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HR Management

Florida Nordstrom employees win harassment settlement

05/11/2009

High-end retailer Nordstrom has settled an EEOC lawsuit alleging it allowed harassment of Hispanic and black employees at its Palm Beach Gardens and Wellington stores. Ten former employees will share in the $292,000 settlement.

After ARRA, how to handle gross misconduct and COBRA coverage

05/11/2009

In light of the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, employers have begun re-examining the cases of some employees who were involuntarily discharged for misconduct. The purpose? To determine whether the employees are eligible to receive a 65% subsidy for continuation of health insurance benefits under COBRA.

Can law enforcement agencies prohibit uniformed officers from wearing religious garb?

05/11/2009

Q. As a law enforcement agency, we have several employees who want to wear religious garb with their uniforms. Our uniform regulations do not provide any accommodation for religious symbols or dress. Can we require strict compliance with the uniform regulation without violating religious discrimination laws?

EEOC sues rehab center for failure to accommodate

05/11/2009

The EEOC has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the Florida Institute for Neurological Rehabilitation of violating the ADA when it refused to accommodate a disabled employee’s request for training assistance.

Employers: ‘Keep Out!’ Beware intruding in employee web sites

05/06/2009

It’s becoming a common problem: An employer discovers disparaging comments on an employee’s Facebook, MySpace or personal blog. Maybe a post reveals internal company information. Can the employer take disciplinary action? A series of new laws and evolving legal doctrines have placed limits on how far an employer can encroach on the private and off-site activities of its employees.

Use your solid records to counter employee’s claim of discriminatory treatment

05/06/2009

The difference between winning lawsuits and losing them often comes down to good record-keeping. When an employee sues for discrimination, for example, a solid discharge reason will trump the allegations unless the employee can show it was false or that others weren’t discharged for similar problems.

Can you provide a summary of the new Form I-9?

05/06/2009

Q. I recently heard that employers must now use a new I-9 form for new employees. Is this true?

Hey, look, we’re on TV! Better fire that guy!

05/06/2009

The U.S. Department of Labor has settled with Triple B Cleaning, a Houston company, that it claims illegally fired an employee who had complained about workplace safety issues to local news media.

$108,000 OSHA penalty for manufacturing company

05/06/2009

OSHA has announced that a Texas manufacturer faces $108,000 in proposed penalties for failing to abate safety violations after a worker died from an electrical shock. In January 2008, OSHA flagged six violations against JD Manufacturing, doing business as Arrow Waste.

Being overly friendly isn’t harassment

05/06/2009

Title VII protects employees from discrimination based on sex, and sexual harassment is sex discrimination. That doesn’t mean, however, that every unwanted work relationship is sexual harassment. As a recent case shows, an obsessive interest, unrelated to sex, by one employee in another isn’t prohibited.