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Employment Law

Foil state bias claims by checking the calendar

12/01/2006

Texas employees have 180 days after an alleged discriminatory act to file discrimination charges with the Texas Commission on Human Rights. So, you can get a charge tossed out if you can prove it was filed more than 180 days afterward. But what counts as a “discriminatory act”?…

BP settles lawsuit stemming from Texas City refinery explosion

12/01/2006

A 22-year-old woman whose parents were both killed in the 2005 Texas City refinery explosion that killed 15 people settled her civil lawsuit against BP PLC on the eve of the trial …

Election results may foreshadow change for Texas employers

12/01/2006

The new Texas House of Representatives will hold five more Democrats than it did the last session, although the Republicans remain in clear control. That means any legislation that seems anti-business—including bills affecting employers—will continue to face tough sledding in the Texas legislature …

The new pension reform law: What it means to you

12/01/2006

In August, President Bush signed the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which includes many benefits-related amendments to the Internal Revenue Code and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) …

How to pay hourly workers for weekend travel time

12/01/2006

Q. How do you pay hourly employees who are traveling on a day that’s not considered a workday, like Saturday or Sunday? What if they normally have a 10-minute commute to the office but instead they have to go to the airport, and the airport is an hour from their home?

Should we require harassment claims be in writing?

12/01/2006

Q. Our new plant manager wants me to revise our sexual harassment policy to require that complaints be in writing. He says this will formalize the procedure and help ensure that only valid complaints are filed. I don’t think this is a good idea. Is it?

Injured worker can collect workers’ comp and sue

12/01/2006

Q. One of our employees badly hurt himself when he tripped over some equipment that had been left by the building maintenance. Workers’ comp covered his medical bills and lost wages, but he also sued the building for negligence. Now we have a letter from the office building demanding that we defend them in the lawsuit and telling us we are responsible. How can that be? I thought we were protected by workers’ comp from any suit involving an employee injury?

5 things to tell employees about the new pension law

11/01/2006

The Pension Protection Act of 2006, signed by President Bush in August, swept in big changes for employer retirement plans. Educating employees about the law will likely fall to you. Here are five key points you should explain to employees long before the major provisions take effect in 2008 …

Who Should Decide If You Offer Domestic-Partner Perks?

11/01/2006

Your organization—not the government—should make that call, say a majority of 2,500 adults surveyed by Out & Equal Workplace Advocates …

Base promotions on impartial, job-Related reasons

11/01/2006

When deciding whom to promote, make sure you’re using an impartial selection process to pick the best candidate. That’s the only way to stay on safe legal ground …