action allegation cannot succeed when each employee works a different schedule and has countless other fact-dependent duties and responsibilities. For one employer, thousands of employees with varied work schedules and pay rates could not demonstrate “class” status for Fair Labor Standards Act purposes. This was particularly true when the employees were paid on […]
By Alix Herber and Ian Campbell One of the hottest issues in Canadian employment law in the past two years has been overtime class-action claims. As we outlined in our October 7, 2008, entry, 2007 saw three overtime class-action lawsuits a $651 million class-action lawsuit filed against the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), followed […]
At our company, one of our core values is innovation. We believe creativity and progressive thinking are critical to our success. I happen to share the opinion of former Ford CEO Mark Fields, who said, “Without innovation, I strongly believe companies die over time.”
Now that the calendar has turned to 2012, employers and employees alike are taking stock. Will the new year bring relief from a long recession? Will layoffs slow down and hiring speed up? Will discontented, overworked employees have a chance to recharge? The answers are specific to individual employers and employees, but survey data provide […]
Drug Policy Should Require Workers to Inform You When They’re Impaired In light of California’s new law legalizing medical marijuana use discussed in the accompanying story, now is a good time to take a look at your current drug and alcohol policies to make sure they cover situations where your employees’ work could be affected […]