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Employment Law

No state law on break time: What does FLSA say?

05/07/2012

Q. I don’t think our state has any rules on meal or break times for hourly workers. Does federal law require us to give breaks?


Reverse discrimination and transfers as ADA accommodations

05/04/2012

Earlier this year, the EEOC published Veterans and the Ameri­­cans with Disabilities Act (ADA): A Guide for Employers. In the guide, the EEOC asks the following question: May a private employer give preference in hiring to a veteran with a disability over other applicants?

Alleged retaliation draws lawsuit for Dollar General

05/04/2012
Retail giant Dollar General faces a retaliation suit after it fired two workers from its store in Marion.

Personal Touch lacked it with employee

05/04/2012
File this one under “Ironic.” A Hamilton-based health care company whose motto is “The people with a heart” has had to settle an EEOC lawsuit that charged it with illegally firing a disabled employee.

Jury will decide artificially inseminated teacher’s lawsuit

05/04/2012
A controversial Pregnancy Dis­­crimi­­nation Act lawsuit involving an un­­married woman who was artificially inseminated and who teaches at a Cincinnati Catholic school will go to trial following a federal court ruling.

Employee returning from FMLA leave? OK to assign her to different, equivalent job

05/04/2012

Some employees mistakenly believe that when they take FMLA leave, they are guaranteed an unchanged job when they return. That’s not true. What the FMLA promises is that employees who take protected leave will be returned to the same or an equivalent job.

Counter bias claims: Show how your rational promotion process selects best candidates

05/04/2012
When it comes to promotions, smart employers make sure they carefully document the selection process. That way, if an employee challenges the decision, the company will have something compelling to show the court.

It’s just putting off the inevitable: Don’t let management shrug off hostile work environment

05/04/2012
Having trouble persuading upper management to get proactive about harassment and hostility complaints? Remind them that ignoring such a problem will only make it ­fester—until someone decides to sue.

Former Lucas County sheriff seeks to recover legal fees

05/04/2012

When James Telb was sheriff of Lucas County, he faced federal charges relating to an inmate’s death in the county jail. He was acquitted in December 2010, but claims the process left him saddled with $200,000 in legal fees. Now he is suing the county to recover the money.

Do you give different leave to working moms and dads?

05/04/2012
Do you sometimes grant employees “­special leave” to take care of their school-age kids? Beware if you allow special leave for mothers in your workplace, but not for fathers. One court just warned, “A company’s ‘special leave’ not grounded in law just may be discriminatory.”