Archive for June 2016
State Disability Insurance Programs
When employees become disabled and unable to work, their jobs might be protected, but they’re often left with no replacement income. To help individuals in this situation, five states provide, or require that employers provide, short-term disability insurance to eligible workers. This benefit pays a percentage of an eligible employee’s income in the event that…
Read MoreUnconscious Bias in the Workplace
In an effort to create more diversity-friendly workplaces, tech giants like Google and Facebook have been training employees to recognize their unconscious biases. As the term implies, these biases are below the surface, unintended, and often undesired. They’re implicit rather than explicit. Explicit biases are evident in what people say and do, and chances are…
Read MoreWhat Are the FLSA White Collar Exemptions?
With all the talk about the new white collar overtime exemptions, you may be wondering what these exemptions are and whether they apply to your organization. In a nutshell, they pertain to whether certain employees must be paid overtime rates for hours worked over 40 in a week. While most employees must be paid at…
Read MoreThe Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media Policy
Chances are most of your employees are on social media, and some of them may be using their private accounts to say things about their employment. Frustrated employees might even be complaining about their working conditions – or about you. While it may seem prudent to ban employees from saying anything negative about your organization…
Read MoreUnpaid Internships
As summer is just around the corner, a common question we receive is whether it is acceptable to engage unpaid interns. Assuming the organization in question is a for-profit company, this is an area in which to exercise extreme caution. While most interns must be compensated at least minimum wage plus any applicable overtime in…
Read MoreYour Attitude Sets the Workplace Tone
Every one of the evening crew might have preferred to be elsewhere on a Friday at 5:00 p.m., but as they took their assigned positions in the kitchen, front counter, and drive-thru, they chatted merrily about their lives that day and their weekend plans. Soon the lobby would be packed with customers, eager for hot…
Read MoreSummer Workplace Activities
Summer is quickly approaching! It’s that time of year when you start to dust off your grill, coordinate that river or poolside vacation, and crank “Surfin’ USA” on your commute to work. It’s also a fantastic time for employers to brainstorm seasonal activities to strengthen the company culture and keep workers refreshed and engaged. Annual…
Read MoreWays to Bring Your Organization’s Values Into Your Company
Coming up with your company values may have taken several hours of thought, reflection, and discussion. This effort will have been wasted, though, if you stop there and fail to institute these values. So, how do bring your values into the day-to-day operations of your organization? How do you embody them and not just talk…
Read MoreThree Ways to Hire for Your Culture
Ever hire that remarkably experienced, impressively skilled employee who just doesn’t fit in with your company culture? It happens. You assumed the new hire shared your values and would adjust well to your workplace, but for one reason or another the employee blends in no better than a hammock in a conference hall. What can…
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