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Employment Law

If you violate FMLA, prepare to pay employee’s attorneys’ fees, too

10/08/2008

Here’s another reason to train everyone on the intricacies of the FMLA: Employees who win even a small amount of damages in FMLA interference cases automatically get their attorneys’ fees paid by their employer. And that can add up to
big bucks …

Retaliation can happen even in flimsy harassment case

10/08/2008

Employees don’t have to win their sexual harassment claims to prove retaliation. They merely have to show they were concerned that they might have experienced harassment …

Court tosses suit against state’s attorney for hiring interference

10/08/2008

A federal court has tossed out a lawsuit alleging that a government agency unconstitutionally interfered in another agency’s hiring and firing practices …

Things not to say during government hearings

10/08/2008

Betzy Cowan, who worked for McLean County Clerk Peggy Ann Milton, has filed a complaint with the state Department of Labor (DOL) seeking $3,000 in unpaid overtime. Testifying in a misconduct hearing against Milton last year, Cowan said her boss frequently asked her to shuttle Milton’s children home on county time …

New state genetic discrimination law exceeds federal measure

10/08/2008

Gov. Rod Blagojevich recently signed an update to the state’s decade-old genetic nondiscrimination law, which prohibits employers from using genetic information against employees. In some situations, the state law exceeds the protections granted under the federal Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) enacted this spring …

Cheeky bartender exposed

10/08/2008

Jersey County deputies who visited the Cabin Tavern in Delhi for a routine bar check found Janet Brannon busily tending bar … in her birthday suit. As they were on duty, the officers had to arrest her …

Mall management interfering with union drive, workers say

10/08/2008

A group of contract janitors at Park Meadows Mall in Littleton, Colo., walked off the job in September to protest unfair labor practices by the Millard Group, which provides cleaning services to malls owned by General Growth Properties (GGP) of Chicago …

Minutes—not just hours—count when figuring FMLA eligibility

10/08/2008

When it comes to getting paid, every minute matters in wage-and-hour cases. Does that same rigid rule apply to the FMLA?
The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago has now said you had better use your stopwatch when it comes to counting work time that applies to FMLA eligibility. Every minute counts toward the 1,250-hour minimum employees have to work in a year …

Termination for viewing child porn

10/08/2008

Q. Our company has a strict Internet-use policy. During the course of routine computer maintenance and observation, our third-party IT provider advised us that one of our employees had been viewing child pornography in violation of our policy. We immediately terminated that employee. Is there anything else we should do regarding this employee’s violation of our company’s policy? …

Don’t fall into post-complaint retaliation trap

10/07/2008

Employees who file discrimination complaints are protected from retaliation. That doesn’t mean they’re immune from being punished if they break rules. Employers can and should take appropriate disciplinary action against them. The key is a careful and deliberate approach, devoid of emotion …