New York is now collaborating with the federal government to go after employers that misclassify employees as independent contractors.The US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) on November 18 entered into agreements with New York's attorney...

Many employers adopt policies that restrict employee internet conduct that could impact the company’s business.  While it is prudent to provide employees with clear rules in this area, employers must be wary of aggressive National Labor Relations Board activity in...

1)  It frees them to concentrate on core competencies. HR does not produce a product, yet it can eat up a lot of an organization’s time and energy. A great HR department demands resources and continual oversight and innovation. Many organizations would rather focus on...

There have been many news stories recently about the Employment NonDiscrimination Act (ENDA), which the U.S. Senate appears certain to pass this month. Commentators have different opinions about whether the House of Representatives will also pass some version of ENDA....

As 2013 comes to an end, we will consider a number of issues that employers might be facing at the end of the year. In this blog series, we will cover topics such as seasonal hiring, religious discrimination claims stemming from the holidays, liability issues arising...

Tips to take heed of during this time of year:Sexual harassment, fights between co-workers, employees driving home drunk – the list of potential liabilities is enough to make an employer consider cancelling the annual holiday party altogether.But if doesn’t have to be...

Employers want to compel employees to submit legal disputes to arbitration instead of a jury. Employers worry about the unpredictability of juries. Employers prefer to not air their dirty laundry with a public jury trial. So, employers ask employees to agree that...

Many employers have been surprised by recent rulings that two common employment policies run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) even if their employees are not union members.  Based on a legitimate interest in preserving confidentiality and privacy,...

Don’t mess with Texas.The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) usually forces employers who are subject to Title VII to play defense. The State of Texas, however, has upended that approach. On November 4, 2013, Texas filed a federal lawsuit that seeks to...

The Internal Revenue Service recently released Notice 2013-71, which provides an alternative to the Grace Period Rule for health flexible spending arrangements (FSA). Under this alternative, cafeteria plans may now allow employees to carry over up to $500 of unused...

Health Insurance Exchanges Reach One Month Anniversary - Open enrollment for the Health Insurance Marketplaces (also known as Health Insurance Exchanges) commenced on 10/1/2013 in preparation for the January 1, 2014 mandate for individuals to be covered by health...

Purpose and Overview: It is vital to secure and retain new employee forms in compliance with state and federal regulations and employer’s personnel policies. Periodic review of personnel file contents should not be overseen.Some "Best Practices" for employee file...

The holidays are approaching faster than the department stores can replace the summer final clearance items off the display racks with the holiday-themed merchandise that will engulf retailers’ locations for the immediate months to come. The rapidly approaching...

Based on the feedback we hear from our small business clients on a daily basis, we have compiled a list of the top five fears that small business owners face going into 2014. Below are a few tips of the trade to assist employers in these areas.Finding the Right...