While telecommuting gains momentum, it remains fraught with practical and legal considerations: caution is advised in assessing benefits and liabilities. Telecommuting is defined as using telecommunications technology to allow employees to work from remote locations (including the field, while traveling, or most typically from their homes) instead of commuting to a conventional workplace at a conventional time. By definition, telecommuting decentralizes, defying conventional notions of how work, workers and the "workplace" are structured. Technological advancements in the form of better network connectivity, faster handheld devices, and improved and less expensive portable computing are creating more opportunity for many workers to work outside the office. In addition, state and federal governments are beginning to emulate private industry by revising and updating their policies to add telecommuting as a means of attracting and retaining skilled white-collar workers, and to remain flexible and competitive in today's tight labor market. Proponents argue that telecommuting can improve productivity, while helping employees balance life demands. Opponents argue that there are many pitfalls in telecommuting, including isolation, lessened productivity, and reduced teamwork, synergy and camaraderie. A literature search reveals that telecommuting cases are gaining momentum in the workplace and in the courtroom. Both employers and the courts are reconciling this new paradigm with employment laws that predate modern technology. The most common legal liability seems to stem from workers' compensation concerns and the fact that it is often unclear precisely when telecommuters are working, when are they preparing to work, and when they have temporarily stopped working. In addition, there have been some cases where employees requested telework arrangements as a "reasonable accommodation" under the Americans with Disabilities Act. In 2000 a trial balloon on regulating home offices caused an uproar in the popular press and OSHA issued a formal directive to soothe concerns about possible intrusions into workers' homes, stating that it will not inspect home offices for violations of federal safety and health rules, and it does not expect employers to do so either. Still, many employers remain wary of telecommuting. These are just a few of the issues that have sprung up around telecommuting. The following literature search presents a wide variety of articles covering the topic from many different angles. Many emphasize the need for (and some give examples of) telecommuting agreements and an understanding of how teleworkers will be managed. Some also clarify alternative work arrangements that take advantage of telecommuting technology and opportunities as alternatives to full-time telecommuting. Those options include but are not limited to: job sharing, flex time, partial telecommuting, working as an independent contractor, and working as a leased or contract employee.

Firing at Will shows managers and employers how to do the most difficult part of their jobs: firing employees. Written by a leading employment lawyer in a refreshingly unlawyerly style, this guide takes the reader through the always-risky process of letting an employee go. Many employers and managers are afraid to pull the trigger when the employment relationship has broken down, and will postpone the decision by using progressive discipline and performance-improvement plans. However, an employer must be able to unload employees who threaten to undermine the company and its prospects, regardless of the risks involved in a termination. This book explains how to do it, how not to do it, and how to minimize the danger of an expensive employee lawsuit. No one said being an employer or a manager was easy. Fortunately, knowing how to fire employees will make your job much, much easier in the long run and save you heartache. Firing at Will teaches you what you need to know, without any legalese or boring recitations of statutes and case law. This book is filled with plain-English common sense, based on Jay Shepherd's 17 years of protecting employers in court. The style is conversational and often irreverent, but the lessons and tips are battle-tested. If you want to be a successful manager or employer—and sleep easier—you need to know how to fire at will. Gives employers and managers real-world advice on how to fire employees Teaches how to keep your company—and yourself—out of expensive employee lawsuits Guides you toward building a workplace where you'll need to fire fewer employees

Experts from across all industrial-organizational (IO) psychology describe how increasingly rapid technological change has affected the field. In each chapter, authors describe how this has altered the meaning of IO research within a particular subdomain and what steps must be taken to avoid IO research from becoming obsolete. This Handbook presents a forward-looking review of IO psychology's understanding of both workplace technology and how technology is used in IO research methods. Using interdisciplinary perspectives to further this understanding and serving as a focal text from which this research will grow, it tackles three main questions facing the field. First, how has technology affected IO psychological theory and practice to date? Second, given the current trends in both research and practice, could IO psychological theories be rendered obsolete? Third, what are the highest priorities for both research and practice to ensure IO psychology remains appropriately engaged with technology moving forward?

Finally, a book that's written to help small businesses prosper in a 2012 business environment. This book gives you the tools and information every small business needs to not only still be alive and kicking in 2013, but to actually grow profitably, while handling complications related to workplace equality, bullying, anger management, women in the workforce, trade unions, and answering the all-important question, "Is the customer always right?" There is also a separate section on business law.