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Usability – a New/Old Way to Improve Even the Best Ideas

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady BLR now has what many think is the finest HR website available (HR.BLR.com), but its origins are very humble. In today’s column, I’d like to write about how we got from A to the current version, 3.1—and about a concept you can use to improve your HR ideas […]

The Dullest Job in HR?

In HR, sometimes the dullest jobs are the most important—like updating job descriptions. This specific task is probably not the reason you were drawn to a career in HR, to say the least … but it’s time to bite the bullet.

“Day Without a Gay” Nationwide Protest May Result in Work Shortage

Some gay rights advocates are calling for “A Day Without a Gay” protest and boycott across the United States on Wednesday, December 10, to show opposition to California’s Proposition 8 and to show the power of the gay and lesbian community. Organizers are encouraging people to strike by “calling in gay” to work, taking the […]

criminals

The Company that Hires Ex-Convicts

Most people who have filled out job applications have at one time or another seen the question asking whether the applicant has ever been convicted of a crime. This could mean either a misdemeanor, relatively minor crimes punishable by up to a year in jail, or felonies, serious crimes that could be punished by years […]

Federal contractors advised to get ready for new paid sick leave order

President Barack Obama’s latest Executive Order affecting federal contractors isn’t scheduled to take effect for more than a year, but employers with federal contracts are advised to take a look at their sick leave policies now to make sure they will be in compliance when the time comes. On September 7, Obama signed an Executive […]

Another Uptick for SIFL Rates in Second Half of 2012

The standard industry fare level rates that employers will use to calculate the value of trips taken aboard company aircraft during the second half of 2012 were issued Aug. 14 by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The rates have increased about 4 ½ percent from those that were in effect for the first half of […]

DOL Closer to Issuing New FMLA Regs

Update: New FMLA regulations issued by DOL on November 14, 2008 The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) its final draft of revised Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations, which could be published in the Federal Register this month. These would be the first new […]

Presenting? Your Hands Point the Way

Many readers give presentations to all sorts of groups—the C-suite, staff, business partners—or they’re sought out for advice from colleagues on how to do so effectively. So an article in the January-February 2026 issue of the Harvard Business Review titled “Hand Gestures Make You More Persuasive” caught my attention. Data Doesn’t Lie The article points […]