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Employment Law

Problems surface during FMLA leave? Fire away!

12/20/2011

Sometimes, you won’t find out about an employee’s mistakes until she’s not there to cover them up. If an employee went on vacation and you then discovered she was stealing, you wouldn’t hesitate to fire her, right? That shouldn’t change just because her absence was due to an illness.

‘Voluntary’ training time: To pay or not?

12/20/2011

Do you offer extra off-duty training for employees that, while technically voluntary, is strongly recommended? If training participants are hourly employees, chances are you will have to pay them for this time.

What are the new FMLA rules affecting federal employees?

12/19/2011
Q. We’ve heard that federal employees’ FMLA rights have recently expanded.  Can you tell us about this?

What are the details on the recent amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act?

12/19/2011
Q. Can you tell us how the recent amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act affects employers?

If FMLA leave has expired, when must we grant additional time off?

12/19/2011
Q. We have an employee who has exhausted his FMLA leave, but wants additional time off. Do we have to grant his request?

FMLA cases can hang on suspicious timing, internal documents

12/19/2011
In Shaffer v. American Medical Association, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reminded employers they cannot base a termination decision on an employee’s decision to take FMLA leave.  Here are some of the lessons the case can teach employers.

Asian food vendor in hot water over hiring practices

12/19/2011
The Nishimoto Trading Co., which sells Asian foods to various Depart­­ment of Defense facilities, has agreed to pay $400,000 in back wages to women who alleged the company illegally refused to hire them. Nishi­moto operates a facility in Chicago.

Berkeley schools settle religious pilgrim’s bias suit

12/19/2011
Berkeley School District 87 in Chi­­cago’s western suburbs has settled a controversial religious discrimination complaint filed by a Muslim teacher who sought unpaid leave to make a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

Have manager who hired also do the firing

12/19/2011
The same individual who hired an employee should also fire that em­­­ployee if necessary. Courts typically reason that no prejudiced person would hire someone and then later fire him because of discrimination, having known all along about the employee’s protected characteristics.

Equal opportunity for women trumps even outrageous reaction to resignation

12/19/2011
A boss’s secret preju­dice won’t support an employee’s sex-bias lawsuit if the employer provides equal opportunities to both men and women. That’s true even if the sexist boss reacts outrageously when the subordinate quits.