Earlier this month a survey of 400 worldwide C-suite executives was conducted by Herbert Smith Freehills, LLP that found those executives foresee an unprecedented rise in workplace activism. The survey report found executives today are confronting employees articulating their views about not only workplace concerns and issues but on wider social issues. This worker activism is enabled and is consequentially amplified by social media.

In a recent poll during Conversations with Mike & Tony, only 1 out 20 attendees were assisting employees with gas costs.  But as gas prices continue to rise and more and more employees struggle financially, more employers might consider financial assistance or other accommodations to help with gas costs.

Last Friday, the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion decided in an earlier Supreme Court case in 1973 called Roe v. Wade. In that case, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Texas statute banning abortion, effectively legalizing the procedure across the United States. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, No. 19-1392 (June 24, 2022), the Supreme Court ruled that Mississippi could ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, overturning Roe v. Wade.

According to a recent research survey of more than 2,000 global workers and interviews with over 50 global leaders by Ryan Jenkins, workplace loneliness expert, addressing workplace loneliness boils down to the following five things.

As more and more states are legalizing the use of marijuana for medical use, recreational use, or both, employers are facing more challenges with maintaining workplace safety while avoiding the pitfalls of laws that are employee friendly to users of marijuana.

Wondering why we cannot find talent? Michigan’s unemployment rate dropped from 6.2% to 4.3% over the past year.  In Detroit area surprisingly, 4.6%.  Source:  BLS 6/17/22 

ASE has released the results of its 2022 Michigan Compensation Survey, which reveals that low unemployment, sluggish labor participation, and unprecedented employee turnover have accelerated the wages and salaries of local employers. Data from the most recent ASE compensation survey shows that overall wage growth, based on a matched sample of companies (referred to as a constant sample) was 4.0% compared to just 2.1% in 2021.

George Brown, ASE Senior Vice President, began at ASE 20 years ago to work on a grant project. Normally, once a grant ended, we would have to let go of the employee handling that work. But George was different.  I had to find a way to keep him. In just two short years, he had become an integral part of ASE and a leader.  Thankfully for ASE, that lasted for the next 20 years. Now, as we said at his retirement party last week, the Legend is retiring. George retires July 15th.

California’s progressiveness has been a possible lead to new workplace trends.  Now AB 2932, which is moving through the state legislature, would change the definition of a workweek from 40 hours to 32 hours for companies with more than 500 employees.  However, a full workday would remain at 8 hours. Under California law working more than 32 hours would then lead to overtime pay.  This law would impact about 2,600 businesses and more than 3.6 million employees.

The pandemic has had a profound effect on all areas of employment, including benefits. Mental health coverage has emerged as one of the most popular covered benefits in 2022 with 91% of employers now offering coverage according to a recent SHRM Employee Benefits Survey.

As ASE has previously reported, worker union organizing is getting a lot of attention across the country. A recent study by the Worker Empowerment Research Network (WERN) that is collaborating with the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL), highlights what union conditions are usually present in the workplace for conditions to be right for organizing. This information also provides employers valuable insight into how they can avoid allowing those conditions to develop in their workplace.

Resignations are estimated at 41% in 2021:   The U.S. job market may be cooling down, but Aon survey data shows that the Great Resignation had a real impact on employers throughout the past year, the global professional services firm said in a June 2 statement. 

It’s a daunting task to review and update job descriptions. The “when” of review and updating is “as often as needed.”  Job descriptions should reflect current responsibilities, any duty changes, manager change, location change, and update to skills, education, and qualifications for the role.  The “why” of updating them is because employees should know the expectations of their roles and the rules and regulations they need to follow, some...

Currently, the U. S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (Wage & Hour) has been conducting a series of listening sessions in various regions to hear what industry and workers’ organizations thoughts are about raising the salary level for exempt employees. 

Today’s heat index in Michigan is set to hit 106 degrees.  Are your outdoor workers prepared and protected? Heat is the leading cause of death among all weather-related workplace hazards, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).