08/18/2010
When hiring people who tout themselves as Microsoft Word “experts,” here’s a way to see if they really know how to use the software: Ask them to send the résumé in Word format, then simply click the Show/Hide button. It can reveal telltale signs of rookie moves.
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08/17/2010
September brings with it a “back to school” feeling that can be sated only with a seminar or course. And there’s no easier, more affordable source for online learning than iTunes. Find out about this new, free training resource that just might work in your organization.
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08/11/2010
Matt Kaiser, VP of NAS Recruitment Communication, encourages employers to create policies and procedures to help employees take advantage of social media. “Your employees are going to be the best way to build your powerful employee brand,” said Kaiser. “Give employees advice on what to do—not just what not to do.…"
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07/29/2010
While making the right benefits choices and completing the necessary paperwork is ultimately the employee’s responsibility, HR can give a kick in the pants by providing a checklist like this one.
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07/27/2010
A long-awaited Supreme Court ruling has reiterated the importance of all employers to draft and enforce a comprehensive electronic communications policy governing how employees can use e-mail, the Internet, cell phones and text services.
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07/23/2010
Q. One of our sales managers thinks a salesperson has been e-mailing confidential customer information to his personal e-mail address. Can we review the salesperson’s sent-messages file on the company’s e-mail server to see what he has been sending out?
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07/23/2010
Q. Our employees have company-issued cell phones with global positioning systems capabilities. Can we use the GPS to track employees’ movements without telling them we are doing so?
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07/23/2010
Q. Is it OK for me to consider information about a job applicant that I learn by using Google, viewing Facebook pages and reviewing Twitter feeds?
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07/20/2010
As FMLA administration grows more complex, more employers are using software to track it. Most of the time that works fine. But as one employer recently found out, FMLA apps don't always tell the whole story. Lesson learned: There's no substitute for doing a hands-on review of employee records.
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07/20/2010
The U.S. Supreme Court has held that a California police department’s search of an officer’s text messages was reasonable and didn’t violate the officer’s Fourth Amendment rights. The court said that even if the officer had a reasonable expectation of privacy in his text messages, the search was motivated by a legitimate work-related purpose and was not excessive in scope.
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07/09/2010
When sued, employers must preserve all evidence in their possession that may concern the lawsuit and its underlying claims. That means that as soon as you receive an EEOC complaint, you should issue a litigation hold directing the retention of all electronic communications, such as e-mails. Don’t let employees make their own decisions about which e-mails they should keep.
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07/08/2010
I’ve long preached that employees should not enjoy an expectation of privacy in information they voluntarily place on the Internet, including social networks like Facebook. Now according to one federal court in Indiana, it is also fair game for employers to use social networking information when they have to defend against harassment and discrimination lawsuits.
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06/29/2010
Replacing employees is costly enough without frittering away your recruiting dollars on advertising that either doesn’t reach the desired candidates or results in bad hires. Too many employers take a shotgun approach, placing ads on several sites without obtaining data to help make the right choice. To get the best value for your ad dollars, ask job-board sales reps these questions:
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06/22/2010
The Supreme Court ruled last week that a police department’s search of an officer’s personal text messages sent via a department-issued pager didn’t violate his constitutional rights. But the court punted on the question of how much privacy employees can expect when using employer-provided gear. The split decision means your policies are more important than ever.
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06/09/2010
When you find out that an employee has been doing things that make the work environment sexually hostile, you must fix the problem right away. The sooner you do, the less likely that an employee will successfully sue. That’s because employees have just 300 days to file EEOC charges. That clock starts ticking as soon as you start acting to clean up the environment.
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