Archives

10th Circuit Decision May Affect Work-From-Home Requests After Pandemic Ends

As COVID-19 vaccinations increase and states ease pandemic-related restrictions, many employers are beginning to plan for employees’ to return to the office. But not all workers may want to return, and some might ask to work remotely because of ongoing concerns about the virus in light of underlying health conditions or simply a fear of […]

How HR Challenges Are Shaping the Healthcare Industry

I am sure all of us are aware that employees are a company’s most significant asset. This is true across all industries, especially when it comes to health care, for which one needs highly trained professionals. Because medical professionals are responsible for others’ lives, meeting the needs of this workforce is extremely important and no […]

Legal Protections for Domestic Violence Survivors

What legal protections exist at the federal level for the survivors of domestic violence? The answer: surprisingly few. The reason this is surprising is because domestic violence has a direct impact on the workplace. People dealing with domestic violence are likely to need to take time away from work for things like medical treatment, obtaining […]

Optimism Bias

Popular culture is awash with overt and subconscious messages instructing us to think positively. From children’s stories about the “Little Engine that Could” and his mantra of “I think I can. I think I can” to self-help books for adults professing the genuine, mystical power of positive thought, the message is clear: It’s positive to […]

Using Storytelling in Workplace Training

Chances are, when you hear the word “storytelling,” you think of something like children’s bedtime stories or even someone fabricating a story for some type of gain. But the term has other meanings, too. Using the art of storytelling is actually a type of communication that can be quite effective. If you think about people […]

OSHA

OSHA Focuses Enforcement Efforts on Higher-Risk Workplaces Amid Pandemic

On March 21, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a national emphasis program (NEP) to focus its enforcement efforts on preventing employees from contracting COVID-19 and protecting those who report unsafe working conditions. In general, an NEP is a method by which OSHA temporarily focuses its resources on a specific danger or […]

meeting

What Does a Hybrid Work Model Look Like?

One of the bright spots of the COVID-19 pandemic is how it allowed—really, forced—many companies to reconsider their attitudes toward and policies around remote work. While many trailblazing companies had for years offered the ability to work remotely as a much-sought-after perk for their employees, the majority were wary of giving employees that kind of […]

equity

DEI and Employee Benefits

A new survey from Willis Towers Watson points to some diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) impacts that can be driven by something many organizations may not have considered: their benefit packages. The Emerging Trends in Health Care Survey, which is based on input from 446 employers and was conducted between February 23 and March 12 […]

Benefits Expert Shares Lessons of the Pandemic

We’ll likely spend the next 10 years understanding everything the pandemic has changed about work. One of the fields that saw rapid and constant change is employee benefits. But what, precisely, changed and why? What works now? What does not? Today’s “Faces of HR” guest spills the beans.

In an Age of Remote Work, Is a Happy Workforce a Distant Dream? Let AI Give You a Hand

I was recently talking to a college student who had joined an extremely popular multinational corporation. It was his first job after college, and naturally, he needed to be onboarded and trained. Like a lot of us, he was working from home, so he did not meet his supervisor or team in person. It was […]