There are now 8.5 million workers across the United States who are working in part-time positions due to the economic conditions. The Bureau of Labor Statistics defines them as involuntary part-time workers, as they are unable to find a full time job, or their employer has cut their hours. Indeed, it’s very likely that you have employees like this in your business.

This growing part-time workforce brings new challenges to management, different dynamics to our business cultures, and changes how employees manage their personal and professional lives. Many economists predict that the workforce paradigm has shifted and this flexible contingent workforce will become a permanent fixture that we must become comfortable with. read more »

“I’m missing $50 from my purse. I think Susan stole money from me!”

What do you do when an employee comes to you with this complaint? These are certainly words you hope to never hear from an employee, but, unfortunately, sticking your fingers in your ears and singing, “La-la-la-la-la, I can’t hear you!” at the top of your lungs isn’t an acceptable business practice.

We’d all love for our workplaces to run as smoothly as possible, but the unpleasant reality is that sometimes situations arise that demand investigation. Complaints and/or accusations, as well as accidents and other incidents may necessitate workplace investigations. read more »

When I was a kid I loved the beginning of summer. It meant sunshine, the beach, popsicles, bike riding, slumber parties, and most importantly, no school. As business owners, it means something entirely different to us. Our thoughts turn to balancing vacations with reduced staff, summer flex hours, liability issues with company sponsored sports teams, the complexities of summer internships, and the proverbial summer picnic. It was a whole lot easier when all we had to worry about was getting an even tan! read more »

Midnight is a black cat that lives near our office. Occasionally, Midnight shows up at our door, asking to come inside and visit with us, where his toys and cat treats await him. During the Christmas season, we have Doggie Howliday, a day that all employees can bring their dogs to work. We even had a beta fish that lived with us for awhile too. We’re an animal friendly workplace!

June 25th is national Bring Your Dog to Work Day. This day highlights the benefits of being an animal friendly business. Regardless of your own personal pet-preferences — whether you’re a dog-person, a cat-person, a fish-person, or a non-pet-person entirely — studies have shown that adopting an animal friendly workplace policy can benefit employees and businesses both. read more »

If you’re like me, you let out a sigh of relief when the legislature finally ended its session in Olympia this year. As usual, there were many bills introduced that could have affected businesses with employees. Fortunately, the budget woes took front stage, and many of the employment related bills died — at least for now.

One law that did pass was SB 6647, which protects the jobs of members of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) while acting in an emergency service operation. The law provides leave for members of the CAP and protects their jobs during an emergency call or fire alarm. read more »

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me!” This childhood saying comes to mind as I prepare to write this article. Our parents used this saying to teach us that no matter what people said, we didn’t need to retaliate in anger. However, as a child, we had another sentence we’d say out of our parents’ hearing: “Call me this and call me that, I’ll hit you with a baseball bat!” And, therein is the underlying issue for workplace retaliation. read more »

Whether you are reading the paper, listening to the radio or watching the TV, the story today is about taxes. Will they raise the unemployment tax, close tax loopholes on businesses, raise the B&O tax, raise our property taxes, raise the sales tax, raise income tax rates, raise sin taxes … taxes, taxes, taxes! Our government must find a way to increase its revenue. Naturally, this means that the government is also looking at enforcing revenue-producing laws already in existence. read more »

Those are not words that most people want to hear out of their boss’s mouth. Nevertheless, these words are being said in offices all around the country as businesses implement workplace weight loss programs, inspired by the television show The Biggest Loser. read more »

“Oh, the weather outside is frightful. But the fire is so delightful. And since we’ve no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.”

What a wonderful tune for this time of year! But wait a minute… we do have somewhere to go! We have to go to work.

Snow is quite delightful — when we can stay home by the fire and enjoy it. But when it causes commute issues read more »