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Policies / Handbooks

Explain how maternity, FMLA leave overlap

09/07/2017
Many employers have maternity leave policies that provide a period of paid time off following birth or adoption. That’s fine. But if you intend for paid maternity leave to run concurrently with federal FMLA leave, be sure you spell that out.

Establish several ways to report harassment

09/06/2017
Providing training to supervisors and employees is a vital way to prevent sexual harassment lawsuits. But a second piece to that puzzle is often overlooked: creating an easy-to-understand complaint policy.

Set telecommuting limits in job descriptions

08/31/2017
The EEOC has recently taken the position that allowing disabled employees to telecommute may be a reasonable accommodation. That’s fine for employers that are set up for telecommuting. But for other employers, establishing a telecommuting option can be complicated, expensive and—maybe—completely impractical.

OK to set unique policies for unique problems

08/21/2017
Sometimes, an unusual workplace situation or problem may require an equally unique rule. For example, if theft is rampant in one department, it’s certainly justified to implement a special policy that seeks to stop the thievery.

Accommodating religion: What managers need to know

08/12/2017

Say an applicant tells you she wouldn’t be able to work Friday nights due to her religion. Or an employee begins wearing a headscarf to the office. How would you respond? The increasing religious diversity in the workforce is causing more managers to make legal mistakes.

Employers must respond to spike in drug use by employees

08/03/2017
The results of a recent Quest Diagnostics study serve as a reminder to re-examine your drug and alcohol policies and programs to include education, prevention and treatment components, and to revise your testing procedures.

Pharma firm claims exec divulged confidential files

08/02/2017
Teva Pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Horsham, Pa., is suing a former executive, claiming she transferred confidential computer files to her boyfriend—the president and CEO of Apotex, Canada’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturer.

Avoid liability for employee use of personal vehicles

07/27/2017
Do you sometimes require employees to use their personal cars during the workday for job-related tasks like making banking runs or delivering supplies? If so, you’re risking liability if the employee is in an accident and a jury decides he was negligent.

What to do if you suspect workplace thievery

07/27/2017
Fraud prevention experts believe in the 10-10-80 rule: 10% of employees never steal, 10% do, the rest will go either way depending on the circumstances.

Google HR: Pay ‘unfairly,’ give freedom & meaning

07/27/2017

Laszlo Bock, the former senior VP of people operations at Google and author of the book Work Rules!, helped grow Google’s workforce from 6,000 to 76,000 in the past decade. At the SHRM conference this summer, Bock offered these tips for HR.