Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A few of our employees call in sick on a semi-regular basis with legitimate but unpredictable health issues relating to conditions like epilepsy and asthma. Is this time off covered by FMLA/CFRA? The employees can’t give us much advance notice because their symptoms come on so suddenly. —Anonymous Many employers struggle with whether absences due […]
Retention and productivity are always challenges, especially with budgets shaved to the bone. So here are 13 tips on beating the budget crunch from BLR’s 99 Ways to Keep Employees Happy, Satisfied, Motivated and Productive, by noted HR author Peter R. Garber. 1. Have a Family Day at Work An employee’s family provides critically important […]
Demographics and generational attitudes are coming together to make substantial flexibility demands on employers. That’s why work/life balance, once a nice-to-talk-about concept, has moved to the front burner in many organizations. Boomers have the skills you want to retain, but these days they want more time off. Gen X and Gen Y workers, similarly skillful, […]
If an employee openly asks for Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) time off, that’s an easy call to make. But how about bizarre behavior? Does that constitute “notice” of the need for leave? And if so, wouldn’t any misbehavior be notice? Our expert sorts it out. Roy A. Ginsburg, a partner at Dorsey & Whitney […]
Can an employee take an intermittent leave to care for a dependent child (under age 18) who is giving birth and then take time to assist in the care of the grandchild for doctor’s appointments and the like? — Alessandra in Marin City To determine what, if any, time off is appropriate in a […]
I often read about the requirements of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. How do I know if this law applies to our organization, particularly if we’re also covered by California wage and hour laws? — Francesca in Merced
(Updated February 4, 2010) In March of 2008, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) addressed an issue employers may face more frequently than ever before: What obligations does the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) place on employers with regard to employees who have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)? HR Guide to Employment Law: A practical compliance […]
We’re encountering challenging disability accommodation situations because of differences in California and federal law. Is the California definition of “disability” always going to be more favorable to employees than federal law? I also don’t understand why whether a person has a disability is determined under California law without considering mitigating measures. If a person is […]
By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady My recent column “Software Police: Best Way to Curb Webslackers?” generated interesting opinions. Most agreed that webslacking is an insidious problem, but two said to hold off on that monitoring—it’s no good for morale. Here’s a sampling of readers’ reactions: It is akin to an addiction “The problem […]
A review by Employment law attorney Michael Maslanka reviews the book Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership by Joseph Jaworski. Review focuses on author’s lesson about using listening as a management tool. In Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership, Jaworski talks about how he made the difficult decision to leave the lucrative practice of law […]