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It’s the Customer, Stupid
It’s hard to believe but 2009 is coming to an end. For many, 2009 can’t be over soon enough. For most businesses, it has been a challenging year. And while we’ve seen a rebound in the stock market, most companies are reporting earnings that, while they beat analysts’ estimates, are still significantly less than they […]
Switching gears: Shifting to reverse can rev up workplace mentoring
Researchers report that the millennial generation now makes up the largest share of the U.S. workforce. To be sure, the baby boomer and Generation X contingents remain strong, but the sheer number of younger workers makes them a force to be reckoned with. Longtime workers may think their young colleagues have a lot to learn, […]
HHS Auditions Benchmark Plans to Define Essential Health Benefits
How the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will identify benchmark plans that would set the standard for essential health benefits under health reform was described in a final rule issued July 23. This is important because policies sold on health insurance exchanges — for individuals and for small groups — must cover the […]
New Washington marijuana law doesn’t require employers to change policies
by Javier F. Garcia Washington’s new law concerning recreational marijuana use takes effect December 6, but it doesn’t require changes in employer policies. Initiative 502 (I-502), approved in the November 6 election, is intended to make the production and sale of marijuana a regulated, state-licensed system similar to that for controlling hard alcohol. It means […]
Hot List: BusinessWeek’s Bestselling Business Books
BusinessWeek magazine ranks the 15 best selling hardcover and paperback business books in January 2009 and gives a short summary. 1. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. As you’d expect with Gladwell, there are lots of surprises in his explanation of why some people succeed fantastically. Pluck and smarts get less play here […]
U.S. Appeals Court Permits Dunkin’ Donuts Managers’ Overtime Claims to Proceed
By Susan G. Fentin, Skoler, Abbott & Presser, P.C In another of what promises to be a long line of cases in which courts consider whether working managers have been properly classified as exempt from overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit—which covers Maine, Massachusetts, […]
Unemployed Job Applicants Pose Practical and Legal Dilemmas for HR
Employers have started hiring again and are often overwhelmed with huge numbers of resumes, even for entry-level positions. Some companies have decided that an effective way to identify the best candidates is to refuse to consider job applicants who are currently unemployed. But a number of human resources professionals, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), […]
Increased Use of Quality Measures in Physician Compensation Models
The findings of this year’s SullivanCotter annual Physician Compensation and Productivity Survey indicate a continued increase in the prevalence of quality-based incentives, which typically include metrics regarding clinical processes, patient experience, and access.
Employers should review policies on same-sex couples in wake of Supreme Court decision
by Tammy Binford With the U.S. Supreme Court deciding not to take up a case to settle the same-sex marriage issue on the national level, employers need to understand how the Court’s decision affects their policies. As it opened its new term on October 6, the Supreme Court declined to review one of seven cases […]