Here they are. The people we hate. Short and sweet.

10. Stop Sign
I want to slap him every time he dumps on my great new ideas.

9. FlimFlam
How does he keep tricking me into doing his work? Damn you, Flimflam!

8. Bulldozer
If only I could stick a muffler on his mouth.

7. Smiley Face
Maybe it’s not a phony smile on his face. Maybe it’s just Botox. Whatever it is, I hate it.

6. Liar Liar
I don’t have enough time left in the day to figure out who isn’t lying.

5. Switchblade
The only thing I can count on from this jerk is trash-talking me to the boss.

4. Minute Man
Dude’s grabbed so many minutes of my time he could build a week out of them.

3. Know-It-None
Blogs, Wikipedia, reality TV. This clown couldn’t tell fact from fiction if they were wearing name tags.

2. Spreadsheets
I’d like to cram his rulebook where the sun don’t shine.

1. Sheeple
I hate them because they make brainless meetings, sorting e-mail, and mind-numbing tasks appear so productive that I’m tempted to become one with the herd.

©2009 Jonathan Littman & Marc Hershon, authors of I Hate People!: Kick Loose from the Overbearing and Underhanded Jerks at Work and Get What You Want Out of Your Job

Author Bios
Jonathan Littman, is the author of I Hate People! and numerous acclaimed works of nonfiction, including The Fugitive Game, The Watchman, and The Beautiful Game. He is also the coauthor of IDEO’sThe Art of Innovation and The Ten Faces of Innovation. He is a contributing editor for Playboy and a columnist for Yahoo! Sports.

Marc Hershon is the coauthor of  I Hate People! and a branding expert who helped to create the names for the BlackBerry, Swiffer, nüvi, and many other influential products. He is also a comedy veteran who has worked closely, with Dana Carvey, Bill Maher, and Robin Williams.

For more information please visit www.IHatePeople.biz

Let’s Talk: A guide to resolving workplace conflicts (pdf 3807 KB)

TORONTO, Oct. 2 /CNW/ – The authors of the annual list of Canada’s Top 100 Employers have released their 2009 winners and this year’s results are remarkable. “Even amid the market uncertainties we’ve seen over the past year,” says Managing Editor Richard Yerema, “forward-thinking employers are redoubling their efforts to improve working conditions for employees who help them weather these economic storms.” The result is an exceptional list (shown below) of employers that lead their industries in attracting and retaining top talent.\

Now in its 9th year, the annual Canada’s Top 100 Employers competition recognizes employers that are industry leaders at attracting and retaining employees. The competition is organized by Mediacorp Canada Inc., the nation’s largest publisher of employment-related periodicals and online directories.

To develop this year’s Top 100 list, Mediacorp examined the recruitment histories of over 75,000 employers across Canada that it tracks for its popular job search site, Eluta.ca. From this initial group, Mediacorp invited 10,000 of the fastest-growing employers, plus 6,000 other companies and organizations in industries that Mediacorp editors wanted to examine more closely, to apply for this year’s competition. Employers were asked to complete an extensive application process that included a detailed review of their operations and HR practices. Over 2,000 employers started this year’s application process.

In reviewing each employer’s application, Yerema and his editorial team reviewed eight key areas: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement. These criteria have remained consistent throughout the nine years of the Canada’s Top 100 Employers project.

The editors’ internal grades for each of these eight areas – with supporting reasons – are now published on Mediacorp’s popular job search site, Eluta.ca. “Publishing detailed reasons for selection,” says Publisher Anthony Meehan, “is a distinguishing feature of the Canada’s Top 100 Employers competition. Besides providing transparency, it allows other employers to discover what these special organizations are doing – and to emulate these best practices.”

In choosing the finalists, Yerema and the editorial team considered how each employer compared to others in its industry and region. This year’s list includes large and small employers from a range of industries, offering varying benefits and working conditions. What is common to all winners is that each is an industry leader: from architectural firms to community housing agencies, the employers chosen this year are leaders in their industry in attracting and retaining quality employees.

“This year was the most competitive since starting the Canada’s Top 100 Employers project almost a decade ago,” says Yerema. “We received a record number of applications from employers and our benchmarks for the areas we consider have increased in all industries and regions. These employers are leading the nation.”

2009 WINNERS – CANADA’S TOP 100 EMPLOYERS

• Adobe Systems Canada Inc., Ottawa ON
• Aecon Group Inc., Toronto ON
• Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc., Boyle AB
• AMAPCEO, Toronto ON BD Canada Inc.,
• Oakville ON Bayer Inc.,
• Toronto ON Blake,
• Cassels & Graydon LLP, Toronto ON
• Boeing Canada Technology Ltd., Winnipeg MB
• Business Development Bank of Canada, Montréal QC
• CAE Inc., Saint-Laurent QC
• CH2M HILL Canada Ltd., Toronto ON
• Canada Post Corp., Ottawa ON
• Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd., Calgary AB
• Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Ottawa ON
• Canadian Tire Financial Services Ltd., Welland ON
• Carswell, div. Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd., Toronto ON
• Cascades Inc., Kingsey Falls QC
• Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto, Toronto ON
• Cementation Canada Inc., North Bay ON
• Centre for Addiction & Mental Health, Toronto ON
• Ceridian Canada Ltd., Winnipeg MB
• Certified General Accountants Assoc. Canada, Burnaby BC
• Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, Chatham-Kent ON
• College of Physicians & Surgeons of Ontario, Toronto ON
• Compass Group Canada, Mississauga ON
• DeltaWare Systems Inc., Charlottetown PE
• Durham Regional Police Service, Whitby ON
• EPCOR Utilities Inc., Edmonton AB
• Enbridge Inc., Calgary AB
• Export Development Canada, Ottawa ON
• FSC Architects & Engineers, Yellowknife NT
• Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Toronto ON
• Farm Credit Canada, Regina SK
• Gamma-Dynacare Medical Laboratories Inc., Brampton ON
• George Brown College, Toronto ON
• Golder Associates Ltd., Burnaby BC
• The Great Little Box Company Ltd., Vancouver BC
• HSBC Bank Canada, Vancouver BC
• The Halifax Herald Ltd., Halifax NS
• Hamilton Health Sciences Corp., Hamilton ON
• Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Co., Mississauga ON
• Hill & Knowlton Canada, Toronto ON
• HOK/Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum, Toronto ON
• Honeywell Ltd., Mississauga ON
• IKEA Canada LP, Burlington ON
• Jacques Whitford Ltd., Dartmouth NS
• KPMG LLP, Toronto ON
• Kodak Graphic Communications Canada Co., Burnaby BC
• L’Oréal Canada Inc., Montréal QC
• Laurentide Controls Ltd., Kirkland QC
• Manitoba Liquor Control Commission, Winnipeg MB
• Mars Canada Inc., Bolton ON
• Marsh Canada Ltd., Toronto ON
• McGill University, Montréal QC
• Meridian Credit Union, St. Catharines ON
• Monsanto Canada Inc., Winnipeg MB
• NB Power Holding Corp., Fredericton NB
• National Energy Board, Calgary AB
• New Flyer Industries Canada, Winnipeg MB
• Next Level Games Inc., Vancouver BC
• Nycomed Canada Inc., Oakville ON
• OPSEU Pension Trust, Toronto ON
• Office of the Auditor General of Canada, Ottawa ON
• Ontario Power Generation Inc., Toronto ON
• Ontario Public Service, Toronto ON
• PCL Construction Group Inc., Edmonton AB
• Patient News Publishing Inc., Haliburton ON
• PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Toronto ON
• Procter & Gamble Inc., Toronto ON
• Research In Motion Ltd., Waterloo ON
• RBC/Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto ON
• Royal Canadian Mint, Ottawa ON
• Russell Investments Canada Ltd., Toronto ON
• SAS Institute Canada, Inc., Toronto ON
• Sapient Canada, Inc., Toronto ON
• SaskEnergy Inc., Regina SK
• SaskTel, Regina SK
• Saskatchewan Gaming Corp., Regina SK
• Saskatchewan Government Insurance, Regina SK
• Shell Canada Ltd., Calgary AB
• Simon Fraser University, Burnaby BC
• Sophos Inc., Vancouver BC
• Spruceland Millworks Inc., Acheson AB
• Stikeman Elliott LLP, Toronto ON
• Suncor Energy Inc., Calgary AB
• TD Bank Financial Group, Toronto ON
• Tamm Communications Inc., Toronto ON
• Toronto Community Housing Corp., Toronto ON
• Toronto Hydro Corp., Toronto ON
• Toronto International Film Festival Group, Toronto ON
• Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc., Cambridge ON
• Trican Well Service Ltd., Calgary AB
• University Health Network, Toronto ON
• University of Alberta, Edmonton AB
• Upside Software Inc., Edmonton AB
• City of Vancouver, Vancouver BC
• Wardrop Engineering Inc., Winnipeg MB
• County of Wellington, Guelph ON
• WorkSafeBC, Vancouver BC
• Yellow Pages Group, Verdun QC

• Establishes the conditions of employment present at the time of hire for example: hours of work, vacation entitlement, sick day payment, retirement age, etc.
• Acts a reference tool for information about the employee benefit plan, payroll, overtime, pay increases etc.
• Use as part of the orientation process to familiarize employee with the employer and the work location.
• Communication tool to pass along organizational history, culture, and chain of command.
• Familiarization with the organization–who does what, identify appropriate avenues for information.
• Reduces litigation because it clearly outlines what is expected from the employee – i.e. code of conduct, dress, language, smoking.
• Establishes rules and regulations (however, it should include a disclaimer that discipline may be issued for behavior not included in the list — list is not all encompassing)

Essentials of a Good Employee Handbook

1. A disclaimer at the beginning of the handbook limits litigation concerning policies and procedures, hours of work, payment, benefits, etc. A good disclaimer will reserve the right of the employer to make changes to the content.
2. A statement of the employer’s commitment to equal opportunity and to providing a harassment-free workplace.
3. Introduction to the organization.
4. Mission statement of the organization.
5. Recruitment practices:
• how jobs are posted
• how positions are filled.
6. Job evaluation methods.
7. Salary Administration Practices:
• merit increases
• performance reviews
8. Working Conditions:
• hours of work
• attendance
• overtime
• training
• retirement
9. Computer/Internet access policy
10. Code of conduct
11. Special Services:
• staff meals
• security
• health & safety
• staff lounge
• smoking room
• parking
12. Human Resources.
13. Complaint/Grievance Procedures.
14. Pay delivery and other payroll services (deductions):
• Savings Plans
• Charitable Donations
• T4
15. Indirect benefits:
• Group Insurance Benefits
• Employee Assistance Plan
• Pension Plan
• Vacation Sick Leave provisions
16. Leaves of Absence:
• Maternity/Parental Leave
• Jury Duty
• Bereavement Leave
• Personal Leave
17. Guidelines for termination of employment.
18. What to do if you cannot report to work.
19. Acknowledgment of receipt of the book by the employee.
20. Statement that the employer may have to treat some employees differently to ensure equal treatment.
21. Personal Information:
• how to update your file
• release of information on your file
• written request required to review your records

Pitfalls in creating an employee handbook:

1. Information is written in language too difficult to understand.
2. Carelessly chosen wording which creates an employment contract.
3. Failure to state information will be updated from time to time (Management can reserve the right to do this).
4. Inconsistency between sections of the handbook.
5. Over promising or setting unachievable standards.
6. Too much information — less is more. It should be short simple English.
7. Hardback copy makes updating extremely expensive and difficult.
8. Too boring, no theme or sense of fun. Employee will not read.

Conducted on behalf of the HR Council by Ipsos Reid, the parallel surveys provide an overall national picture of paid employment in the sector. The Survey of Employers provides empirical evidence about the characteristics of organizations, their recruitment and retention practices and challenges, as well as their skills needs. The Survey of Employees provides new statistical information about the demographic characteristics of the people who work in the sector, what they find satisfying and dissatisfying about their jobs, and their plans and expectations for the future.

“With the results of these national surveys, we are building tangible evidence of the realities of paid employment in our sector,” says HR Council Executive Director Lynne Toupin. “The data collected in these national surveys will help lay the foundation for the development of strategies and plans to respond to those realities.”

The surveys are an integral part of the HR Council’s Labour Force Study, a comprehensive look at paid employment in the sector leading to a first-ever labour force strategy for the sector.

The Study’s third and final report, featuring recommendations shaped by the survey results and strengthened by input from sector stakeholders, will be published in March 2009.

The first two published reports from the Labour Force Study are available online on the HR Council’s website at the following URL: http://www.hrcouncil.ca/projects/council-projects-sector.cfm

There are two types of slackers in most organisations, those who are in over their heads when it comes to getting the job done and those who are just plain lazy. Both types are difficult to deal with and both create morale problems in the workplace.

Regardless of type, slackers have common behaviours:

• They consistently fail to do what they’re expected to do.
• They excel at “busy work”.
• They’re the last to arrive, but the first to leave.
• They try to pass off tasks to other staff members.
• They often claim to be “too busy” to help out.
• They spend lots of time visiting around the office; often interfering with the work of others.
• They lots of time surfing the web, on personal phone calls or personal e-mail/messaging.

Here are some techniques for dealing with slackers:

• Talk with them in private about their behaviour, not in the middle of a team meeting.
• Don’t get angry. Remain calm and objective.
• Focus on measurable productivity. Don’t blame or accuse. Focus on the behaviour not the personality.
• Describe the behaviour’s negative impact on the team.
• Set clear expectations and set up an accountability system to track the expectations. Document the expectations in writing.
• Get a commitment to changing.

Some questions for consideration. Post your answers in the comments below.

1. Have dealt with slackers? How?
2. Have you been a slacker? What were the consequences? What made you change your behaviour?
3. Why is it important to avoid being confrontational?
4. What kinds of skills do slackers need to work on? (E.g.: time management.)

The average manager has to cope with many problem behaviours on the job. If you find yourself in a position where you have to deal with problem co-workers, you must:

• Try to understand their motivations.
• Learn to control your own emotions.
• Make your position clear without displaying disrespect.
• React to the behaviour, not the person.

This is a brief introduction to a series of posts on dealing with problem employees on the job. I’ll look at 8 common types of problem behaviours in the workplace and give some simple ideas for addressing and eliminating these problems. I’ll look at:

1. The Slacker
2. The Talker
3. The Betrayer
4. The Intimidator
5. The Power-Monger
6. The Clown
7. The Know-It-All
8. The Whiner

Organization Module:

This module is used to define the structure of your organization including departments, designations/titles and also the Org Chart.

Recruitment Module:

The Recruitment module eases the hiring process in an organization. It automates the steps involved between searching a candidate from resume database to hiring him an employee. This module also lets managers raise job requirements and admins post openings on the website.

Forms Module:

The Forms module has a set of pre-created forms (mini-applications) for common tasks in an organization like filing expense reports, reporting leave etc. With Zoho Creator integration, this module lets admins create new forms or customize existing forms and make them available to all employees.

Checklist Module:

This module lets admin automate business processes and define the flow based on conditions. Tasks can automatically be assigned to users or groups based on defined flow.

Self Service Module:

This module acts as a self-service module for Employees and Managers. All the employees have access to this module. Managers can define job openings and organize their team structure. Employees can submit information to the HR department using the forms defined by the HR team (like submitting an Expense Report or informing about a leave etc).

Roles and Permissions :

This module is used by admin to define fine grained access for different roles based on permissions – which drill down to field level, action level and form level.

The video below gives a quick overview of the key functionalities in the application.

Zoho People from Raju Vegesna on Vimeo.

Zoho People – HR solution on demand

What things do they do well? In what areas have they excelled in the past? What things do they like to do?

2. Match employee strengths to your responsibilities.

Exactly what part or parts of your present responsibilities might you delegate to a suitable and interested employee?

3. Define the responsibility you want to delegate.

For example, don’t delegate tasks that only you should do. By the same token, don’t delegate all the fun parts of your job.

4. Communicate clearly what action is required.

Poor communication increases the risk of mistakes. Fully describe what you are delegating along with clear instructions for how it is to be carried out. The employee must know your exact expectations, and what the completed task should look like.

5. Allow for creativity and innovation.

In terms of delegating a task, you want to control the outcome, but not necessarily the creative process for obtaining that outcome. You should allow employees some latitude and flexibility in how the job is to be performed. In some cases, employees may have some even better ideas for completing the task than you had.

6. Explain the benefits of accepting the delegated assignment.

Listen to the feedback from the employee and acknowledge any resistance or fears with understanding. Offer encouragement and show that you have confidence in the person’s ability to do a good job. Assure the employee of your support and secure a firm commitment to accept the delegation.

7. Train and coach the employees in the new assignments.

Be sure to offer the assistance and support that they will need to succeed. Be available to offer direction, encouragement and advice while employees are learning their new assignments but do not hover over them.

8. Monitor the results.

If you monitor too closely you will give the impression that you are micro-managing. If you monitor too little, the employee may feel abandoned. At the outset, you may wish to monitor progress at regular intervals until the employee is performing the delegated task properly.

The act of delegating helps develop your supervisory skills. Delegation enhances your ability to work with others and fosters a spirit of cooperation.

It is important for every supervisor to know, that in delegating responsibility to an employee, you as the supervisor are not absolved of responsibility. The supervisor is ultimately responsible for anything that is delegated to other people. In that sense, delegating involves a shared responsibility.

As you delegate more frequently, you will develop more of a “feel” for the process. Delegation will allow you as a supervisor, to achieve through your employees more than you could accomplish on your own.

Source Unknown

N.B., this is my understanding, from a Canadian perspective. As always, when in doubt, get legal advice.

Control Test

Does the worker or the employer outline what is to be done and how it is done? If the employer has this control, it will be deemed an employer-employee relationship.

This was once considered a conclusive test, but is no longer. In many cases, because of the nature the work, it is difficult or impossible for an employer to exercise any control over the manner in which work is performed. This is specifically true in connection with professionals and highly-skilled trades people, as employers generally lack the expertise required to direct the activities of these workers. However, this would not necessarily mean the worker is an independent contractor.

Integration or Organization Test (The “Duck” Test)

This test examines whether an individual is part and parcel of an organization by considering:

• the relationship of the work performed to the overall business;
• how the worker is presented to the public;
• how standard organization policies are applied to the individual;
• the percentage of the individual’s total income provided by the employer.

If the worker is dependent upon the employer, is presented as part of the organization, is governed by organizational policies and practices, and performs work that is critical to overall organizational effectiveness; the individual will be viewed as an employee.

In other words, if it walks like a duck and sounds like a duck, it’s a duck.

Economic Reality Test

This test focuses on the following dimensions of the relationship:

• control
• ownership of tools
• chance of profit
• risk of loss

In cases where the worker supplies no funds, takes no financial risks, and has no liability, the worker will be deemed an employee.

Specific Rule Test

• Is the worker providing their services for a specific purpose with a specific result in mind? Example: contracted to negotiate a collective agreement
• Is there time-specific completion of the work time specific or is it ongoing?
• Is the worker contracted for a specific project?

If the work contracted is specific in nature and short term the worker will likely be deemed an independent contractor.

Relevance of the Decision

Why is it important to make sure you’ve placed the worker in the correct category?

• Employers are responsible to make source deductions for employees but are not responsible for making them for independent contractors.
• Failure to make required source deductions for employees can result in significant fines.
• Employers are responsible for meeting Employment Standards legislation for employees whereas applicability is limited with a contractor.