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HR Management

Test before deciding on employee’s limits

09/01/2001
Shirley Hoffman was a whiz at her indexing job at Caterpillar Inc. She moved faster than almost anyone, even though she was born without a left arm below the elbow. Several …

Don’t ignore minority-on-minority harassment

08/01/2001
Steven Bell worked at a state prison with a co-worker who often hurled racial epithets at him, calling him “cracker” and “white boy.” Bell is Filipino and his harasser is …

Perry Mason meets e-Bay: Should you shop for lawyers online?

08/01/2001
If you need a lawyer to handle an employment issue, you can now go online, announce your legal needs and wait for offers from interested lawyers. But as with many things …

Limit Employee Access to Personnel Files

08/01/2001

Q. I keep on file each employee’s application, résumé, performance evaluations and any other praise or disciplinary records. Do I need to provide my employees with access to their files? And, if so, do I have to show them everything? —S.K., New Hampshire

Manager’s insubordination wins protection

08/01/2001
Jane Foster had a tough decision: Follow the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or follow her boss’s orders. She went with the ADA and got fired. But a court has ruled …

Poorly drafted policies grant unintended rights

08/01/2001
Dr. Tina Thomas, an optometrist with Pearle Vision Inc., requested maternity leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). After all, a summary of employee benefits said “all employees with …

Splitting hairs: When is a no-beard policy illegal?

08/01/2001
Two recent court cases help draw the boundaries on how far you can go with a razor. Federal Express recently settled a lawsuit involving its no-beard policy and a Muslim …

Simple hearsay about harassment doesn’t create hostile environment

08/01/2001
When Diane Leibovitz heard that two employees of the New York City Transit Authority had been harassed, she claimed that made her a victim of a hostile environment and filed …

Cost-sharing can cost you in arbitration agreements

08/01/2001
To get a job as an airport security agent, Damiana Perez had to agree to arbitrate all employment disputes. The agreement required her and the company to split the costs of …

Push for contraceptive coverage gets shove from federal court

08/01/2001
If you’re not already covering prescription contraceptives with your health plan, there’s new pressure to do so. For the first time, a federal court has ruled that excluding …