Trick or Treat? Office Halloween Parties Can Frighten Supervisors and HR Professionals

October 26, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

What are you going to be for Halloween? This year’s top Halloween costume trends are lacking creativity. The number one costume choice is a witch. Really? That’s original. Rounding out the top five are a pirate, vampire, zombie and batman. If this is what’s going to show up at our doorsteps on Halloween, we’re going to be highly disappointed. We want to see a Lady Gaga complete with a meat dress, a grown woman as a Toddler & Tiara with a spray tan, Charlie Sheen (and his goddesses), an angry bird (complete with friends dressed up as pigs to knock down), or even a Twitter hashtag (so everyone next to them can be a trending topic). Not sure how we feel about it, but we’re sure there will be some Amy Whinehouse and Steve Jobs zombies roaming the neighborhoods (too soon?). Halloween is a great time of year for a couple reasons. A. You can be whoever you want. Ever … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies, Office Party Tagged With: appropriate office Halloween costumes, celebrating Halloween at the office, employee handbook notifications, Halloween office party, human resource concerns, human resource professionals, integrity hr, office parties, worst Halloween costumes

Integrity HR Makes The News on How To Survive Shermageddon

September 16, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

In case you missed it, Integrity HR has been all over the news this week giving employers tips on how to survive "Shermageddon" (The media's name for the traffic mess caused by the closure of the Sherman Minton bridge). For those of us living in the Louisville Metro area, getting to work these next few months is going to be a nightmare! But businesses can't just shut down; life must go on and employees have to get to work some how. The question is: What should employers do with employees whose commute has doubled (or ever tripled) in time? That's where Integrity HR comes in. We've complied the "Top 5 FREE Tips For Employers To Survive Shermageddon." Download our FREE tips here. Amy Letke, Founder and CEO of Integrity HR, was on the Terry Meiner's Radio Show on Wednesday September 14 giving a summary of the tips on how to survive Shermageddon. Listen to that radio … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: Bridge Closing, How To Avoid Bridge Closing, How To Survive Shermageddon, Shermageddon, Sherman Minton Bridge, Terry Meiners, WDRB, What Employers Should Do With Bridge Closing

The Biggest News In Apple Since iPad2 And What HR Has To Do With It

August 31, 2011 By amyletke 1 Comment

Last week, Apple announced some very big news. No, they weren’t releasing an iPad4 or an iPhone17. Steve Jobs resigned as Apple’s CEO. For those who don’t know much about Jobs, he is the mastermind who brought us the Mac, iPod, iPhone and iPad. Just think where the world would be without him? We would still be using slow-moving virus-prone PCs (oh, wait I’m using one right now), listening to music through portable CD players, making calls through a Zack Morris-sized cell phone and reading hard copies of newspapers and magazines. Blasphemy! Jobs isn’t exactly abandoning the company; he will now serve as the board chairman (a position that didn’t exist before he asked to step into). But with Jobs’ resignation comes emotional unrest and weeks of soul-searching for Apple’s 49,000 employees who’ve stood behind Jobs since the beginning of time (or at … [Read more...]

Filed Under: HR Policies, Human Resources Tagged With: Apple, HR, HR policies, human resources blog, integrity hr, Steve Jobs, succession planning

Do Your HR Policies Favor Hot Mamas Over Sexy Singles?

August 18, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

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Although it’s been years since Angelina Jolie stole Jennifer Aniston’s husband Brad Pitt, the media loves to pit the two against each other. So we thought we’d use these famous “enemies” to explain a very important HR topic: creating a family-friendly and single-friendly work environment. Although Angelina Jolie is not married to Brad Pitt, she is raising six kids with him and would benefit from a family-friendly work environment. Jennifer Aniston is on the opposite side of the spectrum by living up the single life and dating famous musicians like John Mayer and now actor Justin Theroux. The two actresses have very different lifestyles, but should be treated the same (in an HR perspective.) In our blog last week, we talked about getting the kids back to school and how employers should handle employees (like Angelina) taking days off for a child’s school-related … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: Angelina Jolie, employee handbook, employee handbook development, employment policies, HR policies, human resource policy development, Human Resources, human resources issues, Jennifer Aniston, sample hr policies, single

Get Your HR Policies Ready To Go Back To School!

August 11, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

Ready or not it’s time to go back to school! You’ve piled your cart full of unnecessary school supplies (do you really need the 100-pack of crayons?), filled your child’s closet with appropriate clothing (would those skirts pass the ruler test?), and synchronized your carpool schedules (are you in charge of Wednesdays or Thursdays?). This time of year may seem a little hectic, but it also means you get back into a routine. Around our office, we all look forward to the school day routine. But we also realize that we have to be prepared for the unexpected. There could be a field trip or a sick day or an assembly that throws your whole perfectly planned schedule off course. At Integrity HR, we think this time of year is the perfect time for employers to review their attendance policies and practices regarding employee's leave for their child's school-related … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: company policies, employee handbook, employee handbook development, employee handbook indiana, employee handbook louisville, hr consulting, human resources blog, why use your employee handbook

Beat The Heat: Integrity HR Tips On Keeping Cool

August 1, 2011 By amyletke 2 Comments

Let’s state the obvious: It’s hot. It feels like we’ve been under a heat advisory all summer and we’re tired of it. As HR professionals we know when the temperature rises, so do employees' tempers. At Integrity HR, we are not immune to this epidemic. We are the first to admit that we are suffering from a severe case of heat exhaustion. The symptoms include: snappyremarks to co-workers that you instantly regret, increased Google searches for “cool tropical vacation destinations,” and less productivity due to daydreams that include fruity drinks with pink umbrellas in them. Now, if you’re still reading (we’d understand if you were off Googling your next vacation spot), we’d like to give you tips to help your workplace beat the heat! If you want to keep your employees cooled off, create a more relaxed atmosphere. We’re all on edge due to this heat. So … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Morale, HR Policies, Human Resources Tagged With: beat the heat, control employee behavior, dress code policy, employee morale, employee motivation, summer

Not Guilty: Casey Anthony and HR Policies on Managing Image

July 18, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

Americans were glued to their TVs or computers awaiting the verdict of the Casey Anthony trial on July 5. The media and subsequently millions of Americans who had already found her guilty were shocked when the verdict was announced. Anthony was acquitted in the death of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. This verdict sparked anger and outrage from spectators. Days after the verdict was announced, even jurors admitted they wanted to convict her, but the evidence just wasn’t there. Instead, Anthony was found guilty of four misdemeanor counts of lying to police. Each count had a maximum jail sentence of one year. Even though she was sentenced to four years in prison, Anthony had already served three years in jail and got credit for good behavior. The judge set her release date for July 17. Sunday night at midnight, Casey Anthony was released from an Orange County jail in … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: Casey Anthony, employee motivation, employee relations, HR issues, hr outsourcing, HR policies, human resources blog, image, integrity hr, manage your image, managing your image

Downsize With Dignity: HR Policies to Help Layoff Survivors Thrive

July 13, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

Your company has successfully downsized with dignity. Now what? You followed all the proper steps of firing someone the right way, but tensions are still high around the office. Often times, leaders tend to initially focus more attention on those who are leaving. The most important people in a layoff are forgotten: the survivors. What Is The Impact of Layoff Survivors? Layoff survivors are responsible for keeping your company afloat during a very stressful time. The survivors are often expected to do more work with fewer resources. In addition to the extra stressed caused by increased work flow, employees have to deal with survivor’s guilt (a symptom of layoff-survivor sickness). The underlying cause of layoff-survivor sickness is a pervasive sense of personal violation. The feelings and emotions often include: Fear, insecurity and uncertainty. Frustration, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: demotivation, demotivator, human resources louisville ky, increasing motivation, integrity hr, mitzi root, motivation, performance management

NASA Layoffs: HR Policies on How To Downsize with Dignity

July 11, 2011 By amyletke Leave a Comment

“Houston, we have a problem.” When Atlantis blasted off into orbit on July 8, its departure marked the end of NASA’s shuttle program. United Space Alliance, NASA’s contractor for maintaining the space shuttles, announced it will layoff a significant amount of employees after the shuttle safely lands. Just how many? There are around 5,500 contracted employees and less than 1,200 civil servants working on the shuttle mission. The agency will lay off about 3,200 contractors on July 22, officials said. Cutbacks for all of NASA’s prime contractors will continue through the middle of August, leaving less than 1,000 employees. While the layoffs don’t come as a surprise, (NASA has been planning to retire its space shuttles since as far back as 2004), they are still difficult. At Integrity HR, we understand the difficulties that come with letting go members of an … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, HR Policies Tagged With: downsize, Downsize with Dignity, downsizing, employee handbook policy, firing, firing someone properly, how to fire someone, hr outsourcing, HR policies, HR services, human resources blog, integrityhr, NASA, why use your employee handbook

Horrible Bosses: Follow These HR Policies To Avoid Workplace Violence

July 6, 2011 By amyletke 1 Comment

Just a couple days ago, the premise of the upcoming movie “Horrible Bosses” seemed pretty funny. Three disgruntled employees seek vengeance on their over-the-top and inappropriate bosses. The movie follows the trio’s attempts at knocking off their bosses. But this dramatized scenario became all too real this week in Louisville. On Tuesday, a LG&E employee walked into LG&E’s South Service Center on Jennings Lane and fatally shot his supervisor before taking his own life. Suddenly, the movie doesn’t seem so funny. Louisville Metro Police have not disclosed information on what may have led to the shooting, but one LG&E employee said there was tension between the two workers. Sgt. Robert Biven, a LMPD spokesman said, “There is nothing rational about this.” He added, “There is an alternative way to work things out without people getting … [Read more...]