Month: August 2010

Internal Investigations: Don’t Make a Legal Determination

When HR managers do internal investigations, one of the most common mistakes is to wind up the final report with a legal determination, says attorney Jennifer Brown Shaw. “Don’t do that,” she urges. “Just find out and report what happened.” In California, for example, Shaw says, a legal conclusion reached in your investigation report is […]

Escaping the ‘Incredible Pain’ of Retaliation

Retaliation cases are an “incredible pain,” says Michael Faillace. “They are the 21st century weapon for plaintiffs’ lawyers who have no case.” Retaliation claims are growing, notes Faillace, and it is no wonder—employees with baseless claims can make their retaliation claims stick. “You just don’t want to be in front of a jury on one […]

National Payroll Week

National Payroll Week celebrates the hard work by America’s 156 million wage earners and the payroll professionals who pay them. Together, through the payroll withholding system, they contribute, collect, report and deposit approximately $1.8 trillion, or 65.7%, of the annual revenue of the U.S. Treasury. Founded in 1996 by the American Payroll Association, NPW is […]

Move Afoot to Enhance Anti-strikebreaking Legislation

By Dominique Launay In British Columbia and Quebec, the use of replacement workers during a strike or a lockout is restricted. Replacement workers aren’t restricted in other Canadian provinces and the federal sector although they were banned in Ontario from 1992 to 1995. Quebec may be moving toward a more stringent law, as its anti-replacement […]

Penalties for Employers Who Ignore New Health Care Requirements

In yesterday’s Advisor, We covered Michael Aitken’s suggestions for the employee side of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Today, employer responsibilities under the act, plus an introduction to a unique product aimed specifically at the smaller HR department. Aitken’s comments came during the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM) recent annual Conference […]

New Massachusetts Law Changes Employer Obligations for Personnel Records

by Susan G. Fentin Governor Deval Patrick recently signed the Massachusetts Economic Development Bill into law. The law, which is retroactively effective to August 1, includes some well-known provisions that authorize a new state sales tax holiday and grant tax breaks for certain businesses. The bill, however, also contains several lesser-known provisions, including one that […]

Hot List: New York Times Bestselling Hardcover Business Books

The following is a list of the bestselling hardcover business books as ranked by the New York Times on August 30. 1. Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by Tony Hsieh. Lessons from business (pizza place, worm farm, Zappos) and life. 2. The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis. […]

Why Companies Aren’t Hiring

The headlines have been full of stories about unemployment, the so-called “jobless recovery,” and lately we’ve been hearing about a potential double-dip recession. So when a colleague suggested I tackle the subject of why businesses aren’t hiring, I figured I could throw in my two cents. First let’s talk about unemployment. As of July 2010, […]

2010 Dundies

Litigation Value: A little recognition goes a long way, especially if there’s an unlimited bar tab… As the weeks roll by, we find ourselves closer and closer to the season premiere and Michael Stott’s last year at the office. But right now, we’re still in the midst of the long, hot summer, and last night was […]

Paycheck Fairness Act Update and Other Compensation Concerns

by David S. Fortney, Fortney & Scott, LLC Well-counseled employers know their company’s compensation systems increasingly are subject to enforcement actions and litigation challenges. The trend of employers facing significant challenges to their compensation systems is both continuing and accelerating. Recent developments include renewed efforts by the White House to enact legislation to increase employers’ […]