Tag: Leave Management

When to Retroactively Designate FMLA Leave

What happens if a manager forgets to inform HR that an employee has absences that could be FMLA-qualifying? Can those absences still be counted against the employee's 12-week FMLA allotment for the year? What about when an employee has an emergency and must take leave immediately but was unable to request it? Can that count […]

Why Proper Worker Classification Is So Important

Ensuring the proper classification of workers is a concern for many reasons. Taxes, employment laws and employee benefits are the main ones. Have you run into situations where you were unsure of whether a worker should be classified as an employee or contractor?

Workers’ Comp Basics

Workers’ compensation laws have come about as a way to establish a means of compensation for injured employees while simultaneously reducing the amount of litigation against employers when employees are injured on the job. The workers’ compensation laws are administered on the state level, and the federal government has its own separate program. Workers’ compensation […]

6 Best Practices Regarding Pregnant and New Mom Employees

Virtually every employer is going to deal with pregnant employees from time to time. Employers want to act in good faith and stay in compliance not only with the ADA and FMLA, but also with the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). PDA is an amendment to Title VII which specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of […]

Illinois employers need to prepare for same-sex marriage law

Illinois’ same-sex marriage law, which was passed last fall, is set to take effect June 1. The new law will affect Illinois employers in various ways. Employers will need to treat same-sex spouses the same way they treat opposite-sex spouses. This will have ramifications for employer-sponsored health plans with spousal coverage and retirement plans. Also, […]

Train Your People to Avoid Age Discrimination

Q. Who is covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)? A. The ADEA covers all employers with 20 employees or more and applies to all employees and job applicants aged 40 or over. Q. What employment actions are prohibited by the ADEA? A. The ADEA prohibits age discrimination in any term or condition […]

10 Valuable Tips for FMLA, ADA Compliance

Here is a “Do” and “Do Not” list based on the outcome of 10 claims for interference and retaliation filed by the U.S. Department of Labor or aggrieved employees that the courts have tried in the first four months of 2014. Staying in compliance with the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans with […]

What Does At-Will Employment Really Mean?

At-will employment is something most U.S.-based employers are familiar with. But what does this term really mean? Can an employer actually terminate an employee without any reason at all? What are the exceptions?

Pros and Cons of Noncompete Agreements

A noncompete agreement is an agreement between an employer and employee that the employee will agree to not work for a competitor immediately after leaving employment with the current employer.

Train Leaders to Maximize Their Resources

Now that you’ve convinced top management that leadership training is worthwhile for your managers, supervisors, and high performers, you need the right content for training. The first skill great leaders learn, for example, is how to manage all the resources at their disposal, including personal, human, technical, informational, and perhaps most important, time. In this […]