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HR Management

Natty dread: Avoid grooming rules that ban religious hairstyles

07/19/2024
Last year’s blockbuster Supreme Court opinion in Groff v. DeJoy required employers to accommodate almost all religious accommodations requested by employees. However, it’s clear that many employers haven’t yet revamped their policies in light of the ruling—and that’s triggering a flurry of EEOC complaints and religious-discrimination lawsuits.

Experts convene at SHRM: Here’s what they had to say

07/17/2024
In late June, human resource executives and leaders gathered in Chicago for the Society of Human Resource Management Annual Conference and Expo. With hundreds of sessions hosted over four days, we gathered some of the top advice that speakers presented to the 25,000 attendees.

EEOC adds first-ever chief AI officer

07/17/2024
In a sign that the EEOC is taking artificial intelligence in human resource management seriously, the agency has created and filled a new position—chief AI officer.

A storm is headed straight for HR

07/17/2024
Are you aware of the term “polycrisis”? Johnny Taylor, SHRM president and CEO, describes it as when multiple concurrent problems strike at once. And in the opening session of SHRM’s June Annual Conference and Expo, he told attendees that this phenomenon is headed straight for HR.

Paging all humans: The FLSA & the FMLA still need you

07/17/2024
Artificial intelligence has taken firm hold in American workplaces. By far, the focus is on how generative AI will either streamline tasks or supplant employees altogether. The Department of Labor isn’t buying the employees-will-soon-be-replaced talk. Human oversight is still necessary to the proper functioning of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act, the DOL concluded.

Prepare to pay up if you insist on English fluency or prohibit other languages on the job

07/15/2024
While English is the dominant U.S. language, it certainly isn’t the only one spoken in our multicultural society. In fact, employers that insist on English fluency or prohibit speaking another language at work may find themselves running afoul of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and other employment laws, as one employer recently discovered.

HR’s big artificial intelligence question: Does AI candidate screening discriminate?

07/10/2024
AI skeptics and a growing cadre of plaintiffs’ attorneys argue that instead of preventing hiring bias, relying on an AI algorithm may actually bake discrimination into the selection process. That’s what is alleged in one recent complaint filed with the Federal Trade Commission and another with the EEOC.

Require bosses to contact HR before telling employee to participate in EAP

07/08/2024
Employee assistance program referrals can help workers deal with small mental- or behavioral-health problems—for example, showing up for work hungover—before they balloon into mental- and behavioral-health crises, such as developing alcoholism. Bosses are often the ones who talk to troubled subordinates about availing themselves of EAP services. However, they must take great care when they have those conversations.

Consider this: Management topics heard at SHRM

07/08/2024
Here is some of the management advice Managing People at Work editorial director Tara Taffera heard at the Society of Human Resource Management Annual Conference and Expo that you may want to consider.

OSHA proposes first national heat-protection rule

07/03/2024
OSHA has released a proposed rule intended to protect workers from the significant health risks of extreme heat. A DOL statement said the proposed rule would help protect approximately 36 million workers in outdoor and indoor work settings and substantially reduce heat injuries, illnesses and deaths in the workplace.