I’ve got 3 new presentations that are upcoming & 1 that I did last week that’s worthy of mention. Plus, in the past few weeks, I joined a new board of directors & 2 advisory boards.

On 4/4/12, I did my 6th presentation for Illinois WorkNet of Northern Cook County, part of the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity & the Illinois Department of Employment Security. The presentation concerned the legal issues concerning candidate hiring & screening for businesses. Due to the audience’s questions, emphasis was placed on social media & the recent issues concerning Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. My handout for the presentation is here (PDF).

On Thursday, May 17, I’ll be presenting a seminar for small businesses on How Labor & Employment Law Impacts Small Businesses’ Bottom Line. This will be at the Jewish Vocational Services’ Illinois SBDC (Small Business Development Center)/Duman Entrepreneurship Center, 3:30PM-5:30PM at 216 West Jackson Blvd., 2nd Floor Training Room, Chicago. Like most of my presentations, this will be an open discussion with Q&A throughout.  You can register to attend here. Here’s a description of the program:

  • Our labor & employment law system is a complex network of state, federal & local laws. It’s really difficult for small businesses to understand & relate to the agencies that enforce these laws. By understanding how our labor & employment laws regulate the workplace, a business owner or operator can save a great deal of money on legal expenses and time spent away from operations.

For the 2nd year in a row, I’ll be presenting at The Business Event, which is sponsored by Jewish B2B Networking & the Small Business Advocacy Council. This takes place on June 14th & is at the Lincolnwood Town Center 3333 West Touhy Ave., Lincolnwood, IL. The event runs all day. Approximately 5000 people are expected to attend.  Similar to last year’s presentation, my presentation this year will focus on employee classification issues (i.e., independent contractor versus employee classification) and wage and hour issues. My presentation is sponsored in part by Illinois WorkNet of Northern Cook County. Thanks to Mohammed Faheem, Director, & Deb Lawrence, Business Employer Services & Community Relations, for setting this up. More information, including time & registration is coming soon.

On Wednesday, July 18, from 3PM-4:30PM, I’ll be doing my 10th presentation for Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs. As usual, my seminar will focus on understanding labor & employment law & human resources from a business’ perspective. This is at Chicago’s City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle St., Department of Business Affairs, #801. If you’d like to register ahead of time, please contact Geralyn Catino @ 312-744-5504 or geralyn.catino@cityofchicago.org. Walk-ins are welcome too. Like past presentations, this will be open discussion & Q&A.

This month, I was elected to the board of directors of the Kelly Hall YMCA, part of the Y’s of Metropolitan Chicago. The Kelly Hall Y opened in January 2009 in Chicago’s West Humboldt Park neighborhood. This is a beautiful facility that provides day camp, parenting & health workshops, a technology center, senior activities & many other health, education & vocational services. More information is available here PDF & here.

Also, this month, I joined the Steering Committee (i.e., advisory board) for the Y of Metro Chicago’s Black & Latino Acheivers (BLA). Founded in 1971 at the Harlem New York Branch YMCA, this nationwide program fosters the academic, personal and career development of African-American and Latino youth enrolled in the 7th – 12th grades (ages 13-18) by focusing kids on career, college educations & scholarships.

Late last month, I was appointed to the Advisory Board & Executive Committee of Affiliated Healthcare Consultants (AHC). (AHC) is an
organization of like-minded, independent professionals from many different disciplines. AHC members provide unparalleled professional services to healthcare professionals and businesses. AHC was started a couple of years ago by Chicago attorney Richard Crane.