Another Day in the HR Field

Merry Christmas! Thanks to a client who informed me of a new requirement she was made aware of at an Employment Law update training event last month, I recently research said notification and unbeknownst to me, it was true.  I was shocked because in my humble opinion it conflicts with the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act .  However, we do things a bit different here in the Land of Lincoln.  So keep reading this "Just in Time" notification that will give owners, executives, HR professionals, managers, and supervisors a holiday treat to add to your daily to do list at work! Surprise, surprise, surprise there’s another new law to follow! Unfortunately, one that has been in affect for some time now but has not received much notice and was slid in right under our HR noses! Not once but TWICE! The Illinois Department of Labor established new regulations, “ Payment and Collection of Wages or Final Compensation – Records and Notice of Requirements” in August of 2014 t...

Some would say the title above was a misnomer. Basically how can one possibly vacation while they are working. Years ago I use to define vacation to my management team as rest and relaxation. At the time I was trying to make the point that employees should be planning their vacation time and not be using it for unexpected absences such as sick days. While I still agree vacation should be for rest and relaxation there are times working on vacation is either required or a choice. The required is and should be very rare in the case of an emergency only. It's definitely not something that is preferred. The choice for me is the same as my day to day working habits. I balance the needs of my family with the needs of my work. I realize I have more flexibility than someone with a typical 8-5 schedule. However, I think that many of us chose to do some work on vacation regardless of our typical work schedule in order to minimize the horrendous backload of work that we would return to i...