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New economic stimulus law will find HR working closely with accounting

02/20/2009

The politics of the economic recovery and stimulus bill President Obama signed on Feb. 17 have been the talk of Washington for weeks. Now get ready to figure out what it really means for business. Tip for HR pros: Plan on spending lots of time in the accounting department.

Can we be liable for revoking a job offer?

02/19/2009

Q. We recently made a job offer to someone, rescinded the offer and then hired another applicant two months later. Is there anything illegal about that?

Can we ask about green card expiration date?

02/19/2009

Q. Can we ask an applicant or employee how long his ‘‘green card’’ is good for?

The safest way to handle calls for references and recommendations

02/17/2009

As the economy shrinks, unemployment is growing in New York and throughout the country. If your organization plans to lay off workers or already has, brace yourself. Lots of former employees are going to list you and your managers as references when they seek new jobs. That means it’s time to make sure you have policies in place on how to handle reference-check calls.

Can we cut our legal risk by offering unconditional reinstatement?

02/12/2009

Q. If an employee is suing our company, what are the benefits of offering her job back while the litigation is ongoing?

Mayors’ forecast: Miami job losses among nation’s worst

02/12/2009

According to a forecast by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the Miami area will suffer some of the largest job losses in the nation in 2009. Miami is expected to lose about 85,000 jobs this year. The city’s unemployment rate may exceed 10%.

Track reasons why you hired or rejected every applicant

02/12/2009

You can never know beforehand which applicant might sue you. That’s one good reason to track every hiring decision and document why you hired some candidates and not others.

3 federal tests: Are workers employees or independent contractors?

02/12/2009

Some employers unknowingly misclassify some of their employees as independent contractors. In doing so, they risk suffering severe consequences. By becoming familiar with the following tests, you minimize the chances of misclassifying an employee.

Warn hiring bosses of age discrimination trap

02/12/2009

Employees who can show direct evidence of age discrimination will get their day in court. That direct evidence often comes after someone who played a part in making an employment decision (e.g., helped select a candidate for hire or promotion) makes a careless statement after the fact.

Stillwater schools settle age discrimination lawsuit

02/12/2009

The Stillwater School District has agreed to pay a part-time teacher and athletics coach $137,000 to settle age discrimination claims in a lawsuit filed by the EEOC.