CALIFORNIA: Workplace footwear may qualify for employer reimbursement.

When are shoes part of a specialized uniform, and when are they just shoes? Read this article to learn whether you may be required to reimburse your employees for their footwear.

CALIFORNIA: Mandatory Service Charges May be Gratuities

If you're not clear on the legal difference between a "service charge" and a "gratuity," read this article I wrote a few years ago.

Upsetting what many considered settled precedent, a California Court of Appeal has held that a mandatory service charge may qualify as a “gratuity” under California Labor Code Section 351 that must be distributed to the non-managerial employee(s) who provided the service.

FLORIDA: Hooray! The minimum wage has increased...by $0.10.

In typical Florida fashion, we're making progress at the speed of sea turtles. The minimum wage will increase from $8.46/hr. to $8.56/hr. However, the initiative to raise our minimum wage to $15/hr. made the ballot for November. If passed, the minimum wage will reach $10 in Sep. 2021, then increase $1/year after that.

ILLINOIS: Legal weed arrives in January.

Are you ready? Do you know what your rights are as an employer? If not, read this article from SHRM about how to prepare your salon for legal recreational marijuana.

DO NOT Say "Okay, Boomer" at Work.

"If you're saying OK Boomer to a supervisor, all I can say is OK Millennial. That's going to get you fired. Don't make fun of your boss, and especially don't make fun of them for being old and out of touch. If you're saying it to a subordinate, you have just given them direct evidence of age discrimination."

$231k Jury Verdict Upheld in Favor of Employee Who Was Fired for Grand Jury Service

The employee claimed an HR rep told her she needed to choose between her job and jury duty, even though the employer knew that jury service was a protected status under Missouri law, subject to nondiscrimination protections.

New Academic Study Shows Nail Salon Workers' Exposure to Chemicals is Increasing Their Lifetime Cancer Risks

Inadequate cosmetic product regulations and labeling requirements make it hard to know which products are actually safe. A 2012 study by the California Environmental Protection Agency found that 10 out of 12 nail products labeled “toluene free” still contained up to 17% toluene. Products labeled free of the so-called “toxic three” ingredients – dibutyl phthalate or DBP, toluene and formaldehyde – actually contained greater concentrations of DBP, an endocrine-disrupting compound, than products that made no claims at all.

I want (need) to hear from you! Do you know what it's like to stare at a blinking cursor on a blank Word document for 30+ minutes while the abstract (and likely illegitimate) concept of other people's expectations gives you the impression that every idea you've had is The Actual Worst™ before rolling your eyes, muttering some choice obscenities as you shut down your computer, and leaving your office a defeated and broken person?

No? Just me then?
Cool.

Up until now, I've never needed to reach out for content ideas, but after two books and nearly ten years of blogging, I'm having a hard time coming up with topics I haven't addressed that don't deviate from my core content areas. I'm feeling very much like I've covered everything I possibly could. So, before I resort to the drastic measure of introducing a fourth focus, I'm asking what you--as a person who helps to financially support this site--want to learn/read more about?

What are you interested in?
What do you think you need to know?
What do you want to read about?

Let me know.

I'll be here, staring at this blank document and trying real hard to convince myself that inspiration will come eventually.