Managing People at Work

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Phil Ash

Strengthening worker safety during escalating summer temperatures

Temperatures are hitting new highs, and your workers need protection now. As summer heat intensifies, HR professionals must take immediate action to establish workplace heat-safety measures.

Contingency plan: Heed these cautions when compiling layoff lists

Even if you don’t believe you will have to eliminate jobs any time soon, it’s probably a good idea to start formulating preliminary layoff plans now so you can move quickly if the need arises.

Stop unauthorized work by remote employees

If you have employees who work remotely at least some of the time, you know how difficult it is to track exactly what they are doing and when they’re doing it. That can be bad news if those employees are nonexempt. They must be paid for all work they perform—whether you knew they were working or not

Hiring: 5 steps to capitalize on today’s sudden talent surge

When it comes to labor markets, dark clouds often come with silver linings. When some employers are cutting jobs, that often brings a torrent of applications to other organizations eager to hire highly qualified candidates. That’s happening now as the federal workforce shrinks and companies in the t

Play ball! But limit your liability at summer social events

Say your marketing director breaks his leg during an after-hours employee softball game against a crosstown company. Who’s responsible? You might be surprised.

7 situations you should document every time

Thorough and accurate HR documentation is what wins lawsuits.

Job cuts jumped 60% in March

U.S. employers announced 275,240 job cuts in March, a 60% increase from the 172,017 cuts announced one month prior. It is up 205% from the 90,309 cuts announced in March 2024.

Recognize legal peril of automatically rejecting requests for religious accommodation

Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous decision in Groff v. DeJoy, employees and their lawyers have been testing the limits on how far employers must go to accommodate religious beliefs and practices.

Recognize the bright line between harassment and run-of-the-mill personality clashes

Employees don’t always get along—and you can’t force them to actually like each other. Take solace in the fact that unless workplace animosity creates a truly hostile environment, allegations of discrimination or harassment won’t succeed in court unless an employee can prove that a co-worker targete

Invest in 4 key drivers to improve retention

Recent analysis from The Conference Board, the nonprofit economic and business think tank, reveals that prioritizing talent retention delivers substantial cost savings compared to constant recruitment efforts. The board’s report urges HR leaders looking to boost retention to focus on four key driver