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Discrimination / Harassment

How to legally handle chronically late workers

05/27/2009

Employers expect employees to get to work on time. Occasional problems with traffic or family issues sometimes make employees late. But chronic tardiness is another thing altogether. While most employers track tardiness occurrences, they should do more. How?

The $10 million ‘manager from the past’: Teach bosses the risk of age-related remarks

05/27/2009

If you need more incentive to persuade supervisors to stop making negative comments about employees’ ages, consider this: A jury recently awarded a fired employee more than $10 million in punitive damages for age discrimination after what may seem like fairly insignificant ageist talk.

Investigation results don’t have to be accurate—just honest

05/27/2009

When HR investigates discrimination complaints, you don’t have to act like a court of criminal law, deciding whether an employee is telling the truth “beyond a reasonable doubt.” So don’t feel paralyzed if a discrimination investigation boils down to one employee’s word against another’s. Use your best judgment to decide who is telling the truth and go with that judgment.

Lessons from the Courts: June 2009

05/27/2009

You don’t have to tolerate foul language … Customer gripe caused firing? Get it in writing … Ledbetter Act already spurring more pay cases … Track when you notify worker of firing … No signature? Settlement may still be binding.

Must we accommodate Sunday as ‘family time’?

05/27/2009

Q. Every summer, we hire youth lifeguards for our municipal pool. We hold training on Sunday evenings. A couple of applicants said they can’t attend that time for “religious reasons.” It’s not a conflict with a religious activity—only family time. If we deny them the job, are there any religious discrimination implications?

Uniform rules: Police can ban religious garb if there’s a public-policy reason

05/27/2009

Police and similar public safety departments can forbid their officers and other uniformed personnel from wearing religious symbols and garb if they provide the right ground rules. But it’s a thorny issue that’s worth giving plenty of consideration.

Look for hiring trends that could signal bias—you might just avoid a huge jury award

05/27/2009

Most applicants who aren’t hired just go away. But sometimes they don’t—and then it’s time to watch out! A rejected applicant can play the discrimination card, possibly costing you an expensive jury award. That’s one good reason to check your hiring practices for hidden bias.

Win harassment claims by keeping good records

05/27/2009

Employers that have anti-harassment policies and clearly communicate them already have a leg up. But the real winners are employers that also carefully track every harassment complaint. They increase their odds of winning harassment cases because they can show whether an employee complained about behavior when it happened.

After 8 years, $1 million ends harassment suit

05/27/2009

The town of Morristown has settled a long-running sexual harassment case for just under $1 million. The case involved IT specialist Ann Marie Spagnola, who alleged her boss, Eric Maurer, subjected her to sexual harassment by exposing her to sexually explicit materials.

N.J. troopers challenge mandatory retirement policy

05/27/2009

Challenging the state’s mandatory retirement policy, 120 New Jersey state troopers have filed a class-action suit. Under current state law, state troopers must retire at age 55.