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Terminations

Place employee on ‘provisional’ FMLA leave while seeking 2nd, 3rd certifications

03/12/2009

Employers don’t have to blindly accept their employees’ medical certifications. The FMLA allows you to get a second opinion about whether an employee’s request qualifies for leave … If the two certifications don’t agree, you can get a third and final certification to break the tie. But what happens during the interim?

Think twice before firing workers’ comp applicant

03/12/2009

Minnesota employees are protected from being fired in retaliation for filing a workers’ compensation claim. That means employers have to think twice before discharging such an employee for anything but the most solid reasons.

Coincidental timing alone does not make a retaliation claim

03/12/2009

Sometimes, employees think they can save themselves from being disciplined by making a fuss about possible employer wrongdoing. They assume that whistle-blowing will protect them from being fired, for example, because their employer’s timing will look suspect. Smart employers don’t fall for this.

New Best Buy business plan will cut some jobs, add others

03/12/2009

Richfield-based electronics retail giant Best Buy is adjusting its business plan in response to the economic downturn. The move will cost 250 jobs in Richfield, but the company plans to hire 210 additional people.

Know what’s in that contract before you ask anyone to sign a noncompete

03/12/2009

More and more employers are asking their HR staffs to prepare noncompete agreements to prevent employees from taking trade secrets to competitors. Before you pull out a standard form or download one from the Internet, consider the consequences.

Make pre-firing investigation truly independent

03/09/2009

You might have rogue managers in your midst without even knowing it. If one of your supervisors has it in for a subordinate for discriminatory reasons, and you rely on his recommendation to terminate an employee, you may be in trouble.

You can rely on ‘negative’ FMLA certification

03/09/2009

Sometimes, employees think they’re sick enough to qualify for FMLA leave, but their doctors don’t. Other times, medical staff filling out the medical forms makes mistakes. Either way, if you get a certification or doctor’s note explaining that the employee can work, you are under no obligation to get more information. Instead, you can rely on that “negative” FMLA certification and deny leave.

Use solid research to back business-necessity defense when deciding not to accommodate

03/09/2009

Few employers win ADA cases by using a business-necessity defense. That’s probably because few employers take the time to really lay out why their business cannot accommodate a particular disability. Now the 11th Circuit has decided a business-necessity case that can serve as a blueprint for employers that want to use it effectively.

Warn bosses: Preconceived notions about disability can violate the ADA

03/09/2009

Some conditions aren’t serious enough to constitute disabilities, but some supervisors wrongly assume they do. That’s a major problem: By assuming a condition is disabling, they’re “regarding” the employee as disabled—something the ADA prohibits. Thus, the ADA protects even employees who aren’t disabled.

Has the recession motivated your staff?

03/09/2009

According to a survey by global talent assessment firm SHL, nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents say the economic nose dive has not had any effect on their motivation at work.