Most Popular

How Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is Poised to Help With the Labor Shortage

With companies around the globe struggling to find staff, could the time be ripe for an explosion in RPA? What kinds of solutions can this technology offer, and what does it mean for workers and employers long term? What’s Going On With the Labor Market? It’s no secret that the labor market, both in the […]

SM Background Checks—15% of HR, 100% of Hiring Managers

We’ve talked about the advisability of doing social media background checks before. Briefly, the negative of doing such checks is that you’re guaranteed to find out things you didn’t want to know about race, religion, etc. Once you have that information, it’s easy to suggest that it played a part in your decision-making. On the […]

Best of DEI 2025

This year, the conversation around Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) hit unprecedented turbulence. We saw pushback—not just from some organizations, but across various industries, even the federal government. Despite these setbacks, fostering a resilient, inclusive environment is more critical than ever. The businesses that embrace these values—and understand them as a strategic driver, not […]

Hands-Free Georgia Act Takes Effect July 1, 2018

Georgia employees are increasingly dealing with infuriating traffic jams and extended commute times, particularly in and around Metro Atlanta. The majority of Georgia drivers regularly have a mobile phone within arm’s reach of the steering wheel. A sizable number of Georgia employees drive during the course and scope of their employment. Hands-free technology now makes […]

data

3 Ways to Leverage Your People Data in 2019

Intuition—a mental “shortcut”—is the result of two hardwired processes (pattern recognition and emotional tagging), which frequently lead to cognitive errors. As a result of “going with your gut,” even the best, most experienced business leaders can make poor judgment calls about individuals.

How to Improve Leader Communication Skills

Everywhere you look, the stats are alarmingly clear: Leaders are not effectively communicating, and it’s negatively impacting their organization’s success. 86% of employees and executives cite the lack of effective collaboration and communication as the main cause of workplace failures (Salesforce). Only 7% of U.S. workers strongly agree that communication is accurate, timely, and open […]

Compulsive Gambler Bets on FMLA Leave and Loses

by Michael E. Barnsback Jonathan Mook (one of our intrepid Virginia Employment Law Letter editors) and I recently taught a Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Master Class. As with all of our FMLA classes, the major concern among the participants was how to curb abuse and prevent claims. One of the recent cases we […]

Federal COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates: Where Are We Now?

Last fall, we were furiously drafting mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policies for a variety of employers, including healthcare facilities, employers with more than 100 employees, and federal contractors. With the back and forth of whether a court would block implementation of the Biden administration’s vaccine mandates, many of those policies were left in a state of […]

merger

Culture: The Key to M&A Success 

As M&A activity is projected to accelerate in 2025, organizations face a critical challenge that extends far beyond traditional due diligence and integration plans. While financial models, operational synergies, and legal alignment are rigorously analyzed, one key element is often underestimated: culture.  Cultural integration — the alignment of values, behaviors, and people practices between merging […]