HRMagazine back issues from January 2009:
HR resolutions for a happier New Year.(From the CEO)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Every January, millions of people resolve to start the year with a new sense of purpose. But as each New Year unfolds, resolutions often fall by the wayside and many of us succumb to the lure of the comfortable and familiar. This New Year ought to be different, especially for HR ...
Don't let layoffs eclipse love of HR.(From Readers)(Letter to the editor)
Jan 01, 2009 ... Bravo to Laurence O'Neil for his piece "Navigating a Stormy Economy" (November). For those of us who have been in human resources for many years, the experience of previous tough economic times will guide us in dealing with the current crisis. Many of us practically wrote the book on how ...
Online applicant systems too impersonal.(From Readers)(Letter to the editor)
Jan 01, 2009; ... October's "Manage Candidates Right from the Start" immediately caught my attention. My son, a recent college graduate, has been looking for a job for several months. I have shared my suggestions for a successful job search, but have been truly shocked at the methods currently ...
DOL issues final family, Medical Leave changes.(News)(Department of Labor)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Final revisions to regulations governing the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) will take effect Jan. 16 and help clarify employer and employee responsibilities under the law. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Representatives of business groups said that U.S. Department of ...
Many federal contractors now must use E-Verify.(News)(electronic employment verification regulation)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Starting Jan. 15, under executive orders from the Bush administration, federal contractors and subcontractors will be required to use E-Verify--the electronic employment verification system run by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The new E-Verify regulation will apply ...
Obama transition team's EEO policy protects gender identity.(News)(Barack Obama)(equal employment opportunity)
Jan 01, 2009; ... When the new web site for the transition office of President-elect Barack Obama went live on Nov. 6, 2008, the office's new equal employment opportunity (EEO) policy grabbed the attention of diversity and human rights activists. The policy, which is included as part of the job ...
Final rules on Mothers' and Newborns' benefits in effect.(Briefs)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... The Newborns' and Mothers' Health Protection Act of 1996 rules took effect Dec. 19, 2008, for health plans beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2009. Group health plans and health issuers may not restrict benefits for a hospital stay in connection ...
Expanded FSA debit card rules take effect in 2009.(Briefs)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... As a result of IRS regulations effective Jan. 1, the number of pharmacies and drugstores that accept a health care flexible spending account debit card for payment and that use an ...
Executive pay drops 4 percent in 2008.(Briefs)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... The average total compensation of the highest-paid executives at U.S. publicly traded companies fell by 4 percent in the year preceding November 2008, according ...
$1,000 deductibles now the norm.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... U.S. employers held health benefit cost increases to about 6 percent in 2008 for a fourth straight year, but that's meant shifting more cost to employees. The median deductible required by employers for individual coverage in preferred provider organization (PPO) health plans ...
Half of Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) sponsors now require a deductible of $1,000 or more for individual coverage.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... <Pre> Half of preferred provider organization (PPO) sponsors now require a deductible of $1,000 or more for individual coverage Percent of PPO sponsors Median deductible amongrequiring no deductible PPO sponsors requiring a ...
Final FMLA rule provides new certification forms.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... With the release of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) final rule on the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the days of a one-size-fits-all FMLA medical certification form soon will be over. Forms WH-380-E and WH-380-F. The rule, which takes effect Jan. 16, splits ...
Customers threatened with extortion after data breach.(News)(Express Scripts Inc.)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... At least 75 prescription drug plan enrollees or others with records maintained by the pharmacy benefit management giant Express Scripts might be vulnerable to identity theft following a security breach the company learned about in early October 2008. St. Louis-based Express Scripts ...
Dealing with a privacy violation.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... If customers' or employees' personal information is stolen from a company, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) suggests that businesses notify the people or entities affected and provides these tips: * Consult with your law enforcement contact about the timing of the ...
As markets swoon, employees choose safer 401 (k) havens.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Despite 2008's stock market plunge, most U.S. employees are staying the course on retirement saving by continuing to participate in their 401 (k) plans, according to an analysis by HR consultancy Hewitt Associates of 2.7 million U.S. employees. But more are shifting assets from stocks to ...
Sign of the times: temp-to-perm attorneys.(News)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Managers of a growing number of I law firms believe that the "temp-to-I perm" model is the best way to hire their professional staffs, according to Susan Etheridge, president of Professional Placement Services Inc. in Tampa, Fla. With the economic downturn, Etheridge says, law ...
House passes pension relief.(News)(Congress. House )(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... The U.S. House of Representatives scaled back requirements in the Pension Protection Act (PPA) to fully fund defined benefit plans. If left unchanged, companies and business groups said, the PPA could force them to make job cuts as ...
Unemployment benefits extended.(News)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... President Bush signed legislation that extended unemployment insurance benefits through the end of 2008 and into 2009 in states where the jobless rate is above 6 percent. The ...
Gap between rich and poor grows.(News)(Report)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released a report that says the gap between the rich and poor is growing and that children and ...
Employers 'vote' on health care platforms.(News)(Survey)
Jan 01, 2009; ... The majority of U.S.-based employers want to continue to provide M health care coverage yet oppose a government mandate to do so, a survey indicates. The poll, conducted by Buck Consultants, finds that employers prefer a middle ground when it comes to health care proposals. A ...
When it doesn't pay to stay.(Executive Briefing)(Career development)
Jan 01, 2009; ... So much for sticking with the sinking ship. To salvage their careers, financial executives at shaky companies should get out before the boats go down, at least according to recent research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Bloomington. An analysis of the ...
Uncovering offshoring's invisible costs.(Executive Briefing)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... You probably consider cultural fit when vetting a local job applicant. But probably not when deciding where to open a new call center. And that could cost you, according to the Journal of Operations Management. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] About half of offshore service ...
Falling stock values Erode bonus pool.(Executive Briefing)(Survey)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Younger workers may have been able to shrug off news about declining stock prices and retirement portfolios. But they might not be as callous to news about their diminishing prospects for a raise. A survey of 151 U.S. companies by New York-based Deloitte Consulting in September ...
Most employers require waivers for severance pay.(Executive Briefing)(Survey)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Companies forced to lay off workers don't want to add to their burdens with litigation, respondents to a Society for Human Resource Management online survey suggest. Nearly three-quarters of some 400 human resource professionals responding to a survey last March answered "Yes" ...
Complaints, workforce composition, productivity, organizational values.(Solutions)
Jan 01, 2009; ... I just got an anonymous call feeding me negative information about an employee. Should I take this kind of call seriously? How much credence to give anonymous calls is a matter of opinion and judgment. In some cases, anonymous calls are made by people not associated with the ...
One workforce--many languages: many U.S. employers are investing in English classes to upgrade immigrant workers' skills.(Cover story)
Jan 01, 2009; ... On a steamy July afternoon, Antonia Diaz makes her way to a worktable in the bowels of a dusty construction pit outside Washington, D.C., and heaves a circular saw onto a plywood sheet. With her eyes fixed on the wood, she painstakingly makes the first cut in her latest ...
Civic lessons: extensive government experience taught incoming SHRM board chair Robb Van Cleave that the public and private sectors can learn from each other.(Q&A)(Interview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Robb E. Van Cleave, SPHR, IPMA-CP, begins a two-year term this month as chair of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Board of Directors. A SHRM member for more than 17 years, Van Cleave has been part of the Society's volunteer structure at every level: He has served as a ...
Mission: recruitment: the U.S. Army is joining forces with employers to tackle the job of matching soldiers, skills--and opportunities.(Workforce Readiness)
Jan 01, 2009; ... For organizations that need to recruit high numbers of entry-level workers and specialists, there may be no better sourcing strategy than cultivating a candidate-client relationship with one of their biggest recruiting competitors: the United States Army. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...
Lessons from the financial services crisis: danger lies where questionable ethics intersect with company and individual incentives.(Performance Management)(Company overview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... The financial world has taken the nation on a roller coaster. Consider the collapse of Lehman Brothers, a venerable investment bank in operation since 1844; the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America; the federal bailout of insurance giant AIG; and the government takeover of two major ...
Curing what ails performance reviews: remedies for improving annual appraisals.
Jan 01, 2009; ... Plenty of managers and employees, and maybe some HR professionals, would love to attend a funeral for the dreaded performance review. At best, many regard the performance appraisal process as a meaningless annual rite that force-fits complicated human beings into simplified numeric or ...
Training on a shoestring: even during a moratorium on expenditures, you can adopt tactics to maintain training momentum.(Training Agenda)
Jan 01, 2009; ... In March 2007, as Michigan faced a severe budget deficit, Gov. Jennifer Granholm ordered a moratorium on training expenditures for state employees. Her directive required that training outlays be deferred and limited to the most essential requirements. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...
Layoffs in Europe: deal or no deal? Employers must use all their negotiating skills, not just their checkbooks, when planning layoffs in the European Union.(Global HR Agenda)(Company overview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... As retailers filled with shoppers last holiday season, the second-oldest department store in Paris stood silent and empty for the fourth consecutive December. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Established in 1870, La Samaritaine has survived two world wars and outlived many ...
Meetings go virtual: web-conferencing tools aid collaboration, help slash travel costs.(HR Technology)(EMC Corp. (Hopkinton, Massachusetts))(Conference news)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Each month, Peter Quirk, senior consulting program manager within the HR Office of Operations at EMC Corp., a global provider of information infrastructure technology and tools, runs the company's Global HR Program Management meeting using Microsoft Office Live Meeting web-conferencing ...
'Sales leaders' eligible for overtime.(Court Report)(Hopkins v. Cornerstone America)(Case overview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Hopkins v. Cornerstone America, 5th Cir., No. 07-10952 (Oct. 13, 2008). The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals determined that a group of insurance company "sales leaders" were owed overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), treating the workers as employees even ...
Violation of drug policy grounds for termination.(Court Report)(Case overview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Kosmicki v. Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co., 8th Cir., No. 08-1511 (Oct. 27, 2008). A company lawfully terminated a train conductor who was taking prescription drugs when he failed to provide accurate information in a medical screening and violated the company's drug ...
Stock grant to employees did not violate NLRA.(Court Report)(National Labor Relations Board)(Case overview)
Jan 01, 2009; ... UNITE HERE v. NLRB, 2nd Cir., No. 06-4440-ag (Oct. 14, 2008). The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals enforced a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision rejecting Section 8(a) National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) charges against an employer for a one-time gift of 100 shares ...
Make a resolution: ADA training: now is the time for stand-alone, dedicated coursework.(Legal Trends)
Jan 01, 2009; ... As the New Year rang in, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Amendments Act took effect, bringing millions more people within the ADA's protection. The ADA Amendments Act's (ADAAA) vast expansion of "disability" means that many more applicants and employees are eligible for ...
HR Certification eligibility tightened.(Inside SHRM)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Beginning in 2011, HR professionals who want to sit for one of the HR Certification Institute's exams will face stricter eligibility requirements. After conducting focus groups and surveys of more than 14,000 HR professionals, business leaders, students and academicians, the HR ...
Chapters, council receive Pinnacle Awards for outstanding programs.(Inside SHRM)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... From economic diversity to business and community outreach, and from workforce readiness to professional development via webinar, Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) chapters and state councils seek to help their members do their jobs better, their business peers to understand HR ...
Diversity speakers encourage innovation, global mindset.(Inside SHRM)(Society for Human Resource Management)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009; ... Academy Award nominee Terrence Howard opened the 2008 SHRM Diversity Conference & Exposition, held in Atlanta from Oct. 27-29, 2008. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Howard told attendees that what unites human beings is much greater than what divides them. "We all face the ...
Meet the 2009 SHRM Board of Directors.(Inside SHRM)(Society for Human Resource Management)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... Chair Robb E Van Cleave, SPHR, IPMA-CP Chief Talent and Strategy Officer Columbia Gorge Community College The Dalles, Ore. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Immediate Past Chair Janet N. Parker, SPHR Executive ...
Employee assistance.(What's New)(ValueOptions Inc.)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... ValueOptions Inc. has launched an outreach and communications program to help corporate clients in addressing their employees' financial concerns and problems. The purpose of this client communications initiative is to improve financial literacy among employees and provide coping ...
Employee benefits.(What's New)(HighRoads Inc. )(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... HighRoads Inc. has announced the debut of HR Compare, an employee benefits benchmark reporting service based on HighRoads' benchmarking tool, The Lab. HR Compare delivers customized employee benefit benchmark data in personalized reports that can be itemized into various criteria including ...
Mergers and acquisitions.(What's New)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... For anyone looking to buy, sell or merge a business, BizBuySell.com has launched a new customizable online tool designed to help determine comparable business valuations. The new report has added criteria and interactive features-to create an accurate business valuation tool. When creating ...
Staffing.(What's New)(DriverSource Inc. has launched www.mySplake.com)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... DriverSource Inc. has launched www.mySplake.com, anew web site and online resource designed to match the skill sets and experience of job seekers with job openings. The mySplake system uses a newly developed job-matching technology that sorts through the key areas of job candidates' ...
Talent management.(What's New)
Jan 01, 2009 ... Zapoint has launched Zapoint Enterprise, giving executives a powerful new tool for identifying, hiring, managing and retaining individuals who add value to their organizations. Zapoint Enterprise achieves this difficult task by using a proprietary "talent currency" that expresses talent in ...
Training and development.(What's New)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... The Essential Employee is a new online resource designed to develop a capable workforce. It can be adapted by any employee orientation or workforce preparation program. The new web site (www.essentialemployee.com) features an array of information and links to The Essential Career ...
Workplace management.(What's New)(Harris, Rothenberg International)(Brief article)
Jan 01, 2009 ... Harris, Rothenberg International has released a new workforce report, When the Golden Rule No Longer Applies: The Multigenerational Workplace. This report gives advice to employers on ways to tailor efforts in managing and working with workers from ...
Yellow pages: Guide to HR products & services.
Jan 01, 2009 ... BENEFITS EyeMed Vision Care 4000 Luxottica Place Mason, OH 45040 866-4EYEMED eyemedmarketing@eyemedvisioncare.com www.eyemedvisioncare.com EyeMed Vision Care is a leading vision benefits company focused on eye ...
Relocation Buyers' Guide: company listings do not imply recommendation or referral by SHRM.
Jan 01, 2009 ... COMPUTER/HRIS People-Trak 5256 South Mission Road, Ste. 802 Bonsall, CA 92003 800-809-5731 Fax: 866-693-4868 sales@people-trak.com www.people-trak.com For more than 16 years, People-Trak has been ...
Human resources gets religion.(Future Focus)
Jan 01, 2009; ... As the workforce becomes more influenced by trends in globalization, some demographers say, religious diversity in the United States will increase. This is drawing attention to issues of religious accommodation in U.S. workplaces. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Human ...