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

Productivity / Performance

The new metric: performance previews

12/12/2008

Who doesn’t hate performance reviews? They destroy morale and teamwork, says Samuel Culbert, a management professor at UCLA, and they hurt the bottom line. The alternative: Instead of a one-side-accountable, top-down review, consider a both-sides-accountable performance preview.

SSA disability isn’t automatic ADA disability

12/12/2008

For years, employers tried to argue that an employee who received federal Social Security disability payments couldn’t claim she was also covered by the ADA and entitled to reasonable accommodations.

Good news for state supervisors: Immunity means no tort lawsuits

12/11/2008

If you are a supervisor working for an Illinois state agency, there’s a bit of good news on the lawsuit front. You can’t be personally sued by an employee for exercising your supervisory functions, even if she claims your supervision amounted to intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Legal drug, legal drug test … and a legal mess for the employer

12/11/2008

Employers routinely require applicants to whom they have extended job offers to take tests for illegal drugs. If they pass, they get the jobs. If they don’t, employers can legally rescind the offers. But here’s a case in which an employer completely mishandled this everyday procedure, and now will probably pay a high price.

Communicating during tough times: 7 common employee gripes (and how to respond)

12/09/2008

The global financial meltdown has workers fearful and downright angry. If you plan on surviving the recession, your managers must acknowledge the fear and anger employees may feel. Don’t let these seven gripes pollute your workplace.

Remind managers: Comments about weight can trigger harassment complaints

12/09/2008

When people lose their jobs, they often look for some reason other than their own poor performance. And since they are off work, they have lots of time to think about the past, including real or imagined slights they endured at the hands of co-workers and supervisors.

10 ways Generation Y will change the workplace

12/08/2008

There’s no doubt Generation Y will fundamentally change corporate America. It’s already started. Managing Gen Y is a hot topic among consultants, HR executives and talent management professionals. For a Gen Y’er like me, this is great news. We’re primed to change the workplace for the better. Here’s how we’ll do it.

California firm adds autism to health insurance coverage

12/08/2008

After data management company NetApp added coverage for autistic children to its health plan in 2006, 31 of the organization’s 5,000 employees used the benefit the first year. A total of 43 have tapped it so far …

Execs lose their lunch

12/08/2008

Executives are spending seven fewer minutes eating lunch than they did five years ago, according to a survey by staffing service OfficeTeam. The average executive lunch break is 35 minutes.

‘Business necessity’ may become new ADA focus

12/05/2008

Beginning this month, the new amendments to the ADA take effect. Among those rules is one that says employees are disabled even if they can mitigate the effects of that disability with medication or other aids …