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Employment Law

Remind managers and supervisors: No snide comments on disability allowed

04/14/2008
It takes just one unkind comment about an employee’s alleged disability to send an ADA case to trial. What’s more, even if the employee couldn’t otherwise prove she’s disabled, a malicious comment may be enough to convince the court that the employer regarded the employee as disabled. That’s an ADA violation all by itself …

House passes bill allowing guns in workplace parking lots

04/14/2008
The Florida House of Representatives passed a bill prohibiting employers from banning guns from their properties. HB 503 guarantees employees the right to keep legally owned guns locked inside their cars as long as they have permits to carry concealed weapons …

HSN hit with discrimination suit

04/14/2008
A former employee of St. Petersburg-based Home Shopping Network (HSN) has filed suit against the company, alleging race discrimination. Armanda Vernon claims HSN passed her over repeatedly for promotions because she is black …

Get ahead of the curve by offering anti-Gay bias training

04/14/2008
Even though Florida’s Civil Rights Act does not outlaw sexual orientation bias, employers must still comply with local ordinances that do. And employers also should prepare to comply with potential changes in federal laws. Incorporating anti-gay bias training into your regular anti-discrimination training carries a number of benefits …

Watch what you say during termination deliberation

04/10/2008
Words are easy to misconstrue. Depending on who’s listening, the same sentence could mean at least two different things. This is one of the things that keeps lawyers employed. It’s also the reason it’s crucial to prepare accurate notes about any meeting in which managers are discussing whether to terminate …

Feel free to expand candidate search even if your policy favors hiring from within

04/10/2008
If, like many companies, you have a policy that encourages promotion from within, you may hesitate to look outside for additional candidates. Fear of a lawsuit might make you especially reluctant if one of the few internal candidates belongs to a protected class. As the following case shows, those fears are unfounded …

Jury to decide Michigan professor’s anti-Gay bias suit

04/10/2008
A Lansing Circuit Court judge has ruled that a jury trial is in order in the case of a discrimination lawsuit filed in 2005 by Peter Hammer, a former professor at the University of Michigan Law School. Hammer claims he was denied tenure because he is openly gay …

AAM strike wreaks financial havoc

04/10/2008
The ongoing strike that began in February by workers at five American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings (AAM) plants in Michigan and New York has led Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (S&P) to review AAM’s credit rating …

Top 5 mistakes employers make and how to avoid them

04/10/2008

Poor communications with employees isn’t just bad for business. It also creates a work environment that’s ripe for legal trouble. Stay out of the courtroom by taking time to explain your actions and make the workplace seem rational to employees. Here’s how.

Is there such a thing as intermittent childbirth leave?

04/10/2008
 Q. We have a question regarding FMLA leave following the birth of a child. One of our employees is pregnant. She has recently immigrated to the United States. She has informed us that she expects to take eight weeks of FMLA leave immediately after the child is born. Then after a few months, she would like to return to her home country to visit with family for a month. In other words, she wants to split up FMLA leave into an eight-week period and a four-week period. Can FMLA leave for a new child be split up in this fashion? …