• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Policies / Handbooks

Can we set different dress codes for each department?

01/17/2013

Q. We are a retail company with about 200 employees. We have six different departments. The supervisors are not agreeing on an overall dress code. They wondered if there’s any legal risk in having each department make and follow its own dress code. (Everyone works in the same office space.) 

How to cope with dope: Marijuana & the Minnesota workplace

01/11/2013
Minnesota employers are stuck in the middle of the battle between state and federal law. The tension may create confusion for employers trying to legally enforce their policies, including drug-free workplace policies.

Do new marijuana laws affect your drug policies?

01/11/2013
Voters in Colorado and Washington state recently approved legalization of marijuana for recreational use, and 17 states have already OK’d medical pot. But take note: Employers—even in those states—can still set strict drug-use policies for their employees.

5 Texas firms ace awards for gay-friendly practices

01/09/2013
Each year the Human Rights Cam­­paign rates Fortune 500 companies on how well they treat lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees. Five Texas firms couldn’t have scored any better, earning perfect 100s.

Disaster averted: Make emergency preparedness part of your job

01/09/2013
Hurricane Sandy … the derecho last June … employers must be prepared for a variety of disaster scenarios. Two very practical matters employers must deal with in the aftermath of a disaster: workplace cleanup and paying workers. Federal law affects both.

57 NY firms ace awards for gay-friendly practices

01/09/2013
Each year the Human Rights Cam­­paign rates Fortune 500 companies on how well they treat lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees. Fifty-seven New York firms couldn’t have scored any better, earning perfect 100s.

Be prepared to prove employees’ at-will status

01/09/2013
Does your handbook clearly spell out that employees are truly at-will employees? If not, be sure to add language doing so the next time you update your handbook.

36 Calif. firms ace awards for gay-friendly practices

01/03/2013
Each year the Human Rights Cam­­paign rates Fortune 500 companies on how well they treat lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. Thirty-six California firms couldn’t have scored any better, earning perfect 100s.

5 N.C. firms ace awards for gay-friendly practices

12/19/2012
Each year, the Human Rights Campaign rates Fortune 500 companies on how well they treat lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender em­­ployees. Five North Carolina firms couldn’t have scored any better, earning perfect 100s from the gay-rights advocacy organization.

Back anti-harassment policy with robust training, enforcement

12/19/2012

It’s great that you have a hostile work environment policy in place and cover it in your training. But none of that will do you much good if supervisors remain oblivious. If hostile acts occur despite your policy, it won’t provide much protection. That’s why you must be proactive.