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HR Management

Reporting requirements under the Georgia New Hire Reporting Program

12/01/2007

Q. I’ve heard that Georgia law requires employers to report new hires to the Georgia Department of Labor, but I can’t find any such requirement in the department’s rules …

Pending ‘No-Match’ rules put employers in difficult positions

12/01/2007

The Social Security Administration every year sends thousands of “no-match” letters to employers asking for help matching Social Security numbers with employee names. In recent years, however, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has sought to transform the no-match letter system into a mechanism for enforcing laws against illegal immigration …

New I-9 form plus no-Match letters complicate hiring process

12/01/2007

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has just released a revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, for immediate use and a new M-274, Handbook for Employers, Instructions for Completing the Form I-9 …

Beware informal policy on returning after pregnancy

12/01/2007

Many employers try to simplify medical leave policies by adopting the same eligibility requirements set by the FMLA. But those same employers sometimes make exceptions for select employees, especially if they are seen as too valuable to lose to a short medical leave. Watch out if that’s your informal practice. Denying that flexibility to pregnant employees probably violates the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act …

Airline apologizes for playing fashion police in Columbus

12/01/2007

Southwest Airlines, headquartered in Dallas, apologized to a male passenger who was forced to change his shirt by an airline employee at the Port Columbus International Airport. The passenger’s shirt referred to a fishing shop called “Master Baiter” …

Then again, where’s a fashion cop when you need one?

12/01/2007

Tacky dress might have been an improvement over what one suburban Columbus teacher routinely wore to pick up his morning paper: nothing. The Westerville City Schools placed the man, a singing teacher, on paid leave …

Despite rising health care costs, Oregon offers full benefits

12/01/2007

With health care costs on the rise, most state governments are cutting back on their share of employees’ health insurance premiums. Oregon is not one of them. State employees and their families still receive fully paid health insurance …

$4.3 million to settle Hispanic workers’ discrimination suit

12/01/2007

B & H Foto and Electronics Corp., the enormous 9th Avenue photo mecca in Manhattan, will pay $4.3 million to settle a race discrimination lawsuit by the EEOC. The lawsuit alleged B & H paid Hispanic warehouse workers less than others …

How to develop an employee handbook that avoids liability

12/01/2007

With employment litigation rising steadily, the employee handbook has become an essential tool in the employer’s arsenal to defend against liability for employment decisions. A good handbook tells employees what the rules are and how they will be enforced …

Follow the discipline rules in your handbook to defeat discrimination claims

12/01/2007

Your organization’s employee handbook exists for a reason. It serves as a simple and effective way to let employees know what the rules are and what you expect in the way of behavior. If you can show that employees received copies of the handbook and were expected to be familiar with its contents, you have a good shot at defeating any discriminatory discharge claims if you disciplined according to the rules set out in the handbook …