Archive for August, 2009

AP Photo/Star Tribune, Jerry Holt

HR Roundtable panelist Michael Haberman suggests that the Brett Favre NFL “un-retirement” saga may become more popular in the traditional workplace as baby boomers reach retirement age:

So Brett Favre is un-retiring! What a surprise, NOT. Everyone who reads a sport page knows the story. Retired from the Packers due to “mental fatigue.” Unretired from the Packers to join the Jets, because “I have something to offer.” Retired from the Jets because he just didn’t have it anymore. Even as recently as the end of July he was staying retired, but just this week he is un-retiring to join the Vikings because “I felt I could offer experience and leadership, I didn’t want to look back and didn’t want to say what if.” So football fans will watch and see what he has to offer.

Even though he is not a baby-boomer (those born between 1945 and 1965), Favre, who was an early Gen X, still provides an example for many baby-boomer retirees. There are many boomers …

Continue reading Brett Favre and “un-retirement”: Model for baby-boomers and boon for employers »

HR Roundtable panel member Bill Pinto gives his opinion about how the EEOC is actually encouraging employees to challenge the validity of their waiver of claims, even when the waivers are completely legitimate:

Employers sometimes offer terminated or laid-off employees severance payments when their employment ends, especially in a mass-layoff situation. Usually, employers secure a waiver of claims in exchange for the severance or enhanced severance payment. Like any contract, the idea is to offer the outgoing employees something to which they are not otherwise entitled in consideration for their agreement not to sue the employer or to “waive” any claims they have at the time the agreement is signed. Employers enter into such agreements to provide some assurance that they can move forward with their business without the threat of litigation.

Recently, however, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a policy document under the auspices of helping employees …

Continue reading Warning to HR managers: EEOC offers help to employees who waive claims »

A. Though some companies are required to maintain solicited applications, they are not legally bound to maintain unsolicited resumes. Unless you know someone within a particular company, it is usually not a wise idea to send an unsolicited resume because Human Resources professionals have required reading; your resume will not fall within that category. Antonio Robinson, Employment & Labor Attorney with Littler Mendelson, P.C.

A. “It is a good practice to develop a relationship with a firm you admire. Sending a letter to the CEO or president, writing a report on a topic of interest to the company, sharing a great article or writing a thank you note about a product or service will begin to connect you as a positive resource to the firm. This will give you a competitive advantage in the interview selection process, particularly if your skills closely match the job requirements. I got my first job as a human resources director out of graduate school from a CEO who saw my …

Continue reading Ask HR: Should an unemployed worker consider sending their resume to a company they like, even if they know that the company is currently not hiring? »