I have two part-time security guards working at the same location. One of them works four nights a week; the other works three nights a week. We need security coverage at this site seven nights a week, 365 nights a year. How do I handle giving them the "holiday" time off they're entitled to if someone has to be there all the time?—Lisa D.

Two of our employees—a married couple—for years have requested extra unpaid time off for vacations. The husband works for me, the wife works for the company owner. We recently notified all employees that we would no longer grant any additional time off. I’ve made it clear to the husband that he won’t get any additional time off. The owner, on the other hand, sees no problem with giving both of them unpaid leave this year, even while other employees have to live with the new rule. How should I handle this?—J.L., Wisc.

What can I do about an employee who doesn’t sit upright in his chair in an ergonomically correct position? I don’t mean ordinary slouching; this guy practically lies down in his chair! When I catch him doing it, he straightens up, but then he goes right back to his original position. I have offered to provide any type of equipment that might help, but he doesn’t want anything. His main responsibilities involve talking on the phone and entering data. As the person in charge of workplace safety, I’m trying to prevent any injury claims. Can he be reprimanded or forced to comply? Any suggestions?—Tammy, CA

We have to lay off several employees. Some have only been with us a couple of years, but one has worked here for 13 years. We want to treat them right by providing severance pay, but I don't know how much is appropriate. Those of you who have been in this situation, how much severance did you offer?—Jason, Ga.

Like everyone else, we’ve been battered by the recession. We’ve started to turn things around, but our employees are pretty beat up by a tough business environment and a couple of layoffs we’ve had to do. Morale is poor. The general feeling is that we’re paddling like mad just to stay in the same place. Any ideas for inexpensive but meaningful ways to show staff that we appreciate their hard work and sacrifice during hard times?—Steve T., North Carolina

I'm a one-person HR department, but I know a lot about payroll from an earlier job. Our finance supervisor just quit, so now I'm doing that job too. The sole remaining finance employee got a raise to reflect his increased workload, but I haven't received any extra pay. How should I approach my boss to address this disparity?—B.G., Fla.

One of our employees would like us to designate a room as a playroom for kids. Employees could bring in their kids in case of some emergency—say, on a day that the babysitter doesn't show up. It sounds good in theory, but I'm concerned about insurance, bothering other employees and, especially, parent productivity. Any suggestions for making this work? — Gary, AZ

As the weather turns, many of our employees want to leave early on Fridays. I am wondering, does anyone have a seasonal flexible schedule plan that they use and would recommend? Can you share what your policy says?—Erika, MA

Our company is struggling to survive. One of our employees has demanded an increase in the bonus that we have traditionally paid in the past. We don’t know we will be able to afford bonuses this year, and we have spoken to him about the situation. Now he insists on bringing in a third person to negotiate on his behalf. He asked to see the company's financials, which the president agreed to show him this week. He says his negotiator—who, it turns out, is his girlfriend—“has coached many executives and companies in our exact situation.” He refuses to understand that the money is not there. He has a two-year contract that will expire in November 2009. How should we handle this situation?—MA

An employee asked for bereavement leave when his cousin died. I turned it down and made him take vacation time instead. I felt bad about doing so, but I believe our policy, which vaguely refers to "family members," means immediate family—spouses, children, brothers, sisters and parents. The employee is pretty ticked off about this. What do your policies say? Should we amend our policy?—Denise in SC

We have recently hired several part-time employees to gear up for what we hope will be a nice business rebound. Eventually we hope to make them full-timers, but that's going to take a while. In the meantime, we would like to encourage them to stay by offering a limited benefits package. How many hours should we require them to work before they're eligible for benefits?—Sari, Dallas

As we've downsized, several of our employees are working across different departments. As they've now got more than one boss, I'm wondering what's the best way to handle their performance reviews. Should one manager take the lead, or is there a realistic way for all to have equal input?—Joe D, New Jersey

"In the past we've turned a fairly blind eye when employeess have used company credit cards for personal expenses. As long as they wrote us a check right away, we let it slide. But now credit card issuers are lowering credit limits and raising interest rates even for good customers like my company. I feel like it's time to clamp down on personal use of our cards. Have any of you done this? Can you share some sample policy language I could borrow?"—Tim, Indianapolis

"My company has 200 employees. I want to replace our manual time clocks and punch cards with a computerized system. I have been looking for a vendor or a software package that can do that. Does anyone have any suggestions on who or what to choose? How much should I plan on spending? Is it difficult to get such a system up and running?"—Clyde W.

"Even as the local economy has tightened up, we're still hiring. But there's good news and bad news: because unemployment is high, we're getting lots of applications from unqualified people. I'd like to start an employee referral program to encourage our workers to recommend candidates. I hope that will give us a better quality applicant pool. How should I go about setting up such a program?"—Pete, Ala.

"I have reason to believe one of my employees in HR (who has access to everyone’s salary info) has been gossiping about what we pay various employees. I gave the standard speech about confidentiality during a meeting, but it seems this talk has continued. What’s next? An investigation? A stern but general talking to? A formal reprimand? I’m really dreading whatever it is."—HR DIR

“I’m desperately seeking salary information for both our industry and the geographic markets in which we operate. Can HR Weekly Forum readers steer me toward web sites that have this kind of information? Where else should I be looking besides on the Internet?”—Gloria, Kansas

Question: “Are there any particular laws or solid reasons that would prevent a company from instituting a leave donation program? This program would allow employees to donate accrued vacation hours to another employee of their choice who is out of leave and experiencing a hardship that requires them to be off without pay.” — William, Colorado

Question: “Utah state workers are switching to four-day workweeks. A Phoenix company is paying for gas money if employees put company ads on the sides of their cars. The ultimate goal: Retain and recruit good employees who are feeling the pinch of $4 gas. Is your organization taking any steps to help employees’ gas pains? Tell us your story by commenting below.” -- The HR Specialist Editors

Question: “We’re working with our insurance broker to figure out how we can continue to offer good benefits without raising our costs. She suggested increasing the amount employees contribute for health insurance. I’m sure we’ll face resistance, but it looks like that may be our only option. Who else has faced this dilemma? How much did you hike employee contributions? How did you sell it to employees? Are there other options to consider?”—Jim, SoCal

Question: We’re exploring the idea of setting up a tuition reimbursement plan. Our president believes this will help build our staff’s skills, and that employees will perceive it as a valuable benefit. I’ve done a little research on how to structure such plans, but I would like to hear some real-world feedback on what works, what doesn’t and what to watch out for. What kinds of provisions should we include in our tuition reimbursement benefit plan?—Beth, Maryland

Question: “Last year, our company quit calculating sick leave accrual and switched to a ‘use as needed’ sick leave policy. Now we’re seeing an increase in the number of sick days used across the organization. Managers are looking for some guidance on what’s a reasonable excuse for employees to take sick leave. I think we need a benchmark for what constitutes ‘sick.’ Does anyone have language or a policy that might help?”—Wanda, Maryland

Question: “We're going to be incredibly busy this summer, and I'm already worried about employees' vacations interfering with our delivery schedules. I want a system for employees to submit their summer vacation requests now. I hope that will let us make realistic staffing plans. But I know some staff are going to complain, and I’m worried that I’ll eventually have to disapprove some leave requests. What’s a fair way to handle this?” — Steve, IL

Question: “We've always been pretty informal about how we deal with comp time for exempt employees. Naturally, a couple of people have started abusing it, requesting time off every time they have to work at home at night or come in on a weekend. I'd like to develop a real policy to control how comp time is accrued and how it is granted. Any suggestions on how to do this?”—Callie, VA

Question: “With gas prices over $3 per gallon, we’re hearing grumbling from our road warriors that they need a higher per-mile reimbursement rate. We’re already above the IRS guidance. What are other organizations doing to cope with the rising price of gas?”—Trey, SLC