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Employment Law

Business balks at NLRB ‘quickie election’ proposal

08/29/2011
In a public hearing this summer, business groups weren’t shy in blasting a proposal by the National Labor Relations Board that would expedite the process by which employees vote on forming a union. Brian Hayes, the only Republican member of the NLRB, called the push for such “quickie” or “ambush” elections a “radical manipulation of our election process.”

Keep meticulous employee performance records

08/26/2011
Face it: One of these days, a disgruntled former employee will sue your organization. You can’t predict which one—or for what reason. That’s one of the most important reasons to keep detailed and meticu­­lous records on employee performance.

Is it legal for employees to secretly record their performance evaluation meetings?

08/26/2011
Q. One of our employees secretly used his iPhone to make an audio recording of his review meeting. Is that legal?

Trust your fair policies: they’ll prevail in court

08/26/2011

It’s a simple fact: You can’t tell which of your employees might sue you one day or for what reason. Your only real protection is fairness. If you treat all employees equally and provide them with the same opportunities, training and discipline, chances are any lawsuit will eventually be dismissed.

Put brakes on discipline when allegations of supervisor harassment seem credible

08/26/2011
It would be naïve to think your organization’s supervisors would never sexually harass subordinates. Here’s what to do when an em­­ployee complains she’s being sexually har­­­­assed. Make sure you investigate thoroughly. Don’t approve any discipline recommended by the same supervisor until you have had a chance to verify or disprove the allegations.

Beware denying ‘vacation’ requests that are thinly disguised as FMLA leave

08/26/2011
If an employee asks you to ap­­prove an especially long vacation, and you suspect the reason may be a covered condition under the FMLA, beware automatically rejecting the request. You may risk an FMLA in­ter­ference lawsuit. Plus, any subsequent discipline could be considered retaliation.

EEOC finds fault with ‘no fault’ attendance policies

08/25/2011

Verizon’s recent $20 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit—the largest disability settlement in EEOC history—is shining a spotlight on the legal risks of no-fault attendance policies. The lawsuit claimed the company violated the ADA by refusing to make exceptions to its no-fault attendance policy to accommodate employees with disabilities.

When to pay for ‘on call’ hours? Ignorance of law isn’t an excuse

08/24/2011

Whether or not to pay employees for on-call time comes down to one question: How many restrictions are you putting on the employees’ personal time? The EEOC says on-call time be­­comes compensable under the FLSA “when the on-call conditions are so restrictive or the calls to duty so frequent that the employee cannot effectively use on-call time for personal purposes.”

How Dodd-Frank’s whistle-blower rules put you in the crosshairs

08/23/2011
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Pro­te­ction Act, passed in the wake of the financial crisis, enacts significant reforms to the financial system. HR professionals need to become familiar with the law’s whistle-blower and anti-retaliation provisions.

Philly airport Legal Sea Foods wraps up odd pay policy

08/23/2011
Sometimes unique workplace situations lead to creative solutions, but those solutions aren’t always, well, legal. Legal Sea Foods’ location at the Philadelphia International Airport has two positions that apparently exist nowhere else in the chain: silverware rollers.