Tag: business

Sharing The Wealth

The California Supreme Court recently ruled that employers may lawfully use net-profit-based incentive plans to compensate their employees.1 Employers may base profit-based bonus or incentive plans on the traditional measure of company profits, regardless of whether the employee is exempt. Before the ruling, an employer would have had to add workers’ comp and other business-related […]

Employee Exemptions: Appeals Court Limits the Administrative Exemption

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California law exempt certain administrative employees from overtime; the requirements for the administrative exemption under California law are stricter than the FLSA. To qualify for this exemption in California, an employee must: 1) earn a salary equal to at least twice the state minimum wage; 2) perform […]

Hot List: Bestselling Business Books on Amazon.com

Amazon.com updates its list of bestselling business books hourly. Here is a snapshot of what books were hot this morning — Monday, November 26. 1. Personal History by Katharine Graham. This candid and insightful autobiography tells the story of Katharine Graham’s personal struggles as a daughter, wife and mother and her professional triumphs as she […]

Straight Man

HR writer Sarah McAdams reviews the book Straight Man by Ricard Russo. Review highlights real-life business lessons that can be learned from the fictional book. Straight Man: A Novel isn’t your standard business book—hell, it isn’t any kind of business book. But the 1997 novel by Richard Russo (you may know him better for his […]

Employment Law Tip: Are You Ready for the Big One?

Just two weeks ago, a temblor measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale rattled San Jose and was felt throughout the reaches of the Bay Area. Fortunately, it didn’t cause any major damage. But the quake was another wake-up call for California residents and businesses about the possibility of a much bigger, destructive quake occurring in […]

Wage and Hour: California High Court Backs Employer on Expense Reimbursement

In an important new ruling, the California Supreme Court has approved an employer’s practice of paying increased salaries and commissions to cover employees’ mileage expenses. At issue was Labor Code Section 2802, which requires employers to indemnify employees for necessary expenditures they incur as a result of the job. The employees here had argued that […]

HOT LIST: Businessweek’s Bestselling Buisness Book

BusinessWeek ranks business books that are the most recent bestsellers and provides a short summary. 1. The Age of Turbulence by Alan Greenspan. 2. The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss. 3. Strengthsfinder 2.0 by Tom Rath. This book will give you “ideas for action” and tips for how best you can work with others. More […]