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What I've Been Reading This Week: HR Edition


This week I came across several great HR related articles that I wanted point out for readers.  In particular, the article on the tips for investigating workplace complaints was one of my favorites and highly applicable to most/all employers.

As always, below are a few articles that caught my eye this week.


What Employers and Employees Can Learn From the Tom Brady Situation

The HR Capitalist has some great HR related articles that I always enjoy reading through.  This particular note on the Tom Brady situation jumped out at me in particular, as it gives employers and employees some good advice on what to do when caught in a situation where an employee is accused of lying.  Regardless of whether you are "defending the wall" for Brady or think the N.F.L. is on a witch hunt, this article has some practical advice that is worth a review.



I would be hard pressed to think of many employers who have never had to deal with a workplace complaint at one point or another.  As Casey Sullivan writes, there are seven tips that are suggested for how employers can investigate workplace complaints.  It is a short list, but well worth a read!



Ed Carlstedt incorporates a very useful Seinfeld analogy into how an employer should write employee performance evaluations to truly reflect an employee's performance, rather than taking the "easy" way out and sugar coating the review.  As the article notes, while it might be "easy" to write a positive review for an under performing employee (rather than being honest), this can come back to bite the employer later.  Word to the wise, when it is accurate, an employer needs to be brutally honest about under performing employees.  


Workplace Injuries: A Look at Cal/OSHA Procedures

Workplace injuries are an unfortunate matter that many HR offices have to deal with on a routine basis.  This article from Seyfarth Shaw has an interesting look at how some Cal/OSHA offices are handling the reporting requirements of workplace injuries.  As the article notes, California employers could face potential citations if they do not report incidents that have no relation to the work environment.  Tread carefully, California employers...


When A Subordinate Becomes Your FaceBook Friend...

Susan Hartmus Hiser has a good note on the often risky nature of accepting a friend request from a work subordinate on FaceBook.  As the article points out, while it may seem like a good way to build rapport with subordinates by engaging in social media activity together, it opens up a potential pandora's box of legal issues.  Like with any interaction between a supervisor and subordinate (especially on social media when posts, comments, etc. can be misconstrued or taken out of context), be careful.  Be very careful.

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