We just released our first Webinar on our site "Employee Handbook". The Webinar is under 7 minutes in length and gives great information about the topic.

Click here to view the Webinar.

Labels: Webinars

Another way the stimulus law could endure is by launching broader health care reform. It contains $19 billion to establish a national health information technology system to support computerized medical records for every American by 2014.

Continue reading this story here.

Labels: Employers, Human Resource, law, Politics

No-layoff policies have become one of the many victims of the current recession.

Enterprise Rental Car long prided itself on not laying off workers during its 51-year history. But in November, the St. Louis-headquartered company announced the elimination of more than 1,000 jobs. Gentex Corp., a Zeeland, Mich., auto parts suppliers that had long avoided layoffs, announced in December it would be laying off as many as 400 employees.

Continue reading this story here.

Labels: Employees, Employers

Monster.com is advising its users to change their passwords after data including e-mail addresses, names and phone numbers were stolen from its database.

The break-in comes just as the swelling ranks of the unemployed are turning to sites like Monster.com to look for work.

Continue reading this story here.

Labels: News

Long backed by the U.S. tech industry as crucial to American competitiveness, H-1Bs let computer programmers, electronics engineers and other skilled workers stay in the country for up to six years.

Find out what is progressing with this topic in Washington.

Continue reading story here.

Labels: Employees, Politics

On January 29, 2009, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law with an effective date of May 28, 2007, which is the day before the Ledbetter decision.

What this means is that an employee may come back and sue you today for what they believe was a “discriminatory” pay decision – even if it happened years ago! Under the bill, as long as workers file charges within 300 or 180 days of a discriminatory paycheck, depending on the state where they live, their charges would be considered timely. Any federal cases currently pending that were filed after May 28, 2007 will be subject to this new law.

The Lilly Ledbetter bill restores the rights of workers to fight pay discrimination. This bill’s passing has opened up the window to file a lawsuit if an employee feels that they have not been fairly paid for the job they do.

Some experts say that this bill will create an increase in lawsuits, potentially subjecting businesses to expensive litigation. This may or not be the case, but it does require action on the part of the employer to review his own practices regarding compensation for all employees.

Our advice to an employer is, begin your audit now:

• Examine current compensation policies. If you maintain a policy of carrying out performance evaluations, follow your policy consistently
• Review job descriptions
• Properly train supervisors and managers who make decisions on compensation and/or promotions

The bottom line: Employers should take steps now to evaluate their exposure, train employees responsible for decisions that influence compensation, and make necessary modifications to their pay equity.

At ESG republic, we are committed to helping our current clients as well as future clients in finding the best solutions for their business.

Written By
Karen Burns
Human Resources Specialist

Labels: Human Resource, law, President

President Barack Obama on Wednesday imposed a $500,000 cap on senior executive pay for the most distressed financial institutions receiving taxpayer bailout money and promised new steps to end a system of "executives being rewarded for failure."

Obama announced the unusual government intervention into corporate America at the White House, with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner at his side. The president said the executive-pay limits are a first step, to be followed by the unveiling next week of a sweeping new framework for spending what remains of the $700 billion financial industry bailout that Congress created last year.

Continue reading this story here on Yahoo News

Labels: Politics, President

New supervisors are eager to show that they are "boss," and they may think that harsh discipline is the way to establish themselves. That is often not the best way to get individuals moving and to keep up department morale, says attorney Jeffrey Wortman.

Continue reading this story here by HR Daily Advisor

Labels: Employers, Human Resource

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has delayed by 60 days, until April 3, 2009, the effective date for using the revised Form I-9, originally scheduled to go into effect today. Please note: Employers who use the new form prior to the April 3, 2009 effective date are subject to civil monetary penalties.

Labels: Human Resource, law

I had received a call from an employee in regards to his new pay structure. Due to the present economy downfall, his company implemented a new pay structure in hopes to save money and create a different motivational incentive for their employees by paying on a per complete piece rate versus a sales commission. It was apparent he did not agree with the new pay structure.

He expressed that he understood his company’s needs but as an employee the new pay structure motivated him to not work as hard. If he was getting paid on a piece rate then it motivated him not to sell which what the company really needed in a time like this. I explained I understood his concern but at this point it was what his company wanted to implement at this moment and to give it some time.

Anytime our client approaches us with big changes that affect personnel, we collaboratively determine if this is a good move or not. If you are considering any change, I recommend you take the following steps:

1. Determine Goal – Is your goal to cut cost? Reduce turnover? Whatever your goal is get input from all points of the organization so you can understand how a change can influence different departments. Do a thorough need assessment.
2. Communicate - Top management must communicate to employees and to all areas of the organization. This is a vital step in the process of change. Communication is the key to change.
3. Implement – Now it is time to put your plan into action. Do this carefully and make sure you have thoroughly thought your plan through.
4. Evaluate – Determine if you are meeting your goal. See if your plan is working or if you need to modify your goal.
5. Reevaluate – You may reevaluate a year or two from the time you implemented a change so you can really determine if your initial plan was successful. Remember change is always ongoing so you will need to reevaluate your plans on a consistent basis.

Change in an organization is not always pleasant. No matter how big or small or the size of your organization, change is ongoing and can make employees very nervous. But remember it is not ‘things’ that change, but people. People change and we must learn to manage those who are resistant to change and create small goals to fulfill the big picture.

Written By
Silver Arias, PHR
Human Resources Specialist

Labels: Employees, Employers, Human Resource