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thinking outside box

Encouraging Paid Free Time

For generations, one of the primary roles of managers and supervisors has been to keep their teams on task, to maintain high levels of productivity, and to ensure employees are spending their time appropriately. After all, companies don’t want to pay their staff for personal projects, right? The 20% Project As it turns out, employees […]

labor union

How Unions Fared in 2020 – Signs from Recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Poll

Whenever there’s a change in the political party at the White House, we usually see a shift in policy at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), too. This year is unique because, in addition to the change in leadership, we are slowly emerging from more than a year of uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. […]

3 Ways Effective Collaboration Tools Can Help Mitigate Hiring Pain Points

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause once-in-a-generation struggles with devastating global impact, especially to the world’s economies. In this environment, the labor market has seen a dramatic shift from “Depression-era” unemployment levels to currently over 10 million open jobs in the United States (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics). Compounding this tumultuous hiring economy […]

social media

Developing Solid Employer Social Media Policies

Social media has played an increasingly prominent role in our daily lives, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic as we’ve been largely quarantined for months. This is no less true for your employees than for the larger public. Therefore, it’s important to develop a solid social media policy so they know your expectations and you can […]

The Importance of Pronouncing Names Properly

Once fodder for TV and movie comedy, non-Western names are increasingly common in American culture and work life. Moreover, as American companies increasingly have subsidiaries in or otherwise do business with foreign countries, exposure to such names is only increasing. While encountering an unfamiliar name may have been an infrequent occurrence just a few years […]

Tips for Employers Awaiting Details on New COVID-19 Vaccine Rules

President Joe Biden’s announcement of a new action plan aimed at curbing the COVID-19 pandemic will create new requirements for certain employers, and the rules have employers asking what they need to do, when they need to comply, and the consequences for noncompliance. Biden’s plan, announced September 9, is a six-pronged approach that includes an […]

Are Mandatory Vaccinations on Horizon? President Biden Moves the Needle

On September 9, 2021, President Joseph Biden issued an Executive Order mandating COVID-19 vaccines for all federal workers and won’t allow a testing-out option for those who refuse. They will have 75 days to get the shots or face adverse administrative action. Moreover, the mandate is expected to affect all private-sector entities with federal contracts. President Biden […]

100+ Employees? New Federal Vaccine Rule Applies to 80 Million People

On September 9, 2021 President Joe Biden announced a new rule that would require private employers with more than 100 employees to require vaccinations or weekly testing. Non-complying employers could face substantial fines. This would affect 80 million workers nationwide. In addition, the DOL will require employers with 100 or more workers to give employees […]

Kicking Off a New Season and Moving Toward the End Zone

It’s September, which happens to be my favorite month.  The leaves start changing, and we Midwesterners get to pull cardigans and boots out of storage in preparation for the inevitable chilly day that will hit within these next thirty days.  (Indeed, here in Chicago, we often get to experience a full year of seasons during […]

Take a Breath Before Sending that Angry Email

It’s probably safe to say that everyone has said things in a heated moment they later regretted. It could be during an argument with a significant other or while scolding a child, for example. Depending on how one looks at it, the stakes may be considerably higher when such outbursts occur in the workplace. This […]