• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Employment Law

Pension Benefits: ERISA Rules

01/03/2015

HR Law 101: The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) governs the administration of employee retirement plans. Pension plans fall into two major categories: qualified and nonqualified plans …

FLSA: Calculating Hours Worked

01/02/2015
HR Law 101: To ensure you’re in compliance with the FLSA, it’s important to understand the definition of “hours of work.” Any hour when an employee’s on duty is considered time worked. The only period usually excluded: when an employee uses the time for personal reasons …

Labor Minister looks to stop after-hours emails with “anti-stress regulation”

01/01/2015
To safeguard the leisure of citizens already guaranteed four weeks of vacation per year, German Labor Minister Andrea Nahles is calling for an “anti-stress regulation” that would bar employers from sending email to employees after 6 p.m.

Workers’ Safety and Health

01/01/2015

HR Law 101: Employers have an obligation to provide a safe work environment for their employees. Those that don’t will pay a heavy price. Their workers’ compensation and other liability insurance costs will rise, workers may sue, and OSHA may impose heavy fines.

Fire at Will Doctrine

01/01/2015

HR Law 101: Under the law in most states, if there’s no employment contract, workers are employed on an “at-will” basis. That means employers have the right to fire employees at any time for any reason or no reason, and, conversely, employees have the right to leave the organization at any time …

Workplace Drug Testing

01/01/2015

HR Law 101: Drug testing and substance abuse prevention programs can involve substantial legal liability if employers don’t manage and administer them properly. If your organization decides to implement a drug testing program, there are ways to minimize the risk of employee lawsuits …

Sex Discrimination

01/01/2015

HR Law 101: Sex discrimination and sexual harassment are illegal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The law requires that employers treat male and female workers equally in all terms and conditions of employment …

FMLA: Overview

01/01/2015

HR Law 101: Since 1993, the Family and Medical Leave Act has provided eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for the birth, adoption or foster care of a child; caring for a child, spouse or parent with a serious health condition; or convalescence after an employee’s own serious health condition …

How federal law prohibits family caregiver discrimination

12/30/2014
While family caregiver discrimination is not a new protected category (and no federal law expressly prohibits employment discrimination against caregivers), a number of laws provide protection for employees with caregiving responsibilities.

FLSA: The Minimum Wage

12/30/2014

HR Law 101: Passage of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 marked the first boost to the federal minimum wage since 1997. In July 2007, the federal minimum wage increased from $5.15 to $5.85 per hour. Additional raises took effect over the next two years: to $6.55 on July 24, 2008, and to $7.25 on July 24, 2009.