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HR Management

6 tips to improve your time management

01/27/2009

For many HR pros, the clock is their biggest adversary. Finding enough time in the day to complete every necessary project can be difficult. But the old adage of “work smarter, not harder” is based on the concept of managing the minutes in your day more efficiently. Here are six tips to help you work toward that goal.

Tell victims how to report future harassment

01/16/2009

Here’s how to end a co-worker sexual harassment case when your organization decides not to discharge the alleged harasser.

Can we set different sick policies for different offices?

01/16/2009

Q. We have two offices in two different states. In one office, we have a sick leave policy in place because we have exempt employees, and the FLSA requires us to have the policy if we want to dock exempt employees for sick time after they exhaust their sick days. All employees at the second office are hourly, and they rarely call in sick. Can we have a policy at one location and not at another?

What’s your duty to accommodate domestic violence victims?

01/16/2009

About a dozen states have laws that allow employees to take job-protected leave to deal with domestic violence issues. But take note: Even if your state doesn’t have a specific law, you may need to grant such rights as a matter of “public policy.” A recent court ruling from Washington state shows the legal risks.

Driving on company business: Who’s liable?

01/16/2009

Q. Say an employee driving his own car on company business to make a bank deposit gets into an accident and is slightly injured. Is it his responsibility to go to his own doctor to seek immediate treatment and then to the workers’ comp doctors? And who covers the damage to the car?

Don’t assume privacy clause guarantees privacy

01/15/2009

Some employers include a privacy clause in their applications and handbooks that tells employees they can opt out of having their names and addresses released to third parties. However, if a worker who is suing for wage-and-hour violations wants to get his hands on employee names and contact information for the purpose of building a class-action case, those privacy clauses can’t stop it.

Immigration compliance issues and changes to track in 2009

01/15/2009

Employers have a number of immigration compliance issues to track in 2009, affecting the Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9, business travel, no-match letters and employment authorization documentation.

Independent contractor can sue top contractor for injuries

01/15/2009

If you thought that one advantage of using independent contractors was that those contractors couldn’t sue you for injuries suffered at work, think again.

Not a union employer? Proposed EFCA could soon change that

01/13/2009

Union-free employers should consider acting now to keep their operations union-free, given the nature of the changes that are likely to come with enactment of the Employee Free Choice Act. The law would make it more difficult for employers to oppose union organizing, and would limit employers’ bargaining power if they do become unionized.

4 ways to bring domestic violence out of the workplace shadows

01/13/2009

There’s a widespread understanding of the grave impact domestic violence has on personal lives and the havoc it wreaks on families and communities. Now more attention is being paid to its effect at work. Sometimes, incidents of domestic violence actually happen in the workplace. But the impact goes far beyond immediate safety concerns.