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Employment Law

The disappearing executive and his disappearing back trouble

03/01/2008

General Motors won summary judgment in a disability discrimination lawsuit after the company caught Christopher Peterson loading lumber into his car while he was on leave for back problems. Peterson had a long career with GM and had risen into the executive ranks …

You don’t need a second opinion to reject FMLA certification

03/01/2008

The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Michigan, recently handed employers some ammunition to fight FMLA claims. In its decision in Novak v. MetroHealth Medical Center, the court reaffirmed that an employer is not obligated to get a second opinion when it rejects an employee’s certification paperwork …

The policy and legal implications of discussing compensation

03/01/2008

Q. We recently had salary adjustment, and some of our employees have been comparing their raises. But we have a policy that states that compensation matters are confidential. Executives have asked HR to speak to the offending employees and gently remind them about our policy. I am concerned that if I speak to any of the employees, the problem will just get worse. Ideas? …

What legal issues does GPS monitoring raise?

03/01/2008

Q. Our company would like to start a program where all sales employees will use cell phones that have GPS monitoring. We want to keep track of where employees are so we can make sure they make their sales calls in their own territories and are not wasting time. Is this OK to do? Must we tell employees about the GPS monitoring? What about tracking employees after hours? …

What if employees balk at new mandatory arbitration procedure?

03/01/2008

Q. We are considering adopting a new mandatory arbitration procedure. We are concerned that some of our employees won’t agree to the change in our policy. What should we do? Should we tell employees that they will be terminated if they don’t agree? Will employees be bound by the policy if they don’t agree and we don’t take any further action? …

Warn hiring managers: No reference to age allowed

03/01/2008

It seems like such a simple rule. Never comment on an applicant’s age or other protected characteristics. Remind managers it takes just one stupid comment to provoke a lawsuit. Emphasize that refusing to interview a qualified candidate because of a stated prejudice almost automatically qualifies as an adverse employment action. That makes it almost certain you will lose.

No mandatory arbitration agreement if EEOC case is pending

03/01/2008

If, like many employers, you require arbitration to settle employment disputes instead of allowing costly court fights, be aware of a new danger. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals recently clarified that an employee’s refusal to sign an arbitration agreement when he already has a pending EEOC complaint is protected activity. Firing such an employee for refusing to sign is retaliation …

Beware temptation to overstate fired worker’s faults

03/01/2008

Firing an employee is never easy, but there’s no reason to try to justify your decision by piling on a litany of reasons to discharge a poorly performing employee. That just complicates the process. Chances are, a court won’t second-guess you if you simply stick to the strongest reason you have for the firing …

Accommodations working? Then avoid sudden change of heart following injury

03/01/2008

Disabled employees who receive ADA accommodations expect those accommodations to continue even after an unrelated minor injury. If you suddenly remove the accommodation, you may find yourself facing a “regarded-as-disabled” lawsuit …

Track training opportunities, participation to show you don’t discriminate

03/01/2008

Employees who belong to a protected class often sue for discrimination if they feel they have been denied training and education opportunities. That’s why you should carefully track what training courses or experiences you offer, the minimum qualifications for each opportunity and who ends up taking advantage of each one …