What is an I-9? Also called an Employment Eligibility Verification form, the I-9 verifies (1) a new employee’s identity and (2) their right to work in the U.S. What is the big deal about I-9's? There are VERY specific rules about when and how it...
Over three years have passed since the start of the COVID-19 public health emergency in January of 2020. We have come a long way from the time of businesses being closed and mandatory quarantine periods. While we faced one of the most challenging times for...
Question: We are considering having a different employee handbook for our exempt and nonexempt employees. Can we have multiple versions of our employee handbook? Answer: There’s no rule against having multiple employee handbooks, but there are some factors to consider. Having multiple versions would lead...
Breastfeeding employees who are returning to work usually know how much extra work pumping is going to be. They’ve thought about the bulky pump and its multiple attachments, how they can bring it into and out of the workplace inconspicuously, whether they’ll have time and...
Question: We need to terminate an employee due to poor performance. Should we give them a termination letter outlining why we are terminating them? Answer: There is no federal requirement for employers to provide written notice about why someone is being terminated, but we do recommend...
Question: An employee came to us with a harassment complaint but said they didn’t want us to do anything about it. Do we have to do an investigation? Answer: Yes, you should still investigate the complaint. Not investigating could expose you to legal risk if...
According to a report by Brandon Hall Group, "Organizations with a strong onboarding process improve new hire retention by 82 percent and productivity by over 70 percent." Further, employers with a weak onboarding process "lose the confidence of their candidates and are more likely to...
The Federal Trade Commission proposed a new rule that would ban non-compete clauses and employers from imposing non-competes on their workers, a widespread and often exploitative practice that suppresses wages, hampers innovation, and blocks entrepreneurs from starting new businesses. By stopping this practice, the agency estimates...
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration takes an employee injury very seriously and requires companies to submit injury data. The requirements are complex, and you may want to work with experts in this field, depending on the kind of business you run. In brief, according to...
When making personnel decisions — including hiring, retention, promotion, and reassignment — employers sometimes want to consider the backgrounds of applicants and employees. For example, some employers might try to find out about the person’s work history, education, criminal record, financial history, medical history, or...