Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Federal officials are hoping that federal job-driven training initiatives will equip jobseekers with in-demand skills and then match them with employers looking for skilled labor. “To put people on the path to meaningful careers, we need to provide them with the skills, credentials, and certifications that businesses are looking for right now. We must ask […]
Inspired by the subject, M. Lee Smith’s Twitter master Tony Kessler reviews Twitter for Dummies by Laura Fitton, Michael E. Gruen, and Leslie Poston in rounds of 140 characters or less. 20 Tweets About Twitter For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) For this book review of Twitter for Dummies, here are 20 tweets (max 140 characters […]
by Kevin McCormick, Whiteford, Taylor & Preston, L.L.P. Against the national trend to oust the incumbents, Maryland remained a “true blue” state. We returned most of our Democratic incumbents, including Governor Martin O’Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Attorney General Doug Gansler, Comptroller Peter Franchot, and a host of other Democratic congressional members. The only “upset” was […]
Some employers pay little attention to dirty jokes, horseplay and locker room antics among male co-workers. But a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling makes it more important than ever to take a closer look at this kind of behavior. The court found that alleged sexual abuse of a male oil rig worker by his male […]
Health plans now may begin applying for the standard health plan identifier required by HIPAA, CMS has announced. The online application was posted March 29 on CMS’ Health Plan and Other Entity Enumeration System (HPOES). Most HIPAA-covered health plans, including employer group health plans, must obtain an HPID by Nov. 5, 2014, except that “small health […]
Most employers have and use at-will provisions in their employment agreements, handbooks, and acknowledgements. These provisions tend to state that the at-will nature of the employment is not subject to modification. However, in the last year employers have found that these provisions may be in violation of NLRA Section 7. "The NLRB has now weighed […]
“National Singles Week” was started by the Buckeye Singles Council in Ohio in the 1980s to celebrate single life and recognize singles and their contributions to society. The week is now widely observed during the third full week of September, which is September 18-24 this year, as “Unmarried and Single Americans Week,” an acknowledgment that […]
Employee assistance programs and certain “limited wraparound coverage” would be added to the set of “limited excepted benefits” exempt from most of the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, under proposed rules in the Dec. 24 Federal Register (78 Fed. Reg. 77632). The proposal also would make it easier for dental and vision benefits to […]
BLR’s 2012-2013 Pay Budget Survey results suggest modest increases for another year, with 40% of employers awarding merit increases of up to 2.5%, 36.5% awarding increases of more than 2.5% and 2% awarding increases above 5%. Among employers awarding merit increases in 2012, the most commonly cited increases ranged from 2.5% to 3.0%. This corresponds […]
My mother is a wonderful woman. She’s a gentle, caring, nurturing person. When I was growing up, she instilled in me and my siblings a sense of how to treat others. My mother did this by example more than anything. She showed us how to treat others through her actions and words. She rarely, if […]