Who Called HR, LLC

09/02/2026

08/31/2026

📣📣Could your hiring test get you in trouble? 📣📣

A North Carolina employer recently settled an EEOC case after an employee was allegedly required to take an agility test, asked medical-related questions, placed on unpaid leave, and later terminated.

Here’s where business owners need to pay attention - if you use physical ability testing, lifting tests, agility tests, or “let’s see if they can really do the job” testing, you need to make sure your process is consistent, job-related, and not just used when someone looks like they may have a medical condition.

That applies before someone is hired too.

If the job requires lifting, climbing, bending, carrying, or working in the heat, you can absolutely build that into your hiring process.

But you need to test the job requirement, not someone’s medical history.

And you need to apply the same process to applicants in the same role, not just the ones you are “concerned about.”

This is where small businesses can get sideways fast.

A manager may think they are being careful.

HR may see a discrimination risk, an ADA issue, or a testing process that needs cleaned up before it becomes expensive.

If you own a construction, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, landscaping, or service business and you are not sure how your hiring, return-to-work, or physical testing process would look under review, let’s talk.

Visit my website to learn how I help small trades and service businesses clean up the messy HR stuff before it turns into a bigger problem.

08/19/2026

Have you been avoiding a difficult conversation with an employee?

Maybe you’re hoping the issue will fix itself.

Maybe you’re waiting to see if their performance improves.

Maybe you just really don’t want to have that conversation.

Here’s the problem - avoiding it usually makes it worse.

A small performance issue turns into frustration.

Unclear expectations turn into “Nobody ever told me.”

And the longer a manager waits, the harder the conversation becomes.

New managers especially need to learn how to:
🛠 Address performance issues early
🛠 Clearly explain expectations
🛠 Give constructive feedback
🛠 Document conversations appropriately
🛠 Coach instead of immediately jumping to discipline
🛠 Know when it’s time to involve HR

When you promote your employee to be a manager, are you teaching them how to manage people?

That includes having the conversations nobody really enjoys having.

Let’s fix that! How will you make sure your managers are prepared to handle difficult employee conversations?

08/13/2026

If I make my new hire come to the office for orientation, I don’t need to pay for that, right?

Short answer, yes you do.

Required orientation, meetings, and training can count as paid working time.

This is one of those HR mistakes that often starts with a manager simply saying, “Come in a little early.”

Small habit. Potentially expensive problem.

If you have employees attending required training before or after their normal shift, it is worth checking how that time is being recorded and paid.

Good onboarding should build employees up, not create a wage-and-hour problem on Day 1.

08/12/2026

Yesterday was one of those days that reminded me why I love getting out and meeting new people.

I attended the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Com meeting at The Mariners Museum in Newport News, and WOW - what a beautiful place! I had never been inside before and didn’t get to explore much, but I saw enough to come home and tell my husband, “We have to go back!”

I also made a new connection and loved hearing about his business and his journey.

That’s one of my favorite things about networking. Everyone has a story. Everyone has taken a different path to get where they are, and I hope I never get tired of asking questions and learning from the people I meet.

And apparently yesterday was my lucky day too!

I had been eyeing this cute giveaway bag when WOWZA my card was pulled out of the fish bowl. A great bag, a coffee cup (and I LOVE a good coffee cup), plus all kinds of other goodies. My day was off to a great start!

And Becki — I missed seeing you yesterday!

You have been so incredibly welcoming since I started my journey with the Virginia Peninsula Chamber. You’ve answered questions, shared helpful information, and genuinely made me feel like I belonged from the beginning. I’m very glad you’re my ambassador.

Another great Chamber event in the books.

Now I’m already wondering…who am I going to meet next month?

08/03/2026

You know your business needs better HR systems, but where do you start?

Start with an HR Toolbox.

My Starter and Set-Up Packages are designed for small trade and blue-collar businesses that need practical HR support without committing to a full-time HR person or a long-term consulting agreement.

We’ll sit down together, talk through what's happening in your business, identify potential HR risks & create a clear priority list based on what needs attention first.

Depending on the package you choose, you’ll also receive ready-to-use tools for onboarding, policies and job descriptions - plus follow-up email support when questions pop up after our meeting.

No giant binder. No corporate runaround. No guessing what to fix first.

Just useful guidance and tools built around your business.

Ready to add HR tools to your toolbox? Send me a message to get started or send an info request at https://www.whocalledhr.com/about