HR Management

Set boundaries when employees get personal

05/15/2013

How deeply do you want to get involved with employees’ personal lives? Becoming a sounding board for every personal problem will eat up your workday (and drain you emotionally). It’s up to you to set boundaries.

Beware hidden downsides of overtime

05/13/2013

An increase in overtime hours can mean an increase in accidents and production errors. Consider these overtime policies and practices that can help reduce the likelihood of safety and production problems.

Vacuum company sucks it up, agrees to settle bias suit

05/10/2013

Waconia-based Applied Vacuum Technologies (AVT) has settled a disability discrimination suit with the EEOC. A former employee had filed the complaint after the company terminated him.

Avoid July 5 fireworks

05/10/2013

July 4 falls on the worst possible day of the week for scheduling concerns—Thursday.

Ensure supervisors understand they must be alert for FMLA scenarios

05/09/2013

Employees don’t always know to ask specifically for FMLA leave. Some may not even know they are entitled to time off for a serious health condition. But that doesn’t mean you can ignore the obvious and discipline a worker for missing work when it’s clear he or she may be entitled to FMLA leave.

Unseen lawsuit peril: Too much performance input from too many co-workers

05/09/2013

Seeking performance appraisal input from too many employees can cause problems if you’re sued by a terminated worker. The wider a net you cast, the more likely someone will be called to testify about his or her opinion of the discharged employee’s performance. The problem: If any of those co-workers retire, quit and move on, you may have trouble tracking them down.

New FMLA regs in effect: Update your military leave policy

05/06/2013

In 2008, Congress expanded the FMLA to include two types of military leave: exigency leave and military caregiver leave. In 2010, Congress expanded those leave rights by applying them to the regular armed forces as well as National Guard members and reservists. Now those changes have been officially implemented with new regulations from the DOL.

Combat co-worker harassment with effective policy, prompt action

05/06/2013

You can’t prevent all sexual harassment, but you can do plenty to avoid liability when it does happen, at least when the harasser is a co-worker. Start with a clear anti-harassment policy, and make sure everyone understands it.

When romance blooms at work, be ready with a practical policy

05/01/2013

Roughly four out of 10 workers have dated a co-worker, according to a survey by Spherion Corporation. When office romances sour, scorned lovers often sue, alleging that their former lover was a sexual harasser. And even if the lovers are happy, workplace romances can cause problems in the office or on the shop floor. Based on all of these legal risks, should your organization forbid office romances?

The HR I.Q. Test: May ’13