Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
There are dozens of details to take care of in the day-to-day operation of your department and your company. We give you case studies, news updates, best practices and training tips that keep your organization fully in compliance with ever-changing employment law, and you fully aware of emerging HR trends.
With the holidays about to be in full swing and the end of the year near, visions of time-off requests, bonuses, and parties are likely dancing in employers’ heads. Getting any of those things wrong is a sure way to spoil the holidays, but a little planning and care will keep the work on track […]
This is part one of a two-part update on changes at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Part one discusses the regulatory changes OSHA made during fiscal year (FY) 2024. The most recent regulatory changes at OSHA have been the Employee Representative Walk-Around Rule (effective May 31, 2024), the Proposed Emergency Response Standard (published […]
Question: Our employees drive vehicles strictly for work purposes, but we don’t have a policy on such use. After employees received several speeding tickets, we’d like to introduce a policy that would allow management to deduct the cost of tickets from employees’ wages. Are we allowed to start introducing this type of payroll deduction? Answer: Employers […]
On September 23, 2024, the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released revised Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs guidance, last updated in March 2023. The latest guidance covers three primary areas of on-going interest for the DOJ: (1) how companies are identifying and mitigating emerging risks related to new technologies, including artificial […]
Employers in New York, and across the country, should be aware that a number of recent workplace law legislative developments are now in effect. New York State Freelance Isn’t Free Act Now in Effect New York state’s Freelance Isn’t Free Act went into effect on August 28, 2024, and requires every New York state business […]
Question: Are there any exceptions to meal and rest break requirements, and are there meal penalties for not allowing staff to take proper breaks? Can we allow employees to waive their meal breaks if they work six hours instead of eight? Answer: This question is mainly controlled by state law. Federal law, for its part, […]
Retaliation claims are very dangerous for Texas employers. This is why any advantage is very welcome. So, a case that came out in September from the federal appeals court covering Texas is welcome news. Coach Complains; Coach Removed Charles Julien worked as a teacher and basketball coach for a high school. Following a losing season […]
We occasionally hear from clients asking if their employees have to be employed for 12 months and work 1,250 hours to qualify for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) or if they qualify as soon as they begin employment. The question appears to conflate aspects of the PWFA with a similar but distinct federal labor […]
A federal district court in Louisiana recently heard a case in which a governmental entity tried to assert that it wasn’t liable as a joint employer of the individual who had accused it of discrimination and retaliation. Read on to learn why the court sided with the employee and allowed the claims to proceed to […]
The law requires that both sides to a lawsuit play fair. When that’s not the case, the side playing fast and loose with the rules gets punished. For a recent prime example, read on. Deposition Falsehood! After Daniel’la Deering was fired from her job as an in-house lawyer for Lockheed Martin, she sued for unlawful […]