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Hiring

How honest can I be when called for a reference on a subpar former employee?

09/19/2014
Q. I recently fired one of my employees, but today another company called me, stating that the former employee marked me down on a job application as an employment reference. Can I tell the prospective em­­ployer about how terrible an employee this person was?

Is it OK to have a blanket policy of rejecting applicants with criminal histories?

09/19/2014
Q. I believe I should be able to refuse employment to any prospective employee with a record of criminal conviction. Can I institute a blanket policy that bars employment to applicants with criminal records? Also, what can I ask applicants about their criminal records?

Hiring laws in Canada: Where do we start?

09/18/2014
Q. We’re considering hiring a woman from Canada to sell our products in Canada. We have no idea how to start the process of hiring a foreign worker. Suggestions?

How frank can we be with references?

09/17/2014
Q. We recently received a reference request from another company. We would like to be honest with the potential employer about the former employee’s performance issues. The employee was unreliable, did not get along with co-workers, and was always complaining to his supervisor about our business practices without any basis. Are there risks to being honest and giving the employee a bad reference?

Company recruits truckers by surveying former applicants

09/17/2014

Like many trucking companies, family-owned National Retail Systems is having trouble recruiting new drivers to take over for employees who retire. So it’s asking truck drivers where they are applying for jobs, how many jobs they’re trying for at a time and what entices them to fill out applications.

Not so fast: Time-to-hire is slowest in 13 years

09/15/2014
Employers are taking their time before saying, “You’re hired!” Despite declining unemployment rates, the average time to fill a vacant position—from job posting to offer accepted—is now 25 working days.

3 questions Amazon’s CEO asks about every candidate

09/11/2014
Over the years, Jeff Bezos told Inc. magazine, he has always asked three questions before hiring anyone

Why you need complete records of hiring process

09/05/2014
It’s crucial to keep good records of the hiring process, including tracking applicant experience levels. After all, you never know which applicant will sue, alleging that he was passed over for a discriminatory reason.

Tell hiring managers: No subjective comments about candidates in notes

09/05/2014
You conduct interviews to help determine who is the best candidate for a position. But every interview carries with it the possibility of a lawsuit.

Employee never applied for promotion? That makes suing you much more difficult

09/05/2014
In most cases, employees seeking a promotion or applicants seeking a new job have to actually apply and then be rejected in order to sue over alleged discrimination. Except in very rare cases—when it is obvious that applying would be futile or when the application process is hidden or informal—an application is a prerequisite for a lawsuit.