Salary budgets for 2026 are projected at 3.4%. That sits well below the post-pandemic peaks and below what most of your people expected. Meanwhile, posted pay ranges and legally protected wage conversations mean your people arrive at the review with data. A manager script alone cannot hold that conversation together. This article explains the upstream work that makes the low-raise discussion manageable, and what to say when the number is small or zero.

You've probably heard the phrase, "If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.” If you're uncertain on if your next hire should be a 1099 Independent Contractor or a W-2 Employee, read the Federal 20 Factor Test and Common Law in Virginia below.

Is your business growing or expecting growth? Are more and more of your employees working remotely and across the country? How can a small or mid-sized organization manage these challenges along with new compliance obligations that accompany these changes without adding HR staff?

Almost 40% of the US military is made up of National Guardsmen and Reservists. These 850,000+ service members are also your employees. While their calls to duty are in the national interest, it can be disruptive to productivity, challenging to organizational cohesion, and stressful for everyone involved. But, we HR professionals can mitigate — even gain — from these experiences using techniques already available to us.

With ubiquitous intranet connectivity, advanced telecommunication and networking technology, employer initiatives for work-life balance, shrinking travel budgets, and disaster preparedness planning, many professionals are logging in, signing on, pinging, tweeting, or connecting to networks from home offices, hotel rooms, telecommuting locations or handhelds.