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HR Management

Run handbook by counsel to make sure it doesn’t destroy at-Will status

07/01/2007

Employers can fire at-will employees for any legal reason—or for no reason at all. Employees who work under a contract, on the other hand, have more rights. Don’t let a flawed employee handbook weaken your hand …

OK to apply different discipline standards to new employees

07/01/2007

If you classify employees as either permanent or probationary, you can apply different disciplinary standards to the different classifications. That’s true even if the employees perform the same job and violate the same rules …

Track all disciplinary actions to head off disparate-Treatment claims

07/01/2007

When employees sue under the employment discrimination laws of Ohio, they often allege disparate treatment and try to show their employer treated members of their protected class (e.g., age, race, sex) more severely than other employees. The key to a good defense lies in tracking each and every disciplinary action when it occurs …

Court: Constitution protects religious bulletin board messages

07/01/2007

A federal government agency’s policy barring “items of religious preference” from agency bulletin boards is unconstitutional, the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio ruled …

Training on personal protective equipment boosts workplace safety

07/01/2007

Employers and employees know that wearing the proper protective equipment can prevent workplace accidents. But too often employees fail to wear personal protective equipment (PPE), sometimes with disastrous consequences …

Don’t wait for emergency to make flexibility routine

07/01/2007

If you think your work/life effort is complete so long as your organization helps its employees with child care, elder care and flexible work hours, it might be time to update your definitions. Work/life programs bring value not only to employees but also to organizations. If you’ve got a good one, chances are you’ll see benefits the next time your company faces an emergency …

Creative benefits help employees with cancer stay on the job

07/01/2007

Employees living with cancer increasingly are staying on the job, thanks to benefits like flexibility and intermittent, short-term disability insurance …

Suspect employees of theft? Questions are OK, but detaining risks ‘False imprisonment’ claim

07/01/2007

A high percentage of workplace theft is the work of insiders. That’s one reason you may want to question employees when money or goods disappear. But don’t act like the police …

‘One-Man death squad’ headed Palisades nuclear plant security

07/01/2007

Officials are investigating a possible security breach at the Palisades nuclear power plant after Esquire magazine ran a profile of the plant’s head of security. Turns out, William Clark bragged about being a hit man …

AARP finds Georgia’s work force is getting grayer

07/01/2007

Jobs will grow in Georgia over the next two decades, according to a recent report from the AARP, but filling them will be a challenge …