Terminations

Government whistle-blowing is protected speech–unless delivered in insubordinate manner

01/09/2013

Public employees who speak out on matters of public importance are engaging in protected speech. However, that protection has limits. When the “speech” is rude, offensive or threatening—and it occurs at work—the employer is free to punish the employee for the speech’s delivery (not its content).

Give employee time to weigh severance offer

01/09/2013

If you want to offer a severance package to an employee in exchange for giving up the right to contest a discharge, give him plenty of time to consider the offer. If you don’t, the signed deal may not be final.

Suspect leave abuse? Be certain before you act

01/03/2013

Most of the time, an employer needs only to honestly believe the reason given for a termination. However, that’s not true in cases involving the FMLA or California family leave.

Use discipline record to select employees for RIF

01/01/2013

Absent a union contract or other established rule, you don’t have to use seniority to decide which employee should be laid off. You can use any objective measure.

When performance slips, don’t let past good reviews affect decision-making

01/01/2013

Some employees do well for years, only to have their performance slip. There may come a time when you have to let the employee go. But what about all those glowing evaluations from years past? If you can prove that the employee’s performance has genuinely declined, those earlier evaluations won’t cause any trouble in court.

Employee passed test? He’s probably ‘qualified’

12/30/2012

For an employee to win a discrimination lawsuit, he has to show that he was qualified for the job he held. Some employers assume that if they disciplined the employee for poor performance, that proves he wasn’t qualified. But a court might not see it that way if you trained and tested him before putting him to work.

SOX doesn’t protect safety whistle-blowers

12/19/2012

A federal court in North Carolina has refused to add another legal avenue disgruntled employees can use to sue. The court said even after recent amendments that expanded the scope of the law, the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act doesn’t protect whistle-blowers who report what they believe are serious safety violations at work.

Is job-hunting a firing offense?

12/18/2012

Q. It has come to my attention that one of our managers has posted his résumé on an online job board. Is it legal to ask him if he is actively looking for another job? If he is, do we have grounds to terminate him?

Settlement soon? EEOC rules Wet Seal discriminated

12/18/2012

Clothing retailer Wet Seal appears headed for a settlement after the EEOC ruled against it in a race discrimination complaint that alleged a high-level effort to trim the number of black employees working at the teen fashion retailers’ stores.

Can we terminate worker to keep domestic violence from spilling over into our workplace?

12/12/2012

Q. We have learned that one of our employees has been subjected to domestic violence and has a restraining order against her boyfriend. We are concerned that the man might become violent in our workplace. We are considering terminating the employee to make sure that our other employees are safe. Does such a termination raise any legal issues?