strategic management

October 1, 2009

Categories

Civility

Civility

Many people think being civil is the same as having good manners. Civility includes getting along, sometimes to the extent of making sacrifices for the good of the whole group. Civility also includes a sense of reciprocity. Workplaces have a set of unspoken rules for verbal and non-verbal behaviors which reflect the level of respect and civility that exists. Such rules are established by example of all levels of management.

September 1, 2009

Categories

Compliance

Choose Your Lawsuit

Employers may feel they are in a no-win situation when faced with an allegation of discrimination. If the employer terminates the alleged perpetrator, it may face a wrongful termination lawsuit. If the employer determines the alleged perpetrator is innocent, the accuser may claim harassment, discrimination , and/or retaliation. All employers need to have policies and procedures related to unlawful conduct in place. There needs to be a consistent standard of conduct applied to everyone. And a complaint procedure needs to be written, easily accessible and understood. A procedure to conduct an internal investigation will provide structure to assure a certain […]

August 1, 2009

Categories

Compliance

Wage Theft

The term wage theft is gaining popularity among plaintiffs’ attorneys who are filing wage and hour claims. These are attractive cases because the employer bears the burden of proof and it’s relatively easy to get class-action certified. Wage and hour class actions are filed more often than all other types of employment class actions combined. The Department of Labor (DOL) estimates 70% of employers are not in compliance with wage and hour regulations. Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis is committed to protecting workers’ rights; planning to hire an additional 250 new field investigators; a one-third increase in its staffing. Employers […]

July 1, 2009

Categories

Performance

Re-Orientation

Employee orientation, now referred to as onboarding is a human resource tool that may be repurposed to re-orient employees to their companies. Onboarding is a systematic approach to integrate a new employee with the company. It is a process that is frequently overlooked or poorly executed. However, when onboarding is done effectively, employees become productive faster and voluntary turnover is lower. There is a great deal of evidence that onboarding increases employee engagement. The process is designed to reduce stress of the new employee, familiarize the employee with the company’s culture, products, procedures and how their job functions contribute. Watson […]