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Barbie

Celebrating Black Barbie’s 40th Anniversary and a Workplace D&I Victory

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Mattel’s very first black Barbie®, which debuted in 1980 and was designed by fashion pioneer Kitty Black Perkins, a native of Spartanburg, South Carolina. Perkins’ hard work and determination made her not only an icon of the fashion world and Mattel’s first African-American designer but also a champion […]

Making HR the Hub of Disability Management

When I ask direct supervisors who their employees go to for assistance about a health condition in the workplace, they’re quick to say, “Me! My employees know they can come to me with anything.” While it may be true that direct supervisors have a good relationship with their employees, it can often be challenging or […]

Casual References and Endorsements on Social Media

Yesterday’s Advisor featured tips on social media policies from Attorney Jonathan Segal. Today, his tips on casual references and endorsements and friending and unfriending work colleagues.   Casual References Casual references on LinkedIn or other professional social media sites pose legal risks: Defamation (if they are negative and untrue). Misrepresentation (if they are positive and […]

Trick or Treat: Employee Hands Out Pot Brownies to Employees

We’ve covered a fair share of office pranks. The lighter ones usually involve a desk object, like a coffee mug glued to the desk, but others are more extreme and can get employees into serious trouble—faking a robbery, using a taser on colleagues, etc. A former San Diego bus driver has now joined the ranks […]

The One Industry that Has a Reverse Gender Pay Gap

The “gender pay gap” continues to be a hot topic and, most likely, will continue this way until there is gender equality in the workforce. However, there is one industry that has a reverse gender pay gap, and it’s the male model industry.

Let’s Talk About Grief: Bereavement Policies in Evolving Workplace

Grief and bereavement leave are complex issues for many employers. Your policy may provide only three to five days of leave, while the fallout from the death of a loved one can rarely be encapsulated in such a relatively short time frame. In addition, even before the death occurred, you may have been dealing with […]

Don’t Be An %#*hole!

Oswald, CEO of BLR, offered his thoughts on the worst in management in a recent edition of The Oswald Letter. The book was a New York Times bestseller, Oswald continues, so plenty of people have read it. I’d say it has some good lessons for everyone. But, what amazed me were some of the stories […]

Bilingual Job Requirement OK’ed by Court

Here’s an interesting twist on a question we get all the time. We’re often asked, “Can I have an English-only rule in the workplace?” The answer is generally no, unless there are very strong business reasons dictating it. In this case, the question was, “Can I require a bilingual workforce?” The court said the answer […]

HRDA Frankly Speaking: The $1.3 Trillion Warning—Your Managers Are the Retention Linchpin

A critical new report from the Achievers Workforce Institute (AWI) delivers a clear economic warning to HR leaders: U.S. employers are projected to lose at least $1.3 trillion in attrition in 2026. This massive cost is driven by a simple, avoidable factor: a lack of cultural investment. AWI’s 2025 Employee Engagement & Retention report surveyed employees […]