Hiring & Firing

SURVEY: If I custom-designed a one-hour HR-compliance session for you, what topic would you select?

May 29, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

By AlphaZeta – Own work, CC0, Link

Can you help me out?

It’ll only take a sec. Continue reading

If you use a third-party to drug test job applicants, then stop what you’re doing and read this post!

May 25, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: Pixabay.com (https://pixabay.com/en/fish-hook-symbol-silhouette-icon-304097/)

On a clickbait scale of 1-10, maybe a 9.

I wonder how many burritos a former Chipotle GM accused of stealing $626 can buy with her $7.97 million jury award

May 15, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Mikebay1968 at English Wikipedia [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], from Wikimedia Commons

Spoiler alert: A lot.

Yep, last Thursday, a California jury awarded $7.97 million to a woman who claimed that he employer fired her in retaliation for claiming workers’ compensation benefits.

And even though the case settled on Monday, while you were getting your blockchain on, I think that the plaintiff can spring for extra guac…for all of us. Continue reading

What HR needs to know about blockchain. Or, put another way, HR needs to know about blockchain.

May 14, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: Pixabay.com (https://pixabay.com/en/blockchain-block-chain-technology-3019120/)

You’ve heard of the blockchain, right?

But, if I asked you to explain it to me, half you would say, “Yeah, dude. Bitcoin.” The other half, well, I’m thinking I’d get something like this…

Don’t worry.

In this post, I’m going to turn you into a blockchain expert. Or, at least expert enough to hold a blockchain conversation during a 30-second elevator ride.

Heck, I’ll even share some HR applications to make you the envy of all your friends at the next local SHRM Chapter meeting. Continue reading

I’m gonna throw a little employment law at this Matt Patricia – Detroit Lions Sexual Assault saga

May 11, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

By Governor Tom Wolf from Harrisburg, PA [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

On February 5, 2018, the Detroit Lions named former New England Patriots Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia as the team’s new Head Coach.

Maybe, Lions ownership missed Super Bowl LII and the 41 points that the Philadelphia Eagles dropped on Mr. Patricia’s garbage Patriots defense.

Oh, sorry.

The Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl LII victory over the New England Patriots, which gave the Eagles one more Super Bowl win (1) than the Dallas Cowboys have total playoff wins in the last 20 years (0), is not the point of this post.

The point is that, on Wednesday, Robert Snell of the Detroit News reported (here) that Mr. Patricia was indicted for aggravated sexual assault in 1996, something missed in the Lions background check.

And the real question is… Continue reading

Can you legally fire an employee who butt-dials you while talking smack about the company…to a co-worker?

April 13, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: YouTube Screenshot

I have trained you well. We’re gonna cut the ropes to let you fight Tong Po.

(Maybe, going with a random Kickboxer reference wasn’t the best metaphor for this audience.)

Ok, let’s start over. Continue reading

Can you legally fire an employee who butt-dials you while talking smack about the company?

April 12, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Taken with a selfie stick and way too much effort.

Easy there, folks. My servers can only handle so much traffic on a Thursday. Continue reading

Remember the woman fired for flipping off the Trump motorcade? Now, she’s suing.

April 9, 2018 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: Photofunia.com

Remember that time one of your employees:

rode her bike,
passed the President’s motorcade,
was photographed giving him the middle finger, and
became a national celebrity/spectacle (depending on your point of view)?

For an employee of a Virginia GOVERNMENT CONTRACTOR (oops!), it resulted in her termination of employment late last year. (More on that here.)

As I say a silent prayer to the blogging gods, read on as I discuss the lawsuit the cyclist just filed against her former employer and offer some practical advice for employers. Continue reading