HR Stories Podcast - A Lesson in Every Story!
Welcome to the HR Stories Podcast - where there is a lesson in every story. Our Storytellers - John Thalheimer and Chuck Simikian, the Team behind HR Stories, share real-life tales about where a business made a preventable mistake. At The HR Stories Podcast, the STORIES are the teaching tool! LISTEN to the stories of those who did not heed the warning signs. LEARN from their mistakes. ACT on best practices shared by our hosts and guests. Each year, our hosts, Chuck Simikian and John Thalheimer, deliver thousands of live seminars around the country to business owners, executives, and HR professionals discussing the fundamentals of Human Resources, Leadership best practices, and legal risk reduction activities for organizations. Each HR Story episode shares a story of where a company missed the mark, what went wrong, and how you can avoid their fate. As the Team at HR Stories, John and Chuck continue to develop and provide resources to help HR leaders, business owners, and organizations with the confidence they need to successfully handle employee issues and build strong employee practices to comply with employment laws. Both successful entrepreneurs help businesses through HR consulting, training, and coaching leaders. They have coached and trained thousands of HR Professionals, Business Owners, and Leaders to prepare them for the future. John is the Founding Director of True Star Leadership™, which focuses on helping managers and leaders learn performance management principles. Chuck is the Founding Partner of Alliance HR Partners, which provides HR consulting and training to businesses nationwide. Together, they have over 40 years of experience navigating the challenges of HR and recently published their book, The Ultimate Guide to HR: Checklist Edition. Go to https://ultimateguidetohr.com/ for more information, download a free sample, and watch their webinar on the Secret Power Behind Successful Businesses.
Episodes
This week in our Summer School series, we’re revisiting a landmark case that forever reshaped HR law and workplace culture: Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson. Originally aired in May 2021, this powerful episode unpacks the story of Mechelle Vinson, whose harrowing experiences led the U.S. Supreme Court to recognize hostile work environment sexual harassment as a form of discrimination under Title VII.
Join us as we walk t...
Welcome to Summer School! Chuck and John are going to take you back through some of the biggest Supreme Court cases that changed the face of Human Resources. This week, we revisit the case of Griggs v Duke Power, where an intelligence test was discriminating against Black employees. Listen in to be reminded how Willie Griggs and 13 fellow employees took a stand against this Power House Giant.
Additional Resources:
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- Can you terminate an employee just for a bad attitude?
- What should you do when an employee walks off the job mid-shift?
- Can quid pro quo harassment happen between coworkers?
Visit TeamAtHRStories.com to see all of our workshops and offerings to help you feel confident in your HR decisions.
Racial harassment, DEI confusion, and legal landmines—this episode dives into the HR challenges small businesses can’t afford to mishandle. From a $200K court ruling against an HR team that brushed off serious complaints to how one company legally retooled its DEI program after Trump’s executive order, we break down what to do (and what not to do). Join Chuck and John as they dive into these questions and more:
- Wha...
There has been no shortage of policy updates this year and it's enough to make any HR pro's head spin. Join the team as they go through the key ones to be aware of and discuss the proposed changes that you may hear about through the remainder of the year.
Visit TeamAtHRStories.com to see all of our workshops and offerings to help you feel confident in your HR decisions.
Our new bo...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- We have someone out on military leave who is supposed to return soon. We want to keep the person we brought in to cover for them
- How do you handle managers who don’t want to do what needs to be done to enforce policies?
- What do you do when someone refuses to take their lunch break then demands to be compen...
Chuck and John are back this week with part 2 of what is keeping HR professionals awake at night. Catch up on the ins and outs of the issues of today so you can walk into your job with the confidence and knowledge needed to tackle them like a pro.
Visit TeamAtHRStories.com to see all of our workshops and offerings to help you feel confident in your HR decisions.
Our new book...The Ultimate ...
Part 1 of 2 - Do you have sleepless nights, stressing about all of the things you need to take care of in your workplace? Working in HR, there are endless lists of important details that human resource professionals are responsible for. From employee burnout to difficulty in recruiting, to handling ever changing political landscapes, in Part 1 of this two-part series, the team will talk about how to navigate these iss...
Join the team as the jump back to an episode from last summer where they talk about how to keep you and your employees safe during the summer heat and avoid costly mistakes that can lead to serious harm.
We'll see you back next week for a brand new episode.
Visit TeamAtHRStories.com to see all of our workshops and offerings to help you feel confident in your HR decisions.
Our new ...
What happens when a company's dress code walks straight into a lawsuit? In this eye-opening episode, Chuck and John unpack the real-life legal battle between a cocktail server and MGM National Harbor over mandatory high heels, disability discrimination, and a rigid appearance policy.
This isn’t just about shoes. It’s a cautionary tale for HR professionals and small business owners alike. We break down the legal pi...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
1. Can you require a doctors note for someone who continually calls in the day after a holiday weekend? Our PTO policy doesn’t require it but it happens every time.
2. Is it an HR issue if someone brings particularly fragrant food into the break room?
3. Can we lower someone’s pay if they ...
John Thalheimer and Chuck Simikian unpack the growing crisis of burnout and chronic stress among HR professionals and business leaders. With recent federal actions, such as workforce reductions and the rollback of affirmative action policies, HR leaders are navigating more pressure than ever.
You’ll learn:
- What burnout really looks like in the workplace
- The link between DEI policy changes and HR stress
- How to build re...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- What should an HR employee do if they’re experiencing retaliation in the workplace but feel like they can’t go to management?
- How do you handle compensation for someone getting demoted while pay bands changed?
- Can someone be an independent contractor for the same company they work for full time if the work...
The Trump Administration has signed a flurry of executive orders - some of which have direct impacts on the workplace. It’s critical, now more than ever, to pay attention to changes and updates that are coming your way. In today’s episode, Chuck and John review some new documents released by the EEOC that are providing clearer guidance around how to legally approach DEI in the workplace. Andrea Lucas, the EEOC Acting ...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- What’s the smallest increment of time that you have to count towards overtime?
- How do you handle PTO fairly in terms of seniority? Is there a policy that you have for senior employees over new hires?
- Can part time employees be given comp time instead of getting paid overtime?
Visit TeamAtHRStories.com...
This is a case you can’t afford to ignore. When AccentCare, Inc. paid a less-experienced male nurse more than a seasoned female nurse—and then fired her when she complained—the EEOC took action. In this episode, we break down the lawsuit, the five critical lessons for employers, and why Equal Pay Day (March 25) is a wake-up call. From pay transparency to retaliation risks, we’ve got everything you need to protect your...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- We have an employee who has been out numerous times for a medical issue but he will not provide any supporting documentation or take FMLA. How can we proceed if we need to take action to have someone fill the role?
- We have someone who quit due to undisclosed PTSD being triggered by behaviors in the workpl...
In this episode, we dive into the shocking case of Reena Mathew, an HR Business Partner at Santander Consumer USA, who was placed on a Performance Improvement Plan and fired after announcing her pregnancy. Was it a case of performance management—or pregnancy discrimination disguised as poor performance?
Chuck and John break down the timeline of events, the questionable "exculpatory paper trail," and the lesso...
Welcome to another Listener Q&A with The Team at HR Stories! Today's episode goes into these questions:
- I’m newly taking over HR duties and it’s a mess. Where do I start?
- We have an employee that wants to take 8 weeks of unpaid leave for personal medical needs. They want to use PTO to cover benefit deductions but they won’t have enough for the leave. What do I do?
- Employees have been stealing time and gettin...
In today’s episode, you’ll follow along with a CHRO who was tasked with tackling hybrid work challenges, boosting employee well-being, and building a future-ready workforce. Listen as Chuck and John talk through these ways to come out on top of these challenges:
✅ “Collaboration Week” – Fixing hybrid work disconnect
✅ Mental health & burnout solutions that work
✅ Upskilling & leadership development strategies
✅ Wi...
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