Hiring

Cautious employers are adding hours, not jobs

08/06/2010

While the economy is improving, national unemployment still hovers stubbornly near 10%. One reason: Employers are still nervous about adding new staff. However, more are extending the hours of employees they already have.

Consistency the key to good hiring practices

08/05/2010

Courts don’t like to meddle in hiring decisions unless they see something obviously wrong with the hiring process. The key is to treat all qualified applicants alike—and then document that you did so. For example, hiring managers should ask the same questions of everyone they interview and use the same scale to rate each applicant.

How to safely handle calls for references, recommendations

08/03/2010

The unemployment rate has been hovering between 9% and 10% for more than a year. Some of those unemployed people probably once worked for you—and they would probably love to list you as a reference. That means it’s time to make sure you have policies on how to handle reference-check calls.

Grass getting greener: 7 tips for post-recession recruiting

08/03/2010

As the economy turns the corner, more employees are looking over the fence to see if the grass is greener elsewhere. “For the first time since 2008, we’re seeing more people quitting than being laid off,” Jamie Minier, president of The Right Thing recruiting firm, says. “Employers need to be thinking now about how to create a strategy to recruit.”

Base hiring decisions on listed qualifications

08/02/2010

Make sure your job announcements list all relevant experience and educational requirements. Why? Courts deciding whether to send a failure-to-hire case to trial won’t consider any qualifications you didn’t list in the job announcement. Here’s how that could play out:

DOL’s advice: Think twice before using interns as free labor

07/27/2010

On paper, internships are good for everyone. Interns learn a business and make connections in organizations where they hope to one day get jobs. In turn, businesses pay nearly nothing for work that needs to be done. However, the U.S. Department of Labor recently issued a fact sheet that casts that equation into doubt.

Newark car-prep giant faces discrimination, ADA charges

07/27/2010

The EEOC has sued Newark- and Port Elizabeth-based automotive processor FAPS Inc., for race and disability discrimination. The suit charges the company with engaging in a “pattern and practice” that discriminates against black applicants and asking job-application questions that violate the ADA.

Checking applicant references: How to dig the dirt–legally

07/26/2010

As part of the hiring process, supervisors are sometimes called on to check an applicant’s references. Those phone calls can help you accurately assess a person’s strengths, weaknesses and past job performance. But checking references can also be challenging—and legally tricky. Here are six guidelines for soliciting information without bumping into legal issues:

Are there privacy concerns when I use social media to check out applicants?

07/23/2010

Q. Am I invading applicants’ privacy by reviewing their Facebook, MySpace, blogs and Twitter feeds?

Am I allowed to check social media web sites for information on job applicants?