Jonathan A. Segal is a partner at Duane Morris LLP in the Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group . He is also the managing principal of the Duane Morris Institute . The Duane Morris Institute provides training for human resource professionals, in house counsel, benefits administrators and managers at Duane Morris, at client sites and by way of webinar on myriad employment, labor, benefits and immigration matters. Read Jonathan's blog at the Duane Morris Institute or follow him on Twitter @Jonathan_HR_Law .
Some suggestions for staying out of trouble as you have fun at the 2019 SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition (#SHRM19) in Las Vegas:
Connecting
Want to connect with someone?
Make sure you talk about meeting up, not hooking up.
Less you wish to be the subject of a “metoo” claim.
Extracurricular activities
Every year, I write a blog for SHRM on Holocaust Remembrance.
This year, Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) is next week on May 2, 2019.
This year, we are posting the blog early. Reason: so HR has time to consider some sort of Holocaust commemoration.
Let’s take a journey back to the Flintstones in Bedrock. Think of the Grand Poobah (without putting on your hat).
Now, no reasonable leader would ever refer to themselves as an employee’s Grand Poobah. Actually, some do much worse.
Marla: “Did you know that Sally is sleeping with Gregg?”
Todd: “I heard that. How long has this been going on?”
Marla: “Not sure. Jeff?”
Jeff: “I have no idea but I do know they are a couple.”
Karen: “No kidding. Have you noticed how Sally recently is going on business trips with Gregg for no business reason.”
Jeff: “It depends on how you define business.”
We are approaching Valentine’s Day and the risks that go with it.
Of course, everyone should know that it is inappropriate to send a card with a sexual or suggestive message. This is particularly problematic where there is a power disparity, but it is not limited to such occasions.
Effective December 31, 2018, the minimum salaries to be exempt from overtime under New York State law under the executive and administrative exemptions were increased to the following amounts:
For many years, around the holiday season, I have written cautionary tales from “The Jewish Guy Who Wear A Chai.” Chai is the number 18 in Hebrew and means life.
This year, I was reluctant to use the title. For the first time in a long time, I have been the target of antisemitism. Then, there was the massacre of 11 Jews at the Tree of Life Synagogue.
Important reminder that, effective today, October 15, 2018, under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL), employers must engage in a “cooperative dialogue” with applicants or employees in New York City with regard to reasonable accommodations in four (4) circumstances. More specifically, an employer must engage in the “cooperative dialogue” with:
In order to conduct a compliant criminal background check, employers ordinarily must comply not only with the federal Fair Credit Reporting (FCRA) Act, but also state and local laws. This includes not only ban the box laws, but also laws that impose additional restrictions and requirements beyond when a criminal background check can occur.
Many employers have no-fault attendance control policies. Stated generally:
As a general rule, employers must pay non-exempt employees for all time that they work (broadly defined) and that includes getting ready for work (preliminary activities) and finishing work (postliminary activities). As discussed below, there is a de minimis exemption under federal law (FLSA).
Last week, two celebrities took their lives, Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain. To be more specific, they committed suicide.
It is important to say the word “suicide” because many media reports, at least initially, did not. There is still, for some, discomfort with mental health issues in general and suicide in particular.
I am excited to hear Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, speak later this month at SHRM’s Annual Conference & Exposition in Chicago.
When I saw the list of speakers at #SHRM18, I knew immediately I wanted to interview David Rock, the co-founder and director of the NeuroLeadership Institute. I am very interested in neuroscience (particularly as it relates to implicit bias), and I have learned a great deal from a number of writings about and by David.
The United States Congress created the Days of Remembrance as our nation’s annual commemoration of the Holocaust. This year, Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) is today, Thursday April 12, 2018.
No one can credibly deny that sexual harassment is a persistent and pervasive problem. It infects all industries; none is immune.
While this blog focuses on sexual harassment, we must create cultures that do not tolerate any kind of harassing behavior, such as harassment based on race, ethnicity, age or disability. Harassment of any kind is the enemy of inclusion.
There was a time when it was quite common for individuals to find their spouses (or partners) in the workplace. Indeed, this still happens today, although perhaps less so.
“Life Is What Happens When You’re Making Other Plans” ~ John Lennon
This is one of my favorite quotes by John Lennon. I think of it almost every year when I attend SHRM’s Annual Conference & Exposition.
You don’t need me to tell you it is a conference like no other. The learning opportunities are second to none. I look at the speakers and always feel honored to be among them.
Responsible employers, among other steps, train managers on their “bystander” obligations. It is not enough to refrain from bad behavior. As a bystander with power, if you see or hear harassing behavior, you must respond to it. But how?
As a result of the “great awakening” last year of the persistence and pervasiveness of sexual harassment, we all know that more must be done to tackle this scourge. Companies are looking to enhance their preventive efforts, and, of course, that must start at the top.
