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HR Management

Treat FMLA policy changes with care, communication

08/01/2003

When establishing or changing your Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policy, make sure you include it in your employee handbook. Don’t rely on references to the policy outside the book, and don’t attach or staple the policy separately.

Don’t ignore ergonomics: Risks remain, OSHA can still fine

08/01/2003
Issue: Repetitive-stress injuries didn’t disappear just because OSHA’s mandatory rules were repealed.
Risk: Ergonomic injuries hurt productivity and, surprisingly, you’re still vulnerable to government penalties …

Look to local colleges for training

08/01/2003
Issue: Community colleges provide high-quality employee training at a reasonable cost.
Benefit: Employees learn new skills and feel more loyal to your organization …

Don’t make promises the company might not keep

07/01/2003
Issue: Courts will make your company follow through on oral promises you make about benefits.
Risk: You or an ill-informed manager could inadvertently force your company to provide benefits it …

Don’t put too much stock in initial staff surveys

07/01/2003
If you’ve just started surveying employees about job satisfaction and workplace improvements, the first surveys will show unusually low scores. That’s because employees have lots of pent-up negative comments if they’ve …

Establish a company policy on e-mail deletion, retention

07/01/2003
In spite of growing scrutiny from courts and regulators, most employers still do a poor job of managing e-mail business records and preparing for the likelihood …

Blocking junk e-mail: 5 online resources

07/01/2003
Unsolicited e-mail (“spam”) wastes employee time, slows your network and creates legal liabilities. Here are five resources to help you block it out: Spam calculator, www.cmsconnect.com/ marketing/spamcalc.htm, lets you calculate spam’s …

Keep data on employees’ race separate

07/01/2003

Q. We have all new employees fill out a data sheet. Is it OK to ask for race on this form? —J.M., Nevada

You don’t need I-9 forms for pre-1986 hires

07/01/2003

Q. We have a few employees who started working for us more than 20 years ago, before the I-9 rules took effect. I don’t have an I-9 on file for these folks. Should I? —S.I., New York

Pursue harassment claims, even if complaining worker backs off

07/01/2003
You know to investigate harassment complaints when they land on your desk. But what if the complaining employee shows a lack of interest in her initial complaint, …