If your company has a sudden (and very public) epiphany that letting employees expense meals from strip clubs is a bad idea, you’ve already lost. Likewise, if you think that the women at your company should be invited to events based upon their perceived physical attractiveness, you’ve already lost, too. https://deadspin.com/report-under-armour-ends-longstanding-practice-of-ex-1830238082
Fortenberry v. Gemstone FoodsIf one of your employee suffers an “adverse” outcome, don’t be surprised after the fact by a supervisor who struggles to “yeah, but…” for a valid reason. In Fortenberry v. Gemstone Foods, you’ll find a road map for how not to manage an otherwise salaried workforce. The production managers, maintenance managers and …
Read More “Land Shark … I Mean, Candygram!”
On March 29th, Michigan’s minimum wage will index to $9.45. Obviously, if you have employees (whether hourly or salaried) that are earning the current $9.25/hr minimum wage, you need to adjust accordingly. Where this gets tricky is when you have a commissioned salesperson (for example). Earn what you wanted based upon what you sell, and …
Read More “Michigan Minimum Wages”
Of all of the things that you might want to add to your business, technology-wise, write this down on your do not wish list any kind of ‘smart home’ device see above I repeat: do not put any kind of smart home device in your business or workplace. I’m so sorry, Siri. Hey, Google, I’m …
Read More “What NOT to Get for Christmas”
As 2018 winds down to a close, the biggest housekeeping risk for small businesses remains cybersecurity. If you still think your business is a manufacturing company, a services company, a retail store, an expeditor, an {insert anything else} ? You’re wrong. You are a technology company, that happens to sell manufactured products, retail products, etc. …
Read More “Thieves at the Door… and the Gateway”
Amazon is likely to be censured by British regulators over its “Prime” subscription service. More particularly, the UK’s version of the FTC, the Advertising Standards Authority, is poised to rule that Amazon’s offers of “unlimited one-day delivery” are misleading. It’s advertising law 101 that absolutes need to be substantiated. Or else you are absolutely risking …
Read More “Guaranteed Next-Day… Litigation”
Back three years ago, I warned how you could accidentally have the National Labor Relations Board come a’knockin’ on your door even if your workplace is not unionized. Now that Obama is gone and Trump is in, perhaps you were thinking that this is no longer a concern. If you were thinking that, you’d be …
Read More “Yes, Even the Trump NLRB…”
The fight is continuing for former employees who claim the State of Michigan’s algorithm did them harm. For you? Don’t blindly trust the robots. Office automation is great, don’t get me wrong. But you need to test, to audit. Just as you would with a human employee.
You want to buy (or buy-in to) some commercial property. One of you has the cash, the other of you has the sweat. Can your sweat equity count as a capital contribution? Of course it can, but the question is whether you want it to. Because the partnership is taxed based upon its value. And …
Read More “Sweating Over Equity”
Big news this week, folks, big news right here in Garden City, Michigan. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals just ruled that Title VII indeed protects employees from being discriminated-against based upon their sexual orientation or gender identity. You can read the story in the Detroit Free Press right here. Unless and until the US …
Read More “LGBT Discrimination is Now Officially Illegal in Michigan”