30
Jun
2020
Last month’s Bostock decision ruled that Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects LGBTQ rights. This decision has a number of subtle impacts that employers need to be cognizant of, including compensation and by extension employer sponsored health plans.
23
It seems we are living in an age where 1960’s racial and gender reporting requirements are archaic. More workers are not identifying themselves by race/ethnicity and/or gender when applying for positions or when onboarding.
16
9
In the office or factory setting, people will be moving, meeting, or just hanging out by the water cooler. Work, where people spend more waking time in their lives than any other place, is a social hub. So how will employers deal with the physical distancing and mask wearing required in today’s new work site?
2
Michigan is beginning its phased approach to reopening and is now in phase 4. Employers will be busy this summer as they return to work. It will be important to remain compliant with all COVID-19 legislation and health and safety guidelines. Below are some items to consider as workplaces open.
26
May
19
12
Employers have had to make difficult decisions in the past couple months, and older workers seem to be a primary target for reduction in workforce. Before the economic shutdowns, the unemployment rate for those 55 and older was around 3.5%. Now it is 13.6%. Women over 55 are higher at 15.5%.
5
Under OSHA guidelines and the tacit approval of the EEOC, when bringing employees back to work, employers may monitor employee temperatures. To do so, employers are considering options ranging from standard thermometer guns to more sophisticated social-distancing and heat-detection cameras, some of which are paired with facial-recognition software that security officials can use to track and identify employees who may show symptoms of COVID-19.
The biggest fear for employers is what to do if an employee who came back to work is later diagnosed with COVID-19. Are employers liable for these situations?
28
Apr
One of the hardest things for HR to do is to say “no.” Fires and more fires have to be attended to, even if it isn’t in the HR bailiwick. Not everything is important, yet we tend to treat it all at the same level. So how does HR say no when that word isn’t in the HR customer service lingo?
In today’s current environment, many organizations have either furloughed or temporarily laid off their employees. Does the WARN Act apply to these situations? In 1988 Congress passed the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act to provide workers with enough time to prepare for the transition between the jobs they currently hold and new jobs.
21
14
7
31
Mar
One of the most frequently asked questions is whether the shelter-at-home order falls under Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (EPSLA) and equates with the word “isolation” provided in Executive Order 2020-21. The likely answer is no, and most are treating it that way, but a court may end up making the final interpretation.
24
17
10
3
Facial recognition software is becoming less niche and more prevalent in everyday life. Facial recognition is a biometric technology that uses distinguishable facial features to identify a person. The issue is whether our rights to privacy are outweighed by images found on the internet.
25
Feb
Currently, the Coronavirus is slowing down in China but is seeing increasingly greater spreading to other parts of the world. As of Monday, Chinese official figures released showed there had been 409 new cases of the Novel Coronavirus and 150 new deaths from the outbreak in China, bringing the total confirmed cases to 77,150, with a cumulative death toll of 2,592.
18
It’s anyone’s guess. Just last week the parties to the EEO-1 Component 2 lawsuit agreed that collection can stop. The trial court’s order last Monday February 10th stated that as of February 6, 2020, 88.8% of eligible filers have submitted EEO-1 Component 2 data for calendar year 2017, and 89.6% of eligible filers have submitted such data for calendar year 2018.
11
From technology to employee and applicant expectation, HR is never going to be the same. And depending on the administrations, additional costs and burdens will have to be accounted for, while working with a much smaller staff and budget. An election is coming up again-2016 déjà vu it seems. Technology is moving so fast, and budgets cannot keep up.
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