When web developer Madalyn Parker emailed co-workers to say she was taking sick time for mental health, CEO Ben Congleton commended her bravery and honesty. Congleton's response went viral on Twitter, drawing praise, and he followed up with a Medium post that encourages leaders to make such support "business as usual."

A study of public sector employment shows applicants with criminal convictions have significantly better chances of employment when their legal histories are not requested upfront. However, more research is needed to see if employers are likely to stereotype applicants to try to determine their probability of conviction.

The executive team at Chatbooks developed an effective family-leave policy by doing interviews and research, funding health insurance and other benefits that confer financial security, and implementing high-impact ideas that cost little money, writes Chief Marketing Officer Rachel Hofstetter. Executives also interview employees returning from leave to find out what they liked and whether anything should be changed.

There should be greater collaboration between officials in higher education and employers, according to Sean Gallagher, director of the Center for the Future of Higher Education and Talent Strategy at Northeastern University. In this Q&A, he asserts that the training offered by colleges and companies will soon begin to "overlap."

Courageous women have made it clear over the past two weeks that they aren't going to remain silent about sexual harassment in Silicon Valley, Shira Ovide writes. "But if they're the only ones who are fed up about systemic abuses of power, then not enough will change," she writes.