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Compensation & Benefits

Can we ask current employees to sign noncompete agreements?

08/12/2008
Q. Is it possible for an employer in Minnesota to enter into an enforceable noncompete agreement with an existing employee? …

Can severance agreement rule out seeking unemployment comp?

08/12/2008
Q. In exchange for severance benefits, we would like a departing employee to promise not to file a claim for unemployment compensation. Can this be a term of our severance agreement? …

Must we provide time off to attend the Republican National Convention?

08/12/2008
Q. An employee who has used all his paid time off has asked for a leave of absence to attend the Republican National Convention. He is a delegate. Are we required to grant the leave? …

Can we withhold accrued vacation pay if employee doesn’t give two weeks’ notice?

08/12/2008
Q. Our company policy is to not pay an employee for unused vacation time if the employee resigns without giving the required two weeks’ notice. A former employee has challenged this policy and is threatening to take the company to court. Is this policy lawful? …

Develop procedures for breaks that accommodate disabilities

08/12/2008
Sometimes, employees with disabilities may need additional breaks as reasonable accommodations. But you don’t have to leave the timing or duration of the breaks entirely to the employee. If you do, it will be hard to tell whether the employee is taking a legitimate and necessary accommodations break or simply taking advantage of additional freedom. And that can lead to litigation …

Judge finds Wal-Mart guilty of 2 million violations

08/12/2008
Wal-Mart’s class-action woes are reaching cosmic proportions. Dakota County District Judge Robert King Jr. in June found the mega-retailer guilty of 2 million violations of Minnesota labor law. At the rate of $1,000 per violation, that could add up to $2 billion in fines …

Fee for day-Labor transporting must be ‘Reasonable’ cost or $1.50, whichever is lower

08/11/2008
If your organization uses day laborers and arranges for their transportation, make sure it charges them a “reasonable” fee. The current version of the Florida Labor Pool Act (FLPA) limits the one-way transportation charge to no more than $1.50, but you’re not allowed to simply charge that seemingly small amount. You also must be prepared to prove the charge is reasonable …

Workers’ comp may cover injury that occurs on vacation

08/11/2008
If you require certain employees to stay in good physical shape and pass regular fitness tests, a recent court ruling raises this key question: Could your organization be on the hook for workers’ compensation bneefits if the employee gets hurt while working out during a vacation?

Document why new talent got higher pay than existing staff

08/11/2008
You can pay more for a new hire than you pay those who hold similar positions. Just make sure you document exactly why newcomers deserve a higher wage or more benefits. You can do that by showing the new hire has more experience, education or specialized knowledge, or that the candidate wouldn’t accept an offer unless the salary and benefits met or exceeded what he was making elsewhere …

Don’t forget attorneys’ fees when calculating potential cost of pay disputes

08/08/2008
When it comes to calculating the exact cost of failing to pay employees correctly, many employers forget to add in the winning employee’s attorneys’ fees. In many cases, it pays to settle such cases early on because the tab for the other side’s attorney can quickly grow very large …