Employco Blog

A recession’s impact on employers can vary greatly. Employers of all sizes and industries generally experience reduced sales and profits due to changes in consumer behaviors, forcing organizations to embrace cost-cutting measures. These measures include layoffs, reductions in spending, and decreased marketing and research. A recession can also curb an organization’s access to credit and lessen overall cash flow, leading to an increase in bankruptcies. The strategies employers implement to mitigate the effects of a recession can greatly impact whether their organizations withstand such an economic downturn. Therefore, employers can prepare for a recession by taking steps now to limit recession-related ramifications and maintain financial stability.

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Employers are likely familiar with “quiet quitting,” where employees put no more effort into their jobs than necessary, or “quiet firing,” where employers or managers slowly pull back employees’ duties instead of outright firing them. Now, there’s another phrase gaining traction in workplaces: “quiet hiring.”

Overview of Quiet Hiring – Quiet hiring is when companies upskill existing employees and move them to new roles or give them greater job duties to fit business needs. This often happens when an employee leaves an organization, leaving their role or responsibilities open. This strategy can be an efficient, cost-effective way for employers to snag in-demand talent without going through traditional external hiring channels.

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Employee handbooks are important tools for establishing employee expectations, addressing workplace issues, and defending against potential lawsuits. Failing to update employee handbooks regularly can make employers vulnerable to legal risks and liabilities, resulting in costly fines, penalties, and attorneys’ fees. Employment laws are often complicated, and employers need to be aware of any new regulatory developments that may impact their organizations and workforce. The start of the year provides employers with an excellent opportunity to review and update their employment policies. The following list summarizes the five key policies employers should review to ensure their employment practices and policies are current and reflect the most recent regulatory developments.

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California – FAQs Explain New Requirement to Include Pay Scale in Job Postings: The California Labor Commissioner has issued guidance on the new law that requires all employers to provide the pay scale to an employee or applicant upon request and employers with 15 or more employees to include the pay scale in any job posting, effective Jan. 1, 2023. The guidance, as summarized in this Legal Update, is in numbers 27 through 34 of the Labor commissioner’s Equal Pay Law FAQs. Click here to read the California Legal Update.

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According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statics (BLS), the rate of labor union membership decreased from 10.3% in 2021 to 10.1% in 2022. The 2022 unionization rate is the lowest since the BLS started tracking comparable union data in 1983. Despite the decrease in the union membership rate, the number of wage and salary workers belonging to unions, at 14.3 million in 2022, increased by 273,000 from 2021. This is likely due to the increase in the total number of wage and salary workers in the United States, including those who didn’t join unions. The BLS’ release explained that the “disproportionately large increase in the number of total wage and salary employment compared with the increase in the number of union members led to a decrease in the union membership rate.”

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