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HR Management

File it under ‘Bad HR ideas’

01/17/2014
The Institute for Integrative Nutrition took career planning a bit too far when its HR department created a chart listing every female staff member, her marital status and whether or not she had children. Then HR asked managers to predict if and when each woman might be expected to become pregnant and have to take maternity leave. You’ll never guess what happened.

Is it time to rethink an open-space office?

01/17/2014
You’ve probably heard the argument that if you want to im­­prove employee communication and foster collaboration, tear down the walls and create an open-plan environment. But a new study based on a survey of over 42,000 office workers in 303 office buildings finds those assumptions may not be true.

Constructive Discharge

01/17/2014

HR Law 101: Some supervisors try to skirt the whole issue of firing someone by resorting to constructive discharge. Their logic: If we make an employee’s time at work so intolerable, he or she will choose to resign. That’s an unwise strategy …

Free college HR courses: No cost, no credit, just wisdom

01/16/2014

You don’t need to enroll in college to take undergraduate and graduate HR courses that enhance your knowledge and career. Universities and other sources offer free online courses through OpenCourseWare websites. Here’s a rundown of some sources and HR courses:

Prevent your employee handbook from becoming a binding contract: 2 easy steps

01/15/2014
A few simple mistakes in your employee handbook can turn it into a binding legal contract and destroy your right to terminate em­­ployees at-will. Here’s how to avoid that:

Chrysler takes its training academy on the road

01/14/2014
Chrysler Group employees who can’t make the trip to the auto manufacturer’s 25,000-square-foot War­­ren, Mich., training center can attend remotely via a new mobile classroom.

Exploring an online HR degree? Consider these important factors first

01/13/2014
More HR professionals are seeking degrees online as the programs become common and the quality im­­proves. Plus, employers increasingly see online degrees for HR (and other disciplines) as acceptable alternatives. But be careful when choosing an online program.

Misconduct caught on video: Must we show the employee the proof?

01/10/2014
Q. A client took video of one of our employees talking on the phone and swerving all over the road when driving a group of children in the course of her job. We suspended the employee. Now the employee is demanding to see the video. Must we let her?

Ohio? You gotta be @#$%&! kidding me

01/09/2014
Ohio residents do the most to put the cuss in customer, using profanity in one out of about every 150 phone calls to customer service centers, according to a Marchex Institute study. The potty-mouth Buckeyes were followed by residents of Maryland, New Jersey, Louisiana and Illinois.

Make sure your pay policies properly address meal breaks

01/08/2014
Paying employees for break time—or not paying them—is one of the trickiest aspects of wage-and-hour law compliance. Know your obligations!