When Colorado decriminalized the use of marijuana on January 1, 2014, many employees thought it would be safe to engage in their pastime on lunch breaks and outside work without fear of repercussions from their employer. After all, the citizens of that state scored an apparent victory by “legalizing” the use of pot. Unfortunately, employees… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Employment Policies
Working With Words: GM’s List of Banned Words for Employees
“Hindenburg,” “powder keg,” “Titanic,” and “apocalyptic.” These words probably aren’t banned in your office, but General Motors instructed employees to avoid using these and other words and phrases—68 total—in internal communications about safety issues. Words like “deathtrap,” “widowmaker,” and “rolling sarcophagus,” are out, as are phrases such as “This is a death trap waiting to… Read More
Some Government Employees Get to "Double Dip"
When the federal government shut down for sixteen days in October, it left approximately 400,000 employments across the United States effectively jobless. A small percentage of these employees applied for unemployment benefits during that time, and some of them were approved and actually received benefits. However, now that Congress approved back pay for the furloughed… Read More
So Cliché: Why Workplace Jargon Has Got To Go
From coast to coast, cubicle to cubicle, workplace jargon is collectively despised. Words like value add, impactful, and brainstorm usually induce more cringes than work product. That’s why crossing certain words off your workplace vocab list could help you cross things off your to-do list. The Problem With Jargon Workplace jargon is more than an… Read More
Bus Driver Fired For Facebook Post Sues
A Georgia school bus driver claims he was fired for speaking on behalf of hungry school children. The Times-Georgian reports on the bus driver, Johnny Cook, who worked for the Haralson County School System, when he complained about the school system’s school lunch policy on his personal Facebook page. Cook claimed a child told him… Read More
Walmart Distributor Settles Huge Labor Case
Yet again, multi-billion dollar retail giant Walmart recently found itself making employment news headlines. Earlier this year, one of Walmart’s largest distributors, Schneider Logistics, settled a labor dispute case with hundreds of workers for millions of dollars. Though Schneider Logistics agreed to pay the workers, the company refused to admit fault for any wage or… Read More
Taco Bell Employees Shut Homeless Man In Dumpster
A Taco Bell manager made the news recently for allegedly telling his employees to lock a sleeping homeless man in the restaurant’s dumpster. According to the article, a customer, Jacob Cook, at the Redding, California Taco Bell, overheard employees tell their manager about a homeless man sleeping in the dumpster. The customer claims he heard… Read More
New Background Check Policies For Bank Contractors
New background check procedures for banks and their foreclosure agents will hopefully address a widespread and troubling problem in the industry. A recent Huffington Post article highlighted a number of instances in which individuals responsible for maintaining and inspecting homes up for foreclosure have broken in, stolen items and even changed the locks on homes… Read More
Not Everything an Employee Posts on Facebook is Protected Speech
Many Americans believe that their right to free speech under the First Amendment of the United States protects their right to say whatever they want on social media. Furthermore, many people believe that their personal social media accounts should be their own business, and should not affect their professional lives. In many instances this is… Read More
An Employee’s Right to View Personnel Records in Oregon
Oregon employers are required to keep certain records on hand for each employee, compiled in a personnel file. These records are highly important in case an employee believes he or she has suffered discrimination, wage and hour violations, any form of retaliation, or wrongful termination. While employees should know their rights regarding their access to… Read More