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Productivity / Performance

Document all efforts to accommodate disabled workers

08/15/2008
Employees who claim they suffered emotional distress because of illegal disability discrimination under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act don’t have to rely solely on the workers’ compensation system to adjudicate their claims. They can go to court instead, suing for negligent infliction of emotional distress under state common law …

Civility is great—But you don’t have to guarantee it

08/12/2008
It’s a fact of life—not every employee is going to get along with everyone else in your shop. Some managers and supervisors will have more trouble managing a particular employee than others. However, unless the reason for a supervisor’s criticism is the employee’s protected status (e.g., race or age), the employee won’t win a hostile-environment lawsuit if the “hostility” isn’t extremely severe …

3 Keys to Creating ‘Employee Lifetime Value’

08/12/2008
Savvy business people have long focused on customer lifetime value—the gains to had from cultivating lifelong relationships with customers eager to patronize them again and again. Here are three keys to nurturing those same kinds of relationships with employees—and reaping the same kinds of rewards.

Poor performance review and improvement plan alone aren’t signs of retaliation

08/12/2008
Good news for managers and supervisors: Giving an employee a poor performance review and then placing the employee on an improvement plan isn’t an adverse employment action on its face. Employees can’t successfully sue unless a pay cut, lost benefits, a lost bonus or some other tangible, negative results accompany that poor evaluation or improvement plan …

Extra work, harsh treatment may not be reverse discrimination

08/11/2008
Resentment may run high if employees feel like they’re picking up the slack for other employees they perceive as doing less than required—especially if they believe management isn’t making others pull their fair share because of race or nationality or some other protected classification. But that doesn’t necessarily amount to reverse discrimination …

Prepare thorough record if ‘Star’ employee begins to fall

08/11/2008
Nothing looks worse to a jury than an employer who fires an employee for poor performance after the employee receives stellar performance reviews. That’s why you must make sure supervisors and managers prepare honest evaluations, avoid gushing assessments and stick to objective measures …

Before assuming you must accommodate under ADA, evaluate disability and ability

08/11/2008
The ADA requires employers to reasonably accommodate disabled applicants and employees within a tight set of parameters. But an employer only has to offer reasonable accommodations that allow a disabled employee to perform the essential functions of a job. Employers don’t have to create new jobs or restructure jobs to such an extent that essential functions are dropped …

May we terminate a disabled employee who can’t perform an essential function?

08/08/2008
Q. One of our employees was hired to a position that requires her to drive to customers’ offices. When we hired her, she reviewed and signed a job description that included a statement “that transportation was an essential function of her job.” Public transportation is not a realistic option. She recently received test results suggesting she might be suffering from multiple sclerosis. She provided a return-to-work slip indicating she would be able to return to work on a part-time basis but would not be able to drive or do heavy lifting. We told her we cannot accommodate her restrictions, but we provided a four-month leave of absence. Assuming she will not be able to drive when she returns, are we within our rights to discharge her? Are we going to violate her rights under the ADA or Michigan disability laws? …

6 ways to help employees do their best each day

08/06/2008
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Are you a micromanager? Control the process, not the people

08/01/2008
As a manager, you must remain involved in your employees’ activities. But where does involvement stop and micromanaging begin? Sticking your nose too deeply into an employee’s work process can be counterproductive. Let’s say you overheard an employee refer to you as a micromanager. To find out if it’s true, answer the following questions using […]