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Policies / Handbooks

Vodafone maternity leave policy sets gold standard

04/01/2015
Starting April 1, Vodafone employees may take up to 16 weeks of paid maternity leave—and be able to work 30-hour weeks at full pay for six months after they return to work.

Your employee handbook: Helpful teacher … and scary betrayer

03/30/2015
Somewhere out there, there’s someone very unhappy that he either didn’t get the job he sought from you, or left on terms he didn’t get to dictate. Realizing there’s so little downside to suing an employer, he’ll soon identify one place he can cynically mine for loopholes that he and his lawyer can use to slam you. That place is your employee handbook.

Social media prompts crime

03/25/2015
Employees who post details about your organization on social media make it vulnerable to criminals. You can mitigate the risk by following these tips.

Do we need to accommodate smokers?

03/11/2015
Q. We currently have a designated smoking area outside our building. Recently, an employee who is extremely sensitive to certain odors complained that smoke was drifting through our ventilation system into her work space. May we prohibit smoking in certain areas outside our building? If so, do we need to provide another location for our employees to smoke?

Avoid the pitfalls of social media: The FCRA and EEOC angle

03/09/2015
You may think you’re using social media for quite innocent puposes, but the law may state otherwise.

It’s spring, so love must be in the air … and at the office

03/09/2015
Hone your workplace relationship rules now before spring romance brings September grief.

Drop the cellphone! Set an anti-distracted driving policy

03/09/2015
Most states have laws against texting or talking on a handheld cellphone while driving. Absent a clear, tough, enforced policy against distracted driving, employers risk losing millions of dollars in jury verdicts—and contribute to crippling and fatal carnage on the road.

What is the most effective way of keeping a former employee from giving away trade secrets?

03/03/2015
Q. As an employer, what can I do to avoid unauthorized disclosure of sensitive company information when an employee departs?

Why you need a workplace gambling policy

03/03/2015
Most employers fail to specifically prohibit workplace gambling, and many sanction the behavior as harmless fun. Don’t bet on it.

6 guidelines to protect your trade secrets

02/09/2015
In a hot economy, it’s more important than ever to have an ironclad confidentiality agreement to make sure your intellectual property doesn’t walk out the door with them if employees change jobs.