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HR Management

Be sure to document effective date of new disciplinary policies

03/30/2012
Sometimes, it’s obvious that a disciplinary policy isn’t working. Occasionally, management’s ideas about discipline evolve. When you do replace your discipline policy, make sure you document exactly when the change went into effect. That way, an employee who is punished more severely can’t point to the earlier disciplinary actions as evidence he was unfairly singled out.

Hacked! How to limit liability for employee data breaches

03/29/2012

Imagine this nightmare scenario: You’ve contracted with a vendor to enter personnel data into a new computer system, including employees’ Social Security numbers, addresses, names of dependents, health records and bank account routing numbers. Then the vendor notifies you that employee data was somehow stolen or lost. What do you do?

Workplace bullying: When HR is the target

03/27/2012
Ever feel like you’re the unofficial “shock absorber” in your organization, soaking up the complaints and abuse from all corners of the workplace? A recent study says many HR professionals serve such a role. These tactics can help you confront the workplace bullies who make HR their target.

Manning’s big tip earns big penalty for Raleigh waiter

03/23/2012
A March evening started out great for a waiter at the Angus Barn restaurant. One of his customers was NFL quarterback and well-known big tipper Peyton Manning, who left a $200 tip. The waiter was so excited he posted Manning’s credit card slip in a photo on Facebook. Bad move …

‘Walking the corn’ deaths lead to fines

03/22/2012
Mount Carroll-based Haasbach LLC has resolved 25 OSHA citations stemming from the deaths of two young workers at its grain bin facility.

Having anti-harassment policy isn’t enough: You had better be prepared to enforce it, too

03/22/2012

It’s not enough to have an anti-harassment and discrimination policy in your manual. It’s not even enough to train everyone regularly on what the policy requires. What really counts is enforcing the policy when complaints come in. If you don’t, the penalty may be punitive damages.

Warn managers: That snarky email may be the smoking-gun evidence that loses a lawsuit

03/22/2012

It used to be that managers picked up the phone when seeking HR’s input on how to handle an employee problem. These days, they send an email. That can spell big trouble. Email, unlike a phone conversation, leaves a perfect record of what transpired. And courts don’t hesitate to use email as evidence.

You don’t always have to terminate harasser

03/22/2012

Sexual harassment runs the gamut, from out-and-out assault to un­­welcome flirting. No sane em­­ployer would hesitate to fire someone who physically harmed a co-worker. But for less severe, isolated incidents, less drastic action may be reasonable—as long as it solves the problem.

How to make ‘no unauthorized OT’ policy work

03/22/2012
The first step to controlling overtime costs is to establish a sound policy forbidding unauthorized extra work for hourly employees. But a “no unauthorized overtime” policy is just the beginning. It’s what you do after implementing the policy that counts.

Co-workers marry: Can you tell one to resign?

03/21/2012

It’s perfectly legitimate to try to prevent allegations of sexual harassment and favoritism by instituting a policy banning romantic relation­ships between co-workers—or between certain types of co-workers, like supervisors and subordinates. But what if two employees get married?