• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Employee Relations

Revamp your COBRA notices; feds float new rules

07/01/2003
Issue: New Labor Department proposals add paperwork burden.
Risk: Using outdated COBRA notices puts you on the government’s hit list, resulting in fines up to $110 per violation, per day. …

Pursue claims, even if complaining worker backs off

07/01/2003
Issue: Courts place the burden on employers to complete investigations of sexual harassment complaints, even in the face of reluctant complainants.
Risk: Failing to pursue complaints actively will come back …

Investigating workplace harassment: 10 steps to success

07/01/2003
Issue: Responding to employee harassment complaints is a high-stakes venture.
Risk: A botched investigation can damage employee moral and spark a lawsuit.
Action: Make sure you (or any manager …

Talking the talk: Be careful with these 5 ‘lightning rod’ terms

07/01/2003
Login Email Address Password I forgot my password To continue reading this page, become an HR Specialist Premium Plus member today! Your subscription includes: Ask the Attorney: Answers to your HR legal questions Compliance Guidance: Access to 7,000 HR news articles, updated daily, sorted by state State-by-State: Summaries of HR laws in all 50 states […]

Don’t put too much stock in initial staff surveys

07/01/2003
If you’ve just started surveying employees about job satisfaction and workplace improvements, the first surveys will show unusually low scores. That’s because employees have lots of pent-up negative comments if they’ve …

Pursue harassment claims, even if complaining worker backs off

07/01/2003
You know to investigate harassment complaints when they land on your desk. But what if the complaining employee shows a lack of interest in her initial complaint, …

Don’t dock exempt worker for partial-Day absence

07/01/2003

Q. If an exempt employee has no more paid leave left, can he take a couple hours off without pay? We’d just manually adjust his salary to reflect this. —A.D., Pennsylvania

Managers can refuse bias-tainted orders, court says

07/01/2003
Issue: Courts won’t consider a manager “insubordinate” for ignoring a boss’s order if the manager believes the order is discriminatory. Risk: Increases danger of retaliation …

State law dictates your payroll frequency

07/01/2003

Q. Is it legal to adopt a once-a-month payroll for hourly employees? What other issues come up with a monthly payroll? —J.S., California

Keep employees growing … so they won’t leave

07/01/2003
Issue: “Intraplacement” involves the entire company in identifying job-growth opportunities for ready employees. Benefits: Boost retention, cut recruiting costs …