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Employment Law

Check bankruptcy filings—You just might dodge a suit

03/01/2008

In Michigan’s current tough economy, many laid off or fired workers are filing for bankruptcy. But that doesn’t mean former employees have given up on filing employment-related lawsuits. But these tight times have given employers an additional tool for finding out what they’re up against if they are sued …

Temporary condition might be disability if severe enough

03/01/2008

The ADA makes it illegal to discriminate against applicants or employees with disabilities. Typically, only permanent conditions count. But not always. Some temporary medical conditions also can constitute disabilities if they are severe enough at the time the condition exists …

Avoid discrimination trap: Don’t make promises you can’t keep

03/01/2008

To avoid losing essential and talented employees, some organizations make promises about continued employment that later turn out to be hard to keep. It’s especially common in organizations going through transitions, such as mergers or moves to outsource internal functions. But the tactic can backfire …

Firing reason doesn’t have to be perfect to withstand discrimination claims

03/01/2008

As a conscientious HR pro, you no doubt try to make the best employment decisions you can, based on legitimate reasons and valid evidence. But that doesn’t mean you have to treat the HR office like a court of law, spending weeks conducting investigations and sorting through evidence …

Document all employee record requests

03/01/2008

The Bullard-Plawecki Employee Right to Know Act gives employees the right to review their personnel records. The law requires employees to make written requests to look at the files before they seek legal redress. Keep a clear record of all requests …

Workers told to ‘Go back and pick cotton’

03/01/2008

Darryl Hall, a black warehouse worker for Detroit Forming Inc., will have his day in court after the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling on his race discrimination case. Hall testified that company owner Leigh Rodney told workers at a shift meeting that if they didn’t like the way he ran the company, they could “go back and pick cotton.” …

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? …