Category Archives: Workplace / Security / Legal

Dreyer, Boyajian LLP, attorneys at law, announce the opening of a new office in Saratoga Springs. The firm’s new office will be located at 18 Division St., Suite 306.

John J. Dowd, a partner at Dreyer Boyajian and native of Saratoga Springs, will serve as the resident partner for the office. The office opened June 1.

Dreyer Boyajian LLP chose to open a new office in Saratoga Springs in order to create a presence in one of the fastest-growing cities in New York state, the firm said. “The mission of the firm’s Saratoga Springs office is to provide the Saratoga Springs community and surrounding communities with the same high level of legal representation that Dreyer Boyajian, LLP has provided to its clients in the Capital District for the last 30 years,” officials said. 

By Jim Marco

How does the New York state sexual harassment policy and training rules for employers change the workplace?

Truthfully, it depends. Good companies have had policies, investigation procedures and training programs in place for decades. That’s right, decades. But the landscape has changed, so employers, even the ones with good policies and programs, should take this opportunity to re-commit to a workplace free from unlawful discrimination and harassment. 

They should communicate clear expectations to their employees about how staff are expected to behave, how they are expected to engage and communicate with each other, and how they are expected to problem solve when an issue does arise so we are not escalating what may be a simple misunderstanding.  Civility, mutual respect and clear communication can go a long way and truly become fundamental pillars of an outstanding workplace culture.

By John Keimer

The world we live in today is vastly different from the world I grew up in as a kid in the 1960s and 1970s. We’d like to think that today the human species is more civilized than just two generations ago. 

I grew up in Detroit in the ‘60s and I remember the assassination of JFK, then Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King. In my home town, there were riots and fire bombings in the streets. The police response, at best, was an exercise in futility. The city burned.

We, as peaceful people, don’t want to live in that realm again. We’ve created many new laws and specialty tactical units to address these issues from a law enforcement perspective. But, in our day-to-day lives in upstate New York, we feel very sheltered from what happens in other cities and towns. We think, it can’t happen here. Oh, are we kidding ourselves.

By Maureen Werther

Finding and retaining good employees is a challenge in today’s business world. As the unemployment rate continues to drop and the economy continues to improve, the demand for qualified workers continues to grow.

“Recruiting is about as competitive as I’ve seen it in a long time,” said James Marco, president of Saratoga Human Resource Solutions. He said for companies to attract and retain the best workers, they must offer more than just a competitive wage and benefits package.

“You’ve got to have a value proposition. If you try to buy loyalty through pay raises, you’ll eventually reach a point of diminishing returns. You have to incorporate a ‘cultural’ component into your work environment,” said Marco.

He said people are looking for a “safe” workplace – one that fosters a culture of problem-solving rather than assigning blame. He stressed the need for managers and supervisors to develop positive relationships with their staff.

“The command and control models just don’t work anymore,” said Marco, citing as an example one of his clients, who greets everyone one of his employees each morning. While that may seem like a small, even trivial gesture, it goes a long way toward creating the kind of culture of trust and teamwork that is so important in today’s workplace.

As workers become increasingly more mobile, establishing the culture of mutual respect and teamwork is more critical to getting and keeping the best people.

John Kuznia, CPA, SPHR, and owner of Truman Solutions in Saratoga Springs, said his clients are finding it hard to get the right people in the right seats.