May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Since its inception in 1949, Mental Health Awareness Month has been a cornerstone of addressing the challenges faced by millions of Americans living with mental health conditions.

When summer approaches, the number of minors (people under 18 years of age) in the workplace increases, as students who have been in school go on their summer breaks and many look for work. Hiring minors makes good business sense to many companies. Nonetheless, employers must operate in compliance with a variety of labor laws and be knowledgeable of their responsibilities when using child labor.

Under federal anti-discrimination laws, discrimination against employees based on age (40 or older), sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), race, color, national origin, disability, religion, and genetic information is prohibited for employers with 15 or more employees (20 for age discrimination). However, many state or local laws go above and beyond the federal requirements.

Elections are often divisive - particularly when it is a presidential election cycle. Polarizing campaign tactics that leverage wedge issues, economic uncertainty, and social unrest can all contribute to a charged national climate. The 2024 election season exemplifies these challenges, the effects of which often make their way into the workplace. As a result, employers should consider certain measures to address these challenges in a way that is compliant and maintains productivity, while also supporting employees' ability to engage in respectful discussions and participate in the election process itself. This article surveys some of the top issues employers should consider.

Your employee files accumulate a lot of paperwork, from new hire forms and performance reviews to safety documents and medical records. The storage, care, and ongoing maintenance of employee records are not only important to your employees, but failure to do so could expose you, as an employer, to potential liability, including monetary fines and criminal penalties.

National Employee Appreciation Day is celebrated every first Friday in March, which is March 1^st this year. It was started in 1995 by Dr. Bob Nelson, who wrote the book 1,001 Ways to Reward Employees. This day is an opportunity to remember the importance of appreciating employees.

When an employee is failing to get their work done, having attendance issues, or causing trouble in the workplace, you should address the problem. But what would be the best time to do so? As soon as possible!

The cost of everything continues to go up; it's just going up a little more slowly than it did in recent years.

We appreciate your continued partnership with FrankCrum and strive to keep you informed of any developments that may impact your business operations. We would like to bring to your attention a proposed bipartisan legislative change that could affect the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC).