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New York

Warn bosses: No retaliation for complaining

03/04/2011

Some supervisors can’t or won’t refrain from finding ways to punish employees who complain about alleged harassment or discrimination. That’s why it’s important for someone in HR to follow up on every complaint—even if it turns out to be unfounded—and ask whether there’s been any retaliation.

Need to discipline employee? Prepare to back it up with contemporaneous records

02/21/2011
Courts love to see good records that support employer discipline—records created at or very near the time events occurred. That’s why every manager needs to know how to document discipline and who gets a copy for later use.

Complying with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act

02/02/2011
In late 2010 the EEOC produced regulations on the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). The regulations provide employers with specific guidance concerning what information they may gather about their employees, how GINA interacts with the FMLA medical certification process and how any genetic information the employer obtains is to be treated.

Meeting nursing-mother obligations under N.Y. and federal laws

02/02/2011
Today, nursing mothers have options protected by both federal and state laws. New York is at the forefront of the movement to allow mothers to feed their children nothing but breast milk up to the recommended six months.

NYC bakery workers get dough as part of DOL wage settlement

02/02/2011
A Manhattan bakery will fork over $436,000 in back pay, interest and liquidated damages to 27 employees as part of the resolution of a U.S. Department of Labor wage-and-hour lawsuit.

Safety for all: Ensure evacuation plans comply with the ADA

02/02/2011
Although we usually think of the ADA in terms of helping disabled people perform their jobs with or without accommodations, the law also has important workplace safety implications. Under the ADA, you must make sure your emergency evacuation plans take into account the needs of disabled employees. Some issues to consider:

Vague ‘unfairness’ complaints aren’t protected activity

02/02/2011
Before an employee can claim his employer retaliated, he has to show he engaged in a protected activity. But vague claims aren’t enough.

Arbitrators can decide post-termination retaliation

02/02/2011
Good news if you use arbitration agreements: They apply to former employees who claim retaliation based on protected activity. The potential result: You’re less likely to wind up defending a lawsuit in federal court.

You never know what you’ll learn: Before making firing decision, let employee talk

02/02/2011
Sometimes, it’s useful to ask for an employee to comment on allegations that could lead to his discharge. For example, in the following case, the employer was about to fire a worker for omitting prior employment from his job application. Before doing so, the employer directly asked if that had, in fact, happened.

Protect against retaliation suits by conducting independent and ‘blind’ internal investigations

02/02/2011

Employers can’t punish employees for complaining about alleged discrimination or harassment. That’s true even if the complaint doesn’t pan out, as long as the employees complained in good faith. But judges don’t want employees to use the threat of a retaliation lawsuit as a way to circumvent fair discipline, either. There’s a way for employers to get judges on their side.