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Employee Relations

It’s OK to have favorites … just don’t PLAY favorites

12/04/2015
Studies show that managers often unknowingly give the benefit of the doubt to employees that they like, even employees who are average or subpar performers. In fact, a Harvard Business Review study found that most managers would rather work with “lovable fools” than “competent jerks.” To make sure you’re not unwittingly playing favorites, consider these issues.

‘Tis the season for online shopping on-the-clock

12/02/2015
Next to a credit card with a hefty limit, a workplace computer may be this year’s most essential holiday shopping tool. After a slight downturn in work-based online shopping in 2014, more employees say they’re spending working hours hunting for deals and buying gifts this year, according to CareerBuilder’s annual Cyber Monday survey.

Sometimes, you just need to say ‘no’

11/30/2015

How many times would you like to say, “No, I can’t help you,” but refrain from doing so? The result is an overload of work when you’re still trying to complete the projects that fall within your job responsibilities.

Dealing with the everything-is-urgent co-worker

11/30/2015
Co-workers who send every message with an “Urgent” tag in the subject line or who litter emails with “ASAP” make life unnecessarily stressful. Follow these tips to deal with an everything-is-urgent co-worker.

Demote a staffer? Make it work

11/29/2015
If you decide that demotion is a viable alternative to terminating a particular employee, knowing how to execute the demotion properly is essential to making it work.

Performance reviews lose their luster

11/26/2015
CEO of GE Jeff Immelt is considering axing annual performance reviews. Instead, it’s experimenting with more frequent performance discussions between managers and staff. The industrial giant is also launching an app for supervisors and employees to share feedback with each other.

How to accommodate Muslim employees in the workplace

11/25/2015
Minnesota is home to North America’s largest Somali immigrant community, most of whom are Muslims. For Minnesota employers, this means becoming familiar with Islamic practices and the ways employers often must accommodate them.

‘Tis the season to be jolly … but careful with parties, gifts, bonuses

11/10/2015
It’s that time of year again—time to spread a little holiday cheer … and think about the potential legal consequences of doing so.

Take this job and shove it! Wide agreement on reasons

11/09/2015
Applicants and current employees agree on the three top factors that make them say “No thanks, bye-bye” to a job.

What (or who) keeps telework from working?

10/30/2015
Resistance from senior executives is the primary reason more employers don’t institute a regular telework plan, in which employees work remotely at least once a week.