FREE HR E-LETTERS

Select the e-letters you wish to receive and receive a FREE BONUS report:
  HR Weekly e-Letter  HR News and advice, plus a Q&A forum that lets you ask questions and share solutions with colleagues. More...
  Case in Point  Real-Life employment law lessons ... for people who don’t want to learn them in court. More...
  Your Office Coach  Nationally syndicated columnist Marie McIntyre helps solve your “in the trenches” workplace problems. More...


We will not give your e-mail to anyone. Privacy Policy

EMPLOYMENT LAW

New ADA and FMLA rules kick in this month

01/01/2009
 

The year that the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) predicts will carry “the most sweeping HR-related changes in 30 years” starts with a bang this month as HR pros must adapt to important changes to two key employment laws: the FMLA and the ADA.

Track reasons for multiple FMLA leaves

12/31/2008
 

It’s a good idea to keep careful track of the reasons why employees take FMLA leave—especially if an employee takes leave on different occasions for different reasons.

Seek civility, don't sweat oversensitivity

12/31/2008
 

Whether a work environment is actually sexually hostile depends on whether that’s how an average person would perceive it. A supersensitive person won’t get to sue for sexual harassment if an ordinary person would brush off the alleged harassment.

Complainer can use co-workers' anecdotes in building hostile environment case

12/31/2008
 

The 4th Circuit just made it easier for employees to sue for having to work in a hostile environment. The court said that unpleasant and offensive conduct aimed as one’s sex or race does not have to happen in the presence of the employee who winds up complaining. Conduct witnessed by other employees can be used as evidence ...

Boss put foot in mouth? Consider settling—and protecting against future suits

12/31/2008
 

Surprise! Supervisors sometimes say dumb things. It may be entirely innocent—they simply don’t realize the impact their words may have. If that’s the case, and someone complains, it may be best to settle the case and move on.

Tenure denial and discharge don't give right to sue over ruined reputation

12/31/2008
 

Probationary university professors whose contracts aren’t renewed because they failed to achieve tenure status can’t use tenure denial alone as the basis of a suit alleging damage to their reputations. They must show that the decision was actually motivated by something like race or sex discrimination.

No interest penalty after resolving workers' comp dispute

12/31/2008
 

Sometimes, it’s unclear whether an employee’s medical bills are related to a workplace injury. Now there’s a bit of good news if you wind up having to cover those bills.

High bar for retaliation case when someone else is victim

12/31/2008
 

Sometimes, employees don’t have enough information to judge whether something they observe at work is discrimination—or a legitimate management action.

Employee sues Camp Lejeune for nixing anti-Muslim decals

12/31/2008
 

A retired Marine who is a civilian employee at Camp Lejeune is suing the Marine Corps base for demanding that he remove anti-Muslim stickers from his car. Officials asked Jesse Nieto, whose son was a victim of the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, to remove a decal...

Justice Department sues judge, courts for USERRA violations

12/31/2008
 

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit accusing the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts and N.C. Superior Court Judge Jerry Braswell of violating former Magistrate James Myles’ rights under USERRA.

A matter of trust: 4 ways to defend against employee disloyalty

12/31/2008
 

North Carolina, like many states, recognizes that employees owe a certain level of duty to their employers. However, the North Carolina Supreme Court has specifically rejected any independent liability for breaching such duty.

Can handbooks destroy at-will employment?

12/31/2008
  

Q. Our company has an employee handbook. One of our employees has stated that this creates an employment contract and that he is no longer an at-will employee. Is this correct?

Are we liable for accidents caused by cell phone use in company vehicles?

12/31/2008
  

Q. If our employee has an accident while talking on a cell phone in a company car, is the company liable to the injured party?

Worker's hour count is off—Now what?

12/31/2008
  

Q. We do not believe that one of our employees is keeping accurate time records of her work. Can we pay her what we believe she worked instead of what her time records show?

DOL issues new FMLA poster: Get your free copy here

12/30/2008
 

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a new FMLA poster to go along with the new FMLA rules that will take effect Jan. 16. Don’t waste budget dollars buying new posters from HR vendors. You can download the official version for free right here.

1 2 3 4 ..........365 366 Next