Time is Running Out to Register For The 2010 Environmental Management Seminar

There is still time to register for the 2010 Environmental Management Seminar. This program promotes and encourages effective environmental management in poultry and egg production and processing. The seminar examines the best practices, new ideas, and government regulations. Sponsored by U.S. Poultry & Egg Association's Poultry & Egg Institute, this year's conference will be held March 17-18, at the JW Marriott Hotel in New Orleans, LA. Register today at http://www.poultryegginstitute.org/educationprograms/index.cfm#fmms.

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Credit Checks Hurt People in Recession

Sixty percent of employers recently surveyed by the Society for Human Resources Management said they run credit checks on at least some job applicants. Critics charge that such checks can create a perverse Catch 22 for job seekers who have damaged their credit because they lost jobs due to the recession. Lawmakers in at least 16 states are taking a long, hard look at the practice of pre-employment credit checks. They have bills pending this year that would outlaw most credit checks on the grounds that the practice traps people in debt because their past financial problems prevent them from finding work.

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Safety Award Application Deadline is March 15th

To recognize those facilities that have achieved a high level of safety performance through the implementation of innovative and effective safety and health programs, the Joint Poultry Industry Safety and Health Council announces the first annual safety award program. The program is open to National Chicken Council, National Turkey Federation and U.S. Poultry & Egg Association members with poultry processing plants, hatcheries, feed mills or rendering facilities that have injury and illness rates below the industry average for three consecutive years.

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Inflated Performance Appraisal Deflates the Company's Wallet

No one likes confrontation at work. The fear of confrontation can drive a manager to write a glowing evaluation for an average or poor-performing employee to avoid conflict and hurt feelings. One court recently warned managers to get over the fear and document accurately. Not doing so can lead to loss of key legal defenses needed to win discrimination lawsuits.

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HR Record Retention Guidelines

Accounting, administrative, corporate, insurance, legal, personnel, taxation, etc. Records retention - you have to know what you have and how long to keep it. A records retention schedule ensures that your records are managed for operational, legal, fiscal or historical reasons, and then destroyed when they’re no longer required. Whatever your method, create and use your retention schedule as a guide, not as an executioner.

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Combustible Dust Standards and Guidelines

Since 1980, more than 130 workers have been killed and more than 780 injured in combustible dust explosions. OSHA is reminding workers and employers about the hazards of combustible dust and ways to avoid those hazards. OSHA's Safety and Health Topics Web page on combustible dust discusses what current standards apply to help eliminate worker exposure and identifies other agency resources, such as Hazard Communication Guidance for Combustible Dusts and Hazard Alert: Combustible Dust Explosions fact sheet, on identifying and controlling the potential for explosions.

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