The most costly health concerns for businesses – heart conditions, hypertension, diabetes, etc. – could be improved or even prevented by making easy-to-adopt lifestyle changes. Kronos Optimal Health Company is making it easier for companies to tackle these costly problems by introducing a collection of innovative lifestyle management courses. These multi-session courses, held either at work sites or via the Web, ...

Pop-quiz: What does HR do? (Hint: “Get in the way” isn’t the right answer) I’ve heard a lot of answers to that question, but the one I like best is short and simple: HR aligns employee behaviors with business strategies. If you read my last article, then you already know how to conduct an analysis of your company’s competitive strategies. Today ...

Apr. 27-DEAR CARRIE: Many employees who work for our university system receive uniforms, ID cards, keys and other school property. But some don't bother to return that property after they quit. I have proposed holding onto the workers' final check until they return the stuff, but the human resources department said we can't legally withhold the money. The property loss, however, ...

As the recession puts pressure on pay and jobs, reward schemes can play a vital role in keeping employees motivated, says Amanda Wilkinson Cost-cutting is currently the number one priority for many organisations affected by the recession. But there is a danger that redundancies, forfeiture of bonuses, and pay and recruitment freezes are damaging employee morale at a time when organisations ...

The number of companies holding holiday parties is at 20-year low, according to a recent survey from executive-search firm Battalia Winston. But whether you're simply canceling a party, holding a potluck instead, or moving forward with your company's tradition, it's the unexpected gestures that will help you retain and motivate your staff over the long run. Consider these three suggestions you ...

Older workers are more vulnerable to losing their jobs than younger ones when companies cut costs. They know this instinctively, even though the law of the land forbids age-related discrimination. More experienced workers generally earn more than their younger counterparts. It's illegal to fire them based on age, but courts long have ruled that cost-cutting is an acceptable reason for firing ...

In a stark acknowledgment of the tough times ahead in the credit card industry, American Express Co. said Thursday that it plans to cut 7,000 jobs, or about 10 percent of its worldwide work force, in an effort to slash costs by $1.8 billion in 2009. The New York-based credit card issuer said it is also suspending management level salary increases ...

The challenge was clear: In 2004, expansion and turnover would force The Home Depot to hire 135,000 new workers. Where would they come from? Executives at the Atlanta-based company recognized the need to look at nontraditional workers, such as school bus drivers who work odd hours. But they also realized there is an enormous, untapped pool of potential employees: Older workers. ...

It appears that Human Resources Outsourcing (HRO) is finally delivering on its initial promises. This is potentially good news for organizations embarking on HR Transformation which has, to date, often failed to live up to ambitious claims of process improvements and cost savings. In a recent survey by IT research and advisory company Gartner, (reported in the Times), asking whether outsourcing ...

This is week two of my twelve week preparation for the Professional in Human Resources Certification exam. This is the link to the first week, in case you would like to start at the beginning. A New Resource Well, my first real week of studying (and my second week overall) has gone by, and I feel pretty good. I had my ...

NEW YORK — A prominent women's rights lawyer has been sued for sexual harassment by a former female office manager at his Manhattan firm. Lisa Brockington says in the lawsuit filed Wednesday in Manhattan that Jack Tuckner asked whether she had three-way sex and asked her other questions about her sex life. She also says Tuckner "demeaned all the women who ...

By Dave Mendoza, Networking Evangelist, Cybersleuth Talent Researcher and Author, SixDegreesfromDave.com • Client Listing Brief • RecruitingBlogs Profile • Linkedin Profile • Twitter • Facebook • Bluerio Website • Insightisync • Personal Website • Email Jessi Jessi LaCosta is one of the leading authorities who focuses on organizational effectiveness through Brand Leadership, Visioning and Strategic Planning Facilitation for nonprofits as well ...

The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) would make it easier for workers to unionize in the U.S. The bill would allow workers to skip the lengthy process of a National Labor Relations Board election and unionize if a simple majority sign authorization cards, a process called "card check." If Democrats win more congressional seats and the White House, most observers say, ...

Few human resources topics get more attention in the courts than those involving company policies. Maybe that’s why a quick Google search produces page upon page of suggestions and tools to help companies develop their policies. So, exactly what is the connection between company policy and the law? Edwin Zalewski, a human resources subject matter expert with J. J. Keller & ...

Eve Gelb's life was once a blur of hour-and-a-half commutes on the 405 Freeway in Los Angeles. What memories: The NPR fatigue. The stale minivan air. The deep identification with the characters in Waiting for Godot. But that's all in the past. Gelb, a project manager at a giant HMO, SCAN Health Plan, has given up her Ethan Allen-style office, yanked ...

According to a new survey from The Vitality Group, a member of Discovery Holdings Limited, the vast majority of Americans (82 percent) believe that they alone are responsible for their health. They also agree that lifestyle choices, such as smoking and exercise, have a direct impact on their healthcare costs. Yet when asked who should pay these healthcare costs, nearly half ...

Here’s a cheerful message for the holiday season: Leaders, when’s the last time you axed an underperforming manager? Never? Really? Then you’re not leading. Does this sound a little harsh? Like a chapter right out of “Tony Soprano on Management”? I’m really not heartless, really. In fact, I’m talking about one of the most compassionate things you’ll ever do as a ...

When suspected drug use turned a model worker named Amber into an unpredictable threat to the business—and she was even caught snorting a powdered substance in the ladies room—her boss Liz deduced she was using cocaine. To help, she left drug counseling pamphlets on Amber's desk and asked that she seek help. But all that resulted was a vigorous denial from ...

In the weeks and months ahead, millions of American workers will be making their employee benefit decisions during their employer’s fall “Open Enrollment” period – often the one time of the year when employees can make changes to their employee benefit selections for the coming year. MetLife, which provides employee benefits to more than 61,000 companies in the U.S. reaching nearly ...

Q: Can I ask for details regarding an employee's note from a doctor? We have several employees (one in particular) with chronic attendance issues. They all return with a doctor's note (per our employee policy) after an absence of three consecutive days. The doctor's note is a one line, vague statement. A: Are you capable of understanding medical terms to use ...