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Discrimination / Harassment

Effective evaluations are management tools, legal protection

03/01/2008

Ah, the “halo effect”—the practice of inflating an employee’s annual evaluation to increase overall morale and avoid the unpleasantness of telling underperforming workers what their weaknesses are. Too bad using the halo strategy both undermines performance and exposes employers to legal risks …

Make sure you fairly distribute dangerous assignments

03/01/2008
Are some assignments within your organization more dangerous than others?  Make sure you don’t dump those duties on members of a protected class. Instead, distribute those tasks evenly so no one can claim he or she was singled out for hazardous assignments because of race, national origin or some other protected characteristic …

No need to ‘Totally’ accommodate religious practices

03/01/2008
When it comes to providing employees with the time they need to practice their religion, the key word is “reasonable,” not “total.” An employer doesn’t have to bend over backward to provide all the time off an employee’s religion may demand if doing so creates morale problems among co-workers who have to pick up the slack …

Discrimination claims harder for employees to make if bias is ancient history

03/01/2008
Just because an employee experienced unfair treatment years ago doesn’t mean you have to ignore recent poor performance. You can discipline the employee as long as the charges are fair, accurate and unbiased now …

Discrimination costs grocery chain $40,000

03/01/2008
Eugene Gates Jr. had worked as a meat slicer in a Charlotte grocery store for nearly 40 years when it was purchased by Compare Foods, of Freeport, N.Y. Shortly after the buyout, the company cut his hours in half and gave his shifts to a young Hispanic worker, telling Gates the company needed someone who could better relate to the store’s customers …

Raleigh’s Golden Corral faces sexual harassment suit

03/01/2008
Four former employees are suing Raleigh-based Golden Corral Corporation for sexual harassment they say they endured while working in a restaurant in Port Richey, Fla. The plaintiffs, two men and two women, claim they were repeatedly sexually harassed by three male workers, including an associate manager …

Henredon Furniture to pay $465,000 for racial harassment

03/01/2008
The EEOC has settled a lawsuit with Henredon Furniture Industries for $465,000 over harassment endured by black workers at its High Point manufacturing plant …

When transition looms, note employee interest in staying on

03/01/2008

In uncertain economic times, employers sometimes have to cut staff and redraw org charts to stay competitive. Employees often know far in advance that change is coming—and that they may lose their jobs. And some already may be looking for ways to “get back” at their companies via lawsuits …

It’s essential to have clear hiring and promotion criteria

03/01/2008
The more specific and clear the minimum hiring or promotion criteria, the better. Detailed requirements net you better candidates and allow you to defend your hiring decisions later—if you need to …

Make sure supervisors can back up their promotion decisions

03/01/2008
Not every organization has a formal program for handling internal promotions. Some rely strictly on supervisor recommendations and employees’ expressions of interest to identify candidates. That can lead to big trouble if supervisors can’t later articulate who wanted a promotion and why they recommended (or declined to recommend) an employee for a new job …