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Employment Law

Make your complaint process retaliation-proof by limiting access

02/07/2018

Access to internal complaints should be on an as-needed basis. Restricting access to those files limits the number of staff members who can be accused of retaliation.

Don’t bad-mouth employees who miss work because of medical crises

02/07/2018

When HR staff make disparaging remarks about employees and their medical conditions, you can count on legal trouble.

No need to engage in accommodation process if disabled employee doesn’t request help

02/07/2018

Except in very rare circumstances, an employer isn’t obligated to provide an accommodation for a disabled worker who doesn’t ask for one. Otherwise, employers would be stuck having to read their employees’ minds.

Note firing for straw that broke camel’s back

02/07/2018

Former employees who sue over their discharge sometimes try to use their employers’ shifting explanations for the termination as evidence that they were fired for discriminatory reasons.

Ensure job descriptions include enough detail

02/07/2018

What you designate as essential functions in a job description can make all the difference when faced with an employee who is demanding reasonable accommodations for a disability.

Snapshot: Employers react to #MeToo, #TimesUp

02/06/2018

Since sexual harassment emerged last fall as a central cultural and workplace issue, employers have responded in these three ways.

Anti-harassment policies a mystery for many

02/06/2018

Ninety-four percent of surveyed HR professionals told the Society for Human Resource Management that their organizations have anti-harassment policies. Yet, 22% of nonmanagement employees did not know for sure that these policies existed.

EEOC may want more than money to settle

02/01/2018

In an indication that the agency is getting tougher on employers that violate religious freedom and discrimination rules, the EEOC appears to be squeezing greater concessions from employers before agreeing to settle cases.

Tax reform stifles #MeToo settlement deductions

01/31/2018

While motivation for this new provision was a well-intentioned nod to the #MeToo movement, it may have unforeseen consequences. 

After settlement disclosure, Farenthold won’t run again

01/31/2018

Rep. Blake Farenthold, who represents the Corpus Christi area in the U.S. House of Representatives, has announced he will retire from Congress at the end of his current term after it was revealed that taxpayers footed the bill for a 2014 settlement paid to a former aide who accused him of sexual harassment.