Can I See Your ID?

Four lawyers standing outside at a Wisconsin vineyard.

Remote work has boomed over the past three years. Starting in March of 2020 and until at least July 31, 2023, the USCIS has allowed virtual, remote I-9 verification instead of the required in person verifications because of COVID.  On August 18, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed the possibility of making virtual, … Read more

Our diversity makes us stronger. Our inclusion makes us better.

Five men. One teenager. Four women. Three dads. Two moms. A significant number of cats. Two dogs. Two toddlers. Three adult children. One five-year-old. Army veteran. Farm owners. City dwellers. Part-time. Ohio. Wisconsin. Michigan. Minnesota. Rural. Northwoods. White. African-Jamaican. Bougie. Snarky. Introvert. Ambivert. Extrovert. Disruptors. Software Engineering. Banking. Retail. Social media. Law School. Are you … Read more

How trust enhances team performance

As you learned from Drew’s post last week, we attended the State Bar of Wisconsin’s Solo and Small Firm Conference.  It is a conference for well, solo and small (fewer than 10 attorneys) firms. Unsurprisingly, there were a lot of discussions about teams with other attendees – especially those of us who have a dispersed … Read more

Let’s Just Put Them on Salary

This is a short post to make a short, but important point: Remember: The default rule, in the eyes of the government, is that your employees are paid hourly, and therefore entitled to overtime. Just deciding to “put the employee on salary” to avoid paying overtime is not how it works. Employers don’t get to … Read more

Buy-in Helps Everyone!

We previously talked about why a company would want restrictive covenants, but it isn’t just the company acting.  The employees are agreeing to the non-compete, non-solicitation, or non-disclosure provisions, too.  As for employees, they need to understand: 1) what they can and cannot do during their employment and afterwards, and 2) why it matters.  Their willingness to follow … Read more

Protecting Your Investment in Employees

We at OG+S are very excited to have two new employees this year.  They are smart, capable young women who make us a better law firm.  I wouldn’t trade either of them.  But, you know what, they take a lot of my time.  There is a boatload of training that goes into new hires.  They are learning our systems, … Read more

Unemployment Benefits Respect State Borders

Under Section 2104 of the CARES Act, nearly all individuals receiving unemployment benefits could temporarily receive an emergency increase of $600.00 in their weekly benefit. This increased benefit is fully funded by the federal government until July 31, 2020. The federal payments were contingent on the execution of a signed agreement between the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) and … Read more

Take the Leap: Hiring Employees Is Not That Scary

I’ve been on an employment article kick lately, and my awesome business partner, Erin Ogden, will be making a presentation about “Business Growing Pains” to the Baraboo, Wisconsin Area Chamber of Commerce shortly, so I wanted to dust off this article I’d written a while back on LinkedIn and share it with the OG+S audience.  … Read more