In case you missed this, a Detroit, MI city employee sued the City of Detroit after claiming the perfume a co-worker was wearing caused her not to be able to do her job. Apparently, the perfume and room deodorizer that her co-worker was using made it uncomfortable for this employee to work to the point she suffered migraines, nausea and coughing. …
Is Employee Engagement the Right Thing?
The cartoon at the right ran in the paper recently. ‘Cuz I’m weird the first thing that went through my mind was – “wow – if that really is the definition of engage then maybe we need to revisit this whole ‘employee engagement’ thing.” Maybe we should be looking for a new “catch phrase.” Not being one to take a cartoon at …
It’s March, and the Madness Has Begun. Just Ask Brittney Griner.
Some of you know I’m a big hoops fan. I appreciate the game for the fast-pace, skill, diversity and excitement that accompanies most every event. I grew up playing basketball and it just so happens that my high school coach also coached Brittney Griner, the 6’8″ phenom who is now a freshman at Baylor University. Brittney has made national news …
Best Places To Work: ESPN Edition
For regular readers of FOT, you’ll notice that we have an affinity for the ESPN show Pardon The Interruption (PTI) where hosts Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon face-off during a half-hour show devoted to commenting on sports – basically it’s two knowledgeable (and funny) sports guys having an opinion of what’s going on each day in sports. For the most …
Candidates with Hickeys – Getting Over Transgressions at Work
Kris Dunn, our own HR Capitalist, recently had a blog post “How To Destroy a Lifetime of Trust as an HR Pro in a Single Day…” where he explained how a direct report broke the cardinal rule in HR and shared confidential information, or more specifically tried to use confidential information for personal gain. It wasn’t something illegal, it had nothing to …
Gilbert Arenas and the Art of Interviewing Employees Who Do Bad Things…
By now, you've heard of the saga playing out in the hometown of FOTers Jessica Lee and Kelly Dingee (Washington, DC). Gilbert Arenas, a sometimes All-Star for pro basketball's Washington Wizards, created a media and PR firestorm when he reportedly drew a gun on a teammate in the Wizards' locker room over a gambling debt. You can read more about …
Losing Your Job? No Laughing Matter… Lessons from Clooney’s “Up in the Air.”
I've been told, on more than one occasion, that my sense of humor is a little different. For one, I laugh at inappropriate times. And as you can imagine, that means that there are those very awkward moments where I'm the only one laughing and then people stare as if I'm completely crazy. Which is precisely what happened the other …