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Employee Relations

To bury age discrimination, track decision-makers’ ages, too

07/01/2007

As the population gets older, age discrimination cases are sure to become more commonplace. Some tried-and-true administrative processes can discourage those claims …

State budget deficits? No worries! Hire away!

07/01/2007

Being dubbed the country’s most fiscally unfit state last year hasn’t dampened New Jersey’s appetite for hiring …

Appraisal must be tied to adverse action to be retaliation

07/01/2007

Supervisors often feel as if they are walking on eggshells after an employee has filed a discrimination complaint. After all, just about anything they do after a complaint has been filed could be seen as retaliation. If supervisors ask what to do, tell them this: Treat the employee as you would any other …

Protecting employment tests from legal challenges

07/01/2007

Employers use a wide variety of tests to determine whether job applicants can perform the jobs they seek. The tests usually measure the candidates’ knowledge, skills and abilities. But if tests cover anything other than the employee’s ability to perform the job’s essential functions, employers could find themselves defending the tests in court …

Business as usual still the rule after employee complains

07/01/2007

Has an employee filed an EEOC discrimination complaint? If so, you should know that his or her attorney has probably encouraged that employee to look for any sign of retaliation—like a lowered performance evaluation, a demotion or closer scrutiny. Often, attorneys want to bolster their clients’ claims with tales of retribution. That doesn’t mean you should change the way you treat the employee …

Approach employee directly to discuss accommodations

07/01/2007

The ADA requires employers to make reasonable accommodations for disabled applicants and employees. And those accommodations must be based on an agreement between the disabled individual and the employer, using an “interactive process” …

Essential job functions may include shift work

07/01/2007

Q. We have a three-shift operation, and all employees are required to rotate and work on each shift. We are reviewing an employee’s request to be excused from moving from the day shift to the afternoon shift. The employee’s doctor says that his patient should not work the afternoon and midnight shifts for medical reasons, which we believe are valid. Are we required to honor this request? …

Profit sharing and ‘No walls’ management boost job referrals

07/01/2007

About 70% of all hires at Findley, Ohio-based hiring firm Right Thing come highly recommended by the organization’s own employees. What gets employees talking to their friends about joining the firm? It’s the company’s laid-back atmosphere—with no formal managers or departments—and an employee profit-sharing plan that involves half the company profits …

Intense training cuts turnover among hourly staff

07/01/2007

At Zeppe’s Pizzeria in Bedford Heights, Ohio, managers focus on experiential training, and lots of it. Franchisees receive a six-week course, but even hourly delivery drivers have up to four days’ training …

Diversity effort includes training next leaders

07/01/2007

Efforts to increase diversity and retention form the basis of two programs at New York-based Deloitte & Touche. The Breakthrough Leadership Program identifies about 25 of the company’s top minority professionals who exhibit leadership qualities …