Category: Human Resources

To Camp or Not To Camp?

Ghost_RanchEvery summer, parents face the daunting decision of whether or not to send their children to camp.  What kind of camp to choose?  Day camp?  Sleep-away?

The summer camp experience offers children so many life lessons, such as teamwork, resilience and decision making.  Skills that are useful throughout adulthood. Not to mention a week or more break for parents!  I will never forget my time spent at Ghost Ranch Vocal Camp.  Todd Kestin feels the same way,  5 Ways Summer Camp Helps Your Child Prepare for Adulthood

Job Well Done?

1351888275303_8129641A four-question performance review? One that focuses on what the employee is doing currently, instead of the distant past? The consulting firm Deloitte is experimenting with this four-question review model, two of which are yes or no questions.  Imagine being judged for the quality of your work, right at that moment.  Novel idea.

What if you could replace performance evaluations with four simple questions?

Equal Pay for Equal Work?

800px-wall_street_signDoes your company have practices in place to examine the pay gaps between men and women?  Do you have any idea if the man in the cubicle next to you makes more for the same work?  Many companies are beginning to take a serious look at these inequalities using special programs that compare a list a variables.  Some even offer their managers a salary calculator for use during hiring.  The glass ceiling manifests in many ways and at different levels depending on the company.  Kimberly-Clark, maker of Kotex and Huggies diapers, built an analytics team over the last few years, which includes regular pay equity reporting. But the team also identified points where women were hitting a glass ceiling…

Vigilant Eye on Gender Pay Gap

Having an “Office Space” Moment?

man-in-prison-behind-bars-jail Pop-culture has led us to believe that we are entitled to well paying, enjoyable jobs in a fun office environment with quirky co-workers and a boss who appreciates our every talent.  What happens when our jobs are far from this fairytale?  Turns out, we can take steps to make our employment work for us and possibly even make ourselves better humans in the process. nyti.ms/1o5f9N8

The Heat is on Contract Labor

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The Wall Street Journal reports that the IRS and the Department of Labor (DOL) are increasing the pressure on employers to properly classify their workers through payroll audits.  A goal has been set to investigate 6,000 employers. The authors write:

The U.S. Treasury estimates that forcing employers to properly classify their workers—while tightening so-called “safe harbor” rules that provide them with leeway in determining who is and isn’t an employee—would yield $8.71 billion in added tax revenue over the next decade.

 

The new water cooler

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But in a series of recent rulings and advisories, labor regulators have declared many such blanket restrictions illegal. TheNational Labor Relations Board says workers have a right to discuss work conditions freely and without fear of retribution, whether the discussion takes place at the office or on Facebook.

Read more of the article by Steven Greenhouse
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