Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
If I discover an employee on a long and obviously non-business-related phone call, can I interrupt and tell the employee to hang up? Our policy does not explicitly prohibit personal calls, but is there some way to discourage them? — Anonymous
Government audits, participant lawsuits and the dreaded play-or-pay rule could heap liability and risk on employer plans, all as a result of the reform law that was just affirmed by a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court. Employers must take into account new liabilities when they move workers to part-time status or divert retirees into […]
By Karen Sargeant and Brian P. Smeenk You’ve likely been in this situation before: One of your employees has engaged in questionable conduct. You’re in the process of investigating and are considering whether you should terminate the employee for cause. How do you go about it under Canadian employment laws? Be careful Terminating an employee’s […]
A Tosco worker injured in a catastrophic 1999 explosion and fire at the company’s Martinez refinery and the family of another worker killed in the disaster have filed a lawsuit against Tosco. Employees who are injured on the job are generally limited to workers’ comp benefits. But this lawsuit attempts to sidestep this restriction by […]
By Derek Knoechel and Lorene Novakowski Canadian provinces have workers’ compensation legislation that provides a no-fault system of compensation for injuries suffered on the job. The system covers lost wages, medical aid, and rehabilitation for the injured worker and generally removes the injured worker’s ability to sue the employer. The workers’ compensation system is funded […]
Arizona’s new immigration law, Senate Bill (SB) 1070, authorizes state and local law enforcement officials to inquire into the immigration status of any person “where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States.” The law regulates aliens directly, not by means of the employer-employee relationship. Nevertheless, […]
Today, more manager’s hiring mistakes to add to the expensive 6 in yesterday’s Advisor, plus a program that’s helping HR managers all over the country be more effective … especially if they’re in small or one-person departments. Although they may have the best of intentions, untrained managers doing hiring can get their companies in legal […]
Yesterday, we took a brief look at what OSHA is focusing on this year. Today, some more areas you as an HR professional should know about—plus an introduction to a detailed California-specific safety desk reference.
Are you “MySpacing” and “Facebooking” your applicants? Employers are wondering whether reference checking should include visiting Web 2.0 “relationship” pages. Alas, the advice is mixed. Should your reference checks on job applicants include looking at their “relationship” Web pages, such as those found on “Facebook” or “MySpace”? Some experts say yes. It’s your job to […]