Most Popular

IRS Lowers Standard Mileage Rate for 2009

The IRS standard-mileage-reimbursement rate for 2009 will be 55 cents per mile for all business miles driven, down from the rate of 58.5 cents a mile that was in effect in the second half of 2008. The IRS had made a special adjustment for the second half of 2008 in response to a spike in […]

N.Y. Legalizes Same-sex Marriage

New York State will become the sixth state where same-sex marriage is legal on July 24. Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on June 24 signed the Marriage Equality Act (MEA) into law. Same-sex marriage already is legal in Massachusetts, Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and the District of Columbia. The measure goes into effect one month […]

Harlem Shake: Dancing Underground Gets Miners Unemployed

Several miners were fired after a video of them dancing in underground tunnels, some shirtless, came to the attention of the employer. Up to 15 workers at the Agnew gold mine in Gold Fields, Australia, have been terminated and banned for life from Barminco projects after they filmed themselves doing their own rendition of the […]

Employer’s Right to Reduce Pension Benefits

By Lyne Duhaime In most Canadian jurisdictions, employers are limited in retroactively reducing pension benefits. The Quebec Superior Court recently considered employers’ rights in this regard in Synertech Moulded Products, Division of Old Castle Buildings v. Tribunal Administratif du Québec et al. The court ordered the Quebec Regulator to register pension amendments proposed by the […]

Theft: Can We Deduct the Cost of a Loss from the Whole Team?

We have agreed to operate on a team basis in our organization. We share workload, bonuses, etc. Now we’ve got a problem. We think someone on the team has stolen something from the office, but no one will admit to the theft. May we deduct a certain amount from each employee’s check to cover the […]

Spotlight on Millennials: Managing and motivating the iPod workforce

Raised by Boomer parents on a diet of praise and self-esteem, Millennials are the next big thing, and they know it. They show up to work with lots of answers. Hierarchy? Only if it helps us get the work done. Need it yesterday? No problem. Technology? We eat that #@%! for breakfast. Which brings us […]

Survey Says: You’re Probably in Violation

Yesterday’s Advisor reported survey results that show rampant wage and hour violations among low-wage earners. Today we’ll look at more findings of this important survey, and take a look at how you can do your own survey—before the feds do it for you. Researchers for the Broken Laws, Unprotected Workers survey interviewed 4,387 workers in […]

Religious Discrimination: Ruling Examines Whether Seniority System Must Give Way To Accommodation Requests When Religious Attire And Dress Codes Clash

If an employee tells you that a religious belief prohibits them from working on certain times or days, you usually must try to accommodate the person unless it would be an undue hardship. But what if your workers’ schedules are set by a seniority system? Do you still have to make a special accommodation for […]