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Employment Law

Legit discipline OK, even following complaint

03/16/2011
Some managers worry needlessly that any step they take after an employee complains about harassment will mean a lawsuit. But as long as you can support your disciplinary act with a good reason—and you keep good records showing how you made the decision—chances are good a court will dismiss the suit.

Fire insubordinate worker, despite complaint

03/16/2011

Employees who complain about discrimination or harassment are protected from retaliation. But some of them mistakenly believe that complaining makes them invincible. That’s not true. Employers can discipline any employee who deserves it—including those who have complained—as long as the rules are applied fairly.

Being sued? Gather all employment records ASAP

03/16/2011

It’s a fact of life: Unhappy applicants, employees and former employees tend to sue. There’s not much you can do about that. However, you can be prepared to react quickly as soon as you learn of a lawsuit. The key is having complete documentation of all employment decisions.

Regularly review FLSA exempt/nonexempt status

03/16/2011
Perhaps nothing strikes more fear in an HR manager’s heart than learning that employees have filed a class-action wage-and-hour lawsuit alleging they were improperly classified as exempt employees. Your best defense is to be proactive about pay issues. Conduct regular reviews to make sure positions throughout your organization are properly classified as hourly or salaried.

Feel free to offer constructive criticism when evaluating employees–even good ones

03/15/2011

You may have employees who perform well but could do better—and you might have some ideas about how they can do that. So at evaluation time, you rate them as good or even excellent employees and want to include some specific suggestions in the narrative part of the evaluation. But you also know that some employees are sen­sitive to criticism. What should you do?

OSHA back offs changes to noise, ergonomic rules

03/15/2011
Last month, OSHA withdrew two of its controversial proposals opposed by business groups. But OSHA left open the right to address both issues again in future regulations.

Checklist: A practical guide to investigating workplace harassment

03/14/2011
The U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decisions in Faragher v. City of Boca Raton and Ellerth v. Burlington Industries were a wake-up call for employers to prevent, detect and remedy unlawful workplace harassment. HR’s key tool for doing so: the internal investigation. When harassment rears its ugly head, here’s how to conduct your investigation.

Must we pay for lactation breaks?

03/14/2011
Q. Are employers required to pay employees for break time taken under the Nursing Mothers Law?

What are the new rules affecting breastfeeding?

03/14/2011
Q. What does the Break Time for Nursing Mothers Law (also known as the Nursing Mothers Law) contained in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) require of employers?

Handling layoffs: Can waivers cut your WARN Act liability?

03/14/2011
Mass layoffs trigger employer obligations under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which requires some employers to provide advance written notice of a “plant closing” or “mass layoff” to their employees. But sometimes, those obligations can be waived. A recent 7th Circuit case—Ellis v. DHL Express, Inc.—held that employees who voluntarily entered into a severance agreement released their employer from liability under the WARN Act.