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Terminations

Don’t be bullied to create permanent light-duty job

11/01/2002
After injuring her shoulder, assembly-line worker Tamara Watson wasn’t able to do many tasks required for her job. To aid her recovery, the company temporarily limited her to lighter duties that …

Care for healthy child wins FMLA coverage

11/01/2002
The walls of employee FMLA protection have grown higher with a new court ruling that says a worker must be given leave to look after his healthy children while his wife …

Less prestigious job leads to constructive discharge

11/01/2002
After a top-performing African-American server at Denny’s was transferred to a different location, the restaurant unexpectedly reassigned her to busing tables. She walked off the job and sued, alleging that she …

Regulating off-duty conduct: How far can you go?

11/01/2002
Say you find out that your sales manager is dating the marketing director of your biggest competitor. Or that your cashier has a bottle-of-scotch-a-day drinking habit after work. Can you fire …

Write Job Descriptions Before Trouble Starts

10/01/2002

Q. How serious is it if written job descriptions aren’t in place for employees? Is it safe to draft them even after a termination that could result in a lawsuit? —B.B., New York

Don’t deny ADA accommodation due to ‘potential’ seniority break

10/01/2002
After 18 years as a truck driver, Donald Dilley developed back trouble and was limited by his doctor to lifting less than 60 pounds at a time. Dilley asked for routes …

Employer’s extortion ignites wrongful discharge claim

10/01/2002
The owner of a ranch hired B.J. and Nancy Logan to work on his property. When the Logans got a permit to develop their own property near the ranch, the ranch …

The WARN Act: Notify staff before large-scale layoffs

10/01/2002
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires certain employers to give employees 60 days notice before a plant closing or mass layoff. Some states also have plant-closure laws that add additional mandates.

Worker can’t sue for job switch if you have legitimate reasons

10/01/2002
Barbara Policastro was a Northwest Airlines’ sales rep whose territory covered Cincinnati, where she lived. She also had to spend about five days a month servicing cities in northern Kentucky about …

Don’t silence or punish workers who compare their pay

09/01/2002
A marketing director at one of Covenant Care’s nursing facilities attended a meeting of other marketing directors in the company. During the meeting, she joined other directors in a brief discussion …