Month: July 2008

Webslacking– ‘Akin to an Addiction,’ Readers Say

By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady My recent column “Software Police: Best Way to Curb Webslackers?” generated interesting opinions. Most agreed that webslacking is an insidious problem, but two said to hold off on that monitoring—it’s no good for morale. Here’s a sampling of readers’ reactions: It is akin to an addiction “The problem […]

Noncompetes– Are They Enforceable or Not?

In the last issue of the Advisor, we covered tips for dealing with noncompetes. Today, more detail on that, plus how to train your supervisors and managers on hiring (and everything else). For some more guidance on dealing with noncompetes, we turned to the HR Red Book (What to Do About Personnel Problems in [Your […]

Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership

A review by Employment law attorney Michael Maslanka reviews the book Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership by Joseph Jaworski. Review focuses on author’s lesson about using listening as a management tool. In Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership, Jaworski talks about how he made the difficult decision to leave the lucrative practice of law […]

Noncompete, No Sweat? 7 Tips for Hiring Managers

These days, to get great people, you’ve often got to hire away from your competitors, and that brings the issue of “noncompetes” to HR’s front burner. Today’s experts tell you how to manage restrictive agreements. Aren’t noncompete agreements more a matter for lawyers than HR people? Sure, but when a new hire goes awry because […]

Supreme Court of Canada Helps Employers with Duty to Accommodate Disabilities

by Rachel Ravary McCarthy Tetrault Last week’s decision in Hydro Québec v. Syndicat des employé-e-s de techniques professionnelles et de bureau d’Hydro-Québec 2008 SCC 43 is good news for employers – finally there is a clear limit to your duty to accommodate employees who are chronically absent from work. Not only did the Supreme Court […]

Don’t Get Tripped Up by ‘Reasonableness’ and ‘Alternatives’ Requirements for Wellness Programs

Can’t join your workplace wellness activities due to a health condition? Sure you can, using the government’s accessibility rules for wellness programs. Here’s a primer.  In yesterday’s Advisor, we looked at “benign discrimination” and “multiple plan” rules for wellness programs. Today, we look at the “reasonableness” test and the “alternative standard” requirement, and introduce a […]

HOT LIST: Bestselling Business Books on Amazon.com

Amazon.com updates its list of bestselling business books hourly. Here is a snapshot of what books were hot this morning — Monday, July 28. 1. When Markets Collide: Investment Strategies for the Age of Global Economic Change by Mohamed El-Erian. A timely alert to the fundamental changes taking place in today’s global economic and financial […]

Legal Technicalities That Can Sidetrack Your Wellness Program

Everyone’s concerned about healthcare costs, and that means most are offering wellness programs. But rather than offering “informational” wellness programs, more organizations want to offer mandatory programs that demand results. It’s legal to do so, but … For the money you spend on it, wouldn’t you want a wellness program that goes beyond information and […]

Money Worries: How to Ease Employees’ Stress

by Sarah McAdams Nearly three-quarters of employees are stressed about money — and 45% say their financial worries make it harder for them to do their jobs, according to a Workplace Options survey. Current predictions about the economy surely won’t improve matters. “The key source of people’s money stress is far deeper than where to […]