Human Resources

Contractor or Employee? What HR Must Know to Make the Right Call

The EEOC has put employers on notice: You can’t have a blanket policy against hiring people with criminal records. Likewise, you can’t have a policy that automatically dismisses any employee who’s convicted of a crime while working for you. Convictions have to be analyzed in a more sophisticated, individualized way. In this Quick Take, you will learn what the EEOC says about blanket policies on criminal records, three questions to ask about applicants’ criminal convictions, what you must always do when rejecting an applicant because of a previous conviction and four suggestions for legitimately using criminal records in the application process.

Equal Pay: The Five Questions HR Must Ask

Every HR pro knows that under federal law, you can’t discriminate against women by paying them less than men. That’s a key feature of Title Seven of the Civil Rights Act, which also bars discrimination based on things like race, national origin and religion. But there’s another law that comes into play specifically when the issue is men’s and women’s pay: The Equal Pay Act. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn the most common misconception about equal pay, the five questions HR must ask in balancing men’s and women’s pay levels and what you can and can’t do to fix any pay inequalities.

Genetic Discrimination: You Can’t Blame Them for Their DNA

Genetic information discrimination isn’t something that comes up every day but it’s an issue HR professionals need to stay on top of. A growing number of organizations are finding themselves in court defending claims that protected genetic information was used in hiring, firing or promotion decisions. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn what genetic discrimination is, what the law says about when you can and can’t acquiring genetic information from applicants and employees, how to handle genetic information that is legally acquired, and three ways employers are likely to violate the law.

How to Conduct Effective Exit Interviews

Reflect back on some exit interviews you’ve conducted. When the person walked out of the room, were you ever thinking: I still don’t have a clue why the person REALLY left and that was a complete waste of time. Clearly, that’s not your goal. You’d like your exit interviews to reveal useful information you can use to improve your company and your retention rates. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn: The one type of employee that will give you the most useful info. The #1 obstacle to getting meaningful input. And, a simple questioning technique that will transform the way you conduct exit interviews and get far superior results.

HR Communication – How to Speak the Language of CEOs

You know how much HR contributes to the success of your organization. But many HR professionals have trouble getting this message through to their CEOs. In this Quick Take, we’ll show you a proven approach to help you get the CEO’s attention and demonstrate the strategic value of HR.

Job Applicants with Criminal Records

The EEOC has put employers on notice: You can’t have a blanket policy against hiring people with criminal records. Likewise, you can’t have a policy that automatically dismisses any employee who’s convicted of a crime while working for you. Convictions have to be analyzed in a more sophisticated, individualized way. In this Quick Take, you will learn what the EEOC says about blanket policies on criminal records, three questions to ask about applicants’ criminal convictions, what you must always do when rejecting an applicant because of a previous conviction and four suggestions for legitimately using criminal records in the application process.

Job Descriptions: Five Mistakes That Can Land You in Legal Trouble

Complete, up-to-date, accurate job descriptions are an essential part of your lawsuit-avoidance toolkit. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn about the top five job description mistakes that can make any organization vulnerable to lawsuits and the four situations where job descriptions should always come into play.

Military FMLA Leave: Twists and Turns that Challenge HR

Eligible employees may take two kinds of military leave under the FMLA: military caregiver leave or qualifying exigency leave. Military FMLA works a lot like regular FMLA. But there’s just enough difference to throw you off if you’re not careful. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn two key ways that military FMLA leave differs from regular FMLA, how to comply with the law on FMLA military caregiver leave, how to comply with the law on FMLA qualifying exigency leave and steps you can take to verify eligibility when employees ask for such leave.

PTSD in the Workplace: What Every HR Professional Must Know

Suppose a supervisor comes to you about an employee who’s scared co-workers with an unexpected outburst of anger. Or an employee who seems to be sinking into withdrawal, compromising her ability to function in her team. Would it occur to you that these people might be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder? In this Quick Take, you will learn myths and misconceptions about PTSD, what PTSD really is and why it happens, how to recognize signs that one of your employees may have PTSD, and accommodations you can make to help employees with PTSD.

Return from FMLA Leave: Dealing with the ADA-FMLA-Workers Comp Tangle

Handling workers returning from FMLA leave can be a challenge to even the most seasoned HR professional. Why? Because it often involves three aspects of employment law: FMLA, ADA and state workers compensation. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn how the three kinds of law intertwine, and how to disentangle them so you can make good decisions.

Who Gets Overtime and Who Doesn’t?

Determining who’s exempt and who’s not isn’t always a simple matter. FLSA regulations are full of “gray zones” that can trip up even the most experienced managers. In this Quick Take you will learn: The most common mistakes that HR professionals make when classifying employees, why the title 'manager' is often misleading, and how to avoid the 'salary-basis trap'.

Workers Comp Claims: Four techniques for keeping lawyers away, and costs down

Workers who are home recovering from an injury have a lot of time to sit, think, and brood over their health issues. That makes them susceptible to the siren's call of a workers comp lawyer. And when lawyers get involved, payouts and insurance premiums go up. In this Quick Take, we’ll look at four claims management techniques that HR managers can use to keep lawyers out of the picture and keep workers comp costs under control.

Workers Compensation Fraud: Six Warning Signs that HR Should Watch For

Most employees are honest about work-related injuries. But there are always the troublesome few who try to game the system and take a vacation at your expense. According to some estimates, up to a quarter of workers comp claims contain some element of dishonesty. In this Quick Take, you’ll learn six warning signs of possible workers comp fraud, how to ask questions that can uncover bogus claims, and what to do – and what NOT to do – if your investigation turns up evidence of fraud.

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