The HR Base Camp Blog

Am I required to give a termination letter to any employees I let go?  The legal side of things: We’re starting strong with one of our most used phrases: it depends on the state. While many states don’t require that you provide employees with an official separation letter, some do. Before you terminate someone without giving them any documentation, check your state’s law. Or better yet, talk to an HR expert for a full risk assessment, and we’ll also take care of the paperwork for you. Now for the human approach:Just because it’s not legally required doesn’t mean you should…

My employees are constantly checking their smartwatches and it’s too distracting. Can I enforce a no smartwatch policy?  The legal side of things: Not so fast! We know this seems like a logical solution. But we also know how the National Labor Relations Board feels about policies that ban smart devices. The board regularly challenges policies that could be seen as infringing on employees’ rights to talk about their working conditions, and fully restricting access to personal devices tends to fall under that category. While it’s far more likely that your employees are using their devices to talk to family…

One of my stormtroopers won’t wear the uniform! Can I write them up for a dress code violation? Answer: As anyone who has ever managed a team of employees knows, getting everyone to conform to the desired “look” of your business can be tough, especially if there isn’t a consistent policy on what that look is. Establishing a dress code policy in your handbook allows you to spell out what your employees must do—and what they may NOT do—to look professional in your office. Further, in your specific instance, OSHA requires that all Storm Troopers be adequately protected during periods…

Am I required to notify emergency contacts if an employee has a medical issue in the office and has to go to the hospital? The legal side of things: Unless the employee is a minor, you’re not required to notify anyone. In fact, sharing their medical information with an emergency contact could be risky. You’re required to keep employees’ medical details confidential. Unless the employee is unconscious or unresponsive, the safest thing to do is to not contact anyone about what happened unless the employee requests it.  Now for the human approach:  We get why you might feel like notifying…

I have an employee who came into work smelling like weed. I know it's recreationally legal in my state, but surely that doesn’t mean they can always show up smelling like it at work. She really didn’t seem high but the smell! Patients also noticed it, and I don’t want them to think we have people working under the influence. I sent her home to change clothes. What else am I supposed to do? We recently noticed this question from a member of our community, which, if you haven’t joined yet, make sure you do. Our community is filled with…

In this week’s edition of the HR Base Camp roundup – Can you control what kinds of things your employees head up in your break room? We’ve all seen what happens when someone burns their popcorn or microwaves their fishy lunch for too long, but how far can employers go in terms of restricting what […]

Money, politics, and religion. Many of us know these as taboo topics to be avoided in polite conversation, at the dinner table, and in the workplace. However, recent legislative and societal trends are drawing money out of that category. In fact, candid money conversations are radically reshaping the workplace. The trend goes by many names: pay transparency, pay equity, and salary transparency. The big idea is that candidates, employees, and lawmakers are now demanding that employers be open about how their teams are being paid. There’s no doubt pay transparency is having a moment. Laws in Colorado, California, New York,…

In this week’s edition of the HR Base Camp roundup – we dive deeper into the idea of including dress code policies in job applications to weed out certain applicants. We understand, in today’s climate, wanting to weed out applicants that you feel won’t fit the bill can seem enticing. However, with one wrong step, […]

At CEDR, our daily focus is HR problem-solving, with compliance always playing the largest part, leading to litigation avoidance. As we all know, the best way to win an employment lawsuit is to avoid it altogether. However, we inevitably still have members who arrive on our doorstep with a demand letter from an employee’s lawyer.  Then, we have other members with a current HR issue that needs addressing because they’ve heard what can happen when an employee sues. Often, in these instances, they have been referred to us to help clean things up and create a solid HR program that…

In 2019, Dove, a popular beauty brand, and The CROWN Coalition began work on the CROWN Act, which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair. As it stands now, 19 states have enacted this Act, and we predict that the rest of the country will follow suit. Because of this, as […]