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Employment Law

After FMLA, OK to reassign worker who can’t do old job

06/24/2010

An employee who takes FMLA leave is entitled to return to her old job or an equivalent one when she’s ready to return to work. But what if the employee can’t perform her old job, perhaps because of lingering health problems? Reassign her.

Set up standard process for responding to accommodations requests–and use it every time

06/24/2010
One of the quickest roads to the courthouse is to ignore or brush off a disabled employee’s request for accommodations. At least investigate the possibilities before denying a request.

Lawsuit-proof your HR operations: Document business reason for every decision

06/24/2010

It’s difficult to predict which employee will be the next to sue. That’s why your best defense is to treat every major employment-related decision as a potential lawsuit. How? Back it up with a solid, business-related justification.

What are the ramifications of disclosing information during preliminary negotiations?

06/24/2010
Q. A recently terminated employee retained an attorney, who then engaged in pre-suit negotiations with our HR vice president. During those negotiations, our VP disclosed, in writing, some confidential information about the internal investigation that led to this employee’s termination. Negotiations have since broken down and the employee filed suit. Should I be concerned about these pre-suit disclosures coming back to haunt us in the litigation?

OSHA: Employers must provide safety training in ‘language and vocabulary’ that worker understands

06/23/2010
Many government safety regulations require employers to give employees safety or health training. In May, OSHA issued an enforcement memo to its inspectors, directing them to verify that employers are giving such training, “using both a language and a vocabulary that the employee can understand.”

Review e-communications policies in wake of Supreme Court texting decision

06/22/2010
The Supreme Court ruled last week that a police department’s search of an officer’s personal text messages sent via a department-issued pager didn’t violate his constitutional rights. But the court punted on the question of how much privacy employees can expect when using employer-provided gear. The split decision means your policies are more important than ever.

Trust but verify: FMLA software isn’t foolproof

06/22/2010
As FMLA administration grows more complex, more employers are using software to track it. Most of the time that works fine. But if you decide to terminate because the software told you an employee overstepped her leave or wasn’t eligible for FMLA leave, review the reasons for the leave and double-check your calculations.

Security check winds up costing Polo $4 million

06/21/2010
Former employees of Polo Ralph Lauren’s California stores have agreed to settle a wage-and-hour class action lawsuit for $4 million. The workers claimed store managers violated California’s labor laws by failing to pay them for time spent while they were locked in the store for 10 to 15 minutes at the end of each shift during security checks.

Can’t you even say the word ‘pregnant’ anymore?

06/21/2010

Aw c’mon. An employee is obviously pregnant but you can’t even say the “p” word? Does the mere use of the adjective translate into legal liability? One court recently said “relax.” It’s OK to say a woman is pregnant; just don’t make any employment decisions based on it or comment negatively. Still, it’s a bit tricky, as this case shows …

Federal contractors must post new union notice as of June 21

06/21/2010
If your organization is a contractor or subcontractor with the federal government, it’s now required to post a new and decidedly pro-union poster: Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act. The new requirement took effect June 21.