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Employment Law

What not to say: ‘Playing the race card’

08/11/2011

Some comments spell nothing but trouble. That’s why you should ban them from the workplace, at least when spoken by anyone holding a super­visory role. One of the most inflammatory statements: the all-too-common “playing the race card.”

The ICE man cometh … with a notice of intent to audit

08/10/2011
You may have noticed a slight chill in the air recently. For the second time this year, ICE has notified 1,000 employers that it plans to inspect their Form I-9 records. Whether your company has received a Notice of Intent to Audit or you have been lucky enough to avoid one until now, it is important to understand how a NOI may impact your organization.

Employee with cerebral palsy agrees to settlement with Target

08/10/2011

Minneapolis-based retail giant Target will pay $160,000 to settle a disability discrimination suit at one of its California stores. The EEOC filed the suit on behalf of Jeremy Schott, who suffers from cerebral palsy.

Punish poor behavior, not FMLA leave

08/10/2011
Some employees need FMLA leave to cope with work stress. But that doesn’t mean that employers can’t punish someone who makes threats.

Employee alleges hostile environment? Act fast to identify culprits, repair damage

08/10/2011

Fortunately for employers, courts measure a hostile work environment against the “reasonable employee” standard. If a reasonable employee would not find the conduct hostile, then it doesn’t matter how intensely a particular employee reacts to allegedly hostile acts. The idea behind the standard is to protect employers from exaggerated claims, especially when it is clear the employer took the allegations seriously and moved to prevent further problems.

Clear and fair hiring process yields the best candidates–and impresses judges

08/10/2011

Employers that develop clear, fair and transparent hiring processes seldom have to worry about losing a failure-to-hire lawsuit. That’s true even if they end up using so-called subjective reasons for not hiring a candidate. Simply put, judges are impressed when it looks like a potential employer bends over backward to ensure it doesn’t discriminate.

Case against Schwan’s heats up as court backs EEOC

08/10/2011

Marshall-based frozen food giant Schwan’s attempt to quash an EEOC subpoena was stopped cold when the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the company must hand over a list of 600 Schwan’s general managers, their genders and dates of hire. The EEOC demanded the documents in connection with a sex discrimination case filed by a former employee.

Use break room posters to cut legal liability

08/10/2011

Employers know they are supposed to provide their employees with in­­­­for­mation about how to handle discrimination or harassment. Most employers put up a poster on a break room bulletin board to outline the process. This simple practice can prove invaluable when an employee tries to use ignorance as an excuse for not complaining right away.

Court: One less way to claim promotion bias

08/10/2011
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has refused to expand the ways in which employees who are passed over for promotions can sue. It turned down a request to allow a lawsuit alleging that previously denied promotions could be considered as evidence of bias in later promotion denials.

What’s ‘reasonable’ ADA leave? EEOC to explain

08/10/2011
After the 2008 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), many more employees are now considered to have job-protected “disabilities” under the law. So when it comes to employee leave, what’s a “reasonable” accommodation for disabled people?