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Texas

Be careful with doctor certifications: Union contract may trump FMLA rules

07/07/2008
Employers can insist that employees submit medical certification of their need for FMLA leave within 15 days. But what happens if a union member is denied FMLA leave because the employer didn’t get the certification within the 15-day limit? …

Tell supervisors: No retaliation against employees who settled discrimination claims

07/07/2008
Have you recently settled a discrimination case? If the settlement included the employee keeping his or her job, remind all supervisors that they cannot retaliate in any way—or allow co-workers to get back at the employee …

State official: Don’t fall for corporate services scam

07/07/2008
Texas Secretary of State Phil Wilson has warned businesses statewide about a company’s solicitation to complete corporate meeting minutes for a fee. The company, which calls itself State Corporate Compliance, has a sales pitch that implies Texas corporations must regularly file corporate minutes with the secretary of state …

Texas gets Gold Shovel award for economic development

07/07/2008
Area Development magazine has awarded Texas its 2008 Gold Shovel Award for economic development and job creation. Texas Secretary of State Phil Wilson accepted the award on behalf of the state. “This award is further recognition that Texas continues to lead the nation in job creation and economic development,” Wilson said …

Hispanics hit by job shortages

07/07/2008
According to a recent Pew Hispanic Center survey, Hispanic immigrants have been hard hit in the recent job downturn. Hispanic workers currently have an unemployment rate of 6.5%, compared with 4.7% for other workers …

Supreme Court allows retaliation suits under Civil War-Era law

07/07/2008

On May 27, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court further expanded the ability of employees to sue for retaliation—an area of employment law that has exploded in recent years. Specifically, the court held that a federal statute enacted shortly after the Civil War, granting all citizens the right to enter into and enforce contracts (commonly referred to as Section 1981), can be used to bring a claim of employment-related retaliation …

The FMLA and domestic partners

07/07/2008
Q. Several of our company’s employees live with domestic partners. Are these employees entitled to leave under the FMLA? …

Union-Free and eager to stay that way

07/07/2008
Q. Our company has operated union-free for many years. How can we best protect ourselves against future union-organizing activities? …

Be sure to coordinate with FMLA administrator before firing

05/30/2008
If you outsource to another company to administer your FMLA process, work closely with it to ensure you aren’t firing an employee who has been approved for FMLA leave. Instead, make it standard practice to double-check FMLA status before taking any employment action …

Training tests may provide important screening opportunities

05/30/2008
Do your new hires have to complete a comprehensive training and testing program before they’re allowed to start work? If you can show your tests are valid and necessary (and they don’t disproportionately screen out any particular protected class), chances are a new employee who alleges discrimination because you didn’t keep him won’t get far with a lawsuit …