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Employment Law

Is ‘he who hired also fired’ a good defense against discrimination charges?

09/26/2012
Q. If an employee claims he was discriminated against by the same supervisor who hired and fired him, does the employer have a defense to the discrimination claim?

Must we pay an intern we plan to bring in?

09/26/2012
Q. We plan on hiring a college intern later this year. Will we have to pay him or her?

What should we do? Our work requires talking on cellphones while driving

09/26/2012

Q. The animal care officers who work for us spend 80% of their time driving and responding to rescue calls via cellphone. Requiring them to pull off the road while talking on their phones wouldn’t work. Is there another way to limit our liability?

Steel firm settles religious accommodation suit

09/26/2012
Pittsburgh-based steel-industry supplier Magnetics International will pay $30,000 to settle a religious discrimination suit filed by an employee in Indiana who claimed the company failed to accommodate his need to worship regularly.

New Pennsylvania law protects service dogs

09/26/2012
Gov. Tom Corbett has signed legislation offering greater protection to service dogs that assist disabled people. Under the new legislation, dog owners whose dogs attack service dogs may be charged with a third-degree misdemeanor …

EEOC dresses down Delia’s for Lehigh pregnancy bias

09/26/2012
Teen fashion retailer Delia’s will pay $75,000 to two former employees at the chain’s Lehigh Valley Mall store to settle pregnancy discrimination claims. Apparently, pregnant employees didn’t mesh with Delia’s brand image.

Ugly operating room incident leads to distress trial

09/26/2012
A federal court has held that two doctors can sue over outrageous behavior in the operating room. Two Jewish anesthesiologists working for Aria Health can sue over another doctor’s be­­havior, which they allege caused them severe emotional distress.

Remind supervisors: Absolutely no comments about employee’s pending EEOC complaint

09/26/2012
There are some words that should never come from a supervisor’s mouth—including any statement that would seem to encourage an employee to drop an EEOC complaint. That just about guarantees that a retaliation or interference lawsuit will go to trial should anything adverse (like a discharge or demotion) happen to the employee to whom the supervisor was speaking.

When employee alleges management bias, don’t blindly accept the boss’s denial

09/26/2012
Surprise! Some of your supervisors may be biased—something they would probably deny if confronted. If an employee complains that her boss is prejudiced, don’t just accept the manager’s protestations of innocence as the last word. Investigate instead.

Newly promoted boss not working out?

09/26/2012
Not every employee is cut out for management. Someone who was a true asset as a skilled worker may be a bust after being promoted. If that happens in your organization, exercise patience before terminating.