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Terminations

What should we do? Employee is missing work because of what we suspect is domestic abuse

10/14/2014
Q. We have a female employee who is having personal problems and keeps missing work. She sometimes comes to work with visible bruises, and we suspect her spouse is abusive. While we’re sympathetic, we also have important work that isn’t getting done and the employee’s last-minute absences are a problem. We’ve told her how important attendance is, but the problem isn’t going away. Can we fire her?

Note time, circumstances of firing decision

10/14/2014

Employees may begin suspecting that their job is in danger before management has a chance to implement a discharge decision. That’s when you can expect them to complain about harassment or discrimination. Or, in Minnesota, they may request a copy of their personnel file to see what’s in it and prepare for a potential lawsuit. Beat that strategy by carefully documenting the discharge process.

Discipline when dashed romance affects work

10/14/2014
Bad relationships can affect employees in surprising ways. When a romance ends, anger and frustration at home can wind up infecting the workplace. You can discipline employees if blow-back from love gone wrong harms your business.

Insubordination: The most legit reason to fire

10/09/2014
If there’s one reason for firing an employee that’s likely to stand up in court, it’s insubordination. Employers that carefully document an employee’s refusal to follow directions or listen to a supervisor’s reasonable instructions or rules are likely to win a lawsuit.

NLRB: Firing employees for Facebook posts was unlawful

10/08/2014
Here’s another reminder to employers to exercise caution in imposing discipline for conduct on social media.

Insubordination? That’s a legit firing offense!

10/08/2014

If there’s one reason for firing an employee that’s likely to stand up in court, it’s insubordination. Employers that carefully document an employee’s refusal to follow directions or listen to a supervisor’s reasonable instructions or rules are likely to win a lawsuit.

Agriculture company helps 600 laid-off employees find new jobs

10/06/2014
Milwaukee-based agricultural firm Cargill laid off 600 employees on Aug. 1. On Aug. 14, it held a companywide job fair to help them find new jobs.

The hot lawsuits of 2014: Discrimination, harassment

10/01/2014
A survey asked: “In which of the following areas has your organization seen the most employee lawsuits or class action over the past year?”

How long would Ray Rice have lasted in your firm?

09/22/2014

Only when surveillance video surfaced in early September of football player Ray Rice punching his then-fiancée did the team decide it was time to terminate him. What would your organization do if one of your employees were identified as a domestic abuser?

Workers less worried about losing their jobs

09/09/2014
Fewer than one in five U.S. full- and part-time workers are worried that they will be laid off in the near future, according to a new Gallup poll.