This morning, I needed to make two vet appointments for my cats. I’m an American in Switzerland, so that means I need to make a phone call in German. No problem. I’ve lived here for almost 16 years and I have a B2 German certificate. A B2 means—or should mean—that “I can interact
I’ve always hated the terms “work wife” and “work husband.” They imply a level of intimacy that you should not have at work unless you work with your spouse to whom you are legally and lawfully wedded. I also don’t think it’s a harmless joke. I’m not the only one. Blonde
What unexpected thing do both President Donald Trump and Google have in common? They both offered “buyouts” to current employees for the same reasons—to cut headcount and strengthen company and agency mission alignments. Trump’s “Fork” memo offered federal employees the chance to resign between January 28 and midnight, February
In addition to being an HR professional with 25-plus years of HR experience, I’m an improv comedian who performs at corporate events. While our improv ensemble likes to keep things clean in general, we know that if we are on a corporate stage, the humor tolerance is much lower.
A study by the UK advocacy group Age Without Limits found that it’s not just a few people who think older people aren’t worth hiring. Fully 24 percent believe this. And 22 percent of respondents think it’s a waste of time to train someone older than 50, and 32 percent
Unlimited paid time off sounds amazing to employees. They can take all the time they want! Go to the beach! Spent a week with their grandma! And no worries, they can still take the time they need to follow their favorite band around the world. In reality, it
President Trump has appointed Andrea Lucas (no relation of mine, I swear) to head the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC). She has served on the committee since 2020, when she was appointed by President Trump. Lucas has vowed to make big changes at the agency, which has a
Severance, AppleTV’s show about the workplace, launches a long-anticipated second season on Friday. While it’s a workplace show, it’s definitely about a different kind of workplace. Employees at Lumon, the company featured in the show, have their workplace memories separated from their outside memories. Their work selves (“innies”) don’t know
JPMorgan wants everyone back in the office by March. (More than half of their employees — including senior managers — have been working full time in the office already.) The announcement did not go over well, with many employees complaining on an internal site. So, JPMorgan turned off comments. This is
In 2024, we saw a huge shift in how companies approached diversity, with many throwing out or radically changing diversity, equity, inclusion programs. Companies like John Deere, Walmart, and Tractor Supply Co. all made massive changes to their DEI programs in response to pressure from conservative groups led by Robby Starbuck. Today, McDonald’s announced
