Jonathan.Segal

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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 .

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Jonathan Segal

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10 years 9 months

Articles by Jonathan Segal

Leaders: Be More Human Please

No matter how old I am, I always feel like the fall is “back to school.” As wonderful as the summer may be, the fall is a “fresh start,” a new semester of life.

So I thought this summer about what as leaders we can do to be more effective next semester in terms of our interactions with our employees. It’s not working harder or smarter. It is being more human.

I have reviewed the summer engagement surveys of many clients. Even in companies that have great results, many employees feel that the company does not care about them.

August 12, 2014
Tags:
Employee Engagement, Employee Satisfaction, Leadership, Communication
Top 10 Social Media Mistakes Made by Supervisors

We often hear that our supervisors are our eyes and ears in helping to ensure legal compliance and minimize risk.  This is true when it comes to social media, but only if supervisors receive training on what to do and what not to do.  The do’s and don’ts of social media are not always intuitive. Here are ten of the more common mistakes that supervisors make in the absence of adequate training:

July 22, 2014
Tags:
Social Media, social HR, Social Media Strategy, social media policy, Legal & Regulatory Issues
5 Reasons Why I Love Twitter

Many professionals I know don’t have much patience for Twitter talk.  I try to explain the benefits of Twitter, but looking up their nostrils for an extended period of time is not easy. 

But the truth is I once had the same lack of interest in social media in general and Twitter in particular. I remember thinking only twits tweet…. until a personal accident changed my view.

Back in January of 2011, I fell on some ice and shattered my ankle in multiple places.  I needed emergency surgery.  The next week was my 30th birthday.  Would you believe 40th?  Okay, 50th.

June 19, 2014
Tags:
Social Media, Twitter
Why Should You Go to the SHRM Annual Conference in Orlando Next Week?
  1. You'll see friends you don't see often enough.  It is possible the NLRB may prohibit H.R. from having friends, so enjoy the friendships while you can.  You might be thinking, “The NLRB cannot regulate HR." Silly rabbit. Friendships among HR professionals could chill concerted activity by employees covered by the NLRA. As logical as.....
June 17, 2014
Tags:
SHRM Annual Conference, #SHRM14
Have We Improved LGBT Inclusion Since the Mad Men Days?

Sunday night's #MadMen was one of its very best.  The cold war between Don and Peggy has thawed.  After confiding in each other about their vulnerabilities, and also sharing some laughs, Don and Peggy danced tenderly together to Sinatra’s “My Way.” Somehow Don and Peggy are their best when they are their best with each other. Will they end up together?

But there was a subplot of importance involving the return of Bobby Benson.  We meet Benson this season bailing out a GM executive, Bill Hartley, who had been arrested for coming on to an undercover [male] officer.

May 21, 2014
Tags:
Diversity, Inclusion
5 Categories of Social Media Content for Supervisory Training

Last week, I had the pleasure of hosting a #Nextchat on social media for SHRM @weknownext with my friend @Eric_B_Meyer.  One of the issues touched upon during the chat was social media training.

May 20, 2014
Tags:
Social Media, social media policy, Legal & Regulatory Issues
Are Gender Issues in the Workplace Still Maddening?
 
Last night was, according to @DonDraper_NY, the “beginning of the end.”  And, what a beginning it was.
 
Don remains on paid leave.  He visits Megan in California and then returns home to NY.
 
In his absence from the workplace, much of the focus was on Peggy and Joan.  Both worked incredibly hard on client retention and satisfaction but each was marginalized in ways that too many women still are today.
 
April 15, 2014
Tags:
Women, Gender Bias
Leadership and Aretha Franklin
 
This is the last in a series of four blogs on leadership and influence. 

In order for a leader to have influence, he or she must be respected by his or her subordinates.  Of course, to get respect, you need to deliver it. 

April 2, 2014
Tags:
Leadership
Leadership and Gender Bias
 
This is the third in a series of four blogs on leadership. 
 
Randy is an executive.  Randy notices that Kim, a manager who is also a direct report, is struggling in terms of collaborating with members of the team.  Randy asks Kim to have dinner to get to know her better with the goal being to mentor her more effectively.
 
March 5, 2014
Tags:
Leadership, Gender Bias, Discrimination
LEADERSHIP PARADOX: HUMAN CONNECTIONS VERSUS THE LAW
Last month, I wrote a blog on leadership: Influence=Leadership. I emphasized the importance of leaders sharing their human side and making emotional connections with the employees whom they lead.  To quote leadership maven John Maxwell: leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand. 
 
February 5, 2014
Tags:
Leadership, Legal & Regulatory Issues
Leadership = Influence

I agree with leadership maven John Maxwell and others who have stated that that the key to leadership is influence.  In my view, leadership is influence.

I have read a great deal about levels of leadership and level of influence. For this blog, however, I have divided influence, upon which leadership hinges, into three general categories:

First, there is influence based on positional authority.  Get it done because I am your boss.

January 7, 2014
Tags:
Leadership
The Holiday Tale by the Jewish Guy Who Wears a Chai - 2013

Last year, I told you the story about the "Jewish Guy Who Wears a Chai." I am retelling the story this year, but with some additional information about what happened not only during the holiday season, but also before and after the holiday season that led to our protagonist’s leaving HR, even if only temporarily. Here we go. Buckle your seat belts....lots of sarcasm ahead.

December 9, 2013
Tags:
Diversity, Employee Engagement, Inclusion
Work Life Imbalance

According to a recent poll, 73‑percent of workers value flexibility in looking for a job (or staying in a job).

Employers, in their self-interest, need to help employees with work life challenges.  But that is easier said than done.

This blog addresses some of the rarely discussed issues when it comes to work-life challenges.

1.   Nomenclature

November 4, 2013
Tags:
Workplace Flexability, Work-Life Balance
Retaliation: Corrective Action Without Admission

In Nasir, the U.S. Supreme Court held that, to prove retaliation under Title VII, a “but for” analysis applies. This is a higher standard than the “motivating factor” burden to prove discrimination under Title VII.

Nasir has been hailed as a big win for employers.  But that’s only at summary judgment or perhaps at trial where the wins can be extremely expensive. 

The real win for employers is that it makes it easier for us to take corrective action in response to retaliation without necessarily making admissions, at least under federal law.  Why?

October 3, 2013
Tags:
Harrassment, Retaliation, Discrimination
#Nextchat: Where Have All the Mentors Gone?

Where have all the mentors gone? Long time passing.

Where have all the mentors gone?

Long time passing

Where have all the mentors gone?

Long time ago

Where have all the mentors gone?

Favored few have picked everyone

When will we every learn?

When will we ever learn?

September 7, 2013
Tags:
NextChat, Mentors, Career Development
Is “Management Rights” An Oxymoron?

There was a time when employees had few protections and were subject to abuses by unregulated management.  For example:

September 4, 2013
Tags:
Labor Day, NLRB, NLRA, Labor, Legal & Regulatory Issues
In Defense of Sheryl Sandberg

As almost everyone now knows, Sheryl Sandberg is the COO of Facebook.  She is also the author of the ground-breaking book, Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead .

I have read the book twice.  Simply put, I think it is a brilliant manifesto for women and men alike.

Yet, the acclaim is not universal.  To the contrary, the book has been met with some hot criticism.

August 8, 2013
Tags:
Women, Workplace Culture, Workplace Flexibility
Boys Without a Club
Sex discrimination allegations have begun to morph from strip clubs to boys' clubs.  Although less explicit than strip clubs, the boys' clubs can be just as exclusionary.
 
What is a boys' club?  It is an invisible affinity group of men, predominantly white, who effectively control their organizations and connections to which may be critical in terms of compensation and advancement.
 
July 10, 2013
Tags:
Gender Difference, Women, Men
2013 SHRM ANNUAL: LINGO ALERT
Every profession has its own words—words that we use and, at times, over use.
 
When does the use become overuse?  Well, when lots of us are together!
 
So as we enjoy SHRM’s Annual Conference next week, we need to be careful of HR lingo.  What are some of the words and expressions to avoid?
 
I have narrowed it down to a “Top 10.”  Out of respect to your colleagues, please avoid:
 
June 14, 2013
Tags:
SHRM Annual Conference, HR Practice
Jason Collins: Who Will Come Out Next?

Jason Collins has become the first male professional athlete from a major professional sport to acknowledge, publicly, that he is gay.  That he is the first, and it is 2013, speaks volumes of the apparent homophobia in professional sports.

But Collins' coming out is not an isolated event.  It is part of a trend in which LGBT employees are increasingly open in their workplaces about who they are.

June 3, 2013
Tags:
Diversity