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HR Management

Penalties rival incentives as work health tactic

11/27/2013
Employers will use both carrots and sticks to keep workers healthier and stem the tide of higher health care costs, according to the 2013/2014 Towers Watson Staying@Work Survey.

Top 10: The basic rules every HR pro must follow

11/26/2013
While lawsuits may be practically inevitable in today’s litigious society, losing them is not. Ten rules to follow:

Ensure bosses provide training for everyone

11/26/2013
Here’s a tip that can save you from needless litigation: Make sure supervisors don’t play favorites with some employees at the expense of others. You never know which employee will later claim she was excluded from the “inner circle” that got preferential treatment because of a protected characteristic.

Time to unwind? America’s least-stressful jobs

11/21/2013
If HR has you a little stressed out, consider a career switch to one of these jobs, ranked the nation’s least-stressful by CareerCast.com.

Can we ban e-cigarettes?

11/19/2013
Q. Over the past few months I have been seeing more and more electronic cigarettes in our city. Last week, an employee walked into our office while smoking an electronic cigarette. I’d like to ban their use in our offices. I’ve heard that e-cigarettes are just as addictive as the real things.

What should we do about email still on former employee’s company-issued cellphone?

11/19/2013
Q. We give our employees company phones. An employee recently resigned and turned in her phone to her supervisor, in compliance with our technology policy. A week later, it came to my attention that the supervisor had not deleted the departed employee’s email that was still on the phone. A new hire who had been issued the phone could read those messages. What should we do?

Weigh pros, cons of surveillance in wired workplace

11/19/2013
As technology becomes more and more intrusive, today’s employees naturally wonder how far their employers can pry. Carefully weigh whether any form of employee surveillance is right for your organization. 

Unclear rules could warrant unemployment benefits

11/19/2013
Someone who is fired for breaking a workplace rule isn’t entitled to unemployment benefits. That’s because rule-breaking is misconduct. But if the rule is unclear, all bets are off.

Want to retain employee threatening to quit? Think twice before over-promising

11/19/2013
Here’s a warning that may save you time and trouble: If you want to keep an employee who has another job offer, be careful what you promise.

Immediately apply your policy to stop harassment before it escalates

11/19/2013
An effective sexual harassment policy that includes prompt investigation of any complaints of physical touching is key to prevailing in a sexual harassment lawsuit. What should your policy include?