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Terminations

It’s a man’s world? Be ready to ‘man up’ in court

04/11/2011
Reductions in force (RIFs) are fertile ground for employee lawsuits to sprout up. But as this ruling last month shows, even when a company conducts a perfectly good RIF procedure, it can be torpedoed in court by a manager’s untimely comments …

Firing for poor work or rule breaking? Clear business reason will beat lawsuit

04/06/2011
Most workers are at-will employees, who can be fired for any reason or no reason at all, as long as your actions don’t violate anti-discrimination laws. That can tempt some supervisors to get lazy and fire a difficult employee without documenting exactly why. That’s a big mistake.

Offer FMLA, but still enforce attendance rules

04/06/2011

Employees occasionally have to step in on short notice to help care for a family member and may legitimately need FMLA leave to handle those responsibilities. Go ahead and suggest FMLA time off. However, until the employee takes you up on the offer, you can hold her to your regular attendance policy.

State workers have limited right to challenge firings

04/06/2011
Here’s a reminder if you work at a Texas public university or another state-affiliated organization: Employees may have a “property interest” in their jobs. That means they’re entitled to receive notice that they are being fired—and to challenge the decision.

You can fire worker out on FMLA leave–just show legitimate work-related reason

04/06/2011

Some employees believe that applying for or taking FMLA leave insulates them from legitimate punishment. They think, “You can’t discipline me because I just took FMLA leave; that would be retaliation.” That just isn’t true.

Terminating without giving a specific reason? Document rationale for the record, regardless

04/06/2011

Many employers don’t like to provide specific reasons for firing someone. Instead, they simply tell the employee that he is being terminated from his at-will employment. Don’t take that as an excuse not to document the reason you are terminating the employee.

Jury awards $900,000 in age discrimination case

03/31/2011
A 30-year veteran at University Hospitals in Cleveland has won an age discrimination case in Cuyahoga County court. Gloria Parks argued that her supervisor blamed her for the mistakes of two younger co-workers because he favored young, female workers.

Ohio Supreme Court refuses to hear false ticket case

03/31/2011
Beth Rist, former Ironton police officer and current Ironton City Council member, appears to have exhausted her legal appeals in her battle to return to uniform. The Ohio Supreme Court has declined to hear her case.

Insubordinate worker? Fire away knowing court probably won’t second-guess

03/31/2011

Employees are expected to follow directions and treat their supervisors with respect. Employees who lose their tempers or refuse to follow legitimate directions are insubordinate. That means you can terminate them, a decision courts will rarely second-guess.

Overly sensitive employee or bully boss? Trust instincts to determine who’s right

03/31/2011

Sometimes, HR professionals have to make judgment calls about who is telling the truth. In fact, just about every workplace investigation requires assessing the credibility of employees, co-workers and managers who disagree about what happened. Take, for example, an employee who complains about a supervisor’s harassment or hostility.