Free Report Friday—20 Must-Have Employee Handbook Policies
Employee handbooks come in all shapes and sizes, but there are certain “must-have” policies that no employee handbook should be without.
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Plastic Rocks, the Sleep Diva, and Other Customer Service ‘Treats’
Customer service reps have a difficult and mostly thankless job. Every year, though, we recognize their important work during Customer Service Week (this year it was October 5-9). We thought it might be interesting to ask BLR’s customer service reps about some of their most unusual calls or experiences. We weren’t disappointed. To begin with, […]
Tough Love: What Your CEO Won’t Tell You About HR, But I Will
Below is a special report filed by Steve Bruce, a BLR editor attending the SHRM Employment Law and Legislative Conference in Washington, DC this week.
EEOC on the Lookout: Ensure Your Attendance Policies Are Legal
By Kelley E. Kaufman, Esq. These days, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is on the lookout for both inflexible leave of absence policies and no-fault attendance policies. While few employers welcome news of a targeted enforcement initiative, the best defense is a good offense. According to the EEOC, the Americans With Disabilities Act requires […]
Policy Makers Ignorant of FWA Realities?
The Obama Administration has initiatives in worklife balance including flexible work arrangements (FWAs), says attorney David Fortney, but those making the proposals are often not cognizant of the true effect of their mandates. Fortney is a co-founder of law firm Fortney & Scott, LLC in Washington, DC, and is editor of the Federal Employment Law […]
Transit Benefit Parity: Train Has Left the Station
Employers will not have any reason to adjust their qualified transportation fringe benefit plans — not as a result of a major highway funding bill that recently became law, anyway. That bill, known as the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century, or MAP-21, once had a transit benefit parity provision in it, which […]
PBGC Reduces Penalties for Late Premium Payments
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is reducing penalties for late payment of premiums in an effort to reduce regulatory costs and make it easier for plan sponsors to maintain traditional pension plans.
Work Opportunity Tax Credit 101
The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is designed to be an incentive for employers to hire people who frequently face difficulty finding employment. As the name implies, this incentive is in the form of a tax credit. As such, it is administered by both the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). […]
Wage and Hour Compliance Essentials for Employers
by Kara Shea Wage and hour compliance issues are probably the single greatest source of worry (and sleepless nights) for employers, at least those who are reading the headlines. In the last several years, employers around the country have been hit with huge damages awards in wage and hour litigation or have agreed to pay […]
Independent Contractors: Maid Company to Pay Big for Misclassification
A federal judge has ordered Southern California Maid Services and Carpet Cleaning, based in Gardena, to pay $3,467,789 in back wages, plus $1,058,973 in liquidated damages, to 385 current and former low-wage domestic workers who were misclassified as independent contractors. The court’s action resolves a lawsuit filed against the employer by the U.S. Department of […]