Veterans Day: Don’t Forget Skills Military Veterans Bring to Workforce

Veterans Day is next Monday, November 11. As we recognize and thank the brave men and women in the armed forces, we also recognize the value of the skills and expertise veterans bring to the workplace each day.

California is home to approximately 1.6 million veterans — the highest veteran population of any state in the nation. Military veterans may face many challenges making the transition back into civilian life, including challenges in the job market. About 200,000 U.S. servicemembers transition from the military to civilian life each year.


As a result of California’s growing economy, the unemployment rate for veterans has been decreasing over the past couple of years — from 5.8 percent in August 2017 to 3.2 percent in August 2019, a 2.6 percent drop. Nearly one in 10 employed veterans work in management, such as a financial manager, information systems manager or emergency management director, while other top military veteran occupations include sales, protective service and transportation and material moving. Veterans are also well prepared for independent problem solving, decisiveness and intense focus. As EDD’s 2019 Veterans Day Workforce Report says “The veteran’s ability to silence distractions is a critical business skill that allows him or her to quickly assess situations and identify solutions that yield positive outcomes.”


Veterans are protected under federal law, including the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). About 62 percent of complaints received under the USERRA contain allegations of discrimination on the basis of past, present or future military service or status; 15 percent of the complaints allege improper reinstatement into civilian jobs after military service. Information on USERRA’s protections and employer resources can be found on the Department of Labor’s USERRA website.


California law protects individuals from discrimination based on military and veteran status and also provides certain job protections and return rights after periods of military service.


The California Employment Development Department (EDD) helps veterans and eligible spouses maximize employment and training opportunities. The EDD also offers assistance and tools to employers to help hire qualified veterans.

Click here to read the full article......

Article published by: HRWatchdog by Cal Chamber Nov 8, 2019
Article written by: Vannessa Maravilla
Article spotted by: Louise Burden

Hiring in the Age of Salary History Bans

Across the country, state and local governments are enacting new laws that prohibit employers from requesting salary information from job applicants.

The laws are an effort to reduce pay inequity, particularly for women and minorities. 

Photo by Eddy Lackmann on Unsplash

In theory, workers who have experienced pay discrimination will continue to do so in potential jobs if the salary offered is based on previous earnings, thus continuing the cycle of discrimination.

Some of the law merely forbid employers from asking about salary history, but some prohibit employers from using that information to set pay even if they discover it inadvertently.

The upside

The upside to the legislation is fairness for candidates. Proponents of these laws say that businesses should focus on the value of work on the work itself, employees' experience and performance, as well as market factors that drive salaries.

For some in HR, the logic behind the legislation is understandable. “The intent is that previous employers might have used discriminatory practices in establishing that pay rate or salary so future employers will stop that cycle,” says Derek Jones, deputy VP of business development at Deputy, a workforce management company.

And recruiters are already adapting. “What we're seeing are more recruiters posting salary ranges on external job posting or covering this in the first phone screen," Jones said. "This level of transparency can benefit recruiters from wasting time with candidates who make it to a phone screen only to be disqualified for being out of that range."

The downside

While recruiters may be able to shift gears easily in the wake of these laws, the brunt of the compliance challenges may fall on employers, because they have to set those salaries.

This is especially true for businesses in California, which will have to provide job pay scales upon request. "That disclosure requirement, coupled with the restriction on using salary history to justify an increase in compensation, is likely to lead to more structured compensation practices," says Margaret Keane, partner with DLA Piper

Many employers don’t have formal pay scales and job grades or even particularly well-defined compensation parameters for a position, even when they solicit applications, Keane told HR Dive.

Negotiations will have to change, too, says Veronica Valenzuela, HR manager at CPS Security.

“Before we post an opening, we conduct a salary analysis to see where the market is for a specific position. We’re pretty transparent when we post our openings, including the salary range in ads," she said. "But asking about salary history saves time, helps determine the candidate’s salary expectations, and helps with negotiations. Applicants already know how much the position is paying, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be flexible if they’re seeking higher compensation."

In addition, complicated situations are sure to arise when an applicant volunteers information or when a highly sought-after candidate won't accept the employer's pay range. Mergers and acquisitions are sure to present unique challenges, too. 

“Employers adding to the workforce through mergers and acquisitions will need to be cognizant of compensation differences between existing and new employees performing substantially similar work under similar working conditions," Keane said. "Addressing disparities rooted in different cultures will be a new challenge for HR professionals in the integration phase and will require a clear evaluation of how experience, performance, and productivity factor into compensation in a given role."

Photo by rawpixel.com on Unsplash

To do today

If you're subject to any of these laws, the first and simplest thing to do is remove questions on print and online applications that request compensation history. But the more difficult shift — and the biggest area of risk — will be training for managers. HR needs to train these individuals quickly, Jones said.

They'll no longer be able to ask any questions about previous pay, including commissions and, in some cases, benefits. Instead, hiring managers will need to ask more generic questions, about employees' earning expectations, for example. Employers will have to ensure that outside recruiters do the same; in Delaware, for example, employers can be held responsible for recruiters' violations unless they've provided such instructions.

Finally, as Keane noted, employers will likely have to create a salary range for each position and ensure that the variations within those ranges are based on things like merit, education and experience.

Whether or not your jurisdiction is covered by the new laws, the trend seems to be taking hold. Similar measures are under consideration in a number of jurisdictions, and it may only be a matter of time before more join this growing list.

Where are the bans? Nine jurisdictions have adopted bans that apply to private employers.

Click here to read more detail about state and city specific bans. 

Article Spotted By: Alison Peters

Article Written By: Riia O’Donnell

Article Originally Published November 2, 2017 on HR Dive

Canadian tech sector not immune to sexism and discrimination of Silicon Valley

"Why can't a woman just be skilled at what she does and actually not play some other role you're expecting her to?"

Kirstine Stewart, former Twitter executive and current chief strategy office at Diply, says she wasn’t surprised by the content of a letter written by a Google engineer that ascribed gender inequality in tech industry to biological differences.

The sexism displayed in a controversial missive written by a now-fired male Google engineer is alive and well in Canada's tech sector, says one of the country's most prominent media bosses.

Former Twitter executive Kirstine Stewart says she wasn't surprised by the content of the internal letter, which went viral over the weekend, and cautioned anyone north of the border from being "holier than thou."

"Some of these opinions are borderless and I think that's why we have to be really diligent," says Stewart, also a former CBC executive who is now chief strategy officer with the online site Diply.

"I would caution anybody who thinks it's much better in Canada."

The widely shared letter, titled "Google's Ideological Echo Chamber," ascribed the tech industry's gender inequality to biological differences and criticized Google for pushing diversity programs. The engineer was reportedly fired, with Google CEO Sundar Pichai denouncing his screed for "advancing harmful gender stereotypes."

"I hope people don't look at (this) and go, 'Well, that's just the crazy U.S.,"' says Stewart, who joined Diply after spending three years at Twitter, first in charge of Canadian operations and then as head of North American media partnerships.

"We stand up a bit more and call each other on it because it's closer, I guess, to the values that we talk about more publicly than they do in the States. But I don't know that we're performing any better."

The stories coming out of Silicon Valley in the past few months have been stunning: steady claims of sexism and discrimination surrounding titans like the taxi-hailing app Uber and the venture fund 500 Startups.

Stewart says she's experienced her share of incidents over a lengthy career and adds it's frustrating that things don't seem to be moving forward enough.

"I had a female manager say to me that their managers had said, 'Oh, we're hoping that on the team you would be the nurturing one.' There were too many stereotypes and we have to get past stereotypes and into skills," says Stewart.

"Why can't a woman just be skilled at what she does and actually not play some other role you're expecting her to?"

The associate dean of outreach at the University of Waterloo is keen to be part of the solution.

Mary Wells, also professor of mechanical and mechatronics, recently won an award for encouraging women into science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields and says "there's absolutely been a culture shift" in recent decades.

The school's engineering curriculum includes discussion of such issues, but she admits more can be done to prepare both men and women for a new mindset.

"In first-year co-op a woman gets a job maybe before a male colleague, and right away he will say – and he's not trying to be mean – 'You must be their diversity hire,"' says Wells.

"The men can't believe that she can be just as good as he is or even better, and she also doesn't believe that she may be just as good as he is."

Click here to read the full article....

Article Spotted By: Kathryn Benson

Article Published in: The Globe and Mail / August 9, 2017

Article Written by:   Casssandra Szklarski

Spring Blooms and Post-Employment Restrictions: Court Rules Seasonal Employee not Bound by Non-Competition Clause

Many employers fear that a departing employee will set up a competing business. Often employers try to protect themselves with non-competition and non-solicitation agreements with employees. In See Thru Window Cleaners Inc. v. Mahood (PDF) , the B.C. Supreme Court explored a novel issue – whether a non-competition clause is enforceable against a seasonal employee. 

The Facts

See Thru Window Cleaners Inc. was in the business of window cleaning, gutter cleaning, and pressure cleaning. Its business was seasonal. It employed most workers in the spring, summer and autumn months and then laid them off for the winter. One of those seasonal workers was the defendant, Mr. Mahood.

Mahood was hired in 2001 or 2002 as an entry-level window cleaner. He worked for See Thru on and off for 15 years. He was laid off each winter, only to be re-hired the following year. At times, Mr. Mahood would find other work while laid off.  At other times he would collect employment insurance benefits. 

This pattern was repeated throughout most of Mr. Mahood's employment.

In October 2008, Mahood became the crew foreman. He was then required to enter into a non-competition agreement. 

In February 2009, Mahood left See Thru, but returned to their employ one year later. At that point, in early 2010, he signed another non-competition agreement. In it he agreed not to establish his own competing business within the City of Kamloops, for a period of three years after leaving his employment with See Thru. 

After signing this second agreement, Mr. Mahood worked for See Thru on a seasonal basis until November 2015, as follows:

• February 18, 2010 to November 22, 2010;
• February 21, 2011 to November 11, 2011;
• April 30, 2012 to August 13, 2012;
• April 4, 2013 to December 12, 2013;
• March 24, 2014 to November 28, 2014; and
• March 9, 2015 to November 14, 2015.

On January 14, 2016, Mr. Mahood resigned. He started a business named Adam & Eaves Window and Gutter Cleaning. It competed directly against See Thru. 

See Thru sought an injunction against Mr. Mahood that would prohibit him from competing against it for a period of three years from the end of his employment on January 14, 2016.

Click here to read more on the decision.....

Article Spotted By : Louise

Article Written By: Matthew Larson

Article Published on : June 14, 2017 Faskin Martineau

The One Question You Should Ask About Every New Job

Article spotted by Alison Peters
Original article by Adam Grant 
Originally published December 19, 2015 on the New York Times Sunday Review 

TWO years ago, a student of mine named Nicole was torn on where to start her career. While applying for jobs in finance, technology, consulting and marketing, she suddenly realized that her biggest concern wasn’t what she did, but where she worked.

When it comes to landing a good job, many people focus on the role. Although finding the right title, position and salary is important, there’s another consideration that matters just as much: culture. The culture of a workplace — an organization’s values, norms and practices — has a huge impact on our happiness and success.

But how do you figure out the culture of a company you’ve never worked for? As Nicole tried to evaluate company cultures, she kept asking the Passover question: “How is this organization different from all other organizations?” And, as with Passover, I told Nicole, the answer should come in the form of a story. Ask people to tell you a story about something that happened at their organization but wouldn’t elsewhere.

After collecting stories from people at different levels of an organization, Nicole noticed that they touched on common themes. That was a good sign: There was some consensus about the company’s values. But when she talked to other companies, the same kinds of stories kept surfacing in every company she talked to. Why?

Read more...

• Save

How to hire your employer

Article spotted by Alison Peters
Original article by Clayton Christensen, Professor at Harvard Business School
Originally published October 12, 2016 on LinkedIn 

My new book, Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice, debuted this past week, but it’s work that’s been nearly two decades in the making. For years my research has focused on understanding why good companies so often fail, a quest that led me to write The Innovator’s Dilemma years ago. But as I tried to answer that question, a new and pressing one emerged: how can companies know how to grow? The answer, I believe, lies in getting at the causal mechanism of customer choice – knowing why consumers make the choices they do to pick one product or service over another. To understand this, I’ve come to the conclusion that there is a critical question to ask: "What job did you hire that product to do?"

Read more...