The Sky IS Falling I was stunned to read the following in an article on the current Social Security “no match” notifications mess. The quote, published in the October issue of Inside Counsel Magazine, reads as follows: “You can fix a false negative if the agency has enough staffing to deal with it… It’s a logistical issue, not a legal issue.”This assessment, attributed to the former General Counsel of the Dept. of Homeland Security, absolutely knocked me back in my chair. The gentleman, now in private practice, was discounting the potential impact of the proposed sanctions and fines targeting employers who do not act when notified by the Social Security Administration that some of their employees may not have matching numbers.This advice is anathema not only to the letter of the law but to …
A New I-9 in Your Christmas Stocking With their characteristic sense of humor, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) merrily announced a Christmas present for U.S. employers: based up the rule issued late last month in the Federal Register, employers will be required to use the new Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 starting Dec. 26, 2007, or risk fines and penalties. Why, you ask, do we need a new form I-9? Because the government has changed the list of documents upon which an employer can rely in determining U.S. employment eligibility. Specifically, one document has been added and five have been removed from the category lists. As so often happens with hastily issued regulations, instructions are convoluted and have been reported in various ways. First, on the 11/8 notice, employers were informed they… Continue Reading →
Listen up USG Contractors: Time to Comply The pressure to comply with employment verification requirements may soon hit companies which contract with the U.S. governement. This is from SHRM:"The House has already included language in four appropriations bills that would require all federal contractors to participate in the government’s voluntary electronic employment verification system known as "Basic Pilot." SHRM has advocated the removal of these provisions because the Society believes the "Basic Pilot" system is unreliable and unable to verify accurately the legal status of employees at nearly 200,000 federal contractors – more than ten times the number of employers that currently use the "Basic Pilot" system. As the result of SHRM’s efforts, the language requiring federal contractors t… Continue Reading →
Things are Tough All Over…But Needn’t Be This Thanksgiving weekend I did something I’m a bit embarrassed to admit: I caught up on all the business magazines and WSJs sitting in my "to read" pile. It’s Sunday and the workweek begins tomorrow, but I wanted to make this comment based on a consistent underlying theme I found weaving through much of what I read.The theme: until Americans become fiscally responsible, we will continue to sink economically.Yesterday, the WSJ explained that as far as the subprime mess, we ain’t seen nothing yet. Turns out that all the headline grabbing foreclosures have NOT been the result of the ramping up of adjustable rates but, rather, first year foreclosures by those would couldn’t make the bills with the ORIGINAL, subprime rate which enticed them into the purchase in the … Continue Reading →
Why GCs are Embracing Workforce Compliance InsideCounsel magazine recently reported the results of an innovative study undertaken by another publication, Corporate Board Member magazine and FTI Consulting. In the survey/study, over 1000 General Counsels and board directors were asked about the steps they are taking to mitigate risk within their organizations. The eye-opening results suggest that the "ostrich head in the sand" approach to compliance is being rapidly replaced by a growing awareness of the risks of federal and state enforcement and the catastrophic damage enterprises face when they do not take broad scope compliance seriously.The catchword du jour is "Enterprise Risk Management", or ERM, and it’s actually the latest incarnation of something that’s been around for over a decade. In… Continue Reading →
Workforce Compliance: Outside Counsel vs. Outside SOLUTION Counsel to Counsel magazine ran an interesting article in its October 2007 issue entitled "Choosing the Right Outside Counsel" The article is a helpful analysis of what GCs should look for when reaching outside of their own corporate resources for the solution of a legal matter.The article begins with an astute analysis of the increasing focus on corporate ethics and the need for transparency. Among the suggestions the writer mentions to assist in house attorneys in finding outside counsel are networking forums, law firm networks, and, of course…peer review ratings. (Double disclosure before I continue: 1- Martindale, the benchmark for attorney peer rating co-publishes the magazine along with InsideCounsel; 2- My Martindale A/V rating is a badge I’ve wor… Continue Reading →
Reinventing Lawyers I’ve noticed that as one grays around the temples, some sort of phenomenon gives others the impression that you know more than you knew before. Suddenly, people who might never have listened to a word you had to say consider you a "resource" or, even worse, a "mentor".In the case of my two sons –16 and 19 — the phenomenon has eluded them; polite and wonderful as they are, it is clear from the rolling eyes that I’ve not much new to say. Perhaps their epiphany of my wisdom will be manifested by some other physical change, perhaps false teeth, the continuing gravitational pull on my chin, or perhaps a prop (cane, walker, etc.).In any event, the children of OTHER people seem to think I have something to say…and they are not shy about asking. I probably… Continue Reading →
Unions in Check: NLRB Permits Faster Challenges by Members As the National Labor Relations Board hustles to clear its docket, corporations are being pleasantly surprised…while unions cry "foul".Dozens of recent case decisions show a definitive intent by the Board to further limit organized labor. The Bush administration has long been the target of union criticism; after years of pro-union decisions during the Clinton years, the about-face created tremendous issues for unions. Setting aside their own well-document issues — for example, the ongoing corruption probes, their pragmatic, practically-overnight embracing of migrant workers into union membership after years of ruthlessly demonizing them, etc. — organized labor has decided that the current Board simply isn’t playing fair. But are they correct?It depends how you view it. The fi… Continue Reading →
Metagaming, Economics, and Global HR Compliance Today I am going to talk about the LEAST talked about 2007 Nobel Prize, the one in Economics, awarded to three U.S.-based economists – game theory pioneer Leo Hurwicz, Eric Maskin and Roger Myerson. After half a century of work in a little-known but massively cool area of game theory, it’s about time. Before I get into explaining their area – known as mechanism design theory (MDT) – I must explain that as a person who barely squeaked by with a “B” in Dave Denslow’s Economics class some 30 years ago at the University of Florida, I am hardly in a position to analyze, much less pontificate, over a heady topic such as this. Still, it is the Blessing of the Blog that its author can spout forth in both wisdom and ignorance, and the reader can read or roll his/her eyes and move on. Mo… Continue Reading →
As if Compliance isn’t a Big Enough Headache… The EEOC is reporting that HR departments are being targeted for bogus emails containing a Trojan Horse virus. According to the department, the email’s subject matter features precisely the kind of wording that makes the heart of an HR Director or GC leap:"Harassment Complaint Update For"Pass this information on to your recruitment, HR, and legal folks. Although most of us have virus detection software protecting us, a lot of folks don’t run such protection at home, on mobile devices, etc. Let them know NOT to open any attachments or click on any links if they receive what appears to be an EEOC email.Trust me, if there’s been a complaint, the EEOC won’t by shy about relaying the info to you via a legitimate email without infected attachments.… Continue Reading →