Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
The importance of restricting internal access to personal information was the subject of a recent blog post by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC, which exercises data privacy and security enforcement authority over all for-profit companies, identified specific organizational do’s and don’ts for preventing the compromise of employee or consumer data.
Two federal agencies have announced that going forward, they intend to pursue criminal charges against individuals involved in illegal anticompetitive activity. And HR professionals “often are in the best position” to ensure compliance, the organizations said in a new guidance.
Don’t try to deny it, social media is mainstream now, says Attorney Jonathan Segal, and its influence is only going to grow. Before too long, the workplace will be 75 percent Millennials, and they use social media with a vengeance. (By the way, Boomers aren’t that far behind, he adds.) Social Media includes, for […]
Social media use is prevalent for potential employees, so why shouldn’t it be prevalent for background checks? Most employers think it should—the use of social media in background checks has grown steadily in recent years. But what are the risks?
Litigation Value: Dunder Mifflin faces potential FTC sanctions for Erin and Pete’s fake “like” marketing campaign on Facebook. “Customer Loyalty” aired back in January, and I highly recommend Kristin’s post questioning the validity of Dwight’s loyalty pledge. I might add that such a pledge is probably not necessary considering that most states recognize in some […]
Beachboard, who is a shareholder in the Los Angeles office of employment law firm Ogletree Deakins, details the risks in today’s Advisor. He made his comments at the SHRM Annual Conference and Exhibition held recently in Atlanta. 1. Leaks of Company Information The risk of unwanted disclosures is at the top of CEOs’ worries, says […]
Employers are frequently reminded of their legal obligation to promptly and thoroughly investigate all sexual harassment complaints and, as a result, often call in lawyers or specially trained consultants to conduct a complete and objective inquiry. But a controversial new government opinion suggests that using outside investigators could result in your inadvertently breaking a federal […]
Congress recently changed the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require employers who obtain background reports on applicants and employees to follow detailed new authorization and disclosure rules. In an earlier article we described how these rules apply to credit reports. In this follow-up story, we’ll explain what the new law means for employers who […]
Credit reports can be a useful tool for screening job applicants, but using them recently became more complex. That’s because of several important changes to the federal Consumer Credit Reporting Reform Act that are effective September 30, 1997. If you violate these provisions or a similar state law, you can be sued for steep penalties, […]