• The proposed Biden OT regulations: What’s included, what isn't changing.
• How high can salaries go with indexing? Here’s the metric you need to watch.
• What the White House learned from the last failed overtime reg rollout and won’t repeat, making it highly likely proposed rules go into effect.
• Simple steps to avoid the Supreme Court salary basis trap.
• Why you should self-audit all your exempt employees’ job descriptions now to determine whether you should reclassify some as hourly rather than raise their pay.
• If you haven’t taken advantage of the bonus credit for exempt employees, why you may want to do so soon.
• The single most effective way to cut overtime risk and punish workers who don’t follow the rules.
• Why telework creates new overtime risks and what you can do to cut that risk.
• Why Congress may amend the FLSA, hike minimum wage and tighten overtime rules in an election year.

• Why you need to limit where remote work takes place.
• Remote work isn’t a right—in most cases.
• Beware the disloyal teleworker.
• Can you limit which states you accept telework applications from?
• Harassment on the rise.
• New telework rules for managers.
• Telework expenses.
• Timekeeping and pay.
• Discipline.
• Common classification mistakes.
• Emergency planning and telework.

• Why you can't be both a buddy and a boss.
• Getting comfortable with the power of your position.
• Understanding the difference between leadership and management.
• 5 distinct leadership styles: Identifying your personal strengths and weaknesses.
• Why successful managers make 360° communication their top priority.
• The critical importance of building a strong partnership with your boss.
• What it means to be an effective "linking pin" in your organization.
• How to be a good role model: Recognizing the impact of "leadership messages."
• How silent bystanders and wimpy managers encourage offensive behavior.
• 6 specific strategies for motivating different types of employees.
• The Performance Management Cycle: How to become a coach instead of a critic.
• Using a 10-step "coaching road map" for successful performance discussions.
• How to respond to employee complaints without arguing or agreeing.
• Avoiding the 7 "trouble traits" that can derail your management career.

• What elements make an effective investigation.
• Which types of employee complaints should immediately prompt an investigation.
• Which employment laws necessitate an investigation.
• Identifying workplace situations that can be better resolved with an investigation.
• 10 step-by-step investigation tips to keep your inquiry on track.
• How to use an investigation model flow chart and samples.
• How to begin the documentation process.
• Planning the investigation.
• Charting and updating a chronological report.
• Plan and strategize for each interview.
• Implement the Interview Checklist.
• Conclude and report on the investigation.

• How to create independent contractor relationships that comply with current DOL, NLRB, IRS, and state agency requirements.
• How to make the case-by-case determination of an employee’s status that will stand up in court.
• The DOL’s current definition of a contractor, and what changed.
• The pros and cons of contractor status (same work, lower costs, fewer hassles) and the risks (reclassifications leading to huge tax, wage, and benefit payments).
• Why the feds are increasing enforcement, what they’re looking for, and how you can stay in compliance.
• The key factors the DOL and IRS consider (and you should, too) in making classification decisions.
• Important court cases that help draw a brighter line between contractors and employees.

• Legal standards and employer liability applicable to harassment claims under the federal employment discrimination laws enforced by the EEOC, including the impact on employers of the new EEOC enforcement guidance on harassment.
• How harassment claims have changed since the Supreme Court decided that sex discrimination includes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• How to ensure all managers and supervisors understand their responsibilities, including how to handle discrimination and harassment they witness. The EEOC increasingly is expecting employers to encourage bystander reporting as a component of preventing and stopping harassment.
• Reining in all hostility and harassment, whether it is aimed at your employees, customers or clients, and regardless of where the harassment is coming from.
• Why the most difficult harassment cases involve behavior from customers, patients or clients, and what steps you can reasonably take.
• Hear examples of harassment, including emerging issues such as virtual or online harassment. Even off-duty social media posts can trigger an employer’s harassment liability when they are shared and discussed at work.
• How to correct issues of systemic harassment — and why you should never punish employees who bring it to light.

• The impact of tolerating harmful behaviors.
• The ripple effect of chronic negativity.
• The importance of nipping negativity in the bud.
• The power of civility and respect.
• Strategies for managing negativity.
• Creating a harmonious work environment.

• Pregnancy, missed work and attendance programs; when can you discipline for missed work during pregnancy and when you absolutely can not.
• Why forcing a pregnant worker to take leave isn’t a reasonable accommodation under the new PWFA if she could feasibly continue working.
• The four accommodations the EEOC says you can’t even question.
• Eliminating essential functions entirely may be a reasonable accommodation for pregnancy.
• Whether and when you have to provide time off for fertility treatments, abortion care, stillbirth or miscarriage recovery, and even menstruation and menopause leave.
• We now know that the EEOC views post-birth recovery time as a reasonable accommodation - find out exactly how to structure this new, de facto maternity leave.
• Easy to implement, practical accommodations that won’t unduly disrupt the workplace while complying with the new law.
• How the FMLA interacts with the PWFA and the PUMP Act to create an entirely new entitlement program.
• How to set up a PUMP Act compliant break room or area; and what to include based on your industry.
• What sort of accommodations you are required to make for common pregnancy related problems like morning sickness, lifting restrictions and bed rest orders.
• A comprehensive, single policy for reasonable accommodations, including pregnancy.

• The 5 benefits of a good job description.
• The 4 federal laws that require accurate, up-to-date job descriptions, including the new Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
• Which words create liability, and which words help you.
• 4 simple steps to create accurate and defensible job descriptions that match industry standards and local variations.
• How to define “essential functions” for ADA and FMLA purposes.
• Exempt or not? The right language to lock in an employee’s exempt FLSA classification. Hint: You don’t need to state which exemption you’re claiming, but you do need to know as you list duties for the job.
• Descriptive but functional language. Why job descriptions should use language that’s function-based and avoids coded words like “aggressive” and “fearless,” which can be seen as racist or sexist.
• Should they include disclaimers? Yes, and we’ll provide a sample you can include.
• Why the annual review should always include a reassessment of the job description. This is your chance to fix errors, evaluate changes and rest easy knowing your employee can’t trap you with surprise overtime, misclassification or other wage-and-hour complaints.
• Why you need employee input, review and buy-in. Nothing protects like an employee’s acknowledgement that their job description is accurate and complete.
• Resources for better descriptions. There are resources that help you create new positions or check that current positions are properly described.

• The core elements of workplace due process and the importance of the written record in the discipline and termination processes.
• Tough conversations to have with employees that invite them to involve themselves in their own performance improvement.
• Structuring disciplinary documentation that is constructive and that insulates the organization from legal liability.
• Alternatives to formal progressive discipline that re-engage employees without the formal trappings of “being written up.”
• Leadership landmines to avoid under all circumstances, especially regarding tricky situations that may miss awareness from good-natured yet unsuspecting managers.