Don’t Jeopardize Your Future
In a recession or economic downturn, many employers look to find savings in what they consider to be non-essential spending. One of the first places they look (after salary and benefit cutbacks) is in their training budgets. In my view, this is not only cutting off your nose to spite your face, it's the absolutely wrong decision to make when things gets financially difficult. more...





Social Media and Background Checks: A Legal Perspective
Q. I recently attended a networking luncheon and was surprised to learn that many of my fellow Recruiting Managers make their hiring decisions based heavily on the candidates’ social media postings on Facebook, etc. Is it appropriate for employers to check applicants' Facebook postings as part of their screening process and what are the potential legal ramifications in making hiring decisions in whole or in part on social media postings? more...

At Will Terminations
Q: I am HR Director for a company that has offices in both Canada and the United States. We are considering restructuring our operations which will necessitate the reduction in staff. Are there any major differences between Canadian and U.S. employment law with respect to terminations? more...

Successful Labour Relations in Uncertain Times
Last year, the Ottawa chapter hosted a regional half day workshop on creating and maintaining successful labour relations within our organizations.Attendees from across Eastern Ontario and Quebec gathered to learn how to smoothly transition employees from union to management roles as well as to gather some tips on dealing with labour-management relations throughout collective bargaining, grievance and arbitration processes and absenteeism cases, just to name a few. more...

To Use Social Media or Not?
With all the forms of social networking available now, it would take a person days to research all of them and even longer to set them up. They span every type of industry and interest you can imagine. You can collect everything from friends to followers to connections. Every network has its own specialty and its own target market. more...

Leading the Way: HR’s Role in Downsizing and Restructuring
More and more organizations are dealing with the current economic climate by reviewing their business plans and embarking on an exercise to downsize or restructure their enterprise. Those that complete these plans successfully will emerge as the new leaders in their sector. Those that fail will find themselves falling further behind. more...

Blowing the Whistle: No Longer Limited to Reporting Fraud
Fraud, corruption, embezzlement. Enron, Siemens, Bernard Madoff. We’ve all heard these terms and names and are familiar with how the dishonesty of few can affect so many on a global scale. Are we as well informed about how these major problems and others are identified? Enter the whistleblower, the moral individual who cannot stand aside and allow the wrongdoing to continue, an integral component in exposing fraud—and so much more. more...