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Policies / Handbooks

Letterman case spotlights boss-employee relationships

10/13/2009

Late-night talk show host David Letterman came under fire earlier this month after admitting—to ward off a blackmail plot—that he’d had sexual relationships with several female staff members. While Letterman is unlikely to make any Top 10 Lists of good bosses, does his misbehavior rise to the level of sexual harassment? And what’s the lesson from all of this?

New rules ban texting while driving

10/13/2009

President Obama is using the White House bully pulpit to tackle a growing danger: sending, receiving and reading text messages while driving. A new policy bans texting while driving for federal workers, as more states move to make the practice illegal. Find out what the laws are where your organization does business.

Handle supervisor harassment with a good policy, timely investigation and independent review

10/12/2009

It’s one of the toughest HR problems: Handling a sexual harassment claim when the alleged harasser is a supervisor. But all is not lost. With proper planning, you can minimize the liability risk. Here’s how:

How to reduce liability for harassment: Do the right thing

10/11/2009

In a case that has simple yet profound lessons for employers, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that an employer wasn’t liable for co-worker harassment—all because the company acted fast and effectively when it discovered the harassment.

Include family caregivers in anti-discrimination policies

10/09/2009

Family responsibility discrimination (FRD)—discrimination against employees because of their family caregiving duties—has become a hotbed for litigation against employers, and every indication is that this trend will continue. So it’s critical for employers to recognize the potential for liability and take necessary steps to avoid being the next defendant.

Ban all racial comments—discrimination is discrimination, regardless of particular race

10/09/2009

You need a zero-tolerance policy banning all comments about race or ethnicity. It doesn’t matter whether the race being singled out is a majority or a minority race. The act of harassing someone because of his race is illegal either way. It also doesn’t add one bit to workplace harmony or the bottom line.

Human Rights law now allows fines for employment bias

10/09/2009

New York employers found to have discriminated against employees can be assessed fines up to $50,000 under new terms of the New York Human Rights Law. If a court finds employment discrimination to have been willful, the fines—payable to the state—may be as high as $100,000.

Can we require employees to get flu shots?

10/06/2009

Approximately 3 million doses of the vaccines designed to prevent the H1N1 flu virus—swine flu—shipped last week. Local health authorities are preparing to offer vaccines as early as this week. Can you—should you?—demand that your employees get flu shots?

Tell employees they must report sexual harassment up chain of command

10/05/2009

Looking for a way to eliminate unfounded sexual harassment claims from former employees? One way is to make sure your sexual harassment policy tells employees to keep taking their harassment claims up the chain of command if they aren’t satisfied with the first response.

Dave’s Markets chain charged with sexual harassment

10/05/2009

The EEOC has sued Cleveland-based Dave’s Markets, alleging the chain tolerated a workplace rife with sexual harassment. The lawsuit claims that a longtime male manager made repeated and unwanted sexual advances against female employees, and the company did nothing to stop it.