A Houston manufacturing company has paid $1.6 million in back wages to 1,751 employee, a federal jury in Newark has awarded $2.5 million in damages to 343 sales managers employed by office superstore Staples and even the feds can’t keep overtime law straight. Overtime violations were on the rise this month. Here's a rundown of a few recent cases.
People Management
With some employees, it isn’t a matter of ability, it’s a matter of attitude. And while you can’t control someone’s horrible personality, you can decide how you’re going to respond. Use these scripts and strategies to confront problem employees and effectively manage employee discipline so you can bring motivating back to the forefront of your workday.
The first rule of people management is not to let one bad apple spoil your whole bunch. Difficult people can put a strain on the productive members of your team.
Make the most of your human capital. Browse our articles on the good, the bad and the ugly of People Management…
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
Imagine sitting in a staff meeting, and every time you offer a suggestion someone looks at you and shakes her head. Or a co-worker consistently “forgets” to invite you to meetings. It may seem trivial, but belittling behavior—or bullying—can take a toll, especially when it occurs over and over again.
What should you do if you learn that an employee who is out on FMLA leave will not be able to return when her 12 weeks of unpaid leave are up? If you are absolutely sure that she can’t claim she is disabled under the ADA, you can terminate her. But you still must continue providing any benefits she was receiving while on FMLA leave, such as medical premium payments.
It’s becoming a common problem: An employer discovers disparaging comments on an employee’s Facebook, MySpace or personal blog. Maybe a post reveals internal company information. Can the employer take disciplinary action? It depends.
Turning your back on difficult employees isn't just a management mistake, it can also create legal trouble. That's why, when confronted with employees who don't do what's asked, it's best to devise a strategy for making the best of a potentially explosive situation. Although it may be hard to transform a difficult employee into a warm, friendly ally, you can take the following steps to make it easier for the employee to comply.
Even the feds can’t keep overtime law straight. An arbitrator has ruled that the EEOC—of all agencies!—willfully violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by forcing employees to take comp time instead of overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours a week. Need more proof that there's an irony epidemic these days? Increasing numbers of lawsuits are being filed against ... lawyers!
Anytime you thrust people together, whether work related or family related, you come across a “toxic taker.” Toxic takers poison your environment, and you need to take action against them. Here are some survival tactics.
You can learn a lot about an employee during the first few weeks. Missing work then probably means attendance will be a problem later. Having stricter rules during the initial probationary period will help you weed out problem employees.
