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Employee Relations

Use independent investigation to back up decision to terminate rule-breakers

09/19/2013
Sometimes, it pays to be patient. That’s often true when deciding who to terminate when several people are allegedly involved in rule breaking. Conduct an independent investigation, talk to all the individuals involved and come to conclusions based on what the employees said. That way, there’s a good chance a court won’t second-guess your final decision.

How to identify potential mentors among your staff leaders

09/19/2013
Mentorship programs can help build the skills of up-and-coming employees. However, successful mentoring depends on the skill and commitment of the senior staff who agree to groom younger workers.

CFOs complain employees don’t understand strategy

09/18/2013
It’s hard enough for businesses to reach their strategic goals. It’s even harder when employees don’t know what those objectives are. A recent survey found that 34% of CFOs believe employees are largely clueless about their firm’s strategic objectives.

Sometimes it’s best to settle drawn-out cases

09/10/2013
Some lawsuits seem to drag on forever, especially when an em­­ployee’s lawyers endlessly demand access to company documents. Settling those cases for a modest sum may be the best approach if l­itigation is taking over and HR is so busy responding to discovery requests it can’t get other work done.

Your best bet for beating false allegations: Good records, consistently fair practices

09/10/2013
You can never predict which employee will sue and over what alleged wrong. That’s why the best approach is to focus on treating every employee fairly and consistently, applying your rules even-handedly.

Independent investigation key to clean terminations

09/10/2013
Before you terminate an employee for breaking a company rule, be sure that you have someone else look at the situation. Never rely strictly on the supervisor’s view of events.

Beware retaliation after employee complains

09/10/2013
Watch out if a supervisor suddenly gives a poor performance review to a previously good employee who has recently complained about discrimination. Unless you can clearly show that the employee’s performance was deteriorating, you might be setting yourself up for an otherwise avoidable retaliation lawsuit.

Steps you should take to derail the FMLA leave abuse train

09/09/2013
Employers face several common struggles when employees take FMLA leave, but there are ways to combat FMLA abuse in the workplace.

Calling supervisor to complain about alleged racial slur is protected activity

09/09/2013
Employees are protected from retaliation for complaining about alleged discrimination. The complaint is considered protected activity. Something as simple as calling a supervisor to complain about a co-worker’s racial slur is protected.

Software firm’s redesign boxes out open-space office trend

09/03/2013
Turning back the clock on the trend toward more open spaces in office buildings, software publisher IssueTrak has replaced most employee cubicles with offices in response to staff requests. The company transformed storage space and open, common areas to private offices so every employee could have one.