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Although employees are every organization's most important resource, they also can be the source of many problems within the organization. From drug use to flaunting safety rules, from sexual harassment to violating company policies, the employee population is fraught with potential problems. The articles below may provide some guidance on dealing with these and other issues.

If you think substance abuse isn't a problem in your workplace, you may want to think again. (Item #1) The office is one place where social media, chatting, file downloading, and image searches should not be taking place, but it is among the top places where people spend their time online. (Item #2) Every employee feels work-related stress; what's not normal is prolonged stress. (Item #3)

You owe it to your business, your bottom line, and your employees to find out if telework is a good fit for your company. (Item #4) Firing an employee does not have to be the worst experience of your year. (Item #5) Do you need employment practices liability insurance? (Item #6)

As always, we look forward to hearing about your concerns with regards to business continuity. If you have a topic you'd like to see covered, please email me at [email protected]

Best Regards,

Bob Mellinger
President
Attainium Corp

Quote of the Week

"The magic formula that successful businesses have discovered
is to treat customers like guests and employees like people."
- Thomas J. Peters -

Articles

1. How does substance abuse impact the workplace?
There is a great deal of denial as well as numerous misconceptions among many employers about who is using illicit drugs and alcohol, and how this can directly impact their bottom line. The following statistics and anecdotes are intended to further educate and inform employers about the prevalence of substance abuse in the workplace, the impact that it has on the workplace and employees, and the benefits that employers have experienced as the result of implementing prevention programs.
http://www.dol.gov/elaws/asp/drugfree/benefits.htm

2. How can your employees' Internet activity damage the company?
Business estimated that the total loss of production from employees that used the internet for personal use while on the clock is in the upper 700 BILLIONS of dollars!
http://www.cyclope-series.com/blog/post/How-can-your-employees%e2%80%99-internet-activity-damage-the-company.aspx

3. The Truth about Employee Stress
Half of American workers polled say work leaves them "overtired and overwhelmed." That alone is not alarming until you dig a little deeper and realize these workers develop chronic, often serious, stress-induced health problems.
http://www.super-solutions.com/Thetruthaboutworkplacestress.asp

4. Can you think of one good reason your employees should telework?
The truth is that many businesses benefit when the right employees telework. It’s also true that telework—working from home or a location other than the primary place of business—isn’t for every job or every employee.
http://www.commuterchallenge.org/telework.html

5. How to Fire With Compassion and Class
Sometimes terminating a staff person's employment is the best step to take for your organization. Sometimes terminating a person's employment is the kindest action you can take for the person. In some circumstances, firing an employee is an immediate necessity for the safety and well-being of the rest of your employees.
http://humanresources.about.com/od/discipline/a/firecompassion.htm

6. Protection from Disgruntled Employees
The number of employment-related lawsuits has dramatically increased in the last few years. So have the settlement and judgment amounts. The number of sexual harassment complaints lodged with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission jumped from 6,883 in 1991 to 15,889 in 1997.
http://library.findlaw.com/1999/Aug/1/128770.html