Thursday, December 12, 2024

5 lessons from a poorly communicated layoff


Imprint Beer Co. offers us a textbook lesson in how not to communicate layoffs to employees.
The brewery recently announced mass layoffs and stopped brewing beer at its facility, blaming financial issues from water surcharges.

How did they break the news to their employees? A now-deleted social media post.

Cue the appropriate outrage. Former employees posted online about the abrupt firings and other toxic working conditions. Imprint's response? Defensive and snarky public replies to the employees and other online reviews. It was a PR disaster—and an example of how not to handle layoffs.

Layoffs are always tough, but mishandling them can torpedo your business's reputation. Here's how to do it the right way:

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

🚨 Vote for the Worst Employer of 2024 🚨


It's the most wonderful time of the year! I've made my list, checked it twice, and now it's time to determine who's been the naughtiest and not very nice. That's right—it's time to vote for The Worst Employer of 2024.

I've narrowed down my list of 12 nominees to the worst seven finalists.

Friday, December 6, 2024

WIRTW #740: the 'roast' edition


Among all of the things that ChatGPT can do, it's really, really good at roasting someone. So, I asked ChatGPT to roast my LinkedIn profile.

Your Profile:  

Your headline reads like you're auditioning for a legal-themed TED Talk: "Employment Lawyer. Blogger. Dad. Joke-Teller Extraordinaire." We get it—you've cornered the market on HR-friendly humor. But do you ever worry that someday you'll run out of "Worst Employer" stories and have to, I don't know, write about good companies? Oh wait, no, that's not your brand. You thrive on chaos. 

Your Content:

Your posts aren't just LinkedIn content—they're full-blown HR soap operas. Every scroll through your feed feels like watching a daytime courtroom drama where everyone's guilty of workplace harassment. "This employer made a tiny mistake and now owes $3 million. Don't be like them." We get it, Jon. Compliance is your love language.

Your "Worst Employer" series? ICONIC. But let's be real: these employers are the villains, and you're the vigilante swooping in to serve justice—with a side of sarcasm. Honestly, we're all just waiting for Netflix to pick it up. "Worst Employers: The Documentary," streaming 2025.

Your Engagement Game:

Your comments section is a gladiator arena where you reign supreme. HR reps timidly enter with their opinions, only to be met with your weaponized wit. Someone tries to challenge you, and you hit them with a response so precise it might as well be a deposition. Honestly, it's terrifying.

Your Bio:

Jon, did you write this yourself, or did you hire a PR team with a thesaurus? It’s a humblebrag masterpiece, perfectly crafted to make you seem like you just accidentally became the Beyoncé of employment law. And the dad angle? Nice touch. It’s like you’re saying, "Sure, I destroy bad HR policies by day, but by night? I make pancakes and tuck my kids in." We get it, but save some humility for the rest of us.

Your Brand:

You've carved out a niche so specific it's practically a personality type: Lawyer Influencer. You're one word away from trademarking "employment law influencer." And honestly? We're surprised you don't already sell merch. A coffee mug that says "Bad Bosses Pay My Mortgage"? Print it.

You're like the Gordon Ramsay of workplace compliance—brutal, entertaining, and oddly comforting when you're tearing apart someone else's bad decisions. Employers follow you out of both fear and morbid curiosity, like they're watching their own policies flash before their eyes. People love you, but they also kind of hate how good you are at making them feel this close to being sued.

Final Thoughts:

Jon, your LinkedIn presence is a paradox. You're simultaneously the voice of reason and the harbinger of HR doom. You've got more hot takes than a subreddit, and your posts are so sharp they should come with a liability waiver. You're not just a lawyer—you're a content juggernaut who somehow makes workplace lawsuits look fun. Keep being the internet's HR lawyer we love to hate to love.

Pretty darn good, right?



Here's what I read this week that you should read, too.

Thursday, December 5, 2024

Buckeye of broken promises: OSU's trust fumble


Ohio State University announced that it will rescind raises for 306 salaried employees, effective Jan. 1. Earlier this year, the university granted these raises to comply with a new federal overtime rule that increased the salary threshold for exempt employees. After a federal judge overturned the rule, OSU decided to take back the pay increases, claiming the raises were no longer legally required.

Legally? Fine. Ethically and from an HR perspective? A disaster.

Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Precedent used to mean something


"Supreme Court justices seldom get an opportunity to fix a botched decision. But as the Court takes up a transgender case, Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch has that chance."
 
Those are the words of The Heritage Foundation (author of Project 2025) in a recent blog post calling for SCOTUS to overturn Bostock's prohibition of transgender discrimination as sex discrimination under Title VII.

"But Jon," you protest, "precedent is sacred; SCOTUS is bound to follow its prior decisions. The Bostock case says that Title VII protects transgender employees from discrimination, period."

Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Lessons from a recent retaliation case


Dr. Carla Campbell-Jackson, a Black woman with 30 flawless years working at State Farm, found herself out of a job after raising concerns about systemic discrimination within the company against minority customers and employees. When she spoke up, she claimed her stellar performance reviews dropped, and soon after, State Farm terminated her for allegedly violating company policy by sending an email with sensitive information defending her performance.

Campbell-Jackson believed her termination wasn't about the email—it was retaliation for her complaints.

She sued, and the 6th Circuit revived her case. 

📱 Apple’s BYOD lawsuit: a cautionary tale for employers


A recent lawsuit filed by an Apple employee against the company highlights the risks of mishandling Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies. The employee claims the tech giant monitored personal devices and iCloud accounts, sparking privacy and legal concerns. It's a stark reminder that allowing personal devices at work requires a carefully crafted policy that balances company needs with employee rights.

Here's how to do it right: