Peculiar, but true, stories about the workplace.
Information
- Founded:
- April 2009
Photos
1 albumSee All
Wall PhotosCreated about a week ago
No one has added fan photos.
Events
3 past eventsSee All
- Are You Staffed for Economic R...
Audioconference
Monday, December 14 at 1:30pm - Death, Taxes and Healthcare: E...
Audioconference
Thursday, November 12 at 12:30pm - Recent Stimulus Plan Changes t...
Conference Call
Thursday, April 9 at 1:30pm
Bizarre HR
Name Our Blog! We are announcing the birth of our new blog on Jan. 4, 2010, at www.workplacetrainingcenter.com. But we don’t have a name yet for the newest addition to our social media lineup. Vote on our top ideas below or send in your own names. If we choose your original idea, you’ll win a complimentary registration... to “Ouch! Resolving Conflict at Work,” a virtual seminar. Here are out top picks so far:
--Simply HR
--Raising the HR Bar
--HR Wisdom
We look forward to receiving your vote or your idea for a new name.
Bizarre HR What’s in a name? Plenty if you are Larry Whitten, a hotel manager in Taos, N.M. He requires Hispanic employees to alter their names (ex. Marco to Mark), so they are easier to understand when workers greet hotel guests, especially over the phone. Although Whitten says ensuring that guests can communicate easily with ho...tel staff is a business necessity, a recent article on MSNBC.com reports that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) may not see it that way. An EEOC spokesperson said that customer or co-worker preferences are not a justification for bias. He warned against any disparate impact on a particular group. Read the article below and share your thoughts.
www.msnbc.msn.com
Your name can make a difference in how seriously you are taken at work and whether you even get your foot in the door for the interview.
Bizarre HR Disgruntled Workers Rat on Bosses. Just in time for the holidays, employees have a lucrative way of retaliating against their company after a year of layoffs and pay cuts. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) offers cash rewards to workers who report the use of pirated software in their organizations. A recent article ...in Wired says that workers in the London area can receive as much as $32,000 for tipping off BSA!
www.wired.com
It's that time of year again, when bankers can expect those five- and six-figure bonuses. But if you didn't become rich off the financial bailout, here's
Bizarre HR
Desperation drives thieves into office buildings.
You would expect to hear about a robbery in a convenience store or bank. However, the recession is driving thieves into office parks and industrial buildings--in broad daylight. One California firm says a robber stole $6,000 in items during the day while the staff was i...n a meeting. Does your company's security policy include specific measures to deter such blatant offenders?
online.wsj.com
An increase in office robberies during the recession has professionals worried
Bizarre HR Diaper fiasco: It doesn’t pay to let things go! This company ended up paying $150,000 in a gender discrimination suit because it didn’t provide bathroom facilities for women. Being a construction site, the men were comfortable relieving themselves in holes or behind heavy machinery. However, women on the jobsite didn’t... find that arrangement as convenient. One woman resorted to wearing adult diapers to avoid urinating in her clothes. The settlement also included claims of discriminatory practices in the promotion process. The bathroom complaint may have been easy to address with some creative thinking. However, if systemic discrimination exists, that’s a bigger problem. Do you think this company should have done more to provide reasonable facilities for all employees?
www.philly.com
Philadelphia city and local Delaware Valley news from the Philadelphia Daily News.
Bizarre HR
While we stress about swine flu and workers staying home when they are sick, a new survey says that you may not have to convince employees to take a day off. These days, workplace stress is a major factor in workplace absences, according to CareerBuilder. Survey respondents cited some unusual excuses for skipping work:...
I got sunburned at a nude beach and can't wear clothes.
My buddies locked me in the trunk of an abandoned car after a weekend of drinking.
My mom said I was not allowed to go to work today.
What is the most unusual excuse you have ever heard for an absence from work?
More Than A Quarter of Employers Think More Employees are Calling in Sick with Fake Excuses Due to S
www.careerbuilder.com
- While the cold and flu season serves as a primary culprit in workplace absences, the economy may be a factor as well this year. CareerBuilder’s annual survey on absenteeism shows nearly one-third (32 ...
Bizarre HR Can too many worker rights be harmful to employees? I found this blog entry from Gill Corkindale interesting. France Telecom reports 24 employee suicides since the company introduced a restructuring plan. Corkindale, a London-based executive coach, says that one reason for the severe employee reaction is that French wo...rkers have some of the best working conditions in the world. As those rights erode, workers experience significant loss. Your thoughts?
blogs.harvardbusiness.org
Some years ago, I wrote a short article about stress at work, referring to some groundbreaking research by organisational psychologists at London University. The UK Heath and Safety Executive (HSE) had ...
Bizarre HR Death, Taxes and Healthcare: Here is a link to the full story on yesterday’s Bizarre HR post about CIGNA’s survey that found workers would rather do their taxes or battle a traffic jam than think about healthcare options and costs. What challenges or successes are you experiencing with 2010 benefits enrollment?
bit.ly
Workplace HR & Safety Magazine features explanations of government safety regulations, OSHA citations and court rulings, as well as information on products and management techniques for safety managers.
Bizarre HR
It’s dangerous to be an HR professional in India. A few weeks ago, workers beat an HR manager to death in the southern part of the country after he laid off 42 employees. The workers were associated with a union not recognized by the company. A similar incident occurred last year to an official at an Italian company lo...cated in India. Read the full story on CNN.com. http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/09
www.cnn.com
Angry workers beat to death a human resources vice president after he laid off 42 employees at an auto-parts manufacturing company in southern India, police said Wednesday.
Bizarre HR A doctor recently lost his job at a city health department after he posted a sign that said “America Dies on Doughnuts” on the agency's building. Although his clever version of a popular slogan reminded citizens of the dangers of sugary treats, business people who owned a local doughnut chain were not amused. When empl...oyees have responsibility to public service, how far can they go to serve their constituents?
Bizarre HR A story floating around the blogosphere tells the saga of a woman who was fired for sending e-mail messages in all caps. She was accused of being too confrontational and was let go without warning. She got the last laugh after she sued and won $17,000 in lost wages. The moral of the story: Train workers to use e-mail a...ppropriately. Some discussions require face-to-face conversations, rather than hiding behind e-mail.
Bizarre HR Is the glass ceiling self-imposed? A professor from the University of New Mexico thinks so. In a recent study, Scott Taylor found that men tend to overestimate how bosses view their performance, while women underrate themselves by 11%. In addition, women over 50 years of age tend to downgrade their performance more oft...en than younger women. Read the story and tips to equalize performance reviews. http://bit.ly/qk03U
bit.ly
Workplace HR & Safety Magazine features explanations of government safety regulations, OSHA citations and court rulings, as well as information on products and management techniques for safety managers.
RECENT ACTIVITY
Bizarre HR wrote on Are You Staffed for Economic Recovery?'s Wall.
Bizarre HR wrote on Death, Taxes and Healthcare: Employees Dread Coping with Healthcare 's Wall.
