Texas News & Analysis

  • As gun violence increases, workplace safety isn't what it used to be

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020
    by Jacob M. Monty, Monty & Ramirez LLP

    As an employer, you have a responsibility under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) to provide a safe work environment for your employees, which includes creating a workplace that's free from serious recognized hazards. An employer that has experienced violence in its workplace or becomes aware of threats, intimidation, or other dangerous behavior is on notice of the risk of workplace violence. If you have dealt with any acts of violence or indications of potential violence in your workplace, you should take steps to protect your employees, yourself, and your business.

  • Coping with loss in the workplace requires more than just implementing a policy

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020

    Perhaps no other subject in the workplace requires more sensitive treatment than the death of an employee. Bonds among people who work together every day can be strong, and coworkers can be left reeling from the loss of one of their own.

  • Hiring challenges persist despite effective recruiting and smart candidates

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020

    Employers are getting used to dealing with an almost constant talent search. The postrecession economic growth over the past decade has spurred employers to create more jobs, and while that would seem to be good news, the challenge of filling those jobs is often daunting.

  • Cutting-Edge HR

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020

    Political talk disruptive? 'Guardrails' can help. The Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM) Politics at Work survey, released in November, reveals that 42% of respondents have personally experienced political disagreements at work, and 34% say their workplace isn't inclusive of differing political perspectives. What should you do about such disruptions? SHRM President and CEO Johnny C. Taylor, Jr. says companies shouldn't try to quash political conversations. "But what they can do is create inclusive cultures of civility where difference isn't a disruption," he says.

  • HR Technology

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020

    Report says HR risks becoming irrelevant without modernization. A new report from KPMG finds that three in five HR leaders surveyed believe the HR function will soon become irrelevant if it doesnt modernize its approach to understanding the future workforce. One of the key findings highlighted in Future of HR 2020: Which path are you taking? centers on what the report calls HRs defining challenge: shaping the workforce. Fifty-six percent of the surveys HR respondents said that preparing the workforce for artificial intelligence (AI) and related technologies will be the biggest challenge.

  • Federal Watch

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 02/01/2020

    OFCCP encourages hiring military spouses. A November 2019 directive from the U.S. Department of Labors Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) encourages federal contractors to recruit, hire, and retain the spouses of veterans and active-duty servicemembers. Directive 2020-01, titled Spouses of Protected Veterans, will require OFCCP compliance officers to ask federal contractors during on-site investigations about their treatment of veterans spouses. The directive also provides a sample policy statement promoting equal employment opportunities for all military spouses that federal contractors can incorporate into their employee handbooks.

  • Handling office romance in #MeToo era: Know your options

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 01/01/2020

    As Valentine's Day nears, love is in the air—and oftentimes in the workplace. Although workplace romance is common, it can make HR professionals fret about all the what-ifs. What if a relationship is between a supervisor and a direct report? What if rumors of favoritism poison the workplace environment? What if one or both participants is married to someone else? What if a couple's public displays of affection make coworkers uncomfortable? What if a relationship goes sour and the breakup affects morale? And perhaps the most important question to consider: What if a relationship is one-sided and is more accurately described as sexual harassment instead of consensual?

  • Moving on: adopting a proactive employee mobility strategy

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 01/01/2020

    These days, almost all employers are engaged in something of a multidimensional war. There's as intense a competition being waged for talented employees, skilled workers, and seasoned executives as at any time in our history. At the same time, two issues animate and confuse the competition for talent.

  • Cutting-Edge HR

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 01/01/2020

    Report identifies most important skills for recruiters. LinkedIn's new Future of Recruiting report identifies the number one priority for recruiting organizations during the next five years will be keeping pace with rapidly changing hiring needs. The report finds that talent analytics roles have grown by 111% since 2014. The data also show that the three skills that will become more important over the next five years are the ability to engage passive candidates, the ability to analyze talent data to drive decisions, and the ability to advise business leaders and hiring managers. Among the other findings, the report notes that demand for recruiting professionals is at an all-time high, the career path to becoming a recruiter is evolving, and deeper investments in technology will be required to find quality candidates.

  • HR Technology

    From: Texas Employment Law Letter | 01/01/2020

    AI ready to make impact on HR? As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to make an impact on business, HR may be poised to feel the impact soon. In December 2018, tech marketplace firm G2 looked ahead to HR trends set to emerge in 2019 and beyond. One prediction: AI-driven HR technology innovations will see a significant increase. The G2 research found companies increasingly leveraging AI technology to help identify data opportunities, improve internal workflows, and increase productivity. AI-embedded HR technologies also were predicted to improve the employee experience, which begins with the candidate experience. AI also was predicted to enhance the employee lifecycle from recruiting through offboarding since the technology can help businesses treat their candidates and employees like loyal customers.