It’s legitimate to discipline or fire employees who behave badly. But employers that mandate suspension or termination for rule violations must apply the policy to everyone who violates the same rule. Then they should follow up with a prompt and thorough investigation into exactly what happened ...

Two Southern Illinois University at Carbondale professors who were threatened with punishment after they aced a mandatory online ethics test have received a settlement in a lawsuit they brought against the state. Why did the state want to punish them? They finished the 10-question exam too quickly ...

The Minnesota Whistleblower Act (MWA) is designed to protect Minnesota employees who are punished for reporting company practices they believe are illegal. It’s not HR’s job to determine whether anything illegal occurred. However, when an employee has blown the whistle on a company practice, HR must make sure any future discipline is warranted and not driven by an ulterior motive ...

Sexual harassment investigations can be embarrassing for everyone, including the alleged victim. But in order to conduct a fair and impartial investigation, HR must know exactly what happened. You don’t want to get part of the story, only to find out later that there was more ...

The easiest way for an employee to win a discrimination lawsuit is to complain about discrimination and then sit back and wait for a supervisor or manager to retaliate. That’s why it’s so important for HR to keep track of discrimination complaints and disciplinary actions ...

Shirley Morton, a clerical worker for the Albany Police Department, has filed a $35 million lawsuit against the department and the city, claiming Sgt. Kevin McKenna subjected her to sexual harassment, unwanted physical contact and verbal abuse for 12 years ...

Sometimes, even the best HR professionals may feel paralyzed when faced with a major employee discipline decision, such as whether an employee should be fired. They hedge and keep asking supervisors questions, or keep an investigation open to get more information. If this sounds like your HR office when dealing with a discrimination complaint, relax ...

Jack Burghardt, an administrative support assistant in the Denver Clerk and Recorder’s Office, said he meant no offense when he asked two Hispanic co-workers how much it costs their “people to get across the border these days.” His boss felt the comment had racial overtones and suspended Burghardt for four days ...

A group of black sheriff’s deputies is suing Denver and the Denver Sheriff Department, claiming the agency harbors a “culture of racism.” The lawsuit claims black employees are punished more harshly than whites for similar behavior ...

Employers that use third parties (referred to in the law as credit reporting agencies, or CRAs) to perform background checks and investigations need to be aware of the requirements of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ...

As an employer, you are obligated to investigate employee harassment and discrimination claims. How you handle those investigations can determine whether you’ll have to prepare for later lawsuits. The problem: allegations that you defamed someone while conducting the investigation ...

Insist that managers tell HR when they issue any form of discipline, even an oral warning. That way, there’s a record that you can later use to explain why it only looks like a discharged employee was punished more harshly than others who committed the same offense ...

When you fire an employee, you want the decision to stick. You certainly don’t want to use a flimsy reason for discharge and then find out later that other employees regularly ignore your rule. If the former employee is a member of a protected class, that’s a sure recipe for a discrimination lawsuit ...

Q. We are a private corporation. Recently, we discovered some theft in our operation. We called an employee in for an investigatory interview. He claimed to have consulted with an attorney and refused to answer our questions on the grounds that he could not be forced to incriminate himself under the 5th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. What are our choices under such circumstances?...