If commissions are earned during a workweek that includes overtime (i.e., work beyond eight hours in a day or 40 hours in a week), such commissions are subject to the premium pay requirements.

Tags: commission, calculate overtime, hourly pay, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Overtime, HR Allen

Imagine this scene: The lead story on the evening news discusses a man who walked into his place of employment and started shooting, injuring several employees and killing one. Media representatives fan out into the perpetrator’s neighborhood to do a background story on this man. Neighbors describe him as “a regular guy” as they express their shock. They figure he must have just “snapped.” This is a very common myth.

Tags: workplace violence, violence, violence in the workplace, fighting in the workplace, bullying in the workplace, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, HR Allen

Almost one in four workers (23 percent) who took part in a recent survey by CareerBuilder.com reported being asked to perform tasks that fell well outside the “job related” category.

The survey turned up many interesting and unusual requests made by bosses, including:

Tags: bosses, other duties as assigned, strange requests, employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, Employers, HR Informant

California has over 5.9 million small businesses and majority of the owners are unaware of some of the compliance requirement set forth by Cal/OSHA. Some of the most avoidable fines can range from $5000 - $7000. Cal/OSHA released their Top 25 Most Cited Violations when inspectors visit California businesses.  We have taken this data and created an eBook that can help you avoid the #1 most cited violation from Cal/OSHA.

Tags: OSHA Violation, Top 25 Cal/OSHA Violations, Injury Illness Prevention Plan, IIPP, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Cal/OSHA

In 2010, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit against Abercrombie & Fitch, claiming that the company refused to hire an applicant because the applicant wore a hijab – an Islamic religious head scarf.

Recently, a federal court denied Abercrombie’s motion asking for the case to be dismissed prior to trial.

Tags: Abercrombie & Fitch, hijab, religious discrimination, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Tags: Employment Eligibility Verification, Form I9, employees, HR Allen Consulting Services, Employers, HR Informant, USCIS, : Form I-9

Today marks the one-year anniversary of the California Supreme Court’s decision in Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court.

The Brinker case was extremely important to all California employers. The court ruled that employers do not have to ensure that employees take their meal breaks, but must merely make meal breaks available. The court’s ruling also provided flexibility to employers with regard to the timing of meal and rest breaks.

In the year since the case was decided, meal and rest break claims have certainly not disappeared in California. Such claims may, however, be harder to get certified as class action lawsuits, especially when the employer has clear policies and practices and a good timekeeping system. 

Employers also need to make certain that supervisors do not schedule work shifts in a manner that prevents employees from having the ability to take breaks.

Tags: Brinker decision, Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant

Drug use in California can cause headaches for employers.  Balancing employee privacy interests against safety concerns forces employers to make tough choices with little guidance.  Legal drug testing of existing employees is so limited that most drug use won’t be detected until after an accident.  With increasing support for legal medical marijuana, many employers have struggled to determine how to respond to applicants and employees who test positive.  Now, with recent case law and the FEHC’s final regulations, employers finally have the support they need.

Tags: ADA, FEHA, Drug Test, California, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant, Privacy, medical marijuana

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently sued Toys “R” Us, Inc. for allegedly failing to provide an interpreter to a deaf applicant during an interview.

Tags: ADA, Americans with Disabilities Act, HR Allen Consulting Services, discrimination, HR Informant, EEOC, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, disability discrimination

How does a California employer prevent its business from walking out the door along with a departing employee?  In most jurisdictions, the employer could have the employees sign a non-compete agreement.  Not in California. 

Tags: B&P Section 16600, Best Practices, Customer Non-Solicitation Agreements, Data Theft, Employee Non-Solicitation Agreements, Employee Raiding, HR Allen Consulting Services, HR Informant