When Michelle Whiffen’s husband retired, she realized there were some things to look forward to if and when she joined him.

As she saw her husband take time to ski and golf, she thought about how she’d have time to develop her own new hobbies. Sleeping in didn’t seem bad either. And once they were both retired, she and her spouse would certainly have time to check a few travel destinations, like Scotland and Alaska, off their bucket list.

But when she thought about stopping work altogether, the feeling was more akin to dread than delight, Whiffen, SVP of client services for recruitment marketing firm HireClix, told HR Brew. “I really enjoy my work, and I love my co-workers a ton,” she said. “And the thought, for me, of walking out the door one day, seemed like jumping off a bridge.”

To ease the transition into retirement, Whiffen is planning to take advantage of HireClix’s phased retirement program (dubbed “flextirement”), which allows employees to work fewer hours while still collecting benefits, including the company’s 401(k) match.

For more on phased retirement programs, and the ways in which they can benefit both employees and employers, keep reading here.—CV

Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned on Monday, ending a troublesome tenure at the Francis Perkins Building after just one year of helming the agency charged with protecting the rights of US workers.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve in this historic administration and work for the greatest president of my lifetime,” Chavez-DeRemer wrote on X Monday. “At the department of labor, I am proud that we made significant progress in advancing President Trump’s mission to bridge the gap between business and labor and always put the American worker first.”

Chavez-DeRemer’s exit comes as federal offices investigate her leadership. For months, the DOL’s inspector general had been investigating her behavior, the conduct of her top staffers, and allegations of sexual misconduct against her husband, Shawn DeRemer. DeRemer had been banned from the office in which his wife worked, but police did not bring any charges against him following an investigation.

Last week, news broke that three EEO complaints were also lodged against Chavez-DeRemer. Complaints included those sexual misconduct allegations, as well as claims she oversaw a toxic workplace, asking aides to perform her personal chores, including cleaning out her closet, according to MS Now.

For more on the labor secretary’s exit, keep reading here.—AD

While the Trump administration’s scrutiny of DEI seems to have prompted organizations to pull back on certain practices, others remain prevalent in the workplace, HR Brew’s survey suggests. That’s true for pay equity analyses, which help HR professionals comply with laws that are still in place, like Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as the Equal Pay Act.

When asked what DEI initiatives their organization currently has in place or is pursuing, the most common practices respondents cited were assessing hiring practices for bias (41%) and pay equity reporting (35%). An even higher share of HR pros said they planned to have pay equity reporting in the future, with 58% reporting they were very or somewhat likely to do so.

These findings align with what Brian Levine, a partner with HR consulting firm Merit Analytics Group, has seen in his work with clients on pay equity.

Executive orders targeting DEI in the public and private sectors may have prompted companies to pull back on “public representation of what they’re doing,” but employers still have a vested interest in “[making] sure that they’re paying people fairly,” Levine said. That’s in part because the law bars employers from paying workers differently based on protected characteristics including race, religion, and sex. But employers are also continuing to look at pay equity because their workers support these types of practices, he added.

For more on how ensuring fair and equitable workplaces has remained core to DEI, keep reading here.—CV

New data shows unlimited PTO leads to more time off in Europe—but barely moves the needle in North America. Here’s what cultural norms reveal about designing global time-off policies.