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Discrimination / Harassment

Know union rules on probationary employees

10/03/2011
You won’t find many employers extolling the upsides of having a unionized workforce, but there is one advantage. If your union contract provides for a probationary period before an employee becomes a permanent part of your workforce, you may have more discretion in how you discipline the new em­­ployee.

Employee complaining about bias? Always investigate before imposing any discipline

10/03/2011

Don’t let down your guard just because an employee’s discrimination complaint lacks merit. He could still have a legitimate retaliation claim. Simply put, if a supervisor punishes an employee after he complains about discrimination, you can still be found liable even if there was no discrimination in the first place.

Poor performer has complained? Read this before firing!

09/28/2011

Employers usually don’t have a problem terminating an em­­ployee for poor performance if the employee has never raised any kind of discrimination claim. But somehow, as soon as an employee goes to the EEOC (or even just HR) with a complaint, the same employer doesn’t know what to do. Should you terminate the em­­ployee and face a potential retaliation suit?

Lancaster plant finds itself on losing end of federal case

09/28/2011

ALCOA Mill Products will pay more than half a million dollars to resolve accusations it discriminated against black, Hispanic and female applicants for material handler positions at its Lancaster plant. The plant fulfills orders under a contract with the U.S. Army.

Courts impatient with workers who act as their own lawyers

09/28/2011

Employees who can’t find an attorney to represent them when they sue their employers sometimes decide to represent themselves. This makes for more work for the courts. But judges are beginning to lose pa­­tience.

Zero-tolerance drug policy? Make sure you uniformly apply it to all

09/28/2011
Do you have a zero-tolerance rule against employees who use or possess illegal drugs at work? If you don’t apply it to all employees who break the rule, you will be sued.

Conduct truly independent investigations to ferret out retaliation by rogue supervisors

09/28/2011
Employers are liable for the discrimination perpetuated by supervisors unless they can show that, before accepting a supervisor’s termination recommendation, they conducted an independent investigation. Employers that don’t conduct a truly independent investigation—including allowing the subordinate to present his version of events—can still be liable.

Firing? Document reasons–and stick with them

09/28/2011
Here’s a tip to keep in mind the next time you must terminate an employee: Even if you don’t intend to tell the worker why he is being fired, be sure to carefully document the reasons. That way, if you are challenged later in court, you can point to the contemporaneously produced record as evidence you had a legitimate, business-related reason for your decision.

Worst defense award: ‘She’s too ugly to harass’

09/28/2011
A Brooklyn woman filed a sexual harassment claim, saying she faced a gauntlet of both verbal and physical sexual harassment in her first year working at a realty office. The company owner’s response? “Who would want to touch her? She’s an ugly girl anyway.”

Remind managers to track verbal discipline, too

09/23/2011
Employees don’t go from good to terrible instantly. There is usually a slow and steady decline. Be sure that the process is carefully documented, right from the very first verbal warning.