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Compensation & Benefits

$4 million good deed caps Newark cabbie’s career

05/27/2008
When virtuoso violinist Philippe Quint realized he’d left his violin in the minivan that shuttled him to his home in Manhattan from Newark Airport in April, he collapsed. The violin was irreplaceable, a 1723 Stradivari “Ex-Kiesewetter” on loan from New York philanthropists and valued at $4 million …

Good news: Employees have just two years to file sales commission complaints

05/27/2008
It could have been the case that employer nightmares are made of—but the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals saved the day. Interpreting Indiana law, the federal court ruled that employees have just two years to sue over disputed sales commissions, not the 10 years a former employee argued for …

Tyson Foods beset by another overtime lawsuit

05/27/2008
Roughly 600 workers at the Tyson Foods meat processing facility in Logansport have filed suit seeking compensation for time they spent preparing for shifts and cleaning up afterward. The lawsuit is the latest in a string of “donning and doffing” overtime suits against Tyson and others in the meatpacking industry over what constitutes “compensable” activities …

Contractor or employee? FedEx enters Round 2

05/27/2008
Continuing a case that has spanned the country, lawyers for approximately 25,000 FedEx Ground/Home Delivery workers who are challenging their classification as independent contractors have filed for summary judgment in federal district court in South Bend …

You can require employees to sign agreements to arbitrate employment disputes

05/27/2008
A federal court concluded that New Jersey contract law does allow employers to require employees to arbitrate most employment-related complaints. Plus, if an arbitration agreement contains terms that a court finds invalid, the court may throw those provisions out and still enforce the rest of the agreement …

Misclassifying employees an expensive mistake for Madison firm

05/27/2008
Madison-based Quest Diagnostics has agreed to pay more than $688,772 in back overtime wages to 238 employees following a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) investigation. The DOL found that Quest misclassified as exempt the systems analysts working at all of the company’s facilities …

Soaring gas prices offer opportunity for smart employers

05/27/2008
With gas prices shooting past $4 a gallon, employees with long commutes may be rethinking their job choices. You can help ease their pain (and collect some tax breaks) by introducing commuter-assistance benefits and programs. We offer tips and case studies that explain how to do it.

After learning of possible serious medical condition, what are our legal obligations?

05/23/2008
Q. An employee told us he has a bad hernia. He wants to wait a couple months to have the operation, since it requires six weeks’ recovery. He does some lifting in his job. Yesterday, he had to go home early because he was in pain. Now that we are aware of his condition, what’s our liability? And what should we do?

What to do about employee who takes long leaves for medical problems?

05/23/2008
Q. We’re a small business with eight employees. One employee frequently takes off for six to eight weeks with medical problems. She’s done this each year for the past three years. It’s a huge burden because very few people have her training, so we can’t hire a temp. How long do we have to allow her to disappear for weeks at a time?

Warn employees: No FMLA certification, no excused absence

05/23/2008
If employers take a lackadaisical approach to medical certifications, they might be issuing an invitation to abuse FMLA leave. Remind your employees that they must provide FMLA certifications—and that refusing to cooperate will result in the time off being counted as unexcused absences. The consequence: possible termination …