There is no government agency that stirs up more controversy then the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency. Everyone probably hates theIRS, but it's more of a resigned dislike.   In the aftermath of 9/11, in March 2003, the Homeland Security Act set into motion what would be the single-largest government reorganization since the creation of the Department of Defense. One of the agencies in the new Department of Homeland Security was the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, now known as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.   ICE now has more than 20,000 law enforcement and support personnel in more than...

As reported in Training Magazine, U.S companies spent $87.6 Billion on training in 2018. However, research by Dr. Brent Peterson of Columbia University suggests that 80% of your training dollars could be being wasted.   Dr. Peterson's findings show that:   ·     Pre-learning event activities represent 26% of learning effectiveness ·     Learning event activities represent 24% of learning effectiveness ·     Post-learning event activities represent 50% of learning effectiveness   However, Peterson’s research reveals that companies invest:   ·     10% of their training budgets on pre-learning event activities ·     85% on learning event activities ·     5% on post-learning event activities   If we examine these numbers, the most jarring fact that jumps out at us...

If you thought you have overtime procedures under control, you probably may want to re-think that. As of Jan. 1, 2020, the Department of Labor has mandated, under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), new overtime rules. One of the most important outcomes of these new requirements is that the final rule makes 1.3 million American workers eligible for overtime pay.   Non-exempt employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked that surpass 40 hours in any work week. This pay must be a minimum of 1 and one half their standard wage. As long as the worker is at least aged...

Photo by Benreis (no alterations have been made to this photo)   Are You Worth Your Salt?   Mark Kurlansky is the author of several non-fiction books. One of particular interest is simply titled "Salt".   Salt is the only rock we eat. It has been part of civilization since the very beginning. For quite some time, salt was used as currency. Long before gold. In fact, before the Silk Road was connecting Africa, western Europe, Persia, India and China, salt was used in trade and was instrumental in forming the first links between regions of the world.   In ancient Rome, the roots of the word “soldier” and...

How Old is Too Old? How Young is Too Young?   When making a hiring decision, neither of these questions should be on the list. Not only is it illegal (according to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964), but it may prevent you from hiring the best candidate.   Some hiring managers may be thinking "what will my customers think of this person (based on their age)? If you are in the financial services industry, how is the 22 year old recent college grad with a degree in finance going to be received versus the 49 year old without the degree?...