• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

HR Management

Delete your liability: Copy Xerox response to harassment complaint

04/29/2011
You can’t prevent every vulgar act an employee may commit. But you can and should act fast when you learn about misbehavior. As the response by Xerox managers in the following case shows, a single incident that doesn’t involve outrageous behavior or a physical assault typically isn’t sexual harassment in the eyes of the court—unless the employer ignores the incident and allows the problem to escalate.

Can our substance-abuse policy also apply to out-of-town travel?

04/28/2011
Q. Our drug and alcohol policy states: “While on company premises and while conducting business for the company off premises, no employee may use, possess, distribute, sell or be under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs.” Some of our staff asked if this also applies to them when they travel or attend out-of-town seminars at hotels. Does our policy still hold up in this situation?

Get ready now! New ADAAA regs will mean more litigation

04/28/2011
In the two years since the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) became effective, employers have begun to experience its profound impact. Now the regulations for implementing the ADAAA have been finalized. Since courts generally defer to such reasonable administrative interpretations, these regulations will be an important factor in future ADA cases.

Congress kills controversial 1099 reporting mandate

04/28/2011
President Obama signed legislation on April 14 that repeals a controversial provision of his health reform law that would have dramatically expanded employers’ reporting duties for 1099 forms.

New business etiquette rules for the modern age

04/26/2011
Having good manners today is less about using the right fork, and more about showing consideration toward others. As we celebrate Administrative Professionals Week, here’s sound business etiquette advice for everyone who works. The key, as always: Common courtesy.

Jehovah’s Witness gets last ‘ho ho ho’ in Belk case

04/25/2011
The Belk department store chain has agreed to pay a former employee $55,000 to settle her religious discrimination suit. The employee, a practicing Jehovah’s Witness, was fired after she refused to wear a Santa hat during the store’s Christmas promotions.

Take hard line on workplace violence threats

04/25/2011

Some employees think nothing of threatening their co-workers. Most employers disagree and aggressively move to stop such harassment. Courts are on the employers’ side: They’ll seldom second-guess a decision to fire the culprit.

N.J. Supreme Court decides: Can employees take confidential docs?

04/25/2011
Can an employee who wants to prove discrimination take, copy and dis­close company documents? How does that square with the company’s right to protect what it deems to be confidential information? The New Jersey Supreme Court ­recently offered some guidance on this issue in Quinlan v. Curtiss-Wright.

Training not working? Time to try demotion

04/25/2011
Not every employee is suited to promotion—something that may not become clear until far into the process. That’s why smart employers set reasonable expectations for training success and remain prepared to demote those who don’t make the cut.

Making the clear-cut case for adding vision care benefits

04/20/2011
Poor vision and eye disease cost U.S. businesses more than $8 billion a year in lost productivity, and even more in direct health care costs. Plus, there is a significant link between vision and overall health. Here are five practical reasons to add vision benefits to your menu of health-related benefits: