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Award Programs? Be Wary of Legal Pitfalls

Yesterday’s Advisor showed how one company handles tiered recognition. Today we’ll look at legal issues and other considerations for award policies, and take a look at a unique program for developing all the policies you need. As with most HR endeavors, employee recognition and award programs come with legal baggage. Here are the three issues […]

Have ‘Stranger’ Leaves Been Approved? FMLA Lessons from Netflix

While binge-watching everyone’s nostalgic guilty pleasure, Netflix’s Stranger Things, I could not help but empathize with single mother Joyce Byers (played by actress Winona Ryder). Her prepubescent son, Will (Noah Schnapp), was abducted by a monster (the Demogorgon) and sent to a parallel universe (the Upside Down) populated by dog-like monsters. During Will’s disappearance, apparent […]

Do Your Employees Go to Dr. Summeroff?

At a recent presentation by two colleagues on the ADA, the subject was doctors’ notes in support of leave as a reasonable accommodation. One of the audience members said, “Well, you know what doctor the employee is going to visit, don’t you? Dr. Summeroff.” The line got a huge laugh from the audience, but it […]

behavior

Do It Like Google: Guidelines on Workplace Behavior

Here in Delaware, most employers are in the midst of a mad dash to get all employees trained on sexual harassment prevention—consistent with House Bill 360—before the deadline for compliance on December 31, 2019. One of the best lessons to incorporate in that training is what topics are and are not appropriate for the workplace. […]

metrics

Which Performance Metrics Should You Share with Employees?

Many organizations and operations departments keep detailed metrics on the performance of different teams and individuals. These could include turnaround time on a custom order, average throughput for a common manufactured product, time spent resolving a customer complaint or concern, and many others. These metrics are useful to company management in identifying areas that need improvement, […]

mergers

Surviving Mergers and Acquisitions: A 5-Point Plan for HR

by Tim Hird, executive director of Robert Half Management Resources Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity has been high in recent years. Global mergers in 2015 had a combined value of more than $4 trillion, The Wall Street Journal reported, and 2016 saw a number of deals between large companies.

Gay Witch Hunt

LITIGATION VALUE: $0.00 to $450,000+ (depending on which state you are in) Overall, I’d say that Oscar has a good (read “expensive”) claim for sexual orientation discrimination and retaliation. Not only does Michael admittedly refer to employees as “faggy” when he means “lame,” but he specifically refers to Oscar, a gay employee, as “faggy.” Then, […]

Employees’ food allergies are nothing to sneeze at!

by Stefanie M. Renaud Navigating the ins and outs of your obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar state laws can be a challenge for even the most seasoned HR professional. One situation that may be familiar to you is having an employee with food allergies. According to the Asthma and Allergy […]

The FLSA Exemption Question Everyone Is Asking About This Is Us

Warning: Contains This Is Us spoilers. The Pearson couple, Beth and Randall, from This Is Us is one of my top two favorite married TV couples (the other being Tami and Eric Taylor from Friday Night Lights). The Pearsons are relatable to me—Randall’s character specifically—for several reasons: Like the Pearsons, the Reeds are an African-American […]

productivity

How to Deal with a Toxic Job

A toxic job. It’s one where people are assigned more work than they can accomplish, micro-managed about how to get the work done, and surrounded by people who don’t have their back. Also known as the “toxic triad,” this combination of high demand, low control, and low social support leads to increased likelihood of depression, burnout, stress, sleep disturbances, and absenteeism.