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HR Management

Financial advisors-in-training can tap G.I. Bill for income

07/27/2012

Military veterans in Missouri can tap their G.I. Bill benefits while they train to become financial advisors at financial services firm Edward Jones. Missouri—where Edward Jones is based—is the first state to approve use of the benefits by veterans in the program.

Do former employees have the right to demand copies of their personnel files?

07/24/2012

Q. We recently fired an employee who worked in our office. Several weeks later, our HR department received a phone call from the man demanding a copy of his personnel file. Are we required to send him a copy?

Measure ‘learning agility’ when promoting working parents

07/23/2012
The next time you’re deciding which job candidate to hire or promote, take a second look at that working mother among your applicants. Businesses that value organized employees, effective time managers and quick thinkers are looking for the exact skills a parent develops while raising kids.

ACA upheld, HR’s compliance scramble begins

07/19/2012
If you took a wait-and-see approach to implementing health benefit changes until the Supreme Court ruled on the health care reform law, it’s time to kick your planning into high gear. Several short-term deadlines are approaching that require HR’s immediate attention, and significant milestones loom in 2013 and 2014.

HR pro on trial: ‘Cat’s paw’ individual liability under Section 1981

07/18/2012
The 7th Circuit recently considered for the first time whether an employee can be individually liable under a “cat’s paw” theory of retaliation under Section 1981. In Smith v. Bray the court held that an employee could sue an HR manager individually for retaliating against him by influencing the decision to fire him.

Too much time online can be misconduct

07/18/2012
If you limit personal use of electronics and fire an employee for violating that rule, he can’t get unemployment benefits. Excess online time is misconduct under those circumstances.

Office politics? You bet … and you better play to win!

07/18/2012

Office politics doesn’t have to be manipulative or sleazy. In fact, it’s one of the most direct, smart and savvy ways to make your mark with those that count. Here are three rules to win the game of office politics.

Setting & tracking goals: The 5 best free online tools

07/17/2012

If the number of goal-tracking tools online is any indication, the Internet wants you to stick to your goals. Here are five of the best free goal-setting tools available today.

When can we insist on a substance-abuse test?

07/13/2012

Q. A couple of weeks ago, an employee came into work smelling like alcohol. His supervisor later reported that day that the employee “acted drunk” in a staff meeting. Yesterday, one of the same employee’s co-workers indicated that the employee came back from lunch “smelling like marijuana.” Can these reports justify requiring the employee to undergo a drug or alcohol test?

Republic Steel reaches safety accord with OSHA

07/12/2012
Canton-based Republic Steel has agreed to settle outstanding training and safety issues discovered in the aftermath of a worker’s fall in 2010.