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California minimum wage will hit $9 on July 1

by Michael Futterman and Jaime Touchstone As fast-food and other low-wage workers protest for pay raises and President Barack Obama pushes for a higher federal minimum wage, California employers need to prepare for a $1 increase in the state’s minimum wage. California’s minimum wage will rise to $9 an hour on July 1 before hitting […]

Is Your Emergency Preparedness Training Current and Continuous?

Review your emergency plan regularly so you can determine whether it needs to be revised or updated based on new facilities, new equipment, new procedures, new materials, etc. In addition, periodic training sessions give you the opportunity to remind and update your workforce about any changes to procedures or to their individual responsibilities in the […]

Indiana adds veteran protection to Civil Rights Act

by Matthew A. Brown An amendment to the Indiana Civil Rights Act (ICRA) going into effect July 1 means employers should assess their policies and practices to ensure they don’t discriminate on the basis of an applicant’s or employee’s status as a veteran. Indiana House Enrolled Act (HEA) 1242 adds veteran status to the protected […]

6 Design Considerations for Executive Pay Plans

Designing your executive pay plan can be daunting—you need to consider a whole host of factors, such as the company's goals and the competitive environment. Let's take a look at some design considerations for effective executive pay plans.

Supervisor’s Bottom Line: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

The old maxim “No good deed goes unpunished” is rarely as applicable as when untrained supervisors and managers try to be good bosses. If you have new, or recently promoted, supervisors or managers, see if any of these situations are familiar: “Do you think you might be depressed?” asks the concerned, but untrained, boss. “I […]

‘But it was due to my addiction’—when is last-minute confession too late?

By Kyla Stott-Jess It is not uncommon for an employee to disclose an addiction only when being terminated for misconduct that may be related to the employee’s substance abuse. The employee then tries to trigger human rights protections due to his or her “disability.” A recent Alberta court decision, Bish v. Elk Valley Coal Corporation, […]

PA Mistake #7—Gaming the System

[Go here for sins 1 to 6.] Sin #7. Gaming the system “John’s work is just OK, to be sure, but I need to give him a big raise to keep him, so he gets an ‘excellent.’” “I can’t stand Sandy, but I can’t transfer him unless he has a high rating; let his next […]

Former POW Shares 8 Leadership Lessons for Today’s Managers

On November 7, 1967, 1st Lieutenant Lee Ellis was shot down over North Vietnam. He would spend the next 5-plus years as a POW. Not only did he survive the North Vietnamese prison camps but he also remained in the military after his release, finally retiring as a colonel. And his combat decorations include two […]