Month: June 2010

New OSHA ‘Sheriff’ Packs Heat, But It May Backfire

By Jim Stanley, president, FDRsafety When Labor Secretary Hilda Solis warned business last year that there was ”a new sheriff in town,” she wasn’t kidding — the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is packing big new six-guns. The only problem is that it may be shooting itself in the foot. OSHA has been announcing […]

Survey Says: Some Successfully Reducing Healthcare Costs

By Stephen D. Bruce, PHR Editor, HR Daily Advisor Just My E-pinion In today’s Advisor, we’ve got the results of the healthcare survey in which 1,400 readers participated. The most hopeful news? There is some indication that some companies are bringing healthcare costs under control. The findings are interesting and will be useful to all […]

Who Calls 911? and Other Tricky Disaster Questions

In yesterday’s Advisor, we got expert tips on developing a disaster plan. Today, there’s more on some specific disaster-planning issues and an introduction to a policy program that will help you with your disaster policy and all your key HR policies. Who Calls 911? If somebody needs emergency medical services, or there is another emergency, […]

DOL Expands Family Leave for Same-Sex Parents

by Julie K. Athey The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has released a new “administrative interpretation” (AI) that clarifies the circumstances in which an employee may take leave to care for a child for whom they act as a parent but aren’t legally recognized as such. As has been pointed out in numerous press reports […]

Emergencies: Can’t Predict, Must Prepare

Recent tragic disasters have certainly made it clear that no company, no matter how large or small and no matter the location, is safe from unexpected disaster. Terrorism, fire, tsunami, hurricane, or flood—the list seems endless, and no one is invulnerable. Some disasters are predictable. For example, if you have a facility in a flood-prone […]

Supreme Court Rules on Employer-Employee Arbitration Dispute

Today, in a 5-4 opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court outlined a new rule that employers must consider in disputes over the validity of arbitration agreements. More specifically, the Court had to determine whether under the Federal Arbitration Act, an arbitrator or a court has the authority to determine whether an arbitration agreement is enforceable, and […]

How To Detect and Deal With FMLA Fraud

In yesterday’s CED, we looked at one expert’s remedies for family leave headaches. Today we look at her suggestions for dealing with family leave fraud, including FMLA/CFRA’s most-abused provision – intermittent leave.

Beware the Perils of Firing Employee-Shareholders

By Stephen Acker and Julia Kennedy As we have repeatedly reported, courts are finding new ways to put money in former employees’ pockets in Canada. Another example is the Ontario Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Link v. Venture Steel Inc. and Ruben Rivas, where it agreed with the trial judge’s decision awarding a former […]

Wage and Hour Simple? I Don’t Think So

Many of the uninitiated do think compensation’s simple, but those same people keep paying out on million-dollar suits. In yesterday’s Advisor, we featured three million-dollar wage and hour lawsuits. Today, two more suits and an introduction to a unique source of compensation solutions that might just help you avoid a million-dollar suit. Oriental Forest Will […]