Tag: HR news

4th Circuit Rules Agreements Can’t Shorten Time to File Antidiscrimination Claims

The federal statutes prohibiting employment discrimination, such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), establish specific periods during which employees must act to timely pursue a claim. In a recent decision, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals (which encompasses Maryland, North Carolina, South […]

How HR Can Win, Manager to Manager

Action plans are only as good as the system that supports them. After the survey closes and priorities are set, managers are often expected to deliver results without the structures, skills, or motivation needed to succeed. So, what can HR professionals do to help managers actually function? We asked upcoming SPARK HR speaker, I/O psychologist, […]

NLRB Finding Its Way, or Does Anyone Benefit From a Nonfunctioning Board?

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)—the oldest “super agency,” created in 1935—is newly reconstituted and will be finding its way in an unprecedented setting and facing unprecedented challenges.  Background  President Trump, in an unprecedented move, fired Board Member Gwen Wilcox in January 2025, despite provisions in the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) bestowing tenure protections […]

Department of Labor Issues FMLA Guidance in Recent Opinion Letters

Earlier this year, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued opinion letters offering employers guidance regarding certain family and medical leave matters under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). As with other opinion letters, they are nonbinding on the courts, but they serve as valuable insight to employers on the DOL’s expectations regarding an employer’s […]

When Good Intentions Create Risk: What the EEOC’s Coca-Cola Case Means for HR Teams 

Organizations and HR teams should pay close attention to the recent lawsuit filed by the U.S. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast.  At a high level, this case focuses on a diversity event that allegedly limited participation based on sex. But the bigger issue is not the event itself. It is what it signals about how these […]

HRDA Frankly Speaking: Meta Leading the Great Tech Shift

The great tech shift has been slowly approaching since the internet’s invention, and with the advent of AI, the workplace as we know it is already in the past. So, how can HR shepherd the next generation of workers into this new business world? Thanks to Chelsea MacMullan, Org Change Management lead for Meta, we have […]

Hiring: Why It’s So Slow and What Might Speed It Up

Organizations studying hiring report that employers are increasingly missing hiring goals and taking far too long to bring talent on board. Many employers bemoan a lack of qualified workers, as well as an oversupply of unqualified applicants clogging the system. Technology, particularly AI, promises solutions, but problems persist, so what’s the answer? Current Status GoodTime, […]

The Clock is Ticking: Why Statutes of Limitations Matter

Many business disputes are effectively lost long before a lawsuit is ever filed. With only 24 hours in a day and constant operational demands competing for attention, business owners frequently postpone addressing emerging conflicts, often under the mistaken belief that “we can deal with it later.”  In reality, delay can be costly. By the time […]

Landmark AI Rulings Will Have Effect on All Litigation

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools have quietly moved from novelty to fixture in how lawyers and their clients research, write, and prepare for litigation. Two U.S. federal courts just issued the first rulings of their kind addressing the legal consequences of that shift. The decisions are must-reads, and they carry immediate, practical lessons for anyone […]

Trump Administration Expands Politicization of Civil Service

The Trump administration announced a final rule creating a new category of federal workers who would have fewer job protections and be easier to fire. The new rule implements an Executive Order from 2025 that could diminish or eliminate venerated due process protections for 50,000 employees at federal agencies. The creation of the new category […]