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HR Management

Survive a PHRC probe only with precise documentation

11/01/2006

Conventional wisdom holds that employers won’t face strict scrutiny if they fire employees who aren’t meeting performance expectations during their probationary period. Conventional wisdom is wrong, at least when it comes to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission …

Maximize commuter perks: Save workers money, stress

11/01/2006

Soaring gas prices earlier this year led many employees to seriously consider bailing out of their long commutes and find jobs closer to home. While gas prices have moderated (at least for now), many employees still face long, expensive, time-wasting trips to work. To ease employees’ pain, employers are increasingly turning to creative commuter benefits …

How to prevent employees from abusing PTO leave

11/01/2006

A reader of our weekly e-mail newsletter, The HR Specialist Weekly, recently posed this question: "We allow employees to take paid time off (PTO) in hourly increments, but they often use their PTO when running late in the morning or for unexpected ‘appointments.’ How can we get a rein on our PTO leave?" …

Workers’ Mental Well-Being Tops N.C. Firm’s Work/Life List

11/01/2006

Happy employees translate into low absenteeism and low turnover, says Lisa Conklin, public relations manager for Replacements, the Greensboro, N.C., china replacement warehouse …

Hiring relatives creates friendly culture at Ohio firm

11/01/2006

Nepotism doesn’t raise eyebrows at medical-billing service provider MBI Solutions. More than a dozen MBI employees have family members on the staff. The Kettering, Ohio-based company actively recruits employees’ relatives to create a family-friendly atmosphere and improve retention …

Who Should Decide If You Offer Domestic-Partner Perks?

11/01/2006

Your organization—not the government—should make that call, say a majority of 2,500 adults surveyed by Out & Equal Workplace Advocates …

Tardiness Can Count as ‘Misconduct’ That Bars UI Benefits

11/01/2006

Under Florida law, employees who are fired can’t collect unemployment compensation if you fired them for "misconduct."  Unfortunately, the law doesn’t clearly define misconduct …

Heed lesson from the cola giants: Tighten cap on your trade secrets

11/01/2006

Now’s a good time to review your policy on protecting confidential information, such as product samples. Restrict access to as few employees as possible, and take swift action if you learn of any security breaches. As the biggest cola competitors discovered, trade-secret thieves will try anything …

Ban on ‘Union Yes’ Button Isn’t Free-Speech Violation

11/01/2006

Texas public employers have broad rights to prohibit certain kinds of speech in the workplace, but those rights aren’t unfettered …

Review policy wording to ensure no e-Mail privacy rights

11/01/2006

New Jersey employers have every right to monitor their employees’ e-mail messages and computer usage so long as they have a strong electronic communications policy. That’s true even if the content might otherwise fall under attorney-client privilege …