Greetings!
In this month's issue learn about Washington State's new minimum wage for 2012, and ways to stay healthy during the flu season. If you are considering using interns, or creating an internship program,consider certain criteria before calling it an "unpaid internship."
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HR NEWS
WA State Minimum Wage Increase
On September 30th, the Department of Labor announced that Washington State's minimum wage will increase from $8.67 to $9.04 beginning January 1, 2012.
Washington state currently has the highest minimum wage of all 50 states. Oregon is second with a minimum wage of $8.50.Washington is one of 10 states that adjust the minimum wage based on inflation and the CPI.
>>>Read More
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Do you know?
Is your intern a trainee or an unpaid employee?
By offering an internship program, there are many benefits a small business can gain. Some of the pluses for businesses are access to fresh ideas, eager minds, and a continued pipeline of future employees and in exchange the interns get valuable perks- they develop their skill sets, strengthen their resume and get exposed to their possible career industry. So it's a win-win for everybody. But if not structured properly it can lead to trouble for any business.
Despite internships' value, federal guidelines released by the U.S. Department of Labor in April 2010 are raising concerns for employers. Those concerns may lead employers to provide fewer internship opportunities. The guidelines apply to "for-profit" private-sector employers. They define what makes an intern an "employee" as opposed to a "trainee." If a court or government agency decides that interns' work qualifies them as employees, the company could face penalties that include owing back pay, taxes not withheld, Social Security, unemployment benefits, interest, attorneys' fees, plus liquidated damages, defined by federal law as double the unpaid wages.
There are 6 standards that are used to determine whether an intern is a trainee or an employee. >>>Read More
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Generation Gap- The Lighter Side
Cell Phones
Last month we talked about who had what type of phone growing up...
In our conversation each of us said the following: - The only phone in the neighborhood was ours.
- They had a jelly bean pager.
- The phone they had was a Mickey Mouse phone.
Pat definitely had the only phone in the neighborhood- coolest kid on the block for sure! When Trish was in high school, pagers were in and so was using numbers to spell out everything--and spending long nights talking about friends and happenings, was Mia on her awesome Mickey Mouse home line!! Time sure has changed! Thanks to all of you who sent in your answers!!! |
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Sexual Harassment Training
Best practice is to conduct sexual harassment prevention training on an annual basis -Be proactive-Inform your employees, put a procedure in place, and create a workplace that's free of harassment! Contact us to schedule your training.Learn More
Book yours by December 31st and save 10%.
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FREE HR Check Up
Even if you are an employer of one, you are still subject to many employment laws and obligations. Yet trying to stay up to date with the legalities of having employees can be mind-boggling and time consuming. One possible solution to your HR woes is the HR Check Up. This is a complimentary service that assesses and provides feedback with recommendations regarding the human resource function in your organization.
Click here for more info.
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Pat's Recommendation
Path of Least Resistance
by Robert Fritz (Paperback) 
List Price: $15.00
Our Price: $10.20
Buy Now
Did you know....we donate up to 50% of all proceeds from your purchases made via our Amazon Assoicates site to charity? We typically donate to Hopelink, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Lake Washington Schools Foundation, and Northshore Schools Foundation. If you want your charity to benefit, please let us know.
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