Month: September 2010

Words of Wisdom

Each week, I sit down at my computer to write. Sometimes I’ve been tossing an idea around in my head for the better part of the week and the words just flow. Other times, I’m racking my brain for something I feel is worthy of writing about. In one of those moments when the latter […]

Brawl in the Family

Litigation Value: Not much; yet. Kicking off Season 7, tonight’s premiere teaches us a valuable lesson — the perils of nepotism in the workplace. Nepotism in its simplest form is “favoritism” toward relatives, without regard to merit. Michael Scott’s misguided decision to employ his jackwagon of a nephew, Luke, as an office assistant illustrated nearly […]

For Marijuana Workers’ Union, Hope Sprouts Eternal

by Mark I. Schickman You may have heard that California is going broke. As we look for more ways to generate revenue, one idea keeps cropping up: Move marijuana out of the underground economy and develop a new tax-generating agricultural product. Medical marijuana clubs have sprouted all over the state, and the November general election […]

Your HR Department 2010 Survey Results

While some HR departments got through the past year relatively unscathed, many have had to conduct layoffs, keep employees happy when they haven’t had a raise in more than a year, and all while their own departments and budgets have been slashed. Each year, HRhero asks its readers about their HR departments and how they […]

Must an Employer Grant Permanent Intermittent FMLA Leave?

Maybe not, according to a recent decision from the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The case has many people wondering if reevaluation of the word “leave” in the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) may be on the  horizon. FMLA Complete Compliance Perception may be reality . . . In February 2007, Charlene Wisbey […]

Don’t Call After Lunch—I’m Napping

By Stephen D. Bruce, PHR Editor, HR Daily Advisor A number of studies are now suggesting the somewhat counterintuitive idea that napping after lunch is a great productivity booster. Should your company be considering naptime? MedicalNewsToday.com says that “dozens of small medical studies have shown that napping for about 30 minutes to an hour in […]

Jury Duty: Striking the Balance Between Civic and Company Responsibility

Jury duty leave seems like an easy one, but anything that involves questions about who gets paid and who doesn’t is not so easy. In yesterday’s Advisor  we talked about the legal issues surrounding jury duty and appearance as a witness; today, we’ll look at key policy considerations, and get an introduction to the “Employee […]

First Wave of Health Care Reform Changes Arrives September 23

Tomorrow, it will be six months since President Barack Obama signed health care reform into law. However, September 23 is not only health care reform’s six-month anniversary but also the day several significant provisions under the health care reform package (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation […]

What, Not Another Employee on Jury Duty?

No manager or supervisor wants employees out to serve as a witness or to serve jury duty-for who knows how long-but these appearances are required by law and participation is protected. Any resistance can be viewed as retaliation. As BLR®‘s Family and Medical Leave Act Compliance Guide notes, the federal Jury System Improvement Act of […]