Firing

Alert Supervisors to Little-Known Association-Bias Law

01/01/2006

By now, your supervisors know it’s illegal to discriminate against someone because of his or her disability. But do they also know about a less obvious part of the ADA that makes it illegal to discriminate against people because they have an association with a person who has a disability? …

Avoid Impromptu Job Reviews; It’ll Look Like a ‘Paper’ Job

01/01/2006

Warn your supervisors that if they quickly schedule negative employee reviews—particularly after an employee files a complaint—they could appear to be papering the employee’s file in advance of a retaliatory firing, which won’t look good in court …

Don’t give up on accommodations too early; show a ‘good faith’ effort

12/01/2005

When faced with a disabled employee, you must actively negotiate possible accommodations in good faith. That may seem obvious, but employers are constantly …

Long delay seldom sinks lawsuits; retain records until case is resolved

11/01/2005

If you know an employee has filed a complaint with the EEOC or state anti-discrimination agency, don’t trash any relevant records until you receive official notification that the case has been resolved and won’t be appealed …

Turn to Last-Chance Agreements for Legal Leverage

10/01/2005

Many employers use "last-chance agreements" to give employees one final opportunity to turn around attendance, productivity and attitude problems. Here’s good news if you use last-chance agreements on employees with drug and alcohol problems: The ADA and many state laws give you the leverage to keep employees clean … and fire them if they’re not …

Drug-test cheating on the rise; fight back with random tests

10/01/2005

Can you trust negative drug test results anymore?
The Internet is flooded with products, more than 400, according to a Business Insurance report, that help employees and job candidates cheat …

You can be sued for what you say during an investigation

09/01/2005

When discussing hiring, firing or promotion decisions, make sure you can back up any claims with some proof. And impress upon others involved in such discussions to also be truthful and …

Self-diagnosis won’t cut it; require proof of disability

09/01/2005

Do you have an employee whose sniffles, coughing or health complaints drive co-workers crazy? Has she told you that she’s disabled and can’t help the snorting and sneezing? You don’t need …

Check bankruptcy records when employees sue

08/01/2005

If your organization is hit with an employee lawsuit, consider having your attorney check for a bankruptcy filing by the employee who sues you. If the lawsuit isn’t listed as an asset with …

Employee returning from injury leave? Don’t treat her with ‘kid gloves’