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HR Management

7 do-it-yourself tips to cut training costs

03/04/2013
When companies need to cut corners, one of the first things executives slash is the training budget. When that happens, it’s time for HR to get creative. Here are seven practical cost-cutting tips.

Benefits alert: Health insurance exchange notice requirement postponed

03/01/2013
The health care reform law required employers to begin notifying employees on March 1 about the availability of state-based exchanges as an option for buying health insurance. But acknowledging the obvious—that the state exchanges are nowhere near ready to go live—the Department of Labor has temporarily rescinded the notice requirement.

The HR I.Q. Test: March ’13

03/01/2013
Test your knowledge of recent trends in employment law, comp & benefits and other HR issues with our monthly mini-quiz …

5 steps to help workers develop their skills

03/01/2013
Offering employees opportunities to improve their skills ensures they can successfully perform their jobs, and it also keeps them engaged. Follow these steps to create a skills development plan for each employee.

Big spike in I-9 audits: Are your records in order?

02/22/2013
The “bold new audit initiative” launched by ICE has yielded a dramatic increase in employer audits, fines and arrests. Employers would be wise to make sure their I-9 forms are in compliance before the ­proverbial knock on the door.

We’re starting a wellness program: Any caveats?

02/20/2013
Q. In an effort to encourage our employees to make healthy lifestyle choices, we plan to offer an employee wellness program starting this summer. Is there anything we need to be careful about?

Romance policies that work–even with ‘irresistible’ employees

02/20/2013
Workplace romance has long been the bane of the HR profession. A December 2012 Iowa Supreme Court decision in Nelson v. Knight has further roiled the workplace romance waters by holding that an employer could terminate an employee for being “irresistible.”

Avoid OSHA: Post injury/illness summary until April 30

02/11/2013
Starting Feb. 1 each year, many U.S. employers are required to post a summary of the number of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred in the workplace the previous year. The posting must typically stay up until April 30.

Just 3 days of harassment can indeed create a hostile work environment

02/08/2013

Usually, courts considering whether an employee worked in a sexually hostile environment will look at a period of weeks, months or years to assess whether the alleged har­assment was “severe and pervasive” enough to become truly hostile. But sometimes just a few days will do the trick.

Employee Twitter accounts: Who really owns the followers?

02/07/2013

With people generating more than 340 million tweets daily, Twitter has become a social media phenomenon … and an employment liability risk. One important issue: Who owns an employee’s Twitter handle? And if your em­­ployees post on their work-related Twitter accounts, can they “take” the followers when they leave?