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HR Management

Use 3 strategies to cut health care costs

07/08/2010
“Now is the time for all of you with plan-year start dates on or near Jan. 1 to start thinking about ways to control health plan costs,” says insurance expert Nancy L. Newell. Lowering employers’ health insurance burden requires balancing three strategies: shifting more costs to employees, implementing cost savings and making plan changes.

Management 101: Five legal lessons your supervisors must learn

07/06/2010
When it comes to employment law, it’s always best for managers to learn from others’ mistakes rather than their own. Share these recent court cases—and the lessons learned—with your organization’s supervisors:

Tips for working with a younger boss

07/06/2010
Nearly half of U.S. workers work for someone younger than they are, according to a recent Career Builders survey. It’s not always easy. Here are five tips for getting along with that supervisor who was in high school when you were already well established in your career.

Shopping for employee-lawsuit insurance: 6 questions to ask

07/01/2010
Employment practice liability insurance (EPLI) covers you from employee lawsuit judgments. The jump in employee lawsuits is making EPLI a nearly must-have; so premiums are rising. Here’s how to shop for a policy …

FMLA now covers care for partner’s, other relative’s children

06/29/2010
New U.S. Department of Labor rules say employees who care for a domestic partner’s child—or whose partner gives birth or adopts a child—are now eligible to take FMLA leave to care for those children. Also covered: Extended-family members who care for kids. Learn the details of this major FMLA expansion.

Don’t waste your online recruiting budget: Ask right questions to choose best job sites

06/29/2010

Replacing employees is costly enough without frittering away your recruiting dollars on advertising that either doesn’t reach the desired candidates or results in bad hires. Too many employers take a shotgun approach, placing ads on several sites without obtaining data to help make the right choice. To get the best value for your ad dollars, ask job-board sales reps these questions:

4 key trends transforming employee assistance programs

06/29/2010

Employee assistance programs are on the rise as employers cope with higher health care costs—and employees cope with the stresses of an uncertain economy. An expert says four trends will drive EAP change in coming months, bringing cost savings for companies and better care for workers.

Set up standard process for responding to accommodations requests–and use it every time

06/24/2010
One of the quickest roads to the courthouse is to ignore or brush off a disabled employee’s request for accommodations. At least investigate the possibilities before denying a request.

OSHA: Employers must provide safety training in ‘language and vocabulary’ that worker understands

06/23/2010
Many government safety regulations require employers to give employees safety or health training. In May, OSHA issued an enforcement memo to its inspectors, directing them to verify that employers are giving such training, “using both a language and a vocabulary that the employee can understand.”

Review e-communications policies in wake of Supreme Court texting decision

06/22/2010
The Supreme Court ruled last week that a police department’s search of an officer’s personal text messages sent via a department-issued pager didn’t violate his constitutional rights. But the court punted on the question of how much privacy employees can expect when using employer-provided gear. The split decision means your policies are more important than ever.