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Terminations

Chestnut Hill College fires professor-priest for being gay

03/29/2011

It seems administrators at Philadelphia’s Chestnut Hill College didn’t know one of their employees as well as they thought they did. The Rev. James St. George had been teaching Bible studies, theology and justice courses at the Catholic college since 2009. When St. George wrote in a blog posting that he is gay, the college fired him.

Be sure documentation clearly shows rule breaking

03/29/2011
Employees who are terminated often look for some underlying, illegal reason and sue. Smart employers focus on documenting clear rule violations that justify termination decisions.

Remind bosses: No negative talk about working moms

03/29/2011
When a young mother begins missing work, a manager may think she isn’t taking her career seriously enough. Expressing that sentiment may provoke your employee to sue.

Document why you fired worker, even in cases where rationale seems crystal clear

03/29/2011

Often, you have to fire employees for reasons that seem painfully obvious. Don’t let that stop you from carefully documenting the decision. The fact is, you never know which employee will sue or what she will claim.

Be patient if worker alleges minor harassment

03/29/2011

Employers have an obligation to prevent sexual harassment and to end it when it does occur. But many times, what a thin-skinned employee considers harassment isn’t actually serious enough to rise to that level. When that happens, smart employers exercise patience. They understand the very real danger of winning a sexual harassment case but losing the retaliation case that follows.

Limit access to information about litigation

03/29/2011

With the most recent U.S. Supreme Court pronouncement on retaliation, it’s now clearly impermissible to punish someone who is closely related to an employee who has filed an EEOC complaint or lawsuit. But you can protect yourself by limiting who within the company knows about litigation.

Don’t change termination reason after the fact

03/29/2011

Before you officially terminate an employee, make sure you have nailed down the reasons. That’s the official word—even if your decision is challenged. Here’s why: A court may see new or additional reasons as evidence that the first reasons were just excuses.

Supreme Court: Check boss bias before discipline

03/29/2011
It’s more important than ever now for HR professionals to independently check supervisors’ disciplinary recommendations to ensure that they have no ulterior motives. That’s because the U.S. Supreme Court, in a much-anticipated “cat’s paw” ruling, said that an employer can be found liable for the discriminatory intent of supervisors who influence—but don’t ultimately make—an adverse employment decision.

How to discipline employees for working unauthorized OT

03/24/2011
Hourly employees know that if they work overtime, their employer must pay them for the extra hours. That’s true, but it doesn’t mean they can work OT whenever they feel like it. Here’s how to end unauthorized overtime:

Firing hourly worker? Starbucks’ big win shows how to handle wage statements and pay

03/22/2011
Terminating an employee is never easy. But thanks to a recent California Court of Appeal decision, at least you don’t have to worry about wage statement violations—if you follow the common sense guidelines the court announced.