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Employment Law

No holiday pay for exempt staff in first 90 days?

10/29/2010
Q. Our company has a 90-day probationary period that employees must complete before they’re eligible for holiday pay. We’ve always made salaried exempt employees meet this requirement, too. So if a holiday occurs during their first 90 days, we only pay them for the days worked that week. Is this legal?

As the EEOC steps up ADA enforcement, it’s time to review policies

10/28/2010

The EEOC projects the number of private-sector charges to exceed 100,000 by the end of fiscal year 2010. The increase is due in part to the additional statutory authority it gained with the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA). Given this trend, employers should review their ADA and medical policies to ensure they are in compliance with the ADAAA.

EEOC extinguishes Cintas’ harassment fire

10/28/2010

Uniform supplier Cintas will pay $152,000 to workers at its Conshohocken facility after agreeing to settle an EEOC race and sexual harassment suit. The suit stemmed from a supervisor’s sexual and racial harassment of black workers in Cintas’ fire-protection division.

Philly firm bans Muslim scarf, earns religious bias lawsuit

10/28/2010
Imperial Security, a Philadelphia-area security firm that provides guards for the Pennsylvania Convention Center and other locations in the city, faces a religious discrimination lawsuit after it refused to allow a Muslim woman to wear a khimar, a religious head scarf, on the job.

EEOC challenges Cavalier attitude toward age bias

10/28/2010
The EEOC has filed a class-action lawsuit against Cavalier Telephone on behalf of a group of account executives and job applicants from Pennsylvania and other Mid-Atlantic states, charging that the company refuses to hire older workers and fired two employees in retaliation after they objected to the alleged discrimination.

Calculate FMLA eligibility based on date leave begins

10/28/2010
Some workers decide to provide notice that they’ll need FMLA leave long before they’re even eligible for coverage. When you get such a request, don’t reject it out-of-hand.

Worker quit to care for parent? Know state law

10/28/2010

The news is filled with stories about unemployed workers who can’t find jobs. Yet despite the downturn, some employees find they still must quit their jobs to care for elderly parents. In Pennsylvania, the law makes that easier.

Promoting staff into management? Train on anti-retaliation laws

10/28/2010
Sometimes, a new supervisor takes the opportunity to settle old scores with former co-workers. And that can create liability for the employer. So before the promotion kicks in, teach your newly minted managers that federal laws prohibit supervisors from retaliating against workers for everything from taking FMLA leave to filing a workers’ comp claim.

With flu season here, know what FMLA covers

10/27/2010

After last year’s swine flu scare, there’s good reason to worry about the upcoming flu season. A serious outbreak could incapacitate employers that are already operating with lean staffing. Plus, as it did last year, the season will lead to more confusion and questions over whether a flu or common cold can rise to the level of “serious health condition” that qualifies for FMLA leave.

EEOC sues Ricoh for national-origin harassment

10/26/2010
The EEOC has sued copier company Ricoh on behalf of three former employees—two Hispanics and one man of African origin. The suit alleges the three endured almost daily racial epithets and race-based harassment at the company’s Greensboro location.