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Hiring

Manager’s careless comment on accent shows discrimination under ELCRA

09/01/2007

Under Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA), it’s direct evidence of discrimination if a supervisor or manager with hiring or firing power makes comments about an applicant’s or employee’s foreign accent. That’s why it’s crucial for HR to remind managers and supervisors to watch what they say …

National Guardswoman fights for promotion and wins

09/01/2007

A black female Michigan National Guard member has won a discrimination suit against the head of the guard, Maj. Gen. Thomas Cutler, and one of his top deputies, alleging they hired a less qualified white man for an airfield manager’s position …

Law boosts pension portability as cash-Balance plans take off

09/01/2007

Dow Chemical Co., based in Midland, has announced it will adopt a cash-balance plan for new employees, making it the largest employer to do so since Congress passed legislation last year protecting new plans from age-discrimination lawsuits …

Tech dominates Michigan’s list of top 25 jobs

09/01/2007

Demand for Michigan information technology analysts and engineers will grow faster than any other career for the next five years, according to statistics compiled by the Michigan Works! Association. Here are the state’s 25 hottest jobs, along with projected demand growth rates …

Promotions and age discrimination

09/01/2007

Q. We are reviewing two employees for a promotion, one is 55 and the other is 45. We are concerned that if we select the younger employee, we will be charged with age discrimination. Are we safer selecting the older employee, assuming both candidates are qualified for the job? …

Congress considers redrawing the lines between employees and independent contractors

09/01/2007

The title of recent congressional hearings—“The Misclassification of Workers as Independent Contractors”—says it all. Some in Congress are looking to change the Fair Labor Standards Act to further define who is an “employee” and who is an “independent contractor” …

Required time limit for job postings?

09/01/2007

Q. We post all open positions on our web site. Is there a law (or at least a guideline) that requires jobs be posted for a certain period? We post most jobs for five days, but leave them posted for 10 days if it’s a position for which we have few minorities apply. No one knows why. Should we continue? —D.M., Missouri …

Track all position openings and note who applies

09/01/2007

Do you keep a close record of all company job openings, how they’re posted and who responds? You should. Good records are the best way to show you didn’t purposely exclude from a promotion opportunity anyone who was qualified—or to show that they never applied in the first place …

Must we grant time off for rehab?

09/01/2007

Q. An employee recently confided to us that he has a drug problem and would like to take several weeks off to participate in a rehabilitation program. Does the California Labor Code require us to grant him time off?

No unemployment for substitute teachers who turn down equivalent positions

09/01/2007

Employees who work for educational institutions on a temporary basis from semester to semester—substitute teachers, for example—may be eligible for unemployment compensation if they are offered a substantially different position (with lower pay) the next term. But if the new assignment is essentially the same as the previous assignment, they can’t refuse the offer and receive unemployment compensation …