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Compensation & Benefits

Paid-Volunteer program unearths passions in employees

04/01/2007

The community relations department at Texas-based National Instruments organizes volunteer opportunities for the company’s 2,200 U.S. employees and has 40 staffers engaging workers in volunteer efforts. But that’s just the beginning. …

Volunteer opportunities help create worker balance

04/01/2007

Wealth management company Baird, based in Milwaukee, has designed programs to nurture its employees’ generous urges. The three-year-old Baird Cares initiative allows employees an extra paid day off each year to volunteer …

Termination for excessive absenteeism

04/01/2007

Q. Our handbook states that employees will be terminated if they are absent more than 10 days in 12 consecutive months. An employee has been absent for seven days so far this year, three of which were due to the flu. He called out sick four days ago. When he returns, he will have exceeded the 10-day limit. Can we terminate him?

You can’t directly call doctor for FMLA information

04/01/2007

There’s a right way and a wrong way to make sure employees have a “serious” condition that qualifies for FMLA leave …

Are certain industries exempt from the FMLA?

04/01/2007

Q. I’ve heard that not all industries are covered by the FMLA. Are trucking companies exempt? If so, we have several employees out on workers’ compensation and FMLA leave. Can we fire them? —T.Z., New York

Make sure absence policy doesn’t clash with FMLA

04/01/2007

Warning: If you terminate employees who take more than 12 weeks off in a given period, you may be violating the FMLA even if you allow employees their full FMLA allotment of 12 weeks unpaid leave …

How to Set Reasonable Call-In Rules for Absences

04/01/2007

For many employers, absenteeism is a constant problem. You know you must give employees some slack, especially for family and medical emergencies and to accommodate disabilities that sometimes flare up. But, to make sure the work gets done, you need to know who’s going to show up and who isn’t …

Clarifying the partial-Day deduction rule

04/01/2007

Q. I have a question about the partial-day deduction rule. I don’t understand how we can deduct from salaried employees’ paid-leave bank when they are gone for an hour or two during the day since we don’t pay them anything extra when they work 50 hours in a week. For example, if an employee works 10-hour days on a regular basis, is it OK to charge her vacation time when she leaves an hour or two early? —J.H., Minnesota

Preserve records or face jury’s wrath on overtime pay

04/01/2007

If you get wind of a possible lawsuit over unpaid overtime, make sure all your payroll records remain intact and available. Don’t crank up the shredder. If you dispose of related documents, the penalties under Ohio law can be especially harsh …

Alert low-Income workers to overlooked tax credits

04/01/2007

Some of your organization’s employees may be eligible for a larger tax refund without knowing it. You can do them a huge favor (and earn some good will) by introducing them to those tax savings …