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Texas

Worried about ADA: Can we discipline for misbehavior caused by medical condition?

11/07/2011
Q. One of our employees recently violated a work rule by shouting at his supervisor. After the incident, the employee disclosed to the company for the first time that he had a mental disorder that he claims caused his conduct. Can we discipline him, or would that be disability discrimination?

Are criminal records ‘consumer reports’?

10/31/2011
Q. I understand that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires disclosure to and authorization from job applicants prior to obtaining consumer reports concerning these individuals. My company obtains criminal background records on all applicants. Are these records considered “consumer reports” under the FCRA?

Are we allowed to round off hours worked?

10/31/2011
Q, My company tracks the hours of nonexempt em­­ployees using a time clock. In determining their wages, can we round up or down to the nearest five-minute increment?

OSHA issues new rules on investigating workplace violence

10/31/2011
OSHA has issued en­­force­­ment instructions regarding incidents of workplace violence. Officials will use the directive to decide whether allegations of workplace violence warrant an investigation. It also details methods employers can use to minimize the possibility of workplace violence.

TCC headed for court after prof alleges anti-gay bias

10/31/2011
With help from lawyers at Lambda Legal, which works to protect the legal rights of gay employees, a former temporary professor is suing Tarrant County College, alleging that officials blocked her bid for a full-time professorship because she is a lesbian.

Texas health care firms sued for health-related firings

10/31/2011
Workers at two Texas health care companies are suing, alleging in separate lawsuits that their employers discriminated against them because of health-related issues. One suit claims pregnancy discrimination and FMLA interference, while the other says a worker was fired just before she was scheduled to undergo a costly surgical procedure.

USERRA: Handling pay, benefits for returning service members

10/31/2011

The end of U.S. military combat operations in Iraq means that more “citizen soldiers” will be returning to the civilian workforce. That makes it critical for HR professionals to understand USERRA, the federal law that protects the employment rights of military reservists and National Guard troops. Here’s a primer.

‘Ministerial exception’ applies to music director

10/31/2011
If yours is a religious organization, many employment discrimination laws may not apply to some employees who perform “ministerial” work.

Expect union reps to aggressively push grievances

10/31/2011
Is your workforce unionized? Then expect union reps to push grievances aggressively, especially if they involve possible racial issues. That’s because more employees are suing unions over timid representation.

Even if jobs seem quite similar, feel free to use different hiring criteria

10/31/2011
Employers sometimes have several similar jobs that require almost identical skills, certificates or training. But that doesn’t mean that all these positions can’t have different hiring requirements. Just make sure you can justify the differences.