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Policies / Handbooks

Be Cautious in Requiring Payment From ‘Short’ Cashier

07/01/2002

Q. Management wants to institute a policy that requires cashiers whose registers are short at night’s end to replace the disputed amount out of their own pockets. Does this violate the law? —B.B., New York

Mean-spirited office pranks carry heavy price

06/01/2002
When a manager at an auto body shop went to the restroom, two fellow employees picked the lock, entered and took a photograph of him while urinating. They distributed the picture …

No need to bend seniority rules to accommodate disabled employees

06/01/2002
Continuing a pattern of narrowing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that, in most cases, employers don’t have to override their seniority system to accommodate …

Don’t pry too deeply when seeking proof of sick leave

06/01/2002
Under her employer’s sick-leave policy, corrections officer Belinda Fountain had to provide a diagnosis of her medical condition every time she was absent. This “medical certification” had to be on …

Drop any hint of youth-oriented hiring policy

06/01/2002
A 45-year-old sales manager sued under federal age-bias law, saying an insurance company discriminated against older managers. He argued that the company’s hiring policy targeted younger managers to match its recruitment …

Vacation policy: Keep benchmarks, formality in mind

06/01/2002
The summer vacation season is upon us, and that means it’s time to dust off your company’s time-off policy. Despite lingering uncertainty over the economic recovery and travel safety, 77 …

Avoid Liability for ‘Porn Spam’

06/01/2002

Q. Some of our employees have been getting a lot of spam e-mail that advertises porn sites. I’m concerned that an employee will consider this junk as creating a hostile work environment. What can we do to protect ourselves? —M.C., Minnesota

Toughen your hiring policy to help neutralize union ‘salts’

05/01/2002
In applying for a job with a heating and air conditioning company, an applicant stated that he had been laid off from his previous job. But the truth was that the …

Employees have no privacy claim to company-supplied home PC

05/01/2002
For 12 years, a senior insurance executive used two company- provided computers, one at the office and one at his home. He had signed his company’s computer policy, agreeing to use …

Examine your promotion policy for reverse discrimination

05/01/2002
Reason: In a closely watched case, a federal court struck down the U.S. Army’s officer promotion process on the grounds it discriminates against white men. The policy notes past discrimination against …