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Employment Law

Give managers a 3-phrase script to respond to harassment complaints

09/23/2008

When one of your employees confides in her manager that she’s being harassed by a co-worker, what will that manager say? Hopefully, it’ll be something more constructive than “Go along with it."

Count minutes—not just hours—when figuring FMLA eligibility

09/23/2008

The FMLA limits leave eligibility to those employees who have worked at least 1,250 hours in the previous 12 months. Employers are perfectly within their rights to stick scrupulously to that 1,250-hour benchmark. They don’t have to round the hours up if the employee comes up short …

Court rules sex is a ‘major life activity’

09/23/2008

Alexander Bondarenko, a letter carrier, sued the U.S. Postal Service for constructive discharge and disability discrimination. The Postal Service argued Bondarenko wasn’t disabled because his back bad did not substantially limit a “major life activity,” as the ADA requires. Bondarenko disagreed. He said the back injury left him unable to have recreational sex …

Retaliation claim doesn’t win if it’s filed in wrong court

09/23/2008

An Elkhart employer is off the hook for retaliatory discharge for now—but maybe not for long. Lisa Lubarsky was reportedly a good employee of INOVA Federal Credit Union in Elkhart. But then she sued in a South Bend federal court for retaliatory discharge under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 …

Showing restraint: Ensuring worker safety with workplace protective orders

09/23/2008

A disgruntled employee is terminated for poor performance. On his way out, he threatens his manager and co-workers. Fortunately, situations like this usually end with the terminated employee cooling off, filing for unemployment and getting on with his life. But what happens when the employee doesn’t let it go? …

How do we accommodate an employee’s obvious disability tactfully and legally?

09/23/2008

Q. We have an employee who is clearly disabled. The employee has a very difficult time walking and is unable to stand for extended periods of time.  While the employee has never complained or asked for any form of accommodation, it is clearly affecting both him and his performance. We want to help him, but we are afraid to approach him and suggest he needs help. What can we do? …

Is it permissible to ask women about gaps in their employment histories?

09/23/2008

Q. Can we ask female applicants about lengthy gaps in their employment histories? I’m afraid that doing so might make it look as though we are digging into personal or family issues that could lead to a claim of gender bias …

The New ADA: What It Means for Employers and HR

09/23/2008

The ADA Amendments Act of 2008—signed by President Bush Sept. 25 and taking effect Jan. 1, 2009—will require HR professionals to thoroughly review all policies and practices involving employment of people with disabilities. Here’s a run-down of the major changes under "the new ADA."

No translation needed for arbitration agreements to be valid

09/22/2008

You might worry that people who don’t speak English well won’t be bound by contracts such as arbitration agreements. If applicants or employees can’t read an agreement, it would seem logical that they couldn’t agree to the terms. You have little to fear …

It’s up to you to stay current on industry-specific regs

09/22/2008

It’s tough to keep up on all the latest changes in employment law. Busy HR professionals have to handle day-to-day problems and make sure new rules and regulations make their way into that routine. But it’s vital to be up to date on new regulations relevant to your industry. Otherwise, you could face extensive, expensive and needless litigation …