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HR Management

What’s the value of a tweet or a Facebook ‘like’?

08/31/2012
Employers are jumping on the social media bandwagon … and they often ask HR to drive. What’s the No. 1 challenge when it comes to launching a social media initiative?

Hotel staff learns about better service by mixing drinks

08/30/2012

Boutique hotel chain Affinia Hotels has hired a bartender to teach its staff about customer service. A mixologist uses drink-mixing exercises to demonstrate the power of maintaining both a positive attitude and a focus on the task at hand.

5 rules for documenting HR decision-making

08/25/2012
The best way to prevent lawsuits or to get a quick dismissal of unfounded charges is to document every employment decision carefully. Following these five simple rules can convince judges and juries that your HR decision-making is legit, above board and fully in line with the law.

What should we keep in personnel files?

08/23/2012
Q. Does Pennsylvania law specify what we should keep in personnel files?

‘Textual’ harassment? OMG! Develop policy B4 you face lawsuit

08/23/2012
One of the most dangerous smartphone functions (from the employer perspective) is also one of the simplest: sending text messages. Considering the rise in harassment claims based on texts, employers should develop policies addressing textual harassment in the workplace.

Track discipline in a way that allows easy recall

08/23/2012
You will never know which employee will sue or for what reason. That’s a good reason to carefully track all discipline and make the records easy to access.

Train supervisors on proper handling of FMLA return-to-work certifications

08/23/2012
Supervisors who handle employee return-to-work requests following FMLA leave must know what they are doing. Otherwise, your legal risk could rise significantly.

A friend indeed: Do Facebook users have privacy rights?

08/23/2012

At last count, the more than 900 million Facebook users have more than 125 billion “friends.” But in the workplace, who is really your friend on Facebook? In this recent case, a manager strong-armed an employee to get access to a co-worker’s Facebook page. Is that an invasion of privacy?

Don’t bury arbitration agreement in handbook

08/21/2012
The Court of Appeal of California has ruled that an arbitration agreement hidden deep in the recesses of an employee handbook can’t be en­­forced. The provision didn’t stand out, didn’t require a signature and could be changed by the employer at any time. The court said that rendered it unconscionable.

OSHA won’t let Illinois whistle-blowers be railroaded

08/21/2012
Three whistle-blowers will collect more than $650,000 after two different railroads fired them following workplace accidents. OSHA concluded the three men were wrongfully accused of safety violations to divert blame for workplace hazards.