Policies / Handbooks

OK to terminate even if handbook doesn’t address obvious employee wrongdoing

05/19/2025

If an employee does or says something that clearly requires immediate discharge, don’t let the lack of a handbook policy stop you from acting. Courts usually side with employers that fire workers for behavior that runs counter to the employer’s best interest.

Understand the difference between legal and illegal DEI

05/15/2025

Quotas and preferences based on protected characteristics are unlawful. But what if you want to improve representation of marginalized groups in your workplace, and do it legally? Thankfully, the EEOC has long offered guidance.

Consider adding wellness policy to your handbook

05/12/2025

You’re missing an important productivity and retention opportunity if you don’t use your handbook to show you’re the kind of employer that cares about your employees and their physical and mental well-being.

Watch out for dress codes that could trigger ADA lawsuits

05/09/2025

Enforce your dress and grooming code too rigidly and you could find yourself on the losing end of a failure-to-accommodate lawsuit. Here’s a case showing that common medical problems may require employers to bend their dress-code rules to accommodate employee disabilities.

Former EEOC officials defend DEI initiatives

05/05/2025

A group of former EEOC commissioners and generals counsel have penned an open letter decrying Acting EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas’s efforts to stamp out private-sector diversity, equity and inclusion activities.

Be better! Anti-harassment training, half-hearted investigations aren’t enough

05/02/2025

Why aren’t anti-harassment policies more effective at preventing harassment? The answer may lie in ineffective training and the failure of employers to follow their own policies.

Understand marijuana laws in every jurisdiction where you operate

04/25/2025

Employers can require employees accused of violence at work to take a drug test. But what happens if the test reveals the presence of marijuana in the system of an employee whose use of medical marijuana is authorized by state law?

Records retention: Prepare to archive social media posts, text messages

04/21/2025

Most HR pros know they must retain many kinds of documents and records. These days, that includes electronic documents in addition to paper records. Social media posts and work-related text messages are increasingly subject to the same records-retention requirements that have always applied to memos, notes and reports.

HR amid economic uncertainty: Is now the time to ban moonlighting?

04/18/2025

According to a recent survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a record number of people are working more than one job.

Stronger caregiving policies start with smarter HR

04/16/2025

Nearly one in five working caregivers expect to take on new or additional elder caregiving responsibilities in the next five years—and among employees who aren’t currently caregivers, elder care is the most anticipated future obligation. This scale of caregiving makes it a pressing workforce issue, yet many HR departments still fall short in their approach.