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Hiring

General Mills recognized as tops for multicultural women

06/10/2010
Golden Valley-based General Mills has been dubbed one of the top five employers in the nation for multicultural women by Working Mother magazine.

Hiring from the competition, how much should we ask about any noncompete agreements?

06/09/2010
Q. We are considering hiring an employee away from one of our competitors. Should we ask whether she is subject to a noncompete agreement, or is it better for us to move forward not knowing the answer?

Keep hiring as objective as possible — and beware loose criteria that could let in bias

06/09/2010

At some point, an unsuccessful job candidate may challenge your decision not to hire him. Then you will have to justify your selection process. The more objective criteria you use, the more likely a court will agree not to second-guess your decision. But if you add subjective elements to the process, you may end up being charged with discrimination.

Is our policy on criminal records legal?

06/09/2010
Q. We currently have a policy against the hiring of anyone with a felony conviction. Can you shed some light on whether this policy is legal?

Avoid bad hires and bad lawsuits by testing for job skills before hiring

06/09/2010

It happens all the time: A manager decides to take a chance by hiring a marginally qualified applicant. Then, days later, it becomes clear she can’t do the job. The employer has little choice but to terminate. But then the fired employee feels she has little choice but to sue for some form of discrimination. The best way to avoid those lawsuits: Don’t count on “gut feeling” or interview skills. Run the applicant through job-specific tests.

Know the law governing background criminal and credit checks

06/02/2010
No law bars employers from conducting criminal background checks. However, conducting checks when it isn’t necessary not only wastes resources, it may increase the risk of being sued. The same is true of credit checks. Two lawsuits challenging the fairness of background checks serve as cautionary tales for employers.

Worker can’t show he’s legal? He’s still eligible for workers’ comp

06/02/2010
Illegal immigrants who can’t legally work in the United States are still eligible for benefits under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA), according to a recent 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision.

Pre-Employment Testing

06/01/2010

HR Law 101: Many organizations use pre-employment tests to screen applicants. But be aware of the risks involved. Unless you can demonstrate that a test measures job-related qualities and fulfills a business necessity, you could be exposing your organization to charges of discrimination …

Put this on your interview checklist

05/28/2010
You can tell a lot about potential hires by the way they treat the receptionist when they call or arrive for an interview.

Warn bosses: E-mail is smoking-gun evidence

05/27/2010

The risk isn’t new—e-mail has been around for a while. But managers and supervisors still continue to play fast and loose with their e-comments. E-mail messages are increasingly finding their way into employment-law court battles. Remind managers in the hiring process that it’s typically better to pick up the phone or walk down the hall to discuss a candidate than it is to send an e-mail.