Whistleblowing occurs when an employee reports wrongdoing (dangerous, illegal, or unethical activity or practices by the company or its employees) either directly to the employer or to an outside authority. Many laws, including the Occupational Safety and Health Act, consider whistleblowing a protected activity, meaning you can’t lawfully retaliate against an employee for making such a report. […]
Career Monday: A Useful Guide for Sharing a Home Office with Your Partner
Does your house seem smaller since the pandemic started? Many families feel more cramped with 2 adults working at home, especially if you need to share your workspace with your partner. This may be the first time you’ve seen their work habits up close or counted how many dirty coffee cups they leave behind in […]
Career Monday: The Secret to Having a Greater Impact at Work
Do you pride yourself on meeting the expectations in your job description and completing tasks on time? That’s a great start, but it’s important to go beyond just fulfilling your job requirements if you want to stand out at work. In today’s employment market, many qualified applicants compete for a limited number of openings. Even […]
Q&A: What is mentoring in the workplace?
Mentoring is a professional relationship between a senior or more experienced employee (the mentor) and a newer or less experienced one (the mentee). The mentor shares their knowledge and experience, offering guidance, advice, feedback, and encouragement. The mentee, for their part, can go to their mentor with personal and professional goals, questions, and frustrations. Mentorship […]
Career Monday: How to Figure Out What Type of Job You Really Want
Are you considering a job change, but you keep putting it off for one reason or another? Most often it’s our lack of clear ideas for a job or career change that keeps us trapped in our current situation. What we’re really lacking is the ability to think differently about what’s possible for us. If […]
Q&A: We’ve had a request for a religious accommodation, but I think the employee wants to get out of following the policy for other reasons. How do I determine whether a religious belief is legitimate and sincerely held?
Ordinarily, you should assume that an employee’s request for a religious accommodation is based on a sincerely held religious belief, observance, or practice. The definition of religion is broad and protects beliefs, observances, and practices you may not be familiar with. That said, if you have an objective basis for doubting either the religious nature […]
Career Monday: 14 Habits That Make You a More Valuable Employee
Making yourself more valuable to your employer leads to a more successful career. More opportunities open up when you have an impressive resume and a reputation for being a team player. You’re likely to enjoy more job satisfaction too. A productive workday is bound to feel more gratifying than watching the clock until it’s time […]
Q&A: We’re not bound by any law requiring us to conduct background checks, but we choose to do them for all new hires. Should we also do them when we rehire an employee?
It’s up to you. Conducting a background check when hiring a former employee would keep the process simple and straightforward. Every exception you add to a process gives you something else to remember – and potentially forget! That said, you could instead establish a time limit between an employee’s termination date and rehire date – […]
Affirmation: I Am Open To Alternatives
I am untethered by expectations and standards set by others. I am open to alternatives in whatever I participate in. Being a free thinker is empowering. It releases me from the burden of doing things according to what others approve of. I have my own mind and am willing to consider new ways of doing […]
Career Monday: Why Losing Your Job Could be a Good Thing!
Whether you’ve already lost your job through down-sizing, redundancy, or any other reason, or if you’re under threat to lose your job, your first thoughts run from blind panic to anger, desperation, and all points in between, especially if you have a family and all the commitments that go with it. It’s especially daunting if […]