Employee Relations

How seriously should we take allegations of female-on-male sexual harassment?

09/24/2010

Q. A male employee recently complained to HR that a female co-worker was sexually harassing him. Do I have to investigate this claim the same as I would a claim by a woman against a male co-worker?

Can we discipline late worker by cutting her pay?

09/23/2010

Q. One of our hourly employees ($15 per hour) arrives late way too often. We’d like her to get here on time so we’re considering cutting her hourly rate when she arrives late. For example, if she arrives an hour late, we would not pay her for the hour and cut her pay to minimum wage for the rest of the day. Can we do that?

Courts frown on bosses blaming subordinates for shortcomings

09/20/2010

Here’s something to consider when disciplining a supervisor or manager: She probably won’t be able to get away with blaming a subordinate for her own poor performance. Employers are entitled to expect managers to manage.

Address trust, training to keep top performers

09/17/2010

Employees feel overworked and underpromoted, and two in five of them are looking for new jobs. A new study is the latest to reveal that employees who plan to leave their companies say they feel a lack of communication from management. Here are four things your employees might think they’ll find more of elsewhere:

‘Talent’ report helps Deloitte take stock

09/16/2010

At Deloitte, the annual report doesn’t stop with a financial statement. The financial services firm also publishes a “Talent Annuity Report” to chronicle its year in benefits and employee recognition efforts. “We published a Talent Annuity Report because we regard our talent as an investment that generates an annuity,” said CEO Barry Salzberg.

Planning for productivity: What time of day are workers at their best?

09/15/2010

If you plan important meetings for 3 p.m. or host brainstorming sessions after lunch, it’s time to reconsider those strategies. Late afternoon is the most common time for workers to hit the productivity wall, a new study says.

16 creative and cheap ways to say ‘thank you’

09/13/2010

Q. I started in HR at a company six months ago and morale is really low. I want to start an employee appreciation program. Can you share some inexpensive things that work in your company? Here are some suggestions from readers of the HR Specialist Forum:

You can insist on investigation confidentiality

09/10/2010

Make it a policy to keep it confidential when conducting internal investigations into discrimination or harassment. That way, rumors and exaggerated claims won’t influence other employees who haven’t yet told investigators their side of the story. Employers that terminate employees for violating that confidentiality needn’t worry that doing so is retaliation, at least according to a recent 11th Circuit decision.

Philadelphia attorney accused of $1 million embezzlement

09/10/2010

Jeffrey Abramowitz had worked his way from law student to named partner at the Center City firm of Klevan & Abramowitz. That all came to an end last December when senior partner Mitchell Klevan discovered evidence that Abramowitz had been depositing client funds into his personal account and diverting firm funds for his own purposes.

Can worker be disciplined for wheelchair damage?

09/09/2010

Q. One of our employees has intellectual delays and is in a motorized wheelchair. In the past year, he ran over a client’s foot and damaged the office walls numerous times, including punching through the drywall. We are at our wit’s end. Can we terminate him if he continues to cause damage or at least make him pay for wall repairs out of his paycheck?