As far as firsts, SHRM included a social media lounge this year for conference attendees to stop by, network and most importantly…tweet.  With that being said, I hope to be more active on here in upcoming weeks!  Have a great holiday everyone.

Now, in one breath, that’s still very low compared to many other organizations.  However, in another breath, the price hike couldn’t have come at a worse time.  Every study I’ve seen indicates that there are more HR Professionals out of work than ever before.  And many companies are also choosing to eliminate or outsource their HR Departments.  So why, in turn, would the world’s largest HR organization decide to raise their dues?

Interesting, this price hike came at the same time that SHRM’s Board of Directors quietly voted to increase their annual honorariums.  You can read more on that story here.

At the end of the day, they’re the biggest fish and I’m still going to be a member.  But their recent actions can’t help one but wonder…

As an HR Professional, I will tell you that this book is an example of the many tools and resources that can be provided in outplacement packets to people that are being laid off.

Additional information can be obtained on Dahlstrom’s web site.  For a while, they were also advertising with SHRM and offering free copies of this book to HR Professionals.  If you’re a SHRM member, you could also check out the banner ads on their home page to see if it’s still being offered.

Here’s an interesting article I came across today.  It was published by MSN Careers yesterday.

It’s called “10 Things to Leave Off Your Resume” and in my opinion, you couldn’t pay for better advice.  When I’ve taught resume writing classes in the past, these are issues that I bring up too.  If you’re a job candidate, enjoy and make sure you read this article very closely.

Anyway, I started thinking about it.  This blog was kind of new when I wrote “Beating the Unemployment Maze – Part I” last August.  I’d encourage you to read it.

Don’t pay an attorney for what you can and should be doing yourself.  It’s amazing as to the cost savings you can obtain by just paying a little attention to this area (worker’s compensation too, for that matter).

Take care.  I’m going to try to be more active on here moving forward.

GINA is the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008.  The law went into effect on November 21, 2009.

Progressive Business Compliance posted this update today:

“On May 21, 2008, Former President George W. Bush signed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) of 2008 into law.  GINA includes two distinct titles.  Title I addresses the use of genetic information in health insurance.  Title II of GINA prohibits employers from collecting genetic information from employees, and using this information to make decisions regarding employment.”

As a result of this law, make sure your company is compliant – your Federal EEOC poster must be updated immediately.  As a perk for our readers, you can print the poster update for free here.  Keep in mind that you almost never need to buy a poster, because they’re usually available online…

Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com Editor, was the author.  You can view her blog here.

And you can view the list of 10 things here.  To be honest, I think I’ve fired somebody at least once for every single item on Kate’s list.  That’s not good.

But the good news is that we’re back with a vengeance and we’ll be updating this site more regularly moving forward.

Thank you for your continued support.

Our first stop will be in Ohio at the 37^th Annual Ohio Human Resource Conference.  It’s at the Kalahari Resort from September 16^th through the 18^th.

We’ll be talking to HR Professionals and vendors – and may even take a few trips down their awesome water slides if time permits.

There will be more information to come on this event, as well as initiatives in other states…

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