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Compensation & Benefits

Punishing exempt worker who exceeds leave time

07/01/2007

Q. Can we deduct something from an exempt employee’s pay if he takes time off, comes in late or leaves early after he’s used up all of his leave time?

Time off for special-needs child

07/01/2007

Q. Our office secretary is the backbone of our company. Her son is in special education, and she periodically asks for time off to attend various school conferences and meetings about his progress. I don’t want to be stingy, but her absences really create problems for us. Do I have to allow her to take time off for these meetings?

How to prevent employees from abusing PTO leave

07/01/2007

A reader of our e-mail newsletter, HR Weekly, recently posed this question:  “We allow employees to take paid time off (PTO) in hourly increments, but they often use PTO when running late in the morning or for unexpected ‘appointments.’ How can we get a rein on our PTO leave?”

Count only hours actually worked for eligibility

07/01/2007

Do you have special incentive programs to make weekend work attractive to employees? If your program pays workers “credit hours” for time not actually worked, you don’t have to include those hours toward FMLA eligibility …

Longer shifts allow employees an extra day off every 2 weeks

07/01/2007

Most employees cherish their occasional three-day weekends, but for production employees at Milwaukee-based Quad/Graphics, it’s the norm. The company runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the 8,000 production employees work a 46-hour week. Working 12-hour shifts, they alternate between three days on/four days off and four days on/three days off …

‘Chronic’ FMLA leave causing HR headaches

07/01/2007

If you’re having trouble determining when you must grant FMLA leave to employees who suffer recurring health problems, you’re not alone. Nearly two-thirds of HR professionals say they’ve experienced such problems, leading to morale issues and productivity loss …

Don’t institute payroll deductions without employees’ consent

07/01/2007

Q. Our plant manager wants to implement a policy requiring employees to pay for lost or damaged equipment through payroll deductions. Can we do that?

Altering employee time sheets can mean personal liability

07/01/2007

If you are responsible for approving time sheets or signing off on any alterations of the reported hours worked by employees, be warned. It’s not just your organization that risks a big fine and costly litigation.

Your personal assets are also at risk …

Use discipline instead of docking pay

07/01/2007

Q. Can I dock an employee’s pay for failing to meet a production quota?

Debit cards replace unemployment checks in Texas

07/01/2007

Unemployed Texans will no longer have to cash their checks to use their benefits …