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Employment Law

2 great candidates? Document why you chose 1

03/09/2012

How you choose among candidates for promotion may spell the difference be­­tween losing and winning a lawsuit. Always document the decision-making process, especially when candidates are equally qualified. Later, you may have to explain the decision in court—and your reason had better be a good, business-related one.

Must we reveal salary before offering promotion?

03/09/2012
Q. Do we have to tell employees exactly how much they will be making before we offer them a promotion?

Can we ask about disabilities before hiring?

03/08/2012
Q. We recently extended an employment offer to someone who was later determined to be unable to perform the job’s essential functions due to a visual impairment. As a result, we wasted a significant amount of time. Aren’t workers obligated under the ADA to disclose that they suffer from a disability?

Can we make deaf employee–and his boss–learn and communicate with sign language?

03/08/2012
Q. We recently hired a deaf employee who communicates exclusively by written notes. We are finding that this process is time-consuming and harms productivity. May we require the deaf worker and his supervisor to learn sign language? Can we terminate them if they refuse?

Employees can’t hide behind FMLA to dodge legitimate discipline

03/08/2012
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a worker who claimed she was fired in retaliation for taking intermittent FMLA leave. The court ruled that she was fired for the most defensible of all reasons: She treated a customer badly.

OSHA: Euless printer clueless about safety

03/08/2012
Printing company SpeQtrum Pre­­press Production Services faces 14 serious safety and health violations and one other-than-serious violation following an OSHA inspection of its facility in Euless. Proposed penalties add up to $44,800.

Houston restaurant chain faces EEOC harassment suit

03/08/2012
Two former bartenders at Houston’s Berryhill Baja Grill have filed sexual harassment suits against the restaurant, alleging that a manager constantly harassed and groped them—and at least once, exposed himself to them.

Austin’s HBMG agrees to repay diverted retirement funds

03/08/2012
Austin-based information technology firm HBMG and its president, Manuel Zarate, have agreed to settle a lawsuit alleging the company failed to transfer employee retirement fund contributions into its 401(k) program.

OSHA to AirTran: Pay whistle-blower, let him fly

03/08/2012
OSHA has ordered AirTran, a subsidiary of Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, to pay $1 million in damages after it found the airline retaliated against a pilot who reported safety problems.

One-sided arbitration agreement won’t fly in Texas

03/08/2012
Arbitration agreements have to meet basic contract rules, including one that says both parties must be bound by its terms. Otherwise, the agreement is “illusory” and won’t be considered a binding contract.