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Employee Relations

Employees have paid time off to volunteer in community

08/01/2008

Daimler Financial Services in Farmington Hills, Mich., not only gives its employees an extra paid day off every year so they can do volunteer work but also helps them find charities in need of help.

Are you a micromanager? Control the process, not the people

08/01/2008
As a manager, you must remain involved in your employees’ activities. But where does involvement stop and micromanaging begin? Sticking your nose too deeply into an employee’s work process can be counterproductive. Let’s say you overheard an employee refer to you as a micromanager. To find out if it’s true, answer the following questions using […]

Face-to-Face talk best bet for helping cope with slump

08/01/2008
CEOs who participated in a recent survey conducted by Vantage Research agreed that an economic downturn isn’t the best time to make bold, sudden business moves. Instead, they advocate “hunkering down and building up the business” in tempestuous fiscal times like these …

What is the ‘Lifetime value’ of your employees?

08/01/2008
Businesses have always understood the value of cultivating lifelong relationships with customers eager to patronize them again and again as their lifestyles change and they need new products or services. Nurturing those same kinds of relationships with employees has just as much value …

You have to work hard to get this much bad press

08/01/2008
The Ohio Civil Rights Commission is investigating a possible abusive environment at Chrysler’s Toledo North Assembly Plant in light of 45 civil rights complaints made by workers there in just 18 months …

Attendance policies: Control absenteeism without breaking the law

08/01/2008

For most employees, regular attendance is a key job function. But while you are free to set and enforce attendance rules, you must also comply with key federal laws, including the FMLA and the ADA.

 

Why can’t we just go ahead and fire an unpleasant employee?

08/01/2008
Q. About six months ago, we hired a new employee for our accounting department. Although he successfully completed his probationary period and has no formal disciplinary actions issued against him, he simply has an unpleasant personality and does not mesh well with the other employees in the department. Can we simply terminate him? After all, Ohio is an “at will” state. …

Can we refuse to pay employees who work unauthorized overtime hours?

08/01/2008
Q. Our policy prohibits employees from working overtime without specific written authorization from their supervisor. Our policy manual provides that employees will not be compensated for overtime hours worked unless they comply with this policy. Can we legally refuse to pay our employees for unauthorized overtime? …

Shorts Circuit: Firm Orders Employees to Take Off Pants

08/01/2008
Employees of Richter7, a Salt Lake City-based advertising and public relations agency, received an unusual directive from top management earlier this summer: No long pants allowed! Shorts, skirts, skorts and capris were in fashion for four weeks as part of a companywide push to beat the heat. Richter7’s owners even bought each employee a new pair of shorts.

Measure effectiveness to make sure flex plans work for you

08/01/2008
Your organization wouldn’t offer flexible work arrangements like flextime and compressed workweeks if managers didn’t believe the benefits—better employee engagement, recruitment and retention—outweighed the costs. Still, a recent survey by Hewitt Associates found that few organizations have formal and consistent policies in place to manage their flex programs …