HR Soapbox

Waiting on the Feds: Overtime Rules, FMLA Forms Hang in Limbo

March 13, 2015
This month, HR professionals—more specifically, the lawyers who advise HR professionals—are waiting on a pair of tablets expected to be handed down soon from Mount Labor. Both documents stalled at the U.S. Department of Labor actually do matter to the way you do your business. Here’s why … and the status of each:

Shoot Down HIPPOs: 5 Ways to Encourage Employee Dissent

February 27, 2015
Innovative companies are doing more to snuff out their “yes men” cultures. At Google, for example, the top dogs specifically tell employees not to listen only to “HIPPOs,” an acronym for the Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. Here are five ways to encourage staff to politely dissent …

Luck and Love, HR Style

February 13, 2015

As we sit at the confluence of Friday the 13th and Valentine’s Day, today’s HR Soapbox is reflecting on luck and love in the workplace. As luck would have it, we’ve stumbled upon a pair of new surveys on these topics:

How to Get Recruiting & Retention Advice from ‘The Ones That Got Away’

January 30, 2015
Maybe you conduct exit interviews with employees on their way out the door, or you do “stay interviews” with current staff. But you’re missing out on important feedback by failing to listen to another key segment—applicants who’ve rejected your job offers. Listening to rejecters helps you gauge the effectiveness of your hiring process and increase your applicant capture rate. Here’s what to ask, and how to ask it …

Don’t Become the Next Sony: How HR Can Win the War on Data

January 9, 2015

Your computer networks face a greater risk from an angry ex-employee or bored teenager than from Kim Jong Un. A surprising 44% of small employers say their computer networks have faced some sort of attack. What’s HR to do? Attorneys say HR should consider the following issues …

They’re Baaaack! Unions Find Their Mojo in Pair of Controversial NLRB Rulings

December 19, 2014
Union membership in the private sector has fallen below 7%, a level not seen since 1932. But a pair of controversial rulings by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) last week has pumped new life in labor unions, giving them sweeping new powers to organize workers. Here a quick summary, and tips on how to respond …

Was she fired because her skills were outmoded, or because employer thought she was too old?

December 16, 2014
The law protecting workers over the age of 40 is the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. And you should know that ADEA claims are on the rise, especially now that Boomers are reaching retirement age. Here are some guidelines for managers.

On Cyber Monday, E-Shopping Should Be the Least of Your Online Worries

November 25, 2014
On Cyber Monday, desk-bound employees will be filling their virtual shopping carts, scooping up $4 birdfeeders and two-for-one video games. Wasted hours are a concern. But in recent years, technology has flipped the “On” switch to a whole new set of legal problems for employers. The biggest headache: smartphones. As phones turn smarter, so should your policies and practices. Here are four smart steps …

Tear Down That Wall Between HR and Employees!

November 10, 2014
This past weekend, the world celebrated the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, which came just two years after President Reagan’s famous speech at the Brandenburg gate exhorting the Soviet Union to “Tear down this wall!” Walls can be physical barriers that keep people and ideas out. But people can also create their own psychological walls that keep any criticism or less-than-positive news at bay. HR and supervisors should ask themselves this question: How high is the wall I’ve crated between me and my employees? Look for the following symptoms …

Garnishments on the Rise: 5 Ways Employers Should Respond

October 10, 2014
While the economy is finally waking up from the Great Recession, millions of Americans are still feeling the hangover in the form of wage garnishments. Garnishments—the legal recovery of debt through the seizure of employee pay—have spiked in the past decade. More than 7% of U.S. workers had their wages garnished in 2013. What if a lender wants a piece of your employee’s paycheck? Here are five tips: