Employee Relations

Note all details that went into your decision to discipline an employee

07/18/2016

Always record the details of your disciplinary decisions at the time you make them. Document as if you are assuming that litigation will result from every disciplinary act.

Government employees don’t check their Constitutional rights at the workplace door

07/15/2016

Public employees don’t lose their First Amendment free speech rights when they take a government job. Their employer can’t punish them for speaking out on matters of public importance.

5 tips to handle tough conversations

07/15/2016

Conducting tough conversations with employees and co-workers is inevitable. However, if you follow these guidelines, you can prevent arguments—and get the results you want.

Document performance problems even if they are not serious enough to warrant discipline

07/13/2016

Sometimes, an employee’s performance problems may not seem serious enough to warrant a formal performance improvement plan. However, you should be sure to document the problems anyway. Those records will be useful if you later have to terminate someone for economic reasons.

Workplace politics fueled by gossip and rumors

07/13/2016

A new survey shows that most believe office politicking is alive and well in the workplace.

Political talk causing turmoil at work

07/12/2016

A new survey reports increasing tension, hostility or arguments among co-workers because of political affiliation.

Social media functions like today’s coffee break

07/08/2016

It’s no secret that plenty of employees spend at least some of the workday visiting social media sites, either on their office computers or their smartphones.

Three investigation lessons learned from a political controversy

07/06/2016

Another day, another political scandal involving a politician accused of having an extramarital affair. Consider the recently exposed allegedly improper relationship between Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley and a top female aide.

Run this anti-theft checklist to secure property

06/28/2016

Employers must have clearly defined anti-theft policies to combat the problem. These guidelines can help you implement a no-theft policy at your organization.

… a worker’s not ready for a job he wants