HRinsidr

06/19/2026

Innovation doesn’t happen by accident.

It emerges when teams are intentional, equipped with the right skills, and given the freedom to think creatively together.

The problem? Most teams default to the status quo stuck in outdated dynamics, unclear purpose, or simply no creative process at all. And they don’t even realize how much untapped potential they’re leaving on the table.

The good news: creativity is a skill. It can be built.

Join Dr. Amy Climer award-winning author, TEDx speaker, and innovation expert who has worked with the Mayo Clinic, FOX Sports, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for a research-based session on leading deliberate creative teams.

In our HR-certified webinar this month, "Deliberate Creative Teams: How to Lead for Innovative Results," you'll learn:

✓ The behaviors and practices of high-performing, creative teams
✓ Research-backed strategies to generate and implement innovative ideas
✓ Simple, actionable techniques you can use starting today

Who should attend: HR leaders, team managers, People & Culture teams, OD professionals, and anyone leading a team that needs more creative spark.

📅 Tuesday July 28, 2026
🔗 Register: https://hrinsidr.com/webinar-sign-up/

06/19/2026

Federal courts in early June 2026 invalidated the $100,000 H-1B fee and vacated USCIS processing-hold policies, while the Third Circuit narrowed FLSA overtime gap-time claims and New Jersey expanded cannabis-discrimination exposure. Oregon, Colorado, and New Jersey advanced immigrant-worker protections, demographic reporting, and cannabis litigation. Here are the six developments HR teams should track now.

https://hrinsidr.com/compliance-round-up-a-court-voids-the-100000-h-1b-fee-the-third-circuit-narrows-flsa-overtime-claims-and-new-jersey-clears-the-way-for-cannabis-bias-suits-june-2026/

Jenny Kiesewetter is a practicing ERISA and employee benefits attorney who partners with HR teams on a wide range of workplace compliance matters — from benefit-plan obligations to day-to-day HR policies and regulatory requirements. Her guidance helps employers spot risks early, navigate

06/17/2026

One of the most common things HR professionals see — and experience ourselves — is someone reacting to a situation that hasn't fully played out yet.

A project gets reassigned. A reorg is announced. A difficult conversation doesn't land the way it was meant to.

Before anyone has the full picture, the stories start. I'm being pushed out. They don't value my work. Something bad is coming.

Most of the time, those stories aren't facts. They're fears wearing the costume of facts.
That's exactly why we love the Four Square Framework, a simple tool that helps people separate what they know from what they're afraid might be true, and redirect their energy toward what they can actually do something about.

It's built around four honest questions:

→ What actually changed?
→ What do I know to be true?
→ What am I feeling or fearing?
→ What can I ask or influence?

Whether you're coaching an employee through a tough moment, facilitating a team conversation, or working through something yourself, this framework creates the clarity that makes it possible to move forward.

Download it free here: https://shorturl.at/2AjdJ

06/11/2026

June is already a lot for HR teams. Here's what we're watching this month:

🔁 The EEOC has a new enforcement plan and it's a sharp pivot. DEI programs, religious accommodations, and national origin claims are now top priorities. If you haven't audited your ERGs and hiring documentation lately, now's the time.

📋 New York is about to give employees the right to copy their entire personnel file within 5 business days of a request, at no cost. Employers also have to proactively notify employees when something goes into their file that could hurt them. NY employers: your documentation practices just got a lot more important.

⚖️ Illinois is moving to write disparate impact liability into state law which is a direct response to the federal pullback. Multistate employers: don't treat the EEOC's shift as a green light to stop validating your screening tools and hiring criteria.

🏠 Remote work update from the Fifth Circuit: the fact that someone teleworked during COVID doesn't mean remote work is permanently part of their job. In-person attendance is still presumed essential for most roles. Job descriptions matter.

🏥 ICHRA adoption has more than doubled among brokers in just two years. With family premiums hitting nearly $27K, it's showing up in more renewal conversations. Worth modeling for your workforce before your next renewal.

We break it all down in this month's update — https://shorturl.at/MIo4S

What's keeping your HR team busy right now? 👇

Jenny Kiesewetter is a practicing ERISA and employee benefits attorney who partners with HR teams on a wide range of workplace compliance matters — from benefit-plan obligations to day-to-day HR policies and regulatory requirements. Her guidance helps employers spot risks early, navigate regulator...

06/05/2026

People still want to flourish at work.

Engagement is struggling. Trust is low. Stress and isolation are up. And most organizations are still searching for ways to help people feel connected, valued, and supported — without getting caught in culture wars or corporate buzzwords.

That's exactly what this webinar tackles next week.

Joe Gerstandt brings 25 years of workplace DEI experience to a refreshingly honest conversation about what comes next — and what actually works.

You'll walk away with:
✅ A clear-eyed view of where DEI is headed
✅ Practical tools like empathy mapping and experience mapping
✅ Frameworks for employee experience design and team identity design
✅ Ways to build trust, belonging, and collaboration — without fueling division

The question at the center of it all:
How do we help humans flourish together at work?

If you're in HR, People & Culture, OD, or just someone who cares about workplace culture — this one's for you.

🔗 Register now: https://hrinsidr.com/webinar-sign-up/

06/04/2026

7 compliance developments HR teams need to know about right now — spanning wages, benefits, leave, AI, and arbitration.

Here's your June 2026 rundown:

📋 DOL issued 4 new FLSA opinion letters on compensable time and overtime calculations
💰 IRS finalized 2027 ACA penalty amounts — giving employers a longer runway to plan
🌿 Virginia enacted a paid sick leave law, phasing in over the next three years
🤖 California directed state agencies to develop AI workforce protection frameworks
👶 Illinois' NICU leave law took effect June 1
⚠️ Minnesota is weighing a proposal requiring advance notice before AI-related workforce reductions
⚖️ The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously limited when employers can require last-mile delivery drivers to arbitrate disputes

Every HR and compliance team should have these on their radar. The combination of new leave mandates, evolving AI rules, and wage guidance means action items are stacking up fast.

Full breakdown here 👇
https://shorturl.at/R53Gu

Jenny Kiesewetter is a practicing ERISA and employee benefits attorney who partners with HR teams on a wide range of workplace compliance matters — from benefit-plan obligations to day-to-day HR policies and regulatory requirements. Her guidance helps employers spot risks early, navigate

06/02/2026

95% of HR leaders feel overwhelmed. 81% report burnout.

And yet — who is carrying the carrier?

HR professionals hold the weight of every person in the building. Almost always without acknowledgment. Almost always without a people strategy of their own.

Written by organizational psychologist Dr. Tamara Stallings, this download names what's really happening inside HR departments and gives you a concrete path forward.

👉 Download your self-assessment: https://shorturl.at/l8x5G

Most HR leaders are trained to carry everyone else — but nobody builds a people strategy for the person running it. Written by organizational psychologist Dr. Tamara Stallings, this download names what’s really happening inside HR departments and gives you a concrete path forward.

05/28/2026

This HR team chose the second-best HRIS on purpose. It was the smartest call they made.

Sit through three demos and you will feel like you are losing your mind. The slides change. The logo changes. The account executive changes. The pitch does not.
“We’ll save you time and money.” “Our platform scales with you.” “Implementation is seamless.” “AI is built in.”

Your job is to get so clear on what your organization actually needs that the noise stops mattering.

Learn how to navigate your next conversation: https://shorturl.at/oNRUE

When an HR tech rollout fails, the software usually gets the blame. But in most organizations, the real issue is not the platform. It is alignment. Leadership, HR, managers, and operations are often not aligned on what the system is supposed to solve or how it will be used. Until that changes, even....

05/22/2026

“DEI is dead!” Maybe. Maybe not.

But one thing is clear: employees are struggling.

Engagement is low. Trust is fragile. Burnout, isolation, and disconnection continue to shape the employee experience across industries.

So where do we go from here?

In this upcoming webinar, Joe Gerstandt will explore how organizations can move beyond the noise and focus on creating workplaces where humans can actually flourish together.

This conversation will cover:
✔️ The evolving state of DEI
✔️ Employee experience design
✔️ Team identity and belonging
✔️ Practical ways leaders can improve culture without fueling culture wars

If you care about employee experience, trust, retention, and building healthier workplaces, this session is for you.

👉 Register here: https://hrinsidr.com/webinar-sign-up/

05/21/2026

May brought several employment law developments for HR teams to track.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued The New York Times under Title VII, Tennessee enacted its first broad noncompete statute, California added mandatory penalties for missed pay data filings, and Colorado scaled back its artificial intelligence law before the original compliance deadline arrived.

Federal agencies also changed rules affecting certain employment authorization documents tied to asylum applicants, while courts issued important rulings on arbitration jurisdiction and multistate Fair Labor Standards Act collective actions.

👉 Here’s what HR teams should know: https://buff.ly/7SnQbEg

Jenny Kiesewetter is a practicing ERISA and employee benefits attorney who partners with HR teams on a wide range of workplace compliance matters — from benefit-plan obligations to day-to-day HR policies and regulatory requirements. Her guidance helps employers spot risks early, navigate