By Lynne Curry Question: Like many law offices, we want our staff to return to working on-site, but don’t want to force them to return and have many of them quit. We want our employees to want to return. How do we do that? Answer: A recent Wall Street Journal article said, “There is a magical land where the temperature is always 72 degrees, the Wi-Fi never goes down, and … [Read more...] about How you can lure your employees back to the office
Are religious exemptions a way out for employees or a tricky challenge for employers?
By Lynne Curry Question: If I’m to believe the stack of religious exemptions on my desk, a miracle unfolded in our company last week. Within days of announcing our mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, 90 percent of our unvaccinated employees found religion. I’m holding a dozen exemption requests that use an identical phrase, “This mandate directly affects my religious … [Read more...] about Are religious exemptions a way out for employees or a tricky challenge for employers?
What to do if an employee defies your mandatory vaccination policy
Mandatory vaccination policies have become a touchstone issue for employers in just about every industry. And all of this begs a question of crucial importance: What should you do when employees defy your law office’s mandatory vaccination policy? Your choices: Terminate them immediately Accommodate them immediately None of the above The answer is C, none of the above. … [Read more...] about What to do if an employee defies your mandatory vaccination policy
Religious discrimination and pitfalls for diversity efforts
By Mike O’Brien Religious discrimination An Asian-American engineer who worked for a municipal utility in Stockton, Calif., filed a lawsuit claiming that city officials belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the “Church”) sought to recruit, hire, and promote members of their own faith and that he was denied a promotion because he was a member of the … [Read more...] about Religious discrimination and pitfalls for diversity efforts
Don’t lose your new employees their first week
By Lynne Curry Employers regularly hire me to conduct exit interviews when promising new employees leave within their first six months. After conducting hundreds of interviews, I can document that newly hired employees decide what their employer is like and whether they will fit in and be successful during their first days and weeks. Here’s what employers, managers and … [Read more...] about Don’t lose your new employees their first week
Who knew vaccine requirements could be so much fun?
By Mike O’Brien As you might recall, in one of our previous updates we cautioned that implementing workplace-vaccination requirements could be a bit tricky. It turns out, we were right—just ask the federal government. On Nov. 5, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an Interim Final Rule regulating healthcare facilities (“Vaccination IFR”). The … [Read more...] about Who knew vaccine requirements could be so much fun?
Will employees resign rather than get vaccinated?
By Lynne Curry Many anti-vax employees threaten to quit when their employers announce they’re considering a vaccination mandate. This shakes the confidence of employers considering vaccination mandates. What’s the truth? Many employees remain vaccine skeptics; more than a third of U.S. adults remain unvaccinated. But do they quit if told their job depends on it? It depends on … [Read more...] about Will employees resign rather than get vaccinated?
Losing employees? Toxic workplace? Create a turnaround game plan
By Lynne Curry Productivity cratered many months ago. When you ask managers, “How’s it going?” you hear, “It’s going.” New resignation letters land on your desk every several weeks, with some employees leaving before finishing out their two weeks’ notice. You can’t avoid the truth. You need a turnaround plan, fast, before you lose more employees. Here’s what to know and … [Read more...] about Losing employees? Toxic workplace? Create a turnaround game plan
First-gen grads less likely to find work; race/ethnicity disparities persist
Employment outcomes for first-generation college students fall below those of their peers, and disparities in outcomes by race/ethnicity persist For the first time, the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) has measured the law school employment outcomes for graduates who do not have at least one parent/guardian with a bachelor’s degree or higher degree and the new … [Read more...] about First-gen grads less likely to find work; race/ethnicity disparities persist
Employees say job pressures take bigger mental toll than COVID-19 fears
Managers, take note: As the pandemic drags on, the mental health of your staffers may be deteriorating as new survey results would suggest. In a recent survey, 57 percent of workers surveyed say their mental health has degraded since the start of the pandemic. The driving factor behind this decline: their workload. In fact, work pressures are so great that half of respondents … [Read more...] about Employees say job pressures take bigger mental toll than COVID-19 fears