A Client asked me if an employee
who files worker's compensation is able to claim that
his
health information for that claim is covered by HIPAA. HIPAA
is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act that
provides confidentiality of Personal Health Information. Generally,
however,...
Earlier
this week I dealt with a termination situation where an
employee had just returned from FMLA. The termination had
nothing to do with the FMLA that this person was on. It was
due to circumstances that occurred prior to the leave and
completely unrelated to the condition that caused the...
I participated in an unemployment hearing today where the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) was very strict in what evidence was allowed to be entered. Since the manager involved as a witness had never been involved in one of these hearing before, he was rather nervous and the judge was able to...Read More »
One of the benefits to belonging to a PEO is that we assure that the HR Administration of federally required forms is handled correctly. For instance the current I-9 form is due to expire today. We have informed our clients what they need to do to remain compliant. Do you know what you need...Read More »
I have to attend an unemployment hearing tomorrow with one of our
clients. This client has done an impressive job of providing
documentation about what the employees performance issues were,
dates of absence and disciplinary reports that show progressive
discipline and clearly stating that if the...Read More »As a follow up to yesterday's blog, I'd like to make one more point in terms of motivating
employees.Don't assume that what motivates you will motivate others.
For example, you may be the type of person who enjoys and needs public recognition. If you are dealing with an introvert - the last thing...Read More »
I was reading an article from HR.BLR.com that talks about
motivation. There were three questions that they say that if
you are a supervisor, you should ask yourself.
- Do you walk your talk?
- Do you treat people fairly?
- Are you willing to do what you ask others to do?
Don't forget...on
e
month from today, the Federal Minimum Wage increases to $7.25 per
hour. Certain states have different minimum wages that are
greater than the $7.25. Be sure that you are looking at the
requirements for your individual state. As part of the Human
Resources and payroll function...Read More »
e
month from today, the Federal Minimum Wage increases to $7.25 per
hour. Certain states have different minimum wages that are
greater than the $7.25. Be sure that you are looking at the
requirements for your individual state. As part of the Human
Resources and payroll function...Read More »
The
Supreme Court made a ruling on June 18, 2009 regarding Age
Discrimination claims under the Age Discrimination in
Employment Act (ADEA). To make a long story short, in a lower
court decision, the judge ruled that when the claimant made a claim
of age discrimination, the burden of proof switched...Read More »The Society for Human Resource Management recently conducted a survey that indicates that the most likely budget items to be cut are employee morale programs and team building activities. There are also studies that show that acts of violence in the workplace are on the rise. Part of this is...
Read More »Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and House Representative Rosa
DeLauro (D-CT) have introduced a bill to Congress called the
Healthy Families
Act. If approved as written, this act would
require empoyers with 15 or more employees to pay up to 56
hours of paid leave. T
his one-size-fits-all approach
can be...Read More »
his one-size-fits-all approach
can be...Read More »I read an interesting article today on the Daily Advisor from
HR.BLRthat I think
makes a 
very good point. The article was about describing "essential
functions" of the job and stated that it is important not to
confuse the method with the task that needs to be completed.
In other words, stating...Read More »
very good point. The article was about describing "essential
functions" of the job and stated that it is important not to
confuse the method with the task that needs to be completed.
In other words, stating...Read More »
This
morning I received a call from two different clients with very
similar request. They both had an employee who has been
missing work and also having some performance problems. One
client I recommended termination and the other client I did
not. Why -- because the first client had done...
I'm working with a client to help them revise their job
descriptions. It can certainly cause a headache making sure
you are compliant with all the regulations that apply. Here
are just some of the regulations that you need to be compliant with
when writing your jo
b
descriptions
b
descriptions
- ADA
- FLSA
- Equal Pay Act
- C...
Last month I shared with you some statistics from you US Dept of
Labor Statistics (see Contain your Unemployment Cost
5/06/09). Looking at the real numbers brings things into
perspective. As the table below shows, May of 2009's
unemployment rate is 9.4%. This
is the highest rate in the past 10...
Read More »
In
looking at the turnover for one of our client, we found that 50+%
of their turnover occurred within the first 90 days. What
that tells me is that either 1. The client did not spell out
clearly for the employee what the job was and/or 2. The interviewer
didn't dig in deep enough to determine if...Read More »
We
had to deal with a rather delicate situation today. We
received a call from a client about an employee who has a condition
that is going to require surgery, an extended period of
recovery and the condition is unrelated to his
employment. The question is what to do with this
person. This is a...
If
you are faced with a downsizing situation, one of the
HR Management tools to consider is a program where people
voluntarily leave the organization. With a voluntary program
you are less likely to become involved in legal issues since
the person (people) leaving chose to do so. Employee
morale...
I
had one of those "ah-ha" moments yesterday. I was at two
different sites for one of our clients conducting training on 1.
Prohibited Harassment and 2. Substance Abuse in the
workplace. Sometimes (okay... a lot of the time) I get the
impression that people would rather watch paint dry than to...Read More »
With the warm weather coming on I've been asked if there is any
laws directing
dress code. There is no specific law addressing dress code
however there are laws that indirectly affect dress code. For
instance Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts states that among other
things, a person cannot be...
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