The EEOC recently released its annual performance and accountability report. While this report does not contain detailed charge statistics, it does contain summary overview material. Here are a few highlights from the report:

• The EEOC added new staff during 2009 and 2010. These new employees are enabling the EEOC to process more charges on an annual basis, thus reducing the EEOC backlog of pending cases.
• During 2010, the EEOC received 99,922 charges, a significant increase over the 93,277 filed in 2009.
• The EEOC recovered $319.3 million through the administrative process in 2010, up from the $294.1 million for 2009.
• The litigation arm of the EEOC filed 251 new lawsuits against employers in 2010.

All of these data points reflect a more-aggressive EEOC. The additional funding in the last two years has allowed the agency to increase staffing, thus increasing the agency's capabilities. Employers should expect more of the same over the next few years as the newly hired staff and enhanced budget allow the EEOC to continue these trends.The performance report can be reviewed in full here: http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/plan/2010par.cfm

 

In the spirit of the Thanksgiving season, take pause to contemplate how the art of giving thanks can work wonders in your workplace. Below is an article by Jack Canfield (the Chicken Soup for the Soul guy), republished here by permission, that is right on target. As Canfield points out, honest appreciation is a great employee motivator. The power of appreciation can help foster a work environment that enhances performance and minimizes complaints. The lesson? Managers who are turkeys to their workers might find themselves with their necks on the chopping block.    

The topic of religion in the workplace always provides a danger for employers.  In our post-9/11 world, we have continued to see tensions run high with respect to the Muslim faith.  Our continuing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have caused these tensions to remain and build over the years.  With the recent outcry over the proposed Islamic mosque near the site of the former twin towers in New York City, this issue has been tossed onto the front of the newscycle.  From an employer perspective, religion is a topic best left for outside the workplace.  While this makes for a great philosophical approach, our employees are all human, and an employer expectation of a religion-free workplace is naive.  With the holiday season around the corner, there is no better time to ponder methods how to avoid religious discrimination and maintain civility and respect for all.  

Here are a few quick thoughts:

1.  Make sure you have in place a well-publicized and consistently applied anti-harassment policy.  The policy should contain a clear and concise complaint process.  If you haven't trained your workforce on anti-harassment issues in the past year, consider having a short training session to refresh the topic.

2.  If complaints are made, investigate them promptly and thoroughly.  If you find a problem, take steps to stop the conduct.  Even minor conduct that isn't unlawful can pile up until you reach a point the overall package of conduct is unlawful.

3.  Even if there is no complaint, intervene if you become aware of possible policy      Continue Reading...

OSHA has announced a new emphasis to protect the safety of workers in the grain-handling industry in Kansas.  Employers in this industry should expect an investigative effort by OSHA focused on their operations in the coming months.  The time to prepare for a potential OSHA inspection is now, not when the OSHA inspector arrives at your doorstep.  For more information on the emphasis and a recent letter from OSHA to grain industry employers, hit the links below. 

http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=NEWS_RELEASES&p_id=18657

http://www.osha.gov/asst-sec/Grain_letter.html

In the spirit of Veteran’s Day, we thought a brief summary of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, or USERRA for short, would be appropriate.

Once again the social media beast rears its head in the employment arena.  Just when we thought controlling employee use of Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and other blogs during working time was the worst concern, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has entered the fray.  In a recent filing, the NLRB took issue with the firing of an employee due to a series of Facebook postings related to the employee's supervisor. 

It all started with a customer complaint about the employee.  The employee's supervisor asked the employee to prepare an incident report regarding the complaint.  The employee requested a union representative be present for the meeting, and the supervisor allegedly responded by threatening the employee with discipline.  The employee then went home that afternoon and posted a series of negative comments about the supervisor on Facebook, triggering a series of co-worker comments, and then even more negative comments from the employee.  Not surprisingly, the employee was discharged a few weeks later. 

The employee turned to the NLRB and filed an unfair labor practice charge.  The NLRB's investigation found the Facebook postings to be protected activity under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).  The NLRB also focused its inquiry on the company policies prohibiting employees from making negative comments about the company or its management in internet postings.  The NLRB found that this policy unlawfully violated employees' rights under the NLRA. 

This complaint is set for hearing in early 2011.  All employers should stay tuned to this matter.  Keep in mind that all employers are covered by the NLRA regardless of whether a unionized workforce exists at      Continue Reading...

The H-1B visa, the one most commonly used by employers to bring specialized workers to the United States on a temporary basis, is subject to an annual cap/quota.  The annual counting period tracks the federal fiscal year schedule and runs from October to September.  Employers may apply for employee start dates up to six months in advance of the date.  In a nutshell, employers can start seeking numbers against the fiscal year cap starting in October as early as April 1.  For example, employers could request an H-1B visa on behalf of an employee on April 1, 2010, with a starting date of October 1, 2010 (part of fiscal year 2011).  After seven months of usage, approximately 20,000 numbers remain available.  If this year follows the pattern of last year, the remaining numbers under the cap are likely to be used up around the end of December to the end of January time frame. 

Here is the link to the cap counting page on the USCIS website.