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HR Management

When is employee insubordination protected?

12/01/2005
Issue: If an employee believes a boss’s order is illegal, she can refuse to do it. And you can’t punish her for that defiance.
Risk: You could run afoul of …

Look into all bias complaints; even ‘nontargets’ can sue

12/01/2005
Issue: Employees who are negatively affected by workplace discrimination can file lawsuits, even if they aren’t the targets.
Risk: The EEOC is encouraging such whistle-blower suits, which opens a new …

Learn to spot staff plotting to become competitors

11/01/2005
You may already require key employees to sign noncompete agreements and/or no-moonlighting policies. But even the best of those “paper handcuffs” can’t bring your business back if a defecting employee is determined to compete against you.

More states mandate coverage for infertility treatments

11/01/2005
Connecticut recently became the 15th state to require insurers to offer some type of infertility coverage. But Connecticut’s program is the most limited enacted by any state so far. Federal laws …

Small firms given until 2007 to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley

11/01/2005
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted to give smaller public companies an extra year (until July 2007) to meet the requirements to file reports about the strength of their internal …

How important are post-interview thank-you notes?

11/01/2005
About 15 percent of the 650 hiring managers in a recent CareerBuilder survey said they wouldn’t hire someone who failed to send a thank-you note after an interview. Another 32 percent …

Holiday gifts: Charity is in, ‘bling’ is out for 2005

11/01/2005
Wrapping up a year in which natural disasters and ongoing war grabbed the headlines, look for corporate gifts, including those to employees, to focus more on charity and comfort than on …

Do you need a blog policy? Ask yourself 3 questions

11/01/2005

Employment policies often must adapt to changes in culture and technology, and the explosion of blogs is one such example. Disgruntled employees often use their blogs to attacks employers, spread gossip about co-workers or even publish suggestive pictures of themselves. Ask yourself the following questions to see if you need a blog policy …

Screen supplemental insurance vendors: Ask right questions

11/01/2005
Issue: More employers are offering voluntary supplemental medical insurance, and insurers are offering more products.
Benefit/risk: Such plans can fill gaps left by medical coverage cutbacks, but the strategy can …

Health premium costs still rising, but not as sharply

11/01/2005
When it comes to health insurance premiums, the good news is relative.
It’s true that premiums rose less in 2005 than the previous four years. This year’s 9.2 percent average …