Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
For years now, employers have focused on the benefits of workplace diversity. They can point to studies showing how work groups in which men and women of all ages, races and ethnicities often outperform less diverse groups. Sometimes the quest for diversity stems from a desire to capitalize on the talents of all kinds of […]
By Holly K. Jones In a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the court upheld a controversial ban on the use of affirmative action in public education, employment, and contracts in the state of Michigan. For details on the decision and whether it affects your business, read on. Background In 2003, two U.S. Supreme Court decisions […]
Michigan voters’ right to prohibit preferential race-based admissions programs in the state’s university system was upheld today by the U.S. Supreme Court in Schuette v. The Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration and Immigration Rights and Fight for Equality by Any Means Necessary (BAMN), 572 U.S. ___ (2014). In the 6-2 opinion written by Justice […]
Employers are always searching for ways to empower their employees to do their best work. They invest in training to help workers gain skills, and they develop policies designed to keep the workplace running smoothly, but other components—cultivating cultural intelligence and fostering an environment of inclusiveness—may be overlooked. Simma Lieberman, a diversity and inclusion/culture change […]
by Mark I. Schickman True or false: You cannot ask a job applicant if she has a disability and consider her answer during the hiring process. I would have said true―you can’t inquire about a disability. Rather, the question for every job applicant is the same: Can you perform the job’s essential tasks with or […]
Federal contractors soon will have to establish benchmarks for hiring veterans and employing individuals with disabilities as a result of two new rules from the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). The new regulations are expected to be published in the Federal Register within the next couple of weeks, […]
by Mark I. Schickman History will remember June 26’s U.S. Supreme Court decisions as the landmark cases supporting same-sex marriage, a coupling that will become commonplace in a decade or two. But these decisions and the affirmative action, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and voting rights cases that preceded them the […]
by David S. Fortney President Barack Obama will be sworn in for his second term Monday. The 113th Congress met for the first time on January 3 with its slightly revised composition. With those players in place, the main question for employers and HR professionals is, how will the 2012 election results affect the federal […]
By Chris McFadden As a reminder, tomorrow will be your opportunity to make a difference in Arizona by heading to the polls! Four measures on the ballot may be of particular interest to employers. Proposition 113 (secret ballot): If passed, this measure would guarantee the right to vote by secret ballot in union representation elections. […]
Early Tuesday morning, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) resumed its ongoing series of agency Web chats with a brief session hosted by Patricia Shiu, the director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). The OFCCP enforces the civil rights of both federal contractor employees as well as applicants for federal contractor jobs. […]