Happy Independence Day!

The words of Thomas Jefferson found in the Declaration of Independence never fail to stir my heart.  So perfect was his work that the Committee of Five (among them Ben Franklin and Sam Adams) changed only 2 words.  Jefferson then had to sit through editing by members...

Can Underperformers Be Helped?

       The short answer is “yes.”  The “how” is the hard part.  Most all managers have had the experience of supervising a poor performer.  The typical response is to adopt a “wait and see” approach in the hope the individual will self-correct.  This hardly ever...

NLRB Muddies the Waters of Non-Retaliation Policies

         In its never ending quest to make the workplace virtually unmanageable, the Board has come out with another gem bound to vex human resources professionals.  Naturally the decision applies to both non-union and unionized employers, throwing a wrench into...

What do Yesterday’s SCOTUS Rulings Mean to Employers?

         The Supreme Court issued two decisions yesterday.  One has implications for state governments as employers, and the other has implications for the Affordable Care Act. Harris v. Quinn involved the complaint of Harris, mother of a disabled son who, as his...

The Shape Of Things To Come

Based on the contours established over the last four months we now have enough information on the ambitious launch of the Affordable Care Act to begin to understand the shape of things to come.  The intended objective of the Act (The practical elimination of uninsured...

HHS Moves the Goal Posts Again On The ACA

   The Obama Administration announced changes last Friday in dates relevant to open enrollment in 2014; it also announced that 2013 enrollees will have until December 23rd to pay for insurance coverage beginning January 1, 2014 (the previous deadline was December 15)....

Supreme Court To Hear Three Cases of Importance to HR

  The Supreme Court is back in session.  Three cases of importance to Human Resources professionals bear watching: Lawson v. FMR LLC (Fidelity Investments) Lawson v. FMR LLC asks the Supreme Court to determine whether an employee of a privately-held contractor or...