Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Evidence is piling up that many in today’s workplace are not OK. Stressors like financial insecurity, worries about AI, and political strife spilling into the workplace are dragging people down. And employers and employees aren’t always coping well. While no perfect solution is likely to surface, suggestions abound on how employers can help. Trust Versus […]
I didn’t like giving reviews, and I don’t like receiving them. There must be a better way. Here are some suggestions generated by “Gen AI Could Fix Performance Reviews—or Make Them Even Worse,” an article in the Harvard Business Review by Chrysanthos Dellarocas (May 26, 2026). Challenge We all fool ourselves. A recent study shows […]
AI skills are becoming the new office rent: a recurring cost of staying relevant at work. For HR leaders, that changes the question from whether employees should use AI to whether the organization can define competent use clearly enough to reward it, train it, and govern it. The old divide centered on remote versus in-person […]
Engagement surveys are a point of contention for everyone. Employees think they’re a waste of time, managers have to wrangle data into something meaningful, and the entire process feels tedious. But what if these surveys, if done right, could tell a story that actually lets a workplace grow and change to the needs of the […]
I hear the incredulity from clients constantly: “Overtime? We pay our employees a salary—they aren’t eligible for overtime.” I call it the salary assumption. Unofficially, it’s the most common misconception in employment law. And it’s an understandable mistake. If an employee is paid a salary, how could an hourly overtime rate apply? The Fair Labor […]
Cases are just now starting to come out involving the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). For lessons on how one employer ran afoul of its obligations, read on. Timeline It’s often helpful in a factually dense case to break events into a timeline: King filed a PWFA lawsuit, and the court denied the company’s request […]
Employers that terminate or mutually agree to part ways with an employee may negotiate, elect to enter, or be obligated by an existing employment agreement to enter into a severance agreement with the departing employee. A severance agreement is an arm’s length agreement between employer and departing employee that serves many purposes and is highly […]
Employers have long used reductions in force (RIFs) as a high-risk but familiar response to economic pressure, restructuring, or strategic change. Traditionally, employers evaluated RIF-related risk through relatively discrete lenses—compliance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, potential discrimination claims, and the adequacy of internal documentation. Today, that approach may no longer be […]
It usually starts with a Slack message, followed by an urgent and unexpected executive team meeting: the hiring plan is being reversed. Budgets are being revisited, and active roles are being put on hold. Within hours, you’re expected to pause candidate searches, reassess headcount, manage risk, and help leaders communicate decisions that are still taking shape. This […]
President Trump has signed another Executive Order (EO) banning “racially discriminatory DEI activities.” Contractors will be required to acknowledge compliance with multiple obligations, including potential access to books, records, and accounts, as well as for oversight of their subcontractors. The new EO further defines “racially discriminatory DEI activities” and “program participation.” Based on the newly […]