Category: Diversity & Inclusion

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) is an important and ongoing strategy of any HR plan. Ensuring that your company supports hiring, engaging, and retaining diverse workers with varied backgrounds will set your company up for long-term success and an increased bottom line. This topic offers the latest strategies for talent management, key insights from diversity leaders, case studies on D&I in the workplace, and more.

technologies

Upholding the Psychological Employment Contract

Do you realize that every one of us has a psychological contract with our organization? The psychological contract is a concept that describes the understandings, beliefs, and commitments that exist between an employee and an employer. Although it is unwritten and intangible, it represents the mutual expectations that are felt between the two. The psychological […]

Sexual Orientation

Is Sexual Orientation Protected by Federal Law?

The U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island—recently upheld a six-figure jury award for a firefighter’s “sex-plus” discrimination claim, ruling that federal antidiscrimination law extends protections to gay and lesbian workers in cases where they claim discrimination based on both their gender and sexual orientation.

Diversity

Workplace Diversity Starts with Top-Down Commitment, Finds Randstad Survey

A new survey, released by Randstad US, reveals that a majority of workers (78%) say a workplace where people are treated equally—regardless of gender, sexual orientation, age, race, or religion—is important to them. The new survey uncovers the perceptions and experiences of women and men as they relate to gender equality, diversity, and inclusion in […]

talent

Making Social Media Work for You—Not Against You—in Recruiting for Diversity

Achieving a diverse workforce and learning how to use social media to recruit talent are two common goals for employers. Sometimes, though, the two objectives can work against each other. Gone are the days when employers would specify an age, gender, or other characteristic in a newspaper help-wanted ad. Today’s social media-aided recruiting opens a […]

EEOC

EEOC Outlook for 2018: What Should Employers Expect from the Agency?

Many federal agencies and their regulations experienced a lot of changes during 2017. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), by contrast, had a relatively uneventful year. No major controversial issues surfaced, key leadership positions were left unfilled, and some EEO issues are important to the president’s daughter—and by extension may be important to him. So […]

vaccine

North Carolina Hospital Settles Religious Discrimination Claims Over Flu Vaccine Policy

Many healthcare providers in North Carolina have instituted policies requiring their employees who have patient contact to receive the flu vaccine each year. Such policies will typically include a process by which an employee can object to receiving the vaccine based on religious beliefs or medical concerns, such as an allergy to the vaccine’s ingredients. […]

Diversity

5 Ways to Build Up Your ‘Diversity Fitness’

For years, technology leaders have been talking about diversity. “Talking” and “doing” are very different things though, evidenced by the fact that most startups are still dominated by white men. Side note: If you’re still not convinced diverse companies perform better, you’ve got some reading to do before going any further. But if you know […]

dog

Who Let the Dogs in? Handling Requests for Service Animals at Work

It seems like I’m seeing more and more people with service animals—particularly “comfort animals” meant to ease anxiety or similar problems. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers must provide “reasonable accommodations” to employees with disabilities. Does that mean you must allow disabled employees to bring their pets to work? Well, it depends.