Human Resources

We’re thinking of requiring employees to keep tattoos covered. Is this something we can do? What considerations should we make? Yes, you may prohibit visible tattoos entirely or you may simply prohibit those that are offensive, distracting, inappropriate, or over a certain size. Tattoo policies usually depend...

18 November, 2019

Shift differential refers to the extra, or premium, pay that certain employees receive for working outside normal business hours. For example, if normal business hours run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., shift differential would apply to hours worked between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m. Shift...

13 November, 2019

Some state minimum wage adjustments are tied to the consumer price index, but otherwise, cost-of-living raises are not required by state or federal law. You just need to make sure you’re paying any applicable state and municipal minimum wages. That said, if the cost of...

11 November, 2019

If you want to get a snapshot of your organization’s efficiency and the health of its culture, look at your meetings. Are they efficient and productive? Do their results justify the time and expense? Are meetings an occasion for collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and team-building? Or are...

04 November, 2019

Because of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), employers and employees may now be expected to have a greater understanding of health care vocabulary. Some terms are new under the ACA, but many have been around for a long time and are still not fully understood....

30 October, 2019

The most obvious way for employers to measure the full impact of employee turnover is to look at the corresponding loss of productivity when positions go unfilled. You'll also need to look at the cost to find replacements. But that's just the start. The rest of...

23 October, 2019

We received a complaint about harassment. How should we respond?   When a company suspects that an employee has violated its harassment or discrimination policy, we always recommend conducting a complete (and well-documented) investigation into the allegations. This includes speaking with the employee who made the complaint,...

21 October, 2019

Can an employer force employees to use English at work? As more non-English-speaking employees enter the workforce, what problems do employers face with non-English speakers? The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) says an English-only rule may violate civil-rights laws unless the employer can show the rule...

16 October, 2019