Expert Compliance Insights & Tips for Businesses

March 11, 2009
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What's Up With the UAW and Ford?

Ford UAW United Automobile Workers
Ford, which is in the best shape of all three American automakers and has not gotten (nor will it seek) government bailout funds, has wrung a deal out of the United Automobile Workers (UAW) to cut costs in health care and in overtime and unemployment pay. Or is the shoe actually on the other foot? The UAW has typically struck a deal with one automaker that it then sets up as the gold standard...
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March 11, 2009
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China: Laboratory for EFCA-Style Unionization

China EFCA Employee Free Choice Act unions
Can't blame 'em. Business owners in China's manufacturing belt, their businesses up in smoke in the worldwide recession, are fleeing the country and leaving their workers high and dry--and yuan-less--rather than cope with China's restrictive labor laws. Of course, you can also call them rats for absconding with their companies' loot while leaving their workforce with no money to survive on. Ch...
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March 10, 2009
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Personnel Concepts' White Paper Predicts the Future

EFCA Personnel Concepts
Well, not quite, but Personnel Concepts--the labor law poster pioneers--has added a white papers section to its home page, and one of the featured papers looks at labor law changes coming under Barack Obama. Prominent among the anticipated pieces of legislation is something called the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has christened "Armageddon"--the end of fr...
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March 9, 2009
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The Road to 'Armageddon' Starts Today

Armageddon EFCA Employee Free Choice Act unions
Sources tell Personnel Concepts that the much-feared-by-business Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) will be introduced in the House of Representatives today. Well, nothing new here. EFCA made it through the House's 435 members once before and passed with flying colors, but its fate in the Senate may be another matter altogether. Just today, the Wall Street Journal reported that "Labor Bill...
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March 6, 2009
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The World's 50 Safest Banks

banking system banks safe banks
I was a bit surprised to find any U.S. banks on Global Finance magazine's list of the 50 safest banks in the world. Wells Fargo was the highest U.S. bank at number 21, followed by U.S. Bank at 26, the Bank of New York Mellon at 35, and JPMorgan Chase at 47. Top spot went to KfW in Germany. Overall, both France and Germany had six banks on the list. Spain had an impressive five; the United Kin...
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March 6, 2009
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All of You Who Think Health Care Reform=Free Care, Read On

free health care health care costs rationed health care

I just read a polling result that said three out of four Americans now favor health care reform. That's all well and good, but I bet you that at least three of every four who said they favored reform also believed that it meant they would soon be getting health care for free, or ...

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March 5, 2009
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Personnel Concepts Jumps on the White Paper Bandwagon

labor law compliance Personnel Concepts white papers
I've always liked the BLR (Business and Legal Reports) site because it features informative, lengthy pieces that go by the prevailing title of "white papers." However, when I did an on-site search of BLR's white papers the other day, I think the most current one I saw was from the summer of 2008, though I may have missed some in my search. BLR also doesn't always broach some of the regulator...
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March 4, 2009
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Here's One Liberal Economist Who Actually Makes Sense

economy foreclosures housing market
I actually had never heard of economist James Galbraith until I stumbled upon his testimony before Congress in an article in, of all places, Mother Jones. So you gotta figure the guy is pretty liberal, but in his testimony, he comes across as having some solid answers that the Obama team overlooks or rejects. Actually, most of our problems--except for foreclosures--could be solved quickly and ...
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March 4, 2009
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Modification Practitioners (!) Come Under the OSHA Knife

body piercings modification practitioners tattoos
I was grateful to learn today that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has clarified its position on modification practitioners. Say who? It's a fancy term for tattooists and body-piercing artists (I'm not sure artists applies, but whatever), and OSHA has stepped in with a Letter of Interpretation (LOI) about training requirements for said manipulation practitioners. In ...
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March 4, 2009
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From $84,869 a Year to Busted Over Courtroom Sex

I haven't been to any "Darwin Award" sites lately, but this guy qualifies for some sort of stupidity award. Chelsea District Court (Massachusetts) Assistant Clerk James Burke (if he gets nearly $85,000 a year as an assistant, what does a full clerk make?) has been arrested for having sex in a courtroom. Now that sounds stupid enough, right? But catch this--the sex was with a woman in the cour...
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