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Terminations

School ‘accident’ leads to suit against Brunswick County

04/02/2010
Anna Stanley used to work for the Brunswick County school system as a teaching assistant. She was terminated after an incident in which a third-grader wet his pants and sat in them for three hours. Stanley has filed race discrimination charges under state law in Brunswick County Superior Court.

Make following instructions a part of your expectations

04/02/2010
Employees who claim discrimination was the reason they were fired have to show that they were meeting their employer’s legitimate job expectations. Employees fired for insubordination have a hard time proving that—especially if their employer can point to specific facts that prove insubordination.

Returning from disability leave, can employee dictate the terms of his new job?

03/26/2010
Q. One of our employees has been out on disability leave for almost 16 months. He says he wants to return to work, but only if we give him a supervisory position without a lot of strenuous activity. We have no such position available. We’ve offered him other positions, but he’s refused them all. Can we legally terminate him?

Terminating for attendance? Don’t make FMLA a factor

03/26/2010
Employers have every right to terminate employees who can’t come to work on time—but not for taking FMLA leave.

Mind your mouth: Ageist criticism more likely than ever to spur a lawsuit

03/26/2010

Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2009 Gross v. FBL Financial Services decision, employees suing for age discrimination have had to prove that “but for” the employee’s age, the employer wouldn’t have taken the adverse action it did. Gross generally benefited employers, but it also raised the stakes. Now, managers’ ageist statements can really have an impact.

Whistle-blower flagging safety violation? Don’t shoot the messenger by retaliating

03/26/2010

Generally, Pennsylvania is an at-will employment state where employers can fire employees for any nondiscriminatory reason. But Pennsylvania also allows lawsuits for wrongful discharge based on public-policy concerns. Those public policies include the right not to be fired for reporting company safety violations that could harm the public.

You’ll need a calendar and a calculator: Track past service to check FMLA eligibility

03/26/2010

Whenever you hire someone, check your records of past employees. If your new employee is a rehire and last worked for you within seven years, be ready to credit that service if FMLA eligibility ever becomes an issue. If you don’t do that, and wind up denying FMLA leave to an eligible employee, you may have to pay double damages.

Document and retain evidence that led to firing

03/26/2010
You never know which terminated employee will sue—or how long he might wait to do so. That’s why it’s important to document everything leading up to the termination. Then make it your policy to retain firing-related documents indefinitely.

When unemployment comp is on the line, job dissatisfaction doesn’t justify quitting

03/26/2010

Employees who are forced to work in an unsafe or unhealthy environment may be able to collect unemployment benefits. But some employees seem to think that any work-related problems can justify quitting and then getting unemployment. That’s simply not true.

Act fast to punish violent employee, even if he’s been the victim of harassment

03/26/2010

It’s understandable that employees might get angry if they perceive that co-workers are harassing them. But that doesn’t justify a violent reaction. When alleged victims of harassment lash out, you can and should punish them. But even as you discipline the angry worker, make sure you also do whatever you can to end the harassment that precipitated the violent response.